Country newcomer Dasha has had quite a career launch. Her debut single, “Austin,” went Top 10 on Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart and all the way up to No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 all-genre chart.
It also crossed one billion streams on Spotify, which comes with a prize the California native can’t wait to receive (but more on that later).
With fame came a price to pay for the young star — a swift decline in her mental health.
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Dasha stopped by Taste of Country Nights and got really candid with me on what happened after “Austin” got so big.
How Did the Success of “Austin” Change Dasha’s Life?
“I was such a mess,” she shares.
“You have to understand, all my dreams were coming true, this was insane. However, what I did not account for is how much I would lose myself not giving myself enough time to just be normal.”
From the outside, fame looks glamorous, but hearing the other side of it from Dasha is an eye-opener.
It all led to a new song called “Oh, Anna!” that is undoubtedly her most vulnerable track to date.
In February of 2026, she partnered with the Grand Ole Opry to release her Opry performance of the song as a separate single, because she wanted fans to see and hear how much the performance meant to her.
It’s all part of a catharsis that’s led to the next chapter in her life and career. This one will include a little more reset time.
Watch the full interview at 6PM CT on Taste of Country’s YouTube, or keep scrolling for the Q&A related to “Oh, Anna!” and Dasha’s mental health struggles.
Taste of Country: Where were you emotionally or mentally the day that you wrote that song?
Dasha: It was like in the peak of “Austin” time and like, you have to understand, like all my dreams were coming true. This was insane.
However, what I didn’t account for was how much I would lose myself not giving myself enough time to just be normal and, you know, do normal things. Like I was never home, never home for like almost a year and a half straight.
And after a while — after you’ve not acclimated to this life yet — it just wrecked me. I didn’t recognize myself. I didn’t recognize my personality or my sense of humor, or I couldn’t figure out what I wanted to wear because I just lost that center north star that I’ve always had with myself. It was really scary.
How’d you get it back?
Literally, it sounds cheesy, but writing this song helped so much.
I went into the session with Hillary Lindsey and Emily Weisband and Chris LaCorte, and I know these guys real well. And they were like, “Okay, what party banger are we writing today?”
And I walk in and I just literally broke down. I broke down. I cried the entire session, and I talked about how I missed myself. And we cracked the code and wrote the song about little me, and writing that song, I was like, “I can’t get her back.” All I have to do is just channel what made me happy as a kid.
I want to ask you for a childhood memory from when you were under 10. The first one.
My dad was holding me in the garage. I was like three years old. It was right before my parents got divorced and he was wearing this black, kind of button-up shark shirt. And I loved this shark shirt because I’d be in his arms and just look at all the different sharks.
And I remember saying to him, “I’m so glad I chose you and Mom as my parents.” And he was like, “What do you mean you chose us?” And I go, “Before I was born, I chose you guys because I wanted to have a happy life.”
Oh my God, that was something like otherworldly, you know?
He still remembers it. And I was like, that is insane. Am I a genius? [Laughs].
There is a lyric in “Oh, Anna!” that goes, “I didn’t even know that you were gone ’til I was drunk on Broadway and they were playing our song.” What song is it?
It was “Austin.” I was at (Nashville Underground). I love Underground.
They have a really good DJ deck at the top, but I was literally in the bathroom on the second-to-top level about to go up to the top level again, and I hear my song. And I was having a weird night. I was having a weird night and I went to the bathroom, it’s a reset place, you know? Barely peeing happens in there. It’s more just like a hang zone. I was having my reset. I was looking in the mirror and I was like looking in, you know?
You know when you’re high and you’re looking in your eyes and you’re in the mirror and you’re like, ‘Those are the same eyes that were a kid one time’?
I was having one of those weird moments, and I was looking in the mirror and I was like, whoa. And then the song starts playing and I was like, whoa. So that’s what that lyric’s about. That’s legit.
21 Sad Country Songs That Were Huge Crossover Hits, Ranked
Themes like heartbreak and loneliness are universally relatable, but it just so happens that the country genre is better than just about any other at conveying those emotions. That means that lots of sad country songs have found a fan base outside of country music!
Keep scrolling for a look back at 21 sad country songs that were HUGE hits in country music…and beyond!
Gallery Credit: Carena Liptak
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