Photo Credit: Matthew Berinato

Kane Brown was born on October 21, 1993. Growing up in Georgia, the youngster got into fights over his mixed background. His family then moved out the state, and they settled in Red Bank, Tennessee. In high school, Kane sang in the choir. He was motivated enough to perform in front of larger crowds. Kane participated in the TV show American Idol and The X Factor. While Kane was successful on The X Factor, he chose a different method of reaching music listeners.

Influenced by some of his country music idols, Kane uploaded song covers online in 2014. He gathered money via crowdfunding to produce his first EP. On June 2, 2015, Kane released the 6-track EP, Closer. The EP made it onto country music charts through the single, “Don’t Go City on Me.” By the end of 2015, the young creative amassed several million views and listens from his music and covers. One of the cover videos included “Check Yes or No” by George Strait.

As he posted more covers, Kane released the song “Used to Love You Sober.” The song quickly went viral gathering millions of streams over the next couple of weeks. In January 2016, Kane signed to Sony Music Nashville. “Last Minute Late Night” and “I Love that I Hate You” were follow up singles that led to the March 2016 release of the EP Chapter 1. His studio album, Kane Brown was released on December 2, 2016. 11-tracks were on the original edition, but the deluxe edition includes an additional four tracks. Concepts on the album revolve around Brown’s experiences with race, money, and violence. Four singles, including “What Ifs” and “Heaven” made it to Billboard music charts to generate a huge amount of digital streams and sales.

June 2018 saw the release of the single “Lose It.” Two months later, “Weekend” became available for listening. Kane released Experiment on November 9, 2018. The album made it onto the Billboard major album chart with the hit song “Homesick.” The album explores a more vulnerable side of Kane than he has shown in previous songs. It also talks more about the life of rural America in songs like “Come Back to Me”, “It Ain’t You It’s Me”, and “American Bad Dream.” The country style of Kane Brown’s music infuses different elements in it to make it different enough to stand out.

Following the release of Experiment, Kane focused on collaborating with artists. He featured on songs like “Lost in the Middle of Nowhere” with Becky G, “Last Time I Say Sorry” with John Legend, “One Thing Right” with Marshmello, and several other musicians. “Cool Again” was released in April 2020 as an intro to the next project from Kane. In June and July the singles, “Worldwide Beautiful” and “Be Like That” featuring Khalid were released. Kane released the EP Mixtape, Vol. 1 on August 14, 2020. With 7-tracks on the EP, the country singer explores his sound with more hip-hop nuances.

Kane Brown has worked to create a musical path for himself. Through technology and exploring country music favorites, Kane built a following of listeners open to more. While some critics argue whether Kane is country enough, once listening to some of his music, it’s hard to place it as anything else. For this burgeoning country singer, there’s more to explore and express to the world. Listeners should be on the watch for new releases and news from Kane Brown.

Written by: Carlton Rolle