Singer-songwriter Ryan Beatty consistently proves himself a talented penman — and his record Sweet Fortune, which released on Friday is no exception.
Beatty first grew in popularity writing for and performing alongside BROCKHAMPTON, a hip-hop boy band founded in San Marcos, and won a Grammy for co-writing Beyonce’s Texas-inspired Cowboy Carter. Beatty’s last indie-pop album, Calico, emerged as a critic’s favorite and became widely regarded as one of the best albums of 2023. After Calico’s striking lyricism, Beatty has absolved himself from anticipation to produce an even stronger record with Sweet Fortune.
Sweet Fortune brings closure to Beatty’s past work, creating space for an entirely separate record. The album focuses on loving in the present tense, even when kept apart by distance, differing from Beatty’s lyricism on grief and heartbreak in the past. The lead single, “Secret Language,” features a line that captures the album’s theme of loving someone so hard that words cannot do it justice, even for a lyrical precisionist like Beatty.
“All the ways I say it, in a secret language / Did you hear what my words couldn’t tell?” Beatty sings.
“Phantom” exists as a perfect opening act for the album, a piano ballad that sweeps listeners off their feet. The opening of the track establishes a cinematic atmosphere with, “Spotlight simmers on the floor / And falls on the ingénue, in powder blue.” Beatty reflects on the sacrifices made when loving someone and the emotional weight of love being balanced by both gratitude and despair.
Sweet Fortune contains anthems touched with Americana, including tracks like “Virtuoso,” “Secret Language” and “Too Many Ways,” which all encompass a bit of twang. Country folk flourishes in the record’s production, and its influences even feature on the album cover, which features a longhorn skull. “Virtuoso” remains one of the more upbeat tracks of the album, with pedal steel guitar and the banjo accentuating its roots in folk.
While the album bears no official features, singer-songwriter Clairo maintains a presence that echoes throughout, lending delicate backing vocals in “White Lightning,” “Sweet Fortune” and “Too Many Ways.” In addition, Beatty co-wrote “Delancey” with Clairo, a hazy and gloomy track that includes a saxophone solo reminiscent of one you might hear in a lonely bar. The track reckons with the desolate moments when a lover is far away.
“You’re just a shadow, a shape in the door / Leaving me lonely, leaving me sore,” Beatty sings.
A record that grows on you, Sweet Fortune reveals new facets and quiet intricacies with every listen. In doing so, the album cements Beatty as one of indie-pop’s most compelling songwriters, one that will only continue to grow beyond the studio at Austin City Limits 2026.
4 long-distance relationships out of 5
