Brett Young is one of the hottest names in country music these days despite being one of the newer names in the genre. The California native and BMLG Records recording artist has become a staple on country radio over the past year with two consecutive Gold-certified singles. Brett will make his way across the country in 2017 after being a supporting acting on Luke Bryan’s Kill the Lights spring tour and Lady Antebellum’s upcoming You Look Good World Tour. With the support of country radio and these country superstars, Brett Young should be a household name by 2018.
If it wasn’t for an elbow injury, Young may have become a different type of celebrity… a major league pitcher. Brett turned down pre-draft selections by the Tampa Bay Rays and the Minnesota Twins to pitch at Ole Miss. He would eventually end up at Fresno but it was there that he would sustain that elbow injury derailing any plans he had for a life of professional baseball. Luckily, he was blessed with more than just athletic ability- Brett Young has an incredible and distinct voice, unlike any other in country music. Last April, Brett released his first single under the Big Machine Label Group, a song called ‘Sleep Without You;’ this single would soar to the top of the charts as the singer-songwriter’s first Number One. Young described the moment, “That was crazy. That was my first pinch myself moment. It didn’t set in right away. You get news that you get a Number One record and it’s about 4 or 5 days later before you go, ‘wait, it’s real.’ Nobody can take that away. As an artist, it’s one thing. But as a songwriter, it meant even more. It’s your words and your story that people are connecting with at a level high enough for the song to go Number One. For me, it’s very gratifying and reassuring that I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.” With the great success that the single had on the radio, fans naturally began to learn the words of the song more and more with each tour stop. “That’s pretty fun. That happens in levels. The first time I noticed it, I noticed a handful of people doing it. And then that grows to the whole room doing it. And finally we got to the point now where I can point the microphone at them and they will sing it loud enough that I might as well not sing it. That’s the coolest thing- I can let the room take it and they can scream it at the top of their lungs. It’s very flattering and surreal,” he explained.
Leading up to the release of his self-titled debut major label album, Brett chose to release ‘In Case You Didn’t Know’ as the second single on the album. And for Brett, it was not only an easy decision but also one that he really didn’t have any choice in. “When I moved to Nashville, I heard this sentence and I didn’t know what it meant. I would hear people say, ‘the right song will raise its hand.’ OK Yoda, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said laughing. “We’ve been very lucky to have Sirius XM The Highway behind us and take music early and just play it. And that was one of them. We weren’t considering that as a single. And they wanted to play that song, so they played it. And before we knew it, it went Number One on their countdown and it was outselling ‘Sleep Without You’ on some days on iTunes. To sell that many units with just one outlet playing your song, it was a no brainer. People don’t really buy music anymore. So the fact that so many people were buying that record it made the decision for us. I’ve always loved that one- personally, it’s always been one of my favorites on the record. But when you get that kind of data back and find out that people are connecting like that, it kinda takes the choosing our of your hands.” And it was just announced that ‘In Case You Didn’t Know’ is the first country single released this year to be certified Gold by the RIAA!
One thing that we particularly love about Brett Young is that he writes his own music- something that is somewhat of an anomaly these days. Not only did he write both ‘Sleep Without You’ and ‘In Case You Didn’t Know,’ he wrote or co-wrote 11 of the 12 tracks on the album. While it was intentional, it was not to showcase his songwriting ability. Young explained, “It was less about showcasing and more about the continuity of the record. I really wanted my first record to be lyrically a way for people to get to know me. And I didn’t feel like it would be as honest if it was a bunch of other people’s songs. And that was hard because there was a ton of great outside songs pitched that I found myself really wanting to record. The more we sat down with the label and management and talked about it, every song that I liked and wanted for the record that wasn’t mine, kinda took us away from that whole- I always want my DNA all over the record, I say. I want people to get to know me through the music- it started to feel less and less like me. It’s less about wanting to make sure I write the songs and more about people are getting a glimpse of the person I am through the music.”
As previously mentioned, Brett spent this spring as a supporting act on Luke Bryan’s Kill the Lights Tour, along with Brett Eldredge. The experience was invaluable for Brett as he has learned so much from these two veterans. He went on to say, “They’re both the coolest dudes. That alone has made it really easy to feel comfortable and feel at home. There’s so much to learn. They’re both incredible live performers and being a new act, a baby act, I’m still trying to figure out who I want to be exactly on stage. Every night, I get the opportunity to watch their set and see what they’re doing and see what works and if its awesome, would it work for me? Trying to apply that to my live show. They both use the stage extremely well. They both connect with the audience through song but also talking and telling stories, which is something I like to do. There’s so much to learn every night, around every corner; I am learning something new. It’s been a great opportunity.“ One thing that Brett was able to do on the tour was cross off one of the venues on his ‘venue bucket list.’ The list consists of the Hollywood Bowl, the Gorge, Red Rocks, the Bridgestone Arena and Madison Square Garden. MSG was number two on the list. “I have 5 bucket list venues that I wanted to hit. And that was number two on the list. So to get to do that, so early, I was really grateful to Luke for putting me on that show. People aren’t lying when they say there’s a special specific energy in that room when you walk out on stage. It was pretty mind blowing and something I will never forget.”
While MSG was one for the books for Brett, he also loved playing at a couple venues in New England while on the tour- the SNHU Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire and the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. “Those (shows) were fantastic. My uncle played for the Patriots so growing up I took a lot of trips to that part of the country. At that same time, living in California in the middle 90s, I was listening to country music while all my friends were listening to punk rock. And in the same respect, I’d go visit the Boston area and my cousins who were my age, they weren’t listening to country either. I think country music, at this point, has taken over the world. So it’s cool to come back and see everybody in New England are fired up about country music. We had such an amazing turnout. When you’re the first of three, you don’t know how much of the crowd is going to make it there for your set. And both of those shows, Manchester and Providence, I played to what felt like a mostly full room. They were great fans and awesome shows.”
As Brett prepares for another big summer on the road, his touring life got a bit easier with the addition of a tour bus. Brett exclaimed, “Oh man, the bus is a lifesaver. Not exaggerating one bit. We were running ourselves pretty thin with these early flights and early lobby calls, four hours sleep at night. With the bus, you’re getting 7 or 8 and waking up in the next city. In terms of it as a game changer, it’s night and day. In terms of an achievement, it’s a really great feeling. It wasn’t something I really looked to as a goal I had set- I didn’t realize how important it would be. It calms me down. It’s very reassuring to know that when I walk out of the venue and into familiar surroundings- I’ve been able to bring my dog out on the road- it adds a whole new element to the touring life.“
If you missed out on seeing Brett with Luke Bryan, don’t fret! He will be coming back through New England this summer on Lady Antebellum’s summer You Look Good World Tour, which will also feature songstress Kelsea Ballerini. Excitedly, Brett described, “That tour is going to be so much fun. I cannot wait. I’ve been such a huge fan of Lady A for so long and I’ve gotten to know both Charles and Hillary, and Kelsea, personally. And they’re all such incredible people and so not only enjoying getting to know them better and spending time with them but getting to learn from them. I get to check off that Hollywood Bowl box, right there the first week. We’re out with them for 33 dates. It’s going to be the longest run I’ve done and with a powerhouse act. I can’t wait to do it.”
While Brett Young may no longer be throwing strikes, he’s definitely hitting out of the park in country music! Make sure you check out Brett Young this summer as he opens for Lady Antebellum at the Xfinity Theatre in Hartford on July 22nd, at the Bank of NH Pavilion on July 23rd, the Xfinity Center on August 12th.