So far this year, Hunter Hayes has toured in Australia and the United Kingdom and now he’s on the road with Lady Antebellum’s Wheels Up Tour. But the destination today, June 11, is Chattanooga, where he’s headlining the Coke Stage’s 9:30 p.m. show at Riverbend.
It’s a given that Hayes and his country fans are going to party like they’re “21,” the singer’s 3-week-old single that recalls the excitement of turning 21 and sharing that night with a significant other. It wasn’t that long ago that Hayes, 23, had his own 21st celebration with friends while in New Orleans to perform.
What makes “21” of particular interest to Chattanoogans is that it was co-written by Kelley Lovelace, who grew up in the Hixson community before moving to Nashville and gaining a reputation as one of Music City’s best songwriters.
Lovelace says “21” was written over a year ago with Ashley Gorley and Dallas Davidson during one of their regular writing sessions.
“Hunter’s people at Warner Brothers got hold of it and pitched it to him. Hunter really loved the song but made a few changes in the song to fit his brand, which overall made the song even better and made it perfect for him.”
Lovelace also has another co-write on radio right now: “Crushin’ It,” sung by Brad Paisley. As soon as a listener hears it, there’s no mistaking that signature humor of a Lovelace song.
Lovelace says he hasn’t seen Hayes perform “21” live but did catch it when the singer performed it on a recent episode of “The View.”
“Hunter is a super-talented guy. He can do anything. After watching him play it, it has really become his song. I can see why he gravitated toward it because he seems really comfortable with it,” says the songwriter.
Hayes broke into country music with the release of a self-titled album in October 2011, on which he astounded the music industry by playing every instrument. The artist has mastered 30 musical instruments, and his audience will see him pick up many of them tonight,
“He has a high-caliber, high-energy show. His level of performance is very high,” says Bill “Dex” Poindexter, on-air personality at WUSY US101 radio who has seen Hayes perform numerous times and even introduced him at a Grand Ole Opry show in Nashville. “He doesn’t just sit at the piano or play the guitar. The only time he’s at the piano is when he plays ‘Wanted.’ Most of the time he’s out front with the guitar, mandolin, Dobro and other instruments. Personally, he is one of the nicest young men I’ve ever met.”
Hayes is a five-time Grammy nominee, has won three consecutive Teen Choice Awards for Choice Male Country Artist and was named Best New Artist of 2012 by the Country Music Association and Academy of Country Music. In January of this year, he won the fan-voted People’s Choice Award for Favorite Male Country Artist.
“I think we’ve got the best of both worlds tonight (with Hayes’ performance),” says Dixie Fuller, Riverbend talent and production coordinator. “The young crowd already knows his music; the older folks are going to love it if they haven’t seen him. He’s in tune with his fan base. To anyone considering liking country music, this is the act to see. Just listen to Hunter Hayes. I think he is the next big name.”
Contact Susan Pierce at spierce@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6284.