{"id":2170474,"date":"2025-11-21T14:54:21","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T14:54:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2170474"},"modified":"2025-11-21T14:54:21","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T14:54:21","slug":"i-hate-country-music-a-late-blooming-indiana-star-changed-my-mind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/i-hate-country-music-a-late-blooming-indiana-star-changed-my-mind\/","title":{"rendered":"I hate country music. A late-blooming Indiana star changed my mind."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">I took a bit of a chance Nov. 15 in Louisville: I went to my first country music concert. Ever.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Stephen Wilson Jr., a native of Seymour, Indiana, was headlining a show at the Louisville Palace, a gorgeous downtown theater that I had somehow never visited. I got hooked by his music after happening upon a recording of him playing the classic Ben E. King song, \u201cStand By Me,\u201d a few months ago. That performance hit me like a punch to the face, and I have been listening to Wilson\u2019s 2023 album, \u201cSon of Dad,\u201d on repeat ever since.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">He&#8217;s not just some random new country star, though.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Stephen Wilson Jr. performs during the 2025 SESAC Awards at the Country Music Hall of Fame Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cWilson Jr. has been known to define his sound as \u2018Death Cab for Country,\u2019 since he draws inspiration from indie rock, grunge and obviously country music,\u201d<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whiskeyriff.com\/2025\/08\/29\/stephen-wilson-jr-covers-the-rock-songs-that-shaped-his-early-love-for-music-with-new-blankets-ep\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:as Casey Young reports in Whisky Riff;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \"> as Casey Young reports in Whisky Riff<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">His love of the Seattle scene from the 1990s is clear in many ways, but most importantly, it\u2019s baked into his sound. He released an EP earlier this year with four great covers of grunge songs. And those influences rang loud in his new song, \u201cGary,\u201d as it annihilated every one of us at the Palace last weekend.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl\">A private moment in a packed house<\/h2>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Wilson took his guitar off the stage in the middle of the song, continually jamming that hypnotic riff, and headed to the back near the sound board. Only a few of us with seats underneath the balcony could see that Wilson\u2019s 90-year-old grandma was sitting back there.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">He played right in front of her for about a minute, while she stood there beaming and swaying at him before he kissed her and ran back to the stage. My wife and I were just lucky enough to be sitting nearby and got to see the private performance. Unbelievable. I couldn\u2019t stop wondering what that moment must have felt like for both of them.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Stephen Wilson Jr. performs during the 2025 SESAC Awards at the Country Music Hall of Fame Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"758\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/DP0ZarZMPLd8xAz97saKTQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTc1ODtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/indianapolis_star_natl_articles_522\/5952075a9c52e6363ed3e79b9597c079\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Stephen Wilson Jr. performs during the 2025 SESAC Awards at the Country Music Hall of Fame Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">For us, it felt like we had crashed a family affair on a Saturday night as 2,600 people filled the place, and a good number of them were from Seymour or Jackson County or just somewhere in Indiana to see one of their own. There was Indiana University gear everywhere. When the pre-concert tunes belted out John Mellencamp\u2019s \u201cScarecrow,\u201d the crowd sang along. And that was the only pregame sing along.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">It was like an early Indiana Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl\">An inspiration for late bloomers<\/h2>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Wilson and I are both Hoosiers. We are both late-bloomers, too. He has been nominated for new artist of the year by the CMA, and at 46 years old, he would be the oldest winner in the award\u2019s history. No, I can\u2019t match that kind of achievement, but I did change careers late in life and feel like I am now doing what I was always meant to do.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">He left his job as a scientist just before turning 40 and went all in on a music career. It\u2019s a late start, and even after the late start, his success was certainly not \u201covernight.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Late in the show, Wilson made the comment in between songs, \u201cMusic is magic. I believe it connects us all.\u201d I agree entirely. That crowd, at that moment, was magically connected.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">During \u201cFather\u2019s Son,\u201d a truly powerful song about his relationship with his late father, and the inspiration of the entire album, my wife leaned over to me and said, \u201cI can feel the people crying around me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">I\u2019ve never been to a concert that did that.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"mb-4 text-xl font-bold md:text-2xl\">Never stop growing<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Stephen Wilson Jr. is a singer-songwriter born and raised in Seymour. He's known for blending country, folk and rock into a genre he coined &quot;Death Cab for Country.&quot; He is playing his first show at the Louisville Palace on Nov. 15. It is sold out.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"639\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/.o5vIYS2E0qklqEwZ.dhtQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYzOTtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/indianapolis_star_natl_articles_522\/3f7e7d31b614c802b5e69db401c4c852\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Stephen Wilson Jr. is a singer-songwriter born and raised in Seymour. He&#8217;s known for blending country, folk and rock into a genre he coined &#8220;Death Cab for Country.&#8221; He is playing his first show at the Louisville Palace on Nov. 15. It is sold out.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Which brings me back to that risky \u201cchance\u201d I took by simply going to this show. I don\u2019t listen to country music. There are times when I don\u2019t even approve of it. Wilson told a little story about his days as a scientist and about the people he worked with then. \u201cThey used to call me \u2018hillbilly.\u2019 That was not a compliment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">I spent my early childhood in hillbilly country. I still have family there, and I consider myself Appalachian. When I heard country music as a child, and certainly after I relocated to the Midwest, it almost felt like those southern drawls people sang in were practically mocking us. As dumb as that is, it\u2019s why I will never broadly be a country music fan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">On the other hand, I will always be a Stephen Wilson Jr. fan. We connected. I already know I will love his next album just from the two songs I\u2019ve already heard during that private performance we crashed last weekend. Note: \u201cPreacher\u2019s Kid\u201d is fantastic, too.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">No, I\u2019m not going to start wearing flannel shirts to concerts, like a good number of men did Nov. 15, even though it was 75 degrees outside. And, no, I won\u2019t wear a baseball cap to a theater, even when the star of the show does.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">But I will keep trying new things, learning new tricks and growing as a person as much as I can. I\u2019m glad I now have a role model for exactly those things.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><em>Michael Leppert is an author, professor and consultant in Indianapolis. He writes about culture, leadership, communication and connection at <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/MichaelLeppert.com\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:MichaelLeppert.com;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">MichaelLeppert.com<\/a> and on his<\/em> <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@michael_leppert\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:YouTube;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \"><em>YouTube<\/em><\/a><em> channel.<\/em><\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Michael Leppert\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"213\" height=\"320\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/xD9VdlzxLDTLKLpY5w1yHA--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTQyMDtoPTYzMTtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/indianapolis_star_natl_articles_522\/6a285951fbe7615506d181013d7b5ee6\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Michael Leppert<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><em>This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.indystar.com\/story\/opinion\/2025\/11\/21\/stephen-wilson-jr-louisville-palace-concert\/87336084007\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Stephen Wilson Jr. proves late bloomers can still make it | Opinion;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Stephen Wilson Jr. proves late bloomers can still make it | Opinion<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I took a bit of a chance Nov. 15 in Louisville: I went to my first country music concert. Ever. Stephen Wilson Jr., a native of Seymour, Indiana, was headlining a show at the Louisville Palace, a gorgeous downtown theater that I had somehow never visited. I got hooked by his music after happening upon [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2170475,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[22846,347239,355705,417004,349423,416321,417003],"class_list":["post-2170474","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-country-music","tag-indiana","tag-indiana-university","tag-private-performance","tag-seymour","tag-stephen-wilson","tag-the-louisville-palace"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/I-hate-country-music-A-late-blooming-Indiana-star-changed-my.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2170474","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2170474"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2170474\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2170476,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2170474\/revisions\/2170476"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2170475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2170474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2170474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2170474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}