Hackworth considers "What Took You So Long"

Monday, August 31, 2026 – Jacob Hackworth will release his debut EP, "What Took You So Long," on Oct. 23 via MCA/Goat Island Sound., he announced Friday.

The seven-song project includes "I Wanna Quit," which was released on Friday as well. Written by Hackworth, Jaxson Free, Heath Warren and Tyler Dopps, who produced it with Daniel Ross, "I Wanna Quit" finds Hackworth dealing with a toxic relationship.

Hackworth also released a video for the song.

"This EP is probably the most full-circle thing I've ever done. I definitely didn't set out to write a project about a breakup. It just kind of came together naturally. There is something poetic about getting to tell that story as my first project as an artist, considering it was the reason for me moving here to chase my dream of being a recording artist. I also love the message underneath it all: sometimes the hardest things in your life happen the way they do for a reason. Zero out of 10 would recommend getting dumped, but it put me exactly where I was supposed to be. I'm happier, healthier and living a life I dreamed about for a long time because of it," said Hackworth. "We wrote 'I Wanna Quit' at a writers camp back in May and knew instantly it was a smash. We cut it almost immediately because we didn't want to overthink it. It was the perfect addition to this project."

Several songs from the EP have been released including the title track, which came out in April.

The track list is:
1. What Took You So Long Track List:
2. "What Took You So Long" - Jacob Hackworth, Daniel Ross, Jaxson Free, Steph Jones
3. "I Wanna Quit"- Jacob Hackworth, Jaxson Free, Heath Warren, Tyler Dopps
4. "Bad As I Do"- Jacob Hackworth, Daniel Ross, Chris Tompkins, Jessie Jo Dillon
5. "Last Night I Got Lonely"- Jacob Hackworth, Gabe Foust, Danny Majic
6. "First Friday Night"- Jacob Hackworth, Jaxson Free, Daniel Ross, Matt Roy
7. "Help Yourself" - Jacob Hackworth, Gabe Foust, Sean Wave, Travis Smith "
8. Mess That Marlboro Made"- Jacob Hackworth, Josh Phillips, Jordan Schmidt

The West Plains, Mo. native about has had 60 major label cuts including Bailey Zimmerman's six-week number one hit, "Rock and a Hard Place," Corey Kent's chart topper "This Heart," three songs from Jelly Roll's "Beautifully Broken", Morgan Wallen's "Jack and Jill," Vincent Mason's single "Damned If I Do" and ix songs from Tucker Wetmore's debut album including "Wine Into Whiskey."

In 2025 he transitioned back into artist mode and released When I Don't," "You Ain't" and "Bad As I Do."