Christopher Alan Young (born June 12, 1985) is an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer and songwriter. In 2006, he was the Season 4 winner of the television program ''

Nashville Star ''Nashville Star'' is an American reality television singing competition program that aired for six seasons, from 2003 to 2008. Its first five seasons aired on USA Network, while the last season aired on NBC. Its five seasons on USA made it the l ...

'', a singing competition on

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. After winning, he was signed to

RCA Records Nashville RCA Nashville is an American country music record label based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is distributed by Sony Music Nashville which is part of Sony Music. Current artists *Kane Brown *Andrew Jannakos * Miranda Lambert * Niko Moon (RCA/River H ...

, releasing his self-titled debut album that same year. It produced two singles on

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

with " Drinkin' Me Lonely" and "You're Gonna Love Me". His second album, ''

The Man I Want to Be ''The Man I Want to Be'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Chris Young. It was released on September 1, 2009 via RCA Nashville. The album includes the singles "Voices", "Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song)", and "Th ...

'', was released September 1, 2009. It included the singles " Voices", " Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song)", and the

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may a ...

, all of which went to number 1. Young's third album, ''

Neon Neon is a chemical element with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is a noble gas. Neon is a colorless, odorless, inert monatomic gas under standard conditions, with about two-thirds the density of air. It was discovered (along with krypton ...

'', produced two more number ones in " Tomorrow" and "

You In Modern English, ''you'' is the second-person pronoun. It is grammatically plural, and was historically used only for the dative case, but in most modern dialects is used for all cases and numbers. History ''You'' comes from the Proto- ...

" in 2011 as well as the top 5 hit " I Can Take It from There" in 2012. The follow-up, 2013's '' A.M.'', produced three new singles with the top 5 hits "

Aw Naw "Aw Naw" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Chris Young. It was released in May 2013 as the first single from his fourth studio album, '' A.M.''. The song was written by Young, Chris DeStefano and Ashley Gorley. ...

", " Who I Am with You", and " Lonely Eyes". His fifth album, ''

I'm Comin' Over ''I'm Comin' Over'' is the fifth studio album by American country music artist Chris Young. It was released on November 13, 2015 via RCA Nashville. The lead single, the title track, was released to radio on May 11, 2015. The track listing was re ...

'', was released on November 13, 2015. In 2017, Young gained one of the crowning achievements in country music, becoming a

member Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

of the

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

Early years

Chris Young was born in

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropol ...

, on June 12, 1985. While growing up, he attended Trinity United Methodist church. His grandfather, Richard Yates, was a performer on the

Louisiana Hayride ''Louisiana Hayride'' was a radio and later television country music show broadcast from the Shreveport Municipal Memorial Auditorium in Shreveport, Louisiana, that during its heyday from 1948 to 1960 helped to launch the careers of some of th ...

. Retrieved June 11, 2008. Young showed interest in music from an early age, performing in various children's theater productions; while attending Oakland High School (Tennessee), he sang in his high school choir and began playing in local clubs. In 2000, he performed with his high school's Winter Drumline in a performance entitled "A Night at the Palladium", where he was a mariachi singer. The group performed in the Winter Guard International Tournament in Ohio that year. In 2003 Chris was a national YoungArts winner and Presidential Scholar of the Arts. While attending college, he continued to tour, performing more than 150 shows a year.

Career

2005–2007: ''Nashville Star'' and self-titled debut album

In 2006, Chris Young was the house singer for Cowboys Dance Hall in

Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...

. Park Scott and Keith Swan told him that he should audition for ''

'' in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. He entered the show and won in 2006. His win earned him a contract with

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

Nashville and late that year, he released his debut single " Drinkin' Me Lonely". That song peaked at number 42 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

chart and served as the first single from his self-titled debut album, which was produced by

Buddy Cannon Buddy Cannon (born April 20, 1947 Lexington, Tennessee) is an American country music songwriter and record producer. Active since the late 1970s, he is known primarily for his work with Willie Nelson and as Kenny Chesney's record producer, for w ...

. The album's second single, "You're Gonna Love Me", peaked at number 48.

2008–2010: ''Voices'' EP and ''The Man I Want to Be''

In May 2008, Young released his third single, "Voices". At the

CMA Music Festival The CMA Music Festival is a four-day music festival centered on country music, hosted each June by the Country Music Association (CMA) in Nashville, Tennessee. Beginning in 1972 under the name Fan Fair, the event now draws over 400 artists and c ...

in June, he promoted the single by emailing it to visitors at his Music Fest booth. In August, "Voices" became his first Top 40 entry on the ''Billboard'' charts, peaking at 37. His second album, ''

'', was released in September 2009. It was produced by

James Stroud James Stroud is an American musician and record producer who works in pop, rock, R&B, soul, disco, and country music. He played with the Malaco Rhythm Section for Malaco Records. In the 1990s, he was the president of Giant Records (a subsidiar ...

and includes

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

' "Rose in Paradise" (as a duet with

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...

) and

Tony Joe White Tony Joe White (July 23, 1943 – October 24, 2018), nicknamed the Swamp Fox, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known for his 1969 hit "Polk Salad Annie" and for "Rainy Night in Georgia", which he wrote but which was first ma ...

's "

Rainy Night in Georgia "Rainy Night in Georgia" is a song written by Tony Joe White in 1967 and popularized by R&B vocalist Brook Benton in 1970. It was originally released by White on his 1969 album, '' Continued'', on Monument Records, shortly before Benton's hit si ...

". In October 2009, Young's fourth chart single, " Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song)", became his first number 1 single. The album's

was released in November 2009. Both it and a re-release of "Voices" went to number 1. He was nominated for the 2010

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...

