Corey Kent

Born and raised in Oklahoma, singer-songwriter Corey Kent fuses longstanding country traditions with present-day pop songcraft and studio techniques. Public awareness first arrived through his 2016 stint on the televised contest The Voice, an appearance that prompted issuance of the initial EP The Long Way followed by the 2021 album 21. Momentum accelerated in 2022 when his rendition of Tyler Joe Miller’s “Wild as Her” reached larger audiences, directly preceding both the June 2023 full-length Blacktop and its acoustic companion ’23. Issued at the start of 2024, “This Heart” registered a Top 40 placement on the Hot Country Songs chart.

Given the full name Corey Kent White at birth, Kent spent his childhood in Bixby, Oklahoma, where he began vocalizing at age three under the influence of Garth Brooks. Guitar study commenced at eight, and his first onstage performance occurred at eleven during the Oklahoma State Fair in Tulsa. Although attendance was modest, one listener responded favorably and connected him with Oklahoma Stomp, a youthful ensemble devoted to classic Western swing. Kent served as the group’s singer for five years, an experience that crystallized his professional ambitions. He completed high school at sixteen, relocated briefly to Nashville in pursuit of music-industry opportunities, then returned to Oklahoma to enroll at Oklahoma State University. Songwriting continued between classes, and he assembled a band for local club dates that gradually built a loyal regional audience. Time soon split between steady Oklahoma bookings and repeated Nashville visits aimed at securing a recording contract. An independent three-song EP, Making Noise, appeared in 2014.

Selected the next year for season eight of The Voice under his then-current billing Corey Kent White, Kent joined Blake Shelton’s team and advanced to the Top Ten before elimination narrowed the field to the Top Eight. Although victory eluded him, the exposure broadened his listenership, and extensive touring with his band followed. May 2016 brought the independent five-track EP Long Way, which peaked at number 42 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart. Shortly afterward he removed White from his professional name. The album 21 arrived in 2020.

A 2021 cover of Canadian artist Tyler Joe Miller’s “Wild as Her” gained traction on streaming platforms, reaching the Top 20 of the Hot Country Songs chart and crossing over to the Hot 100. The performance led to a recording agreement with Sony’s RCA Nashville imprint. A duet version featuring Carter Faith was issued, accompanied by the additional singles “She’s Gonna Kill Me” and “Once or Twice.” All three tracks appeared on the third studio album Blacktop, released in June 2023, which attained number 27 on the Top Country Albums chart and registered on the Billboard 200. An entirely acoustic set, ’23, followed in December. The subsequent single “This Heart” became a Top 40 country entry in 2024, succeeded by “Rust” and “Never Ready.”