Mere weeks after the world found out about the departure of Runaway June member Naomi Cooke Johnson, the remaining members of the country trio ended up playing some shows together as a duo.
And it felt good.
"We obviously loved [Naomi] and wanted her to do what was on her heart — it was sad for us to watch her leave, and I do think we did go through a mourning stage," says Wayne, 40, in a revealing new interview with PEOPLE. "But at the same time, [remaining member] Natalie [Stovall] and I did get to this point where we truly believed that we could do this just the two of us."
But there was still something holding them back.
"We still loved the three-part harmony," continues Wayne. "We grew up on The Chicks. Natalie and I knew we could do this together, but it would be even better if we found someone else." She pauses. "We both agreed though that we weren't going to do it unless we found someone that could make us better. We didn't have to find someone. We wanted to find someone that was the perfect fit."
And that perfect fit came in the form of lead vocalist Stevie Woodward.
"Jennifer and I have actually known each other from a few years back," explains Woodward, 29, who now serves as the newest member of the chart-topping all-female trio originally formed in 2015 and known best for hits such as "Buy My Own Drinks." "We had written some songs together and had stayed in touch. So when they were looking for a new lead singer, Jen reached out to me. It felt like it was supposed to happen. There was so much musical chemistry that was instant."
"It felt like we were sisters singing together," adds Wayne, who gave birth to daughter Lily earlier this year. "It just feels like it's been this way the whole time. Change is always hard, but at the end of it, there's always something beautiful."
And now, as the revamped country trio prepares to close the door on a year that they describe as one of "restructuring," the three are proceeding to move on with a slew of new music, including a new holiday tune "Cowboy for Christmas."
"I've never been so proud of anything I've ever recorded as I am with this one," says Stovall, 40, of "Cowboy for Christmas," a song written by the members of Runaway June alongside producer Paul Sikes and a song which features the incredible violin playing of the Tennessee native. "It was one of the most excruciating violin playings I've ever done in my life. Those string parts took me days to do, and my hand was cramping, but I was so determined to get it right."
This perfectionist type trait is one that all the members of Runaway June admit to having — as seen, heard and felt on their current single "Broken Hearts (Do Broken Things.)"
"We all wanted to make sure that what we put out is a hundred percent 'us,'" explains Wayne of the song written by Mandi Sagal, Steve Fee and Sarah Lake. "That's why we spend 12-hour days in the studio, just trying to figure it out and make it right and make it real and authentic to us. We always want to create something that we can be proud of."
And now, things seem to be coming back in sync for Runaway June.
"We have had such a whirlwind of the year with creating new music together and being on the road a ton," says Stovall. "I mean, we got to play so many incredible festivals and dream venues that I've always wanted to play. And then getting to release some of that music that we've been working so hard on this year and creating together. It feels like everything has started to really come together and become cohesive."
