Hudson Westbrook failed to say to his mom that he dropped out of school final 12 months to pursue a profession in music. As a substitute, she heard the information when the 20-year-old nation singer revealed it to his followers throughout a stage present in his house state of Texas.
And it didn’t go over very effectively.
“My mother comes backstage, and she or he mentioned: ‘What massive track do you’ve gotten but?’ And I used to be like, ‘Nothing.’ And he or she mentioned, ‘Properly, you higher get to writing.’ That was August and I informed her that day I’d have a bus by January. She laughed in my face, however we had been in a bus by January. It’s been a loopy experience.”
That experience began throughout his time at Texas Tech, the place he simply began to jot down music for enjoyable in his dorm room. His mates teased him about how he was losing his time so he determined to place one of many songs out on TikTok — “Take It Gradual” — on the identical time he was beginning to play bars in Lubbock to make some pocket change.
“I had no followers on TikTok — zero,” he mentioned. “And the following factor you realize, I get up and I’ve 2 million views on it. And I’m like: ‘OK, that is one thing. But it surely’s in all probability only one video and I bought fortunate.’ I wasn’t about to drop out for one video. However then a pattern began and everybody’s on the Hudson prepare.”
At the moment, Westbrook has 687,000 followers on TikTok, 337,000 on Instagram and three.3 million month-to-month listeners on Spotify. He amassed greater than 255 million international streams in his first 11 months as an artist and averages greater than 16 million streams per week. Westbrook was named Billboard’s December 2024 Nation Rookie of the Month and began 2025 off as Sirius XM’s The Freeway’s latest Freeway Discover, certainly one of SXM’s all-genre 5 for 2025, and certainly one of Spotify’s all-genre 2025 Artists to Watch.
As soon as he dropped out of school, Westbrook began out releasing music in Texas, the place he introduced “Take It Gradual” to primary, earlier than debuting his first single, “Home Once more,” to nationwide radio on the finish of March — accompanied by a melodramatic music video — that was the second most added track of that week. And on the finish of April, he dropped “Sober,” a extra upbeat tune, that instantly trended within the prime 20 on TikTok’s music charts.
Hudson Westbrook is rarely seen with out the silver and turquoise cross his mom gifted him.
George Chinsee/WWD
Regardless of his seemingly in a single day success, Westbrook stays grounded. He attributes that to his household and “the constants in my life, like my brother, sister and mother. They don’t care that I’m going to Kansas Metropolis to play a present, or that I made X quantity of {dollars}, or any of that. They’re similar to, ‘The way you doing? Is your psychological well being all proper?’ The music may very well be gone tomorrow, however the constants in your life gained’t go wherever. If all the things’s performed, I might nonetheless fly again to my mother in Midland and hang around along with her.”
With a lot of his success attributable to social media, there’s additionally a danger of getting too depending on the platforms. “I attempt to be as energetic as I can, however the psychological well being half is just not the best as a result of in the event you’re concerned in your socials, you learn all the things, you see all the things, you realize all the things, and there’s a magnificence to that, however there’s additionally [a risk]. In case your dream is working, there are going to be people who hate on it and are jealous of it — and that’s simply damaging. So I’ll keep concerned, however I attempt to keep summary on studying all the things.”
Regardless of the dangers, he is aware of that sustaining a robust social media presence goes with the territory. “There are 4 pillars of music that you simply’ve bought to be sure to’re hitting on,” he mentioned. “There’s writing, touring, advertising and marketing and press. The one factor that I want I might decide to go can be social media. But it surely’s only a totally different world we dwell in at present and there are advantages and negatives. I went from nothing to all the things and I’m grateful. There are such a lot of individuals who would kill to do these items, so I am going write songs and that’s who I’m now.”
Regardless that he’s simply out of his teenagers, Westbrook has lived so much in these years and it exhibits in his songwriting. Living proof is “Home Once more,” which is predicated on his mother and father’ divorce that occurred when he was seven. “I’m 20 years outdated and I wrote a track that form of embodies the entire which means of what occurs whenever you break up. However I wouldn’t even restrict it to that. The particular person you made a lover is only a particular person once more. I feel individuals can relate to that in so many various methods. However that one’s a intestine puncher.”
Like a lot of nation music, the track tackles subjects that contact the center, however lots of his tunes are extra lighthearted such because the love track “5 to 9” and “Dressed Down,” the latter of which tells of him making an attempt to lure his lady out on a date by displaying up with flowers, doves, an infinite stuffed bear and even a field stuffed with puppies — none of which work.
Hudson Westbrook
George Chinsee/WWD
A number of of those songs are included on Westbrook’s EP, and the artist is placing the ending touches on his debut full-length album, slated to be launched this summer season. He’ll additionally keep busy this 12 months touring the nation because the opening act for everybody from Parker McCollum, Midland, Cole Swindell and the Eli Younger Band to Ian Munsick.
Due to their Texas roots, Westbrook has usually been in comparison with McCollum, one other star from the Lone Star state. “I grew up listening to Parker and Koe Wetzel,” Westbrook mentioned. “I additionally listened to Tracy Lawrence and Vince Gill, however Parker is the primary affect behind my concepts and my music. We’re each Texans, we’re each smalltown primarily based, we’re each blond, blue eyes, larger voice, however our writing fashion, how we sound and the devices we use are two completely various things.”
Ditto for his or her private fashion.
Westbrook mentioned he loves Wrangler denims in quite a lot of colours together with grey and tan — “They need to be starched, they will’t be delicate.” — and darkish brown or black boots from Lucchese, Tecovas or Ariat with pointed toes. For shirts, he’s keen on collared button-down pearl-snap shirts that he finds in classic shops, and he typically opts for a ball cap fairly than a cowboy hat. “I used to coach slicing horses and I used to be informed you don’t put on a cowboy hat except you’re working exterior,” he mentioned.
And he’s a giant fan of knickknack together with rings, bracelets and necklaces. “I hate spending $1,000 on one shirt that I’m sporting one time, however I’ll spend $1,000 on a hoop or a sequence that I can put on each single day.”
One fixed in his wardrobe is a silver cross inlaid with turquoise that was a present from his mom. Perhaps that’ll assist her forgive him for quitting school in any case.
