How Billboard’s Up-And-Coming Country Artist Blake Whiten Went From Viral Covers to Opening Stadium Tours & Scoring His Own Hot 100 Hit

In June 2024, Blake Whiten’s stripped-down cover of Morgan Wallen’s “I’m The Problem” went viral on social media.

Fast forward two years and Whiten opened shows for Wallen in Pennsylvania and Michigan this summer on the country superstar’s Still The Problem stadium tour, joining Wallen on stage for his 2017 hit “Up Down.” “That was the first time I’ve ever gotten a little bit emotional at a show,” Whiten tells Billboard of the first time he sang with Wallen.

“I think it clicked for me when I was onstage for that last time [singing] ‘Up Down.’ It kind of just hit me, like, ‘OK, we are moving in the right direction.’” It’s been a whirlwind couple of months for Whiten, who released his Enchntmnt/Warner Records debut album Something to Say in July, sent his first single, “Bet on That,” to country radio, and is now seeing “Bet on That” become his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100, debuting at No.

98.

“To finally be able to say that I’m actually pushing a song on the radio, it’s a pretty huge achievement in my mind.

And I’m just happy that I finally got to do it,” he says.

The son of a former preacher, the South Carolina native grew up around music.

He soaked in the sounds of country artists like Wallen and HARDY, but also AC/DC, Poison and Tesla.

Still, it wasn’t until his late teen years that he realized, “I have this crazy love for music.

I could put a song on and it could change my entire day.” Since he was 16, Whiten, now 22, had been working in construction, but within 48 hours of his version of “I’m the Problem” gaining traction on social media, he packed his bags and booked his first ever flight, headed for Nashville.

On Something to Say , Whiten worked with producer Austin Shawn, known for his work with Bailey Zimmerman (Whiten also co-wrote Zimmerman’s “Holding On,” which reached the top 40 on the Hot Country Songs chart.) As he sees a chart breakthrough with “Bet on That,” he’s bringing his new music on the road on his headlining Something To Say Tour, which launched Aug.

20.

“I feel like I have a dream, but I feel like I have a pretty good shot at this dream — at least, I hope I do,” Whiten says.

“And just working on all these songs over the last two and a half years, getting them written was a crazy experience, meeting all the people and all the songwriters.