ZANESVILLE – Corey Kent, an Oklahoma-born country music artist, is headlining the 2025 Muskingum County Fair’s musical performances with a show at 8 p.m. Aug. 14.
He draws inspiration from The Eagles, Keith Richards and Turnpike Troubadours, and has shared stages with acts such as Parker McCollum, Cody Johnson and Eli Young Band.
But it wasn’t always like that.
Kent set his sights on Nashville as a teen, bringing his self-penned catalog of country-rock anthems with him. But after the pandemic coincided with the loss off his first publishing deal, Kent moved to Texas and worked on paving crew to pay the bills.
But music was never far away, as he continued to played honkytonks and dancehalls.
Still in his 20’s, he has built the foundation of a fanbase, has been developing his show for 15 years, and is now positioned as one of country music’s next breakout artists. He is described as an old-soul and creative freedom fighter, and today finds himself musically at the intersection of rock infused country, heartland values and red dirt grit.
“Through all the ups and downs, the one constant thing was this relentless hope – this relentless pursuit of believing that if I don’t give up, I can get where I’m going,” Kent said.
Hanging onto hope wasn’t always easy, but it’s been paying off.
Today he is a platinum certified number one hit maker with 750 million career streams. His top songs include “Girl I Never Met,” “Dodge a Bullet,” “Something’s Gonna Kill Me,” and ”Wild as Her.”
But it was “This Heart” that brought him his first number one song on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart.
Kent was the most played new artist on country radio in 2023. Despite never cracking country radio’s Top 40, his second single “Something’s Gonna Kill Me” went Gold. “There was no real measurable success at radio, but it’s an anthem, a creed,” Kent explained. More than that, it’s a motto fans get tattooed on their skin.
He cowrote six songs on his newest album, Black Bandana, where he brings classic rock into the present tense.
“It’s supposed to be fun,” he said. “Not everything has to be about climbing a ladder… I wrote a lot of this record at my ranch in Texas, just staring out the window at our three horses and our three kids riding four wheelers. I’m trying to create songs about life, where I do life. And I think that’s unique.
“I’m excited about the shows I haven’t played yet,” he added. “I’m excited about unlocking new levels of my craft, and writing more songs that people connect with deeply…I still live for those moments.
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