Country Music Almanac 2025: Artists to Watch

Every year, there’s a slew of rising country talent you’ll want to keep an eye on. To help you keep up, we’ve picked 10 artists heading into 2025 with excellent songs, outstanding voices and vital perspectives to share.

Wyatt Flores

At just 23, Oklahoma-born Nashvillian Wyatt Flores experienced a whirlwind 2024 with his Grand Ole Opry debut (and multiple subsequent performances), a Tiny Desk Concert and a lengthy headline tour with a sold-out two-night run at the Ryman. Flores’ heartfelt, honest storytelling and raw red-dirt sound are captivating fans nationwide; add the well-earned accolades for his debut LP Welcome to the Plains to the mix, and it’s clear he has the chops to back up the buzz around his earlier EPs. His passion for music is undeniable, and he’s made it a point to care for himself in ways that will help him stay in it for the long haul and uncover even more of his potential. JAYME FOLTZ

Austin Stambaugh

Ohio native Austin Stambaugh’s music often sounds experimental, which means he might regard country music as a launch pad for whatever strikes his fancy at any given moment. Stambaugh has covered a lot of ground since he released 2019’s Where She Will Go, which revealed his debt to folk guitar giants like Bert Jansch. The extended narratives on Stambaugh’s 2023 Midwest Supernatural are the work of a storyteller who likes to innovate within the broad outlines of country-adjacent music. The title track of 2024’s Way Down Here on Earth goes into power-pop territory, as if Stambaugh has been listening to Dwight Twilley and Alex Chilton. In an era when country seeks to expand its musical and verbal palette, Stambaugh seems poised to create new, hybrid forms. EDD HURT

The Pink Stones

Nashvillians might have caught Athens, Ga.’s The Pink Stones sharing bills with local favorites like Emily Nenni and Teddy and the Rough Riders — fellow disciples of the pedal-steel licks and sharp turns of phrase of classic country who put their own twist on it. Led by Hunter Pinkston, The Pink Stones’ members are active in several areas of the eclectic music scene in The Classic City. As with storied forebears such as R.E.M., The B-52s and Pylon, experimenting with sounds from different genres is a big strength for the band, which you can hear on 2023’s You Know Who. What’s most lovable about The Pink Stones is their soft side — the reflective moments that catch you off guard, like their sweet collaboration with Nikki Lane on “Baby, I’m Still Right Here (With You).” JACQUELINE ZEISLOFT

Angie K

Angie K was on a roll in 2024, with tons of national and international touring (including a standout performance at Nashville Pride Fest) and four singles that suggest her forthcoming EP heralds an even bigger 2025. Recorded with ace songsmith, performer and producer Stephony Smith at the helm, recent singles like “Golden” and “Red Dirt on Mars” showcase Angie K’s rich, throaty voice and knack for nuanced emotional expression. The lilting, waltz-time “Red Dirt” is an eloquent look at how you have to leave yourself open to pain to make a relationship work, and how that can shake you so hard it jars you loose from your roots. If this is the tip, the iceberg will be something very special. STEPHEN TRAGESER

Bats

In a city where being a “townie” is becoming increasingly rare, 26-year-old Jess Awh was born, raised and still lives in the heart of Nashville. As the frontwoman of alt-country four-piece Bats, Awh uses sparse, arresting lyricism that probes at her memories and dreams alike. Across three LPs, Awh spins a love letter to her hometown and all the ways she’s grown up alongside it. The band engages with an expansive array of influences — including a pronounced country sound — allowing Awh’s vocals to shine over an ensemble of guitars, synthesizers, harps and crooning pedal steel. Bats’ latest release Good Game Baby is their most fully realized yet, and a fourth album is on the horizon for the new year. KATHERINE OUNG

Dan Spencer

Dan Spencer ended 2024 on a bill in San Diego headlined by Post Malone and flanked by Paul Cauthen, Zach Top and Vincent Neil Emerson. It was a fitting conclusion to the Cookeville-residing, Smyrna-born singer-songwriter’s meteoric year, during which he busted ass all over the country around Return to Your Dark Master (including stops at CMA Fest and Bonnaroo). Then he got invited to hop on the stadium tour for Malone’s country LP F-1 Trillion. Spencer participated in writing sessions for the album, though so far none of the songs he worked on has been released; he’s already back in the studio working on new music of his own before hitting the road again. In a city where authenticity isn’t always a given, Spencer’s gothic country tunes, intimate storytelling style and occasionally self-deprecating lyricism will continue to set him apart from the fellas we have enough of already. AMANDA HAGGARD

Red Clay Strays

With the 11-song Made by These Moments, Red Clay Strays released one of the best albums of 2024, full-stop. The five-piece band from Mobile, Ala., stakes a firm claim to sonic territory at the crossroads of old-school crooning, rowdy Southern rock riff work and time-tested roots storytelling — which often tackles tales of self-doubt, anxiety, faith and hard-fought love. The band spent much of 2024 on the road, including an opening slot for The Rolling Stones and three sold-out nights at the Ryman. Following the success of the buzzed-about new album, this year should prove just as robust for the Strays; watch the band graduate to bigger rooms and bigger fonts on summer festival posters. (Case in point: See them at Bonnaroo.) MATTHEW LEIMKUEHLER

New Dangerfield

String-band music is its own thing as well as a key element of the ever-evolving sound of country. Supergroup New Dangerfield — made up of Jake Blount, Kaia Kater, Tray Wellington and Nelson Williams — is joining in the hard work to reinstate the history that’s been largely erased of Black musicians’ fundamental contributions to the tradition while also writing their own chapter of the story. In 2024 (their inaugural year), they worked around the members’ busy schedules to record and release two standout singles and play a handful of inspiring shows, including an appearance at Newport Folk Festival. STEPHEN TRAGESER

Ramona and the Holy Smokes

If you’re looking for a little trad country, look no further than Ramona and the Holy Smokes. The Charlottesville, Va., group takes on old-school honky-tonk with effortless ease, anchored by Ramona Martinez’s confident performance. Martinez has clarity and sincerity that bring Patsy Cline to mind — if Patsy had been allowed to get a little PG-13 with her lyrics. The band’s November EP Til It’s Over is a tantalizing sampler of what the band is capable of. Fortunately, they raised more than $20,000 on Kickstarter for their debut album, which promises to incorporate Martinez’s Latina heritage into their pitch-perfect vintage sound. RACHEL CHOLST

Chris Housman

So many of the songs on Chris Housman’s 2024 debut Blueneck stand out for so many different reasons. In “Drag Queen,” the openly gay songsmith sings about someone who’s deeply invested in their small town in spite of the hate some people choose to aim at them. There are heartfelt love songs and breakup songs, charming come-ons and sly kiss-offs, and clear-eyed looks at the work it takes to remain hopeful when you’re not part of the elite — and they all feel like stories Housman has lived. There’s little more I can imagine asking from a country record, and this is just Housman clearing his throat. STEPHEN TRAGESER

Country Music Almanac 2025

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