Lee Kernaghan is back with “4X4 IS KING” — a high-energy new country anthem built for the open road and the first taste of his forthcoming studio album, due mid-2027.Out October 15 via ABC Music, “ 4X4 IS KING” was written in a cabin in the Blue Mountains, NSW, with longtime songwriting partners Colin Buchanan and Nick Wolfe of The Wolfe Brothers.Inspired by Kernaghan’s lifelong love of four-wheel driving, the song captures the freedom of leaving the highway behind and heading beyond the blacktop.“ I’ve always loved four-wheel driving and that sense of freedom that washes over you when you get out beyond the blacktop,” Lee says. “ There’s something about heading down a dirt road and not quite knowing what’s around the next bend. That feeling is at the heart of ‘4X4 IS KING.’”Produced by ARIA Award-winning producer, multi-instrumentalist and 25-time Golden Guitar winner Rod McCormack at The Music Cellar, the track reunites two longtime musical collaborators with a shared history stretching back to 1992.“ 4X4 IS KING” opens with a striking a cappella vocal from Kernaghan, McCormack and James Gillard — a subtle tip of the hat to the sound of Lee’s ARIA Award-winning debut The Outback Club — before kicking into a fresh, hard-driving contemporary country production.The track also features the red-hot guitar work of Jacky McCormack, the multi-instrumentalist, producer and singer-songwriter bringing a new-generation edge to the sound. The single was mastered by Jeff McCormack.“Recording with Rod has felt like a real homecoming,” Lee says. “He’s one of the finest musicians and producers in country music, and there’s a real energy around what we’re creating together. I can’t wait for people to hear this new music.”Kernaghan has already given “ 4X4 IS KING” its ultimate road test, premiering the song live in front of approximately 20,000 fans at the Deni Ute Muster in Deniliquin. The performance also became the setting for the official “4X4 IS KING” music video, capturing the song live amongst thousands of fans and utes in the heart of regional Australia.With more than two million albums sold, hundreds of millions of songs streamed, 40 #1 hits, 38 Golden Guitars and four ARIA Awards, Kernaghan now fires the starting gun on his next studio album with a song made to be turned up loud.