2011–2015: ''Neon'' and ''A.M.''

Young released the single " Tomorrow" in February 2011. It became his fourth straight number 1. The album ''

'' was released in July 2011. The album includes his fifth consecutive number 1, "

", the

, and " I Can Take It from There". In August 2012, "Tomorrow" became his first platinum selling single. In 2013, Young served as an Ambassador for the CMA Songwriter's Series showcased in Belfast, Dublin, London, and Paris in an attempt to showcase country music overseas. The first single from Young's fourth studio album, "

", was released to country radio on May 13, 2013. It peaked at number 3 on the

Country Airplay Country Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since January 20, 1990. This chart lists the 60 most-listened-to records played on 150 mainstream country radio stations across the country as monitored ...

chart in November 2013. The album, '' A.M.'', was released on September 17, 2013. The album's second single, " Who I Am with You", was released on January 20, 2014. It peaked at number 2 on the Country Airplay chart in August 2014. The album's third single, " Lonely Eyes", was released to country radio on August 25, 2014. It reached number 2 on the Country Airplay chart in April 2015.

2015–2016: ''I'm Comin' Over'' and ''It Must Be Christmas''

On May 12, 2015, Young released a new single titled "

". It was the lead single from his fifth studio album of the same name, which was released on November 13, 2015. The same month, "I'm Comin' Over" became his sixth Number One single on the Country charts, and his first since "You" in February 2012. Young played the 14-show I'm Comin' Over Tour in late 2016 in support of the album. The album's second single, "Think of You" with

Cassadee Pope Cassadee Blake Pope (born August 28, 1989) is an American pop and country singer. She was the lead vocalist and songwriter of the pop band Hey Monday, with whom she released one studio album and two EPs. Pope embarked on a solo career in early ...

, was released on January 4, 2016. It reached number one on the Country charts in May 2016. The third single, "Sober Saturday Night"—a duet with

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist b ...

—was released on June 6, 2016. It hit number one on the Country Airplay in March 2017. Young released a country Christmas album, '' It Must Be Christmas'', in October 2016.

2017–2018: ''Losing Sleep'' and Grand Ole Opry induction

His sixth album's first single, " Losing Sleep" was released to country radio on May 12, 2017. Young announced the album was also titled '' Losing Sleep'' on August 23, 2017. It reached number one on the Country Airplay on February 10, 2018. The album's second single was " Hangin' On". On August 29, 2017, Young was invited by country legend

to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry. He was officially inducted by

Brad Paisley Bradley Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting with his 1999 debut album ''Who Needs Pictures'', he has released eleven studio albums and a Christmas compilation on the Arista Nashvil ...

2019–present: ''Famous Friends''

Young released " Raised on Country," the lead-off single to his seventh studio album, in January 2019. The album's second single, "

Drowning Drowning is a type of suffocation induced by the submersion of the mouth and nose in a liquid. Most instances of fatal drowning occur alone or in situations where others present are either unaware of the victim's situation or unable to offer a ...

," was released on September 23, 2019. "

Famous Friends "Famous Friends" is a song recorded by American country music singers Chris Young (singer), Chris Young and Kane Brown. It was released on November 20, 2020, as the third single from Young's Famous Friends (album), eighth studio album of the sam ...

," featuring Young's friend

Kane Brown Kane Allen Brown (born October 21, 1993) is an American singer. Brown first came to the attention of the public through social media. He released his first EP, titled '' Closer'', in June 2015, and followed it with a new single, " Used to Love ...

, was released on November 20, 2020, as the album's third single. The album, also titled ''

'', was released on August 6, 2021. "At the End of a Bar", featuring Mitchell Tenpenny, was released on September 13, 2021, as the album's fourth single.

Personal life

On August 13, 2013, Young was en route to a tour date in Montana when he went into septic shock from a small cut on his leg which became infected. He was taken by ambulance to a hospital in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. The medical team immediately started Young on medication, and he had surgery on August 14 to treat the infection. Young returned home under his physician's care. As expected, his mobility was impacted by the surgery and his doctor requested he wait a full week post-surgery to resume touring. Young resumed on August 22. In June 2014, Young cancelled a performance at the

after accidentally cutting his left hand with a kitchen knife. The cut required surgery to reconnect tendons in the hand.

Philanthropy

Young has supported Little Kids Rock by donating various items to the organization for auction, raising money to put instruments in the hands of children. He has been a major supporter for Stars For Stripes raising $35,000 for the organization. He supports St. Jude Children's Hospital, and has raised money for it by sponsoring a tree at the Gaylord Opryland Resort's Annual Hall of Trees. On September 8, 2014, Young donated $25,000 of his own money, along with $5,000 from his fan club, to the Nashville School of Arts. In late August 2017 he created a fundraising site for Houston to help with the massive flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey. On October 4, 2018, Young donated $5000 to a GoFundMe page to help pay for cataract surgery for a dog named Granola. He donated the money after a fan reached out to him on Twitter asking him for help marketing the GoFundMe project.

Discography

Studio albums *'' Chris Young'' (2006) *''

'' (2009) *''

'' (2011) *'' A.M.'' (2013) *''

'' (2015) *'' It Must Be Christmas'' (2016) *'' Losing Sleep'' (2017) *''

'' (2021)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Chris 1985 births American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters Grand Ole Opry members Living people Nashville Star contestants Nashville Star winners People from Murfreesboro, Tennessee RCA Records Nashville artists 21st-century American singers 21st-century American male singers