Bailey Zimmerman

Blessed with a raspy, gravel-etched voice, Bailey Zimmerman occupies a place somewhere between heartland rock and brooding, burly contemporary country. His style and arrangements are unadorned, reflecting the working-class background of his small-town Illinois background, yet his taste for slow-moving minor chords -- evident on his breakthrough 2022 single "Fall in Love," along with its successor, "Rock and a Hard Place" -- recall Jason Aldean and Cole Swindell, a trait that was showcased on his full-length debut, Religiously. The Album., released in May of 2023. In 2024, he teased a second album with the Top 20 Hot Country Songs single "Holy Smokes."

A native of Louisville, Illinois, Bailey Zimmerman is the son of a trucking business owner. He grew up listening to the country music his father played, and to the hard rock his mother played. When he was 16, he entered the workforce by landing a job at a meat processing plant, the first in a series of blue-collar jobs. In his spare time, he channeled his no-nonsense sensibility into his rock-inflected country songs, eventually amassing a following online and through social media.

"Never Comin' Home" was his first single in 2021, followed by "Small Town Crazy" at the end of the year. "Fall in Love" became a viral sensation early in 2022, leading to Warner Music Nashville signing him to their roster that April. The single "Rock and a Hard Place" -- which also was simultaneously released on an identically titled EP -- followed shortly afterward. "Where It Ends" and "Never Leave" both appeared prior to the October 2022 release of Leave the Light On, an EP that featured his then-current singles. "Where It Ends," "Rock and a Hard Place," and "Fall" also anchored his full-length debut, Religiously. The Album., which appeared in May 2023 and cracked the Top Ten of both the Top Country Albums and Billboard 200 charts. In February 2024, he hit 13 on the Hot Country Songs chart with "Holy Smokes," the lead single off his sophomore album. A second single, "Holding On," arrived that October. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine