Greylan James

“What I’m doing now is what I’d always been dreaming about,” says Greylan James. And one of Nashville’s most exciting young breakout Country stars means exactly what he says. Yes, the Knoxville-raised singer/songwriter has been manifesting his vision of Country music stardom since his earliest days: from those cleats and cowboy hats he wore to school to playing every sort of live show imaginable from tailgates to patios and dive bars to funerals around his hometown, he’s been envisioning this day for decades. Now, as he’s set to release his anticipated debut single with the stunning “Young Man,” arriving September 29 via BMLG Records, and also on the heels of landing his first No. 1 as a songwriter with Jordan Davis’ “Next Thing You Know,” the rising artist says he’s right where he ought to be.

“I’m truly serving myself and the little Greylan that wanted to grow up and play these shows and tour and look out the bus window,” he says. “It’s awesome. It’s exciting. It’s all the different emotions.”

It’s been a whirlwind year for Greylan, to be sure: he’s been tirelessly writing and recording his forthcoming debut project with BMLG Records, toured with Old Dominion this past summer, before heading out with Cole Swindell this fall. All the while, he’s been accumulating millions of streams on songs he’s written for other major artists from Kenny Chesney (“Happy Does”) to Chris Young (“If That Ain’t God”), Chris Janson (“Real Friends” feat Blake Shelton), Cole Swindell (“How Is She”) and Bailey Zimmerman (“Get to Gettin' Gone”). To date, Greylan’s songbook has amassed more than 650 million streams.

And while Greylan has undoubtedly been incredibly successful penning hits for others in the writer’s room, now he says he’s never been more ready to strike out on his own in a major way with his own artistry. “I’m taking a leap of faith and betting on myself,” he says proudly of his burgeoning artist career, which finds him quickly building up a fast-growing fanbase of diehards who now sing his words back to him every night. Greylan adds, “That deep-burning passion about my artistry and my own songs, that’d definitely the driving force of why I wake up every day now.”

His new single “Young Man” is a poignant, mature and dazzling outset of that journey: written alongside esteemed Nashville songwriters Jacob Davis and Josh Miller, and dedicated to Greylan’s late grandfather, the reflective song of notching wisdom from one’s elders is his most personal song yet. “I always wanted to write a song that honored my grandfather,” he says. “I think it’s going to connect with a lot of people.”

And what better way to do exactly that then by hitting the road: this fall, he shares the stage with Cole Swindell on the Country star’s nationwide TWELVE TOUR and Greylan says he’s nothing if not exhilarated at the prospect of making new fans along the way. “Touring reminds me why I wanted to do this all along,” he says with a smile. “It’s super rewarding when people show up somewhere not knowing who you are and then they leave a fan. That’s a feeling that’s unmatched. It’s really lit a fire under me.”

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