Hunter Easton Hayes (born September 9, 1991)[1] is an American multi-genre singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is proficient at more than 30 instruments.[2]
Hayes started performing when he was 2. At 4, he began making appearances locally and on national television,[9][10] including Maury, Rosie O'Donnell Show, and the Nickelodeon game show Figure It Out, where he performed "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)".[11]American Songwriter writes that "Hayes received his first guitar from actor Robert Duvall at age 6"[12] At age 7, he was invited to perform for President Bill Clinton for a White House lawn party. At 13, he appeared on America's Most Talented Kids, a show hosted by Dave Coulier; he performed the hit Hank Williams song, "Hey Good Lookin'". At age 9, Hunter released his debut independent studio album "Through My Eyes" on October 8, 2000, under Suagartown Records and Louisiana Red Hot Records.[13] He released several more independent albums: Make a Wish in 2001, Holidays with Hunter in 2003, Honoring our French Heritage in 2006, and Songs About Nothing in 2008.
Hayes appeared as the opening act of 10 dates of country star Taylor Swift's Speak Now World Tour throughout the summer of 2011 and concluded his leg of the tour in St. Louis, Missouri.[14] In April 2011, he went on his own radio tour where he debuted songs that would appear on his debut album.[15] His debut headlining tour was the Most Wanted Tour; the first leg of the tour began on October 8, 2011, in Beaumont, Texas, and ended on December 4, 2011, in San Bernardino, California.[16]
In May 2012, Martin Guitars named Hayes as C.F. Martin & Co.'s newest brand ambassador. American Songwriter quoted Hayes on the subject: "It is an absolute honor to be named an official Martin Ambassador and to be recognized by the Martin family."[12]
Hayes's debut single, "Storm Warning", released to radio on May 16, 2011. His self-titled major-label debut album was released on October 11, 2011.[21] He co-wrote every song, played every instrument, and along with Dann Huff, produced the album.[22] "Wanted", the second single, was released to radio on March 5, 2012.
On July 24, 2012, he appeared on the CBS's The Talk, where he was then given an RIAA Gold Certification plaque for "Wanted".[23] Just shy of two months since "Wanted" went gold, the song was certified Platinum by RIAA on August 23, 2012.
"Wanted" became his first No. 1 single,[24] making him the youngest solo male act to top Hot Country Songs, breaking the record set in 1973 by Johnny Rodriguez.[25] Twenty weeks after first appearing in the top spot and under a new chart format, "Wanted" returned to the top spot.[26] "Somebody's Heartbreak", the album's third single, went to No. 1 on the Country Airplay chart.[27]
He was also nominated for three Grammys including Best New Artist at the 2013 Grammy Awards; he is the youngest male country artist to be nominated in all three categories for which he was nominated.[28][29] The album's fourth single, "I Want Crazy", which is from the deluxe Encore edition, was released to country radio on April 7, 2013. It peaked at number two on the Country Airplay chart in August 2013. Following it was "Everybody's Got Somebody but Me", a re-recording of a song from the original press of the album. The re-recorded version features guest vocals from Jason Mraz.
Hunter was one of five country singers who won a CMT Artist of the Year award in 2013. This award is awarded every year to a group of country musicians who have had an outstanding year.[30]
Hayes performed "Invisible", the lead single from his second album, at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards.[31]Storyline was released on May 6, 2014.[32] In an effort to promote his album and to raise awareness to end child hunger, Hunter broke the Guinness World Record for the most concerts played in multiple cities in 24 hours, previously held by The Flaming Lips.[33] The album's second single, "Tattoo" released to country radio on June 16, 2014.
On July 20, 2014, Hayes's self-titled debut album was certified double platinum by the RIAA.[34] Following that was "Light Me Up", another single from the deluxe version of his debut album, in 2015.
2015–2018: The 21 Project and canceled album
On May 21, 2015, Hayes released "21", which was the title track for both his EP and third studio album, The 21 Project. He also appeared on the track "I Can Play Guitar" on Brett Kissel's album Pick Me Up.
On November 2, 2016, Hayes performed with four holograms of himself on Jimmy Kimmel Live's after the CMA show.
In March 2017, Hayes performed as part of the C2C: Country to Country festival in the UK where he played alongside Dan + Shay and Darius Rucker supporting Reba McEntire and would return in 2019 with Carly Pearce and Dustin Lynch in support of Lady A. Following "21," Hayes released several songs including “Yesterday’s Song” which were slated to be part of a studio album set to be released in February 2018. Hayes then canceled the project citing “shifted priorities.”[35]
Hayes also appeared as a guest star in the Nickelodeon show Bella and the Bulldogs.[citation needed]
In August 2019, Hayes made a surprise announcement on NBC'sToday Show revealing his album Wild Blue (Part I) would be released on August 16, 2019.[41][42] The album is the first part of a three-part ‘trilogy’ of albums.[43]
The Academy of Country Music Awards, also known as the ACM Awards, were first held in 1966, honoring the industry's accomplishments during the previous year. It was the first country music awards program held by a major organization. The academy's signature "hat" trophy was created in 1968. The awards were first televised in 1972 on ABC.
The American Country Awards is a country music awards show, entirely voted on by fans. Created by the Fox Network, the awards honor country music artists in music, video, and touring categories. Hayes has won two awards from five nominations.
A Grammy Award (originally called Gramophone Award), or Grammy, is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry. The annual presentation ceremony features performances by prominent artists, and the presentation of those awards that have a more popular interest.
Carrie Marie Underwood is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of American Idol in 2005. Underwood's single "Inside Your Heaven" (2005) made her the first country artist to debut atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the only solo country artist in the 2000s to have a number-one song on the Hot 100. Her debut album, Some Hearts (2005), was bolstered by the successful crossover singles "Jesus, Take the Wheel" and "Before He Cheats", and became the best-selling debut album of all time by a solo female country artist. She won three Grammy Awards for the album, including Best New Artist. Her next studio album, Carnival Ride (2007), had one of the biggest opening weeks of all time by a female artist and won two Grammy Awards. Her third studio album, Play On (2009), produced the single "Cowboy Casanova", which had one of the biggest single-week upward movements on the Hot 100.
Keith Lionel Urban is an Australian and American country singer, songwriter and guitarist. Recognised with four Grammy Awards, he has also received 15 Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Jim Reeves International Award, 13 CMA Awards, and six ARIA Music Awards. Urban wrote and performed the song "For You" from the film Act of Valor, which earned him nominations at both the 70th Golden Globe Awards and at the 18th Critics' Choice Awards in the respective Best Original Song categories.
Rascal Flatts is an American country music band founded in 1999 in Nashville, Tennessee. The group consists of Gary LeVox, Jay DeMarcus, and Joe Don Rooney. DeMarcus is LeVox's second cousin, a brother-in-law of country music singer James Otto, and was previously a member of the contemporary Christian music duo East to West. LeVox and DeMarcus are both natives of Columbus, Ohio.
Jason Aldine Williams, known professionally as Jason Aldean, is an American country music singer. Since 2005, he has been signed to Broken Bow Records, a record label for which he has released eleven albums and 40 singles. His 2010 album, My Kinda Party, is certified quadruple-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His 2012 album Night Train is certified double-platinum, while his 2005 self-titled debut, 2007 album Relentless, 2009 album Wide Open, and 2014 album Old Boots, New Dirt are all certified platinum. Aldean has received five Grammy Award nominations throughout his career, twice for Best Country Album.
Kenneth Eric Church is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's Sinners Like Me, produced three singles on the Billboard country charts including the top 20 hits "How 'Bout You", "Two Pink Lines", and "Guys Like Me".
Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan is an American country singer, songwriter, and television personality. Bryan is a five-time "Entertainer of the Year", being awarded by both the Academy of Country Music Awards and the Country Music Association. In 2019, Bryan's 2013 album Crash My Party received the first Album of the Decade award from the Academy of Country Music. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with over 75 million records sold. Since 2018, Bryan has been a judge on the hit tv show American Idol.
