Braedon Barnhill

These days country music can be a lot of things, but to Big Machine Label Group’s emerging singer-songwriter Braedon Barnhill, there’s one thing it’s not – and that’s “black-and-white.” Tapping the emotional gray space of his own coming-of-age, the 23-year-old breakout talent writes songs filled with romantic realism, where love isn’t perfect and neither are people. Boasting a smooth, Texas Hill Country tenor and a youthful, organic sound, his tunes embrace the messy complexities and contradictions of the heart – offering both sage lyrical insight, and intriguing modern energy. A fourth generation native of Marble Falls, Texas, the rising star grew up a lifelong fan of Texas country music … just without realizing what “Texas country” was. Baptized in the Lone Star lifestyle and inspired by everything from George Strait and Billy Joe Shaver to Randy Rogers Band, Reckless Kelly, and more, Barnhill’s own style is something different – a forward looking fusion of the Texas-country edge and borderless pop rock. Starting out as a songwriter, he played his first show at 19 and has now gone from valeting cars to the verge of stardom, personally signed to Big Machine by founder Scott Borchetta. Since then, Barnhill has shared stages with personal heroes like Randy Rogers, Josh Abbott, and beyond, while honing his craft with Nashville’s songwriting elite. That work culminated in early 2025 with his Big Machine debut, “Dashboard Dreaming” – an easy-rolling highway rocker, lost in a haze of romantic what-ifs – and there are more lyrically-layered, self-penned tunes to come, as a year of firsts takes Barnhill far beyond the Texas state line.

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