It's been nearly four years since Jennifer Nettles revealed that she started working on solo material apart from Sugarland. Three solo albums later, including 2014's That Girl, 2016's Playing with Fire and To Celebrate Christmas, the singer says she is comfortable on her own.

"The whole impetus behind going solo was an artistic inspiration in the sense that, obviously success is fantastic," she says in an interview with her label, Big Machine Label Group. "But as one becomes successful and gets branded with a certain sound if the brand starts to become more of the focus than the evolution of the art then that’s putting the cart before the horse. And I could see that actually happening."

While Nettles admits that this is common with many artists and genres, she personally wanted to do something about it.

"I wanted to take a chance and to see what I would create from a solo perspective and to offer my fans a little bit more of an intimate look at who I am as an artist," she explains. "And so consequently I have felt super liberated by it."

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In 2013, Nettles revealed that she had begun working with Rick Rubin on her debut solo album but eased fans' fears by promising that this new material did not mean Sugarland was breaking up.

“We’re just taking time to do things individually, personally and professionally,” she said. “And we’re super supportive of each other in what we do on both those fronts, personally and professionally.”

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