Never ready

"Time speeds up,

and your parents slow down.
Yeah, they always took care of you.
But it's your turn now."

(Never Ready / Austin Goodloe, Corey Kent, Joybeth Taylor, Lydia Vaughan)

With close to 188 mio. streams on Spotify, 'Wild as Her' is by far the most successful song in his still young career. And although Corey Kent sees himself as a songwriter, he was not involved in writing the song that gave him his breakthrough. However, one of the 3 writers of the song was Morgan Wallen, currently the most successful artist in the genre. Not bad either!

When originally released in early March of 2022, demand for the song quickly led to RCA Nashville signing the then 28-year-old from Texas. With the major label's promotion, the by then official first single eventually climbed all the way to number 3 on the radio (Billboard Country Airplay) chart in May of 2023. 

Subsequently, Corey Kent released his official major label debut album "Blacktop". The follow-up single 'Something's Gonna Kill Me', however, disappointingly stalled at number 40. This despite of the fact, that the song has achieved over 58 mio. streams on Spotify by now. A number that many top-10 country hits never even reach.

His second full length studio project, which continues the black theme of the first album with its "Black Bandana", has now been announced for September 6, 2024. The first pre-release from the project, the desperate love song 'This Heart' proudly stands at 18 mio. streams on Spotify. Yet it seems to be already on the verge of disappearing from the charts without even coming close to the top 40.

One more new track from the upcoming album was released on June 21, 2024. It takes up a popular theme of the genre: the passing of time and the ups and downs of life. 'Never Ready' is a story song that weaves personal memories into a universal story. From true love to starting a family to the loss of a parent, it is essentially about events in life that sometimes happen so unexpectedly and intensely that one doesn't know how to deal with them. 

You're never ready for that kinda hit you outta left field,
naw, you never saw it coming, how it'd make you feel?
Seeing the nurse put your baby on her mama's chest,
tryna act tough, but you're a train wreck.

It's a half smile, half cry, change your whole life feeling
that'll stop you in your tracks.
People talk about it, and you thought about it,
but that kinda heavy, naw, you're never ready for that.

(Never Ready / Austin Goodloe, Corey Kent, Joybeth Taylor, Lydia Vaughan)

On his Instagram page, Corey Kent comments visibly proud on the song: "It is the best country song I've ever written and maybe ever will."

"It’s about those moments in life that no matter how much you prepare for, you’re never ready for them. You know they’re coming and but they’re such big moments when they happen, it still feels like they hit you out of left field." 

 

Consequently, the official video for the song conveys Corey Kent's personal story with touching images from those moments in his life. Even though an important element of the song is visually pushed into the background of a burning red sunset sky, namely the fact, that life is not only about happy surprises. In the lyrics it is just this one line, embedded in the thematic chorus of the song: holding your old man's hand for his last breath, trying to act tough, but you're a train wreck.

 

Yet, it builds the important third and final verse of the song. 

 

Ultimately, it is a song that works especially well with the video, and one that conveys what Corey Kent says in his own words: "It's a song about real life, real love and real loss!"