Poised for a breakout year, emerging singer, songwriter and musician Kevin Smiley is one of music’s most intriguing new voices. Raised in the small town of Okeechobee, FL, the 20-year-old is the youngest of six children and has been homeschooled by his mother his whole life. Learning to sing and play guitar at church (where his father was a pastor and his mother played piano), Smiley’s musical interests shifted in 2020 when he began listening to country music after his parents forbade him from listening to rap while playing video games. It was then that Smiley heard George Strait’s classic hit, “Amarillo By Morning,” for the first time, which led him to discover legendary artists such as Alan Jackson, Kenny Chesney and Brad Paisley as well as contemporary inspirations like Luke Combs and ERNEST. These influences can be heard throughout Smiley’s work, both sonically and in his storytelling-focused songwriting.
Since posting his first performance video online in 2020, Smiley has garnered widespread attention and viral success, leading him to sign with Rebel Music/gamma., work with respected producers and writers such as Jacob Durrett (Morgan Wallen, Hardy), Mark Holman (ERNEST, Luke Bryan), Marty James (Bailey Zimmerman, Luis Fonsi) and Dallas Wilson (Lainey Wilson,
Teddy Swims) and release four singles: “Broke As My Heart,” “Matador” feat. YoungBoy Never Broke Again,” “Heart to Break” and “Paralyzed,” the latter of which Rolling Stone selected as a “Song You Need to Know.”Having already received more than 20 million cumulative streams to date, Smiley released his debut EP, Hurst Worse, earlier this fall.