JACOB HACKWORTH - "Bad As I Do" - Independent Release

With a songwriting resume that carries cuts by Morgan Wallen, Jelly Roll, Vincent Mason, and Tucker Wetmore, as well as boasting #1 hits from Corey Kent (“This Heart”) and Bailey Zimmerman (“Rock And A Hard Place”), Jacob Hackworth boldly stepped out from behind the scenes and into his artist side earlier this year.

Showcasing his impressive songwriting abilities on “When I Don’t” and “You Ain’t,” he quickly caught the ear of industry tastemakers and elevated his status as a powerhouse vocalist, balancing strong emotional pulls and searing heartache against ultra-modern backdrops that induce the late-night juxtaposition of holding on while letting go.   

He now closes 2025 with his third single of the year, “Bad As I Do.”

Written by Hackworth, Jessie Jo Dillon, Chris Tompkins and Daniel Ross, the lonesome and pining ballad has been road-tested, closing out his performances and attracting a huge fan response which endearingly lands this late year release as one for his fans.

Led by the simplicity of an acoustic guitar and the frayed edge of his vocal prowess, Hackworth invites us into his inner soul where we find him at the intersection between anxiety riddled, self-torture and heartfelt confession as he admits through each of the verses to drinking first thing in the morning, trashing a Hilton Hotel room, and not being able to get her off his mind.

Draping the chorus in a Top 40 styled flow, Hackworth drips his voice with proper yearning, lusting, and craving as he says the inside things out loud, speaking his wants into existence:

“Dammit, I wanna feel how it feels

To have my hands on you

And I wanna hold you

Until the sky burns out of blue

As bad as I’m hurting

As bad as it’s worth it

The bittersweet, bloodshot truth

It’s no one if not you

And nobody wants you

As bad as I do”

It takes a real special breed for a hitmaking songwriter to make the transition to artist. On one hand, the listener is already familiar with your writing style through their favorite artists on the radio. On the other hand, you need to craft something that fits into the box you’re known for while also finding areas to stretch the line and try out some new stuff that gives you a fresh identity as an artist.

Between his vocal grit, raw transparency, and ability to use the ebbs and flows of his crafty lyrical turns, Hackworth has gripped the listener’s heartstrings with pure emotion on each of his first three singles, making it then no surprise that he’s being hailed as a key player in the next era of country music.

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)