Golden Hour

Golden Hour is the fourth studio album by American singer and songwriter Kacey Musgraves. It was released on March 30, 2018, through MCA Nashville. She co-wrote all 13 tracks and co-produced the album along with producers Daniel Tashian and Ian Fitchuk, while her sister Kelly Christine Sutton designed the album's cover art. The record was mostly inspired by musicians Sade and Neil Young, as well as a transitional period in her personal life, including her relationship with Ruston Kelly.

A pop and country album, Golden Hour adopts various genres like soft rock, country pop, yacht rock, electronica, and disco. It also features acoustic instruments such as pedal steel and banjo with synthesizers and vocoders, leading critics to view those elements as part of Musgraves's adoption of contemporary production approaches. Lyrically, it focuses on love, introspection, and emotional balance; the album places less emphasis on small-town narratives and explores more universal themes instead, compared to her earlier work.

Musgraves promoted Golden Hour through televised performances and the Oh, What a World: Tour (2018–2019). Four singles supported the album—"Space Cowboy", "Butterflies", "High Horse", and "Rainbow"—all of which reached the top 40 on the US Hot Country Songs chart, with "Rainbow" also entering the US Billboard Hot 100. Upon release, Golden Hour received widespread critical acclaim, with reviewers highlighting its genre-blending sound and thematic direction. At the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, it won Album of the Year and Best Country Album, becoming the first country album to win the former since 2010.

Golden Hour debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 and number one on the Top Country Albums chart, later returning to the top ten following its Grammy win. In other countries, it reached the top ten in the United Kingdom and Scotland. The album also appeared on numerous year-end lists for 2018 and was later included in decade-end and all-time rankings by various publications. In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked Golden Hour at 270 on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.