Zac Brown Band is an American country music band based in Atlanta, Georgia. The lineup consists of Zac Brown, Jimmy De Martini, John Driskell Hopkins, Coy Bowles, Chris Fryar (drums), Clay Cook, Matt Mangano, Daniel de los Reyes (percussion), and Caroline Jones.
Thompson Square is an American country music duo composed of husband and wife Keifer and Shawna Thompson, who alternate as vocalists. They signed to Stoney Creek Records, a sister label of Broken Bow Records, in 2010. The duo has released three albums, which have produced a combined ten chart singles on the Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts. Of these singles, two — "Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not" and "If I Didn't Have You" — reached No. 1.
The Band Perry were an American band composed of siblings Kimberly Perry, Reid Perry, and Neil Perry.
Charles Burgess Kelley is an American musician who is the co-lead vocalist and founding member of the country music trio Lady A, which was formed in 2006 and are signed to Big Machine Records.
Troy Verges is an American songwriter of country and pop music from Louisiana.
Scott Cooke McCreery is an American country singer. He rose to fame after winning the tenth season of American Idol in May 2011.
Hunter Hayes is the debut studio album by American country musician Hunter Hayes. It was released on October 11, 2011, by Atlantic Records. Hayes wrote or co-wrote every track on the album and plays every instrument and sings every vocal track with the exception of the Encore tracks.
Thomas Rhett Akins Jr. is an American country singer-songwriter. He is the oldest son of singer Rhett Akins.
"Wanted" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music singer Hunter Hayes. It was released in March 2012 as the second single from his debut album Hunter Hayes (2011). Hayes co-wrote the song with Troy Verges. The song was nominated for Best Country Solo Performance at the 2013 Grammy Awards. It is the second best-selling song by a male solo country singer in the US as of April 2014. Billboard ranked it the third-greatest country single of all time according to chart performance.
"I Want Crazy" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Hunter Hayes. It is one of five songs recorded for Hunter Hayes (Encore), the deluxe edition of Hayes' self-titled debut album. Hayes debuted the song at the Academy of Country Music Awards on April 7, 2013, and it was released the next day as the lead single for the reissue of Hunter Hayes and fourth from the album overall. Hayes wrote the song with Lori McKenna and Troy Verges. A new mix of the song produced by Ryan Tedder was released in the UK on April 17, 2015 as the third single from his international debut album, I Want Crazy (2015).
Dan + Shay is an American country music duo composed of vocalists and songwriters Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney. They are signed to Warner Records Nashville and have released five albums, Where It All Began, Obsessed, Dan + Shay, Good Things and Bigger Houses. Of their nine singles, five have topped the Country Airplay chart and three have topped the Hot Country Songs chart. The duo have collaborated with Justin Bieber, Charlie Puth, Rascal Flatts, Lindsey Stirling, RaeLynn, and Kelly Clarkson. From 2019 to 2021, the duo won three consecutive Grammy Awards for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for the songs "Tequila", "Speechless", and "10,000 Hours".
"Invisible" is a song recorded by American country music artist Hunter Hayes. It was the lead single from his second studio album Storyline (2014). Hayes co-wrote the song in a collaboration with Bonnie Baker and Katrina Elam, while the production was handled by Hayes and Dann Huff. The song was debuted at the 2014 Grammy Awards on January 26, 2014, and was released to digital retailers the same day.
The discography of American country pop and cajun artist Hunter Hayes consists of ten studio albums, one compilation album, five independently released albums, one live extended play, and ten singles. Hayes began his career as a songwriter with Universal Music Publishing Group, moving to Nashville in 2008 and co-writing the song "Play" on Rascal Flatts' 2010 album, Nothing Like This.
Old Dominion is a modern American country music band formed in Nashville. The band consists of Matthew Ramsey, Trevor Rosen, Whit Sellers (drums), Geoff Sprung, and Brad Tursi. Their music is contemporary country with rock instrumentation, and has pop overtones.
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