Courtney Hadwin, known for her show-stopping vocals since her America’s Got Talent debut at just 13, has now taken a bold new step — not just as a singer, but as a songwriter unafraid to reveal her inner world.
Her new single, “Die and Stay Pretty”, is a raw, emotional piece that has struck a chord with listeners across the internet. It’s a departure from her previous work — not in sound, but in depth. This is Hadwin at her most vulnerable, sharing a personal story wrapped in haunting melodies and stripped-down production.
Watch the video below.
Backed by minimal instrumentation, the track carries an atmospheric tension as she sings, “Acting like you’re in the Velvet Underground, you look so good when you’re going down.” Her voice — smoky, soulful, and defiant — captures both frustration and sorrow in equal measure.
“This track stands apart from the rest of the album,” Hadwin shared. “It came from watching someone close to me spiral, and how that affected me too. I told Kevin [Bowe], let’s just be real and write about it.”
From viral sensation to grounded storyteller
For many, Hadwin will forever be the teen dynamo who rocked the AGT stage with a fiery version of Hard to Handle. That moment — and Howie Mandel’s famous Golden Buzzer — catapulted her into global recognition. But her journey since then has been anything but smooth.
Signed to a major label at a young age, Hadwin quickly discovered the harsh side of the industry. “They were trying to mold me into something I wasn’t,” she recalls. After her label shut down just before her 16th birthday, she was left to rebuild on her own terms.
Now working with Grammy-winning songwriter Kevin Bowe in Minneapolis, Hadwin has turned those setbacks into fuel. Her upcoming debut album reflects the highs and lows of growing up in the spotlight, and “Die and Stay Pretty” is its emotional center.
Embracing the chaos, finding the truth
Long before the fame, Hadwin spent hours studying legends like Janis Joplin, Tina Turner, and Aretha Franklin. Their influence lives in her delivery — unfiltered, emotionally raw, and fiercely individual. She wasn’t trained to sound perfect; she was born to sound real.
The energy of those early idols pulses through other tracks on her debut, from the grungy guitar-driven Spellbound to the funk-leaning DNA. But it’s “Die and Stay Pretty” that lays her heart bare.
“This one was tough to write,” she admits. “But it felt necessary. It’s the first time I let my guard down and told the truth — even to myself.”
Not just a voice — a vision
What sets Hadwin apart isn’t just her range or her rasp. It’s her refusal to be boxed in. Her genre-bending debut is proof of that. “I never wanted to make an album where every song sounds the same,” she says. “There are no fillers. Every track tells its own story.”
“Die and Stay Pretty” is more than just a powerful ballad. It’s a turning point — the sound of a young woman stepping fully into her identity as an artist. For longtime fans and new listeners alike, it offers a glimpse of Hadwin not as a prodigy, but as a person — full of flaws, fight, and truth.
She’s not following the rules. She’s writing her own.
And the world is finally ready to listen.
