A veteran songwriter with a distinctive voice and a refreshingly down-home point of view, Hailey Whitters is an artist who deserves more than she’s gotten so far in country music’s mainstream.

Songs like “I’m in Love” and “Everything She Ain’t” could easily find a home at country radio: They’re plucky and colorful earworms with a sense of humor and a strong heartbeat.

Those two songs are about love, but even more common in Whitters’ catalog are songs about enjoying life’s simple pleasures. “Heartland,” “Glad to Be Here” and “The Ride” all stand out as sweet, sunny songs about getting in touch with what’s truly important in life.

Whitters had a modest breakout hit in 2020 with a song called “Ten Year Town” that went viral on social media — and, interestingly enough, is a little bit of an anomaly in her catalog. Its lyrics read like a diary entry from one of her more defeated days as a singer-songwriter trying to make it in Nashville, watching “the new ‘It girl’ fresh off the bus, cut right in front of the rest of us” and wondering if it’s ever going to be her turn.

Read More: A Toilet Bat Forced Hailey Whitters to Get Five Rabies Shots

But even though that ballad was a departure, it did have something in common with the rest of Whitters’ material: Disarming honesty.

In the years since, she has written just as authentically about love, home, gratitude and the importance of living where your feet are.

She’s also one of country music’s more in-demand collaborators. Whitters’ The Dream album includes duets with big stars like Jordan Davis, Little Big Town and Trisha Yearwood — all performers who’ve toured, written or worked with her over the years.

And though she’s seen some major recognition, like winning the ACM for New Female Artist of the Year in 2023, Whitters has yet to see her big mainstream breakout. Read through Taste of Country’s list of her best songs, and you’ll see why she’s overdue for her turn at mainstream stardom.