Songwriter Kristen Ford has released her new album Pinto, a 12-track collection addressing social and political themes through rock arrangements. The album is available now through Ani DiFranco’s Righteous Babe Records.

Ford worked with DiFranco on four songs for the project, with DiFranco serving as co-producer alongside Ford and Zac Brown Band member John Driskell Hopkins. The collaboration began after DiFranco attended one of Ford’s shows in 2022. Grammy-winning engineer Randy Merrill, known for his work with Taylor Swift and Chappell Roan, handled mastering duties.

The album tackles topics including LGBTQ+ rights, identity, and social justice. On the track “Wild Heart,” Ford sings: “You can’t control me, my pride or my joy, I don’t owe you a damn thing, if I’m a girl or a boy.” Another song, “White Man’s Dream,” includes the lyrics: “Raise your glass to the mighty Mississippi, and God bless a Southern man, how quickly you forget my great great great grandmother, she died picking cotton on stolen land.”

Ford describes her musical approach as “candy-coated rock,” combining accessible melodies with pointed social commentary. The queer, biracial artist recorded the album across multiple locations including Nashville, Louisiana, and Atlanta.

Pinto centers on the message that marginalized communities – including working people, women, queer individuals, and immigrants – continue to have value and importance. Ford states: “it’s time to be louder, be bigger, be brasher.”

The release coincides with Ford’s ongoing US tour, which includes dates across more than 15 states. Tour information is available at kristenfordmusic.com/tour.