Jason Aldean Reveals The “Little Tricks” Country Artists Use To Help Build Their Careers
on Jul 29, 2026
It’s hard to believe Jason Aldean has been around the country music industry for over 20 years now!
After several years of setbacks, he signed with Broken Bow Records in 2004 and released his self-titled debut album the following year. That album included hits like “Hicktown” and his first No. 1 single, “Why.”
Over the next decade, Aldean released a number of chart-topping albums, including Wide Open, My Kinda Party, Night Train, and Old Boots, New Dirt. During that run, Aldean delivered some of the biggest country hits of the era, including “She’s Country,” “Big Green Tractor,” “Dirt Road Anthem,” “My Kinda Party,” “Burnin’ It Down,” and “When She Says Baby.”
Over the course of his career, Aldean has earned more than 30 No. 1 country singles and sold more than 20 million albums worldwide.
Jason Aldean Shares Advice To Country Singers Just Getting Started
And now Aldean has some advice for those just starting their careers.
After years of working his way up from small dive bars in Georgia to larger venues, Aldean admitted he was initially hesitant to make the leap to headlining his own shows.
Speaking on a recent episode of the Try That In A Small Town Podcast, the “Try That In A Small Town” singer recalled that when he was first offered the chance to launch his own headlining tour, he chose to hold off. Instead, Aldean opted to spend another year on the road as an opening act for Brooks & Dunn, a decision he now says ultimately paid off in the long run.
“I even put it off a little longer just to be like, you know, give us time to get another song out and kind of let that heat that was starting to happen, just let it bubble a little,” Aldean explains.
Aldean acknowledged that every artist dreams of becoming a headliner, but he believes timing is everything. While taking center stage in front of thousands of fans is the ultimate goal for many performers, Aldean said reaching that milestone too early can be a mistake.
Without a proven string of hit songs and years of touring experience, he feels an artist might struggle to deliver the kind of show fans expect. Looking back, Aldean said waiting until he had built both his confidence and his fan base made the transition to headlining much more successful.
“The problem is a lot of them only have one or two songs and think they can go out and carry an hour and a half or two hours of a show, and it’s like, dude, you got two songs people really care about that they want to hear; what are you going to do for the other 80 minutes?”
He said some artists discover the challenges of headlining sooner than expected, noting that selling out venues isn’t automatic.
According to Aldean, some artists end up resorting to giving away tickets to make shows appear fuller, calling it one of the “little tricks” used in the industry. He believes many newer artists are making the jump to headlining too soon instead of spending more time opening for bigger stars and building up their own catalog.
Watch Jason Aldean’s full interview below.
