As a new-school country rocker with a reputation for red-dirt swagger and blue-collar grit, Sony Music Nashville artist Corey Kent has spent more than 15 years cutting his own path through a tangled wilderness of stumbles and setbacks … and never once come close to waving a white flag.   A Bixby, Oklahoma native now based in Dallas, the proud husband, father and creative freedom fighter has become a decorated artist on the rise, growing from humble heartland roots into a Platinum certified Number One hit maker with 750 million career streams, and a black bandana on his neck. But today, that Black Bandana is more than an accessory – and not just the name of his sophomore major-label album. It’s his rally cry.   “It started from riding motorcycles and wanting something over your face so you didn’t swallow a bug,” the singer-songwriter says. “But then it turned into a staple I wear on stage, and then a symbol of the path through my career, and life. Through all the ups and downs, the one constant thing was this relentless hope – this relentless pursuit of believing that if I don’t give up, I can get where I’m going.”   With a self-built story that has seen success and disaster, keeping that belief wasn’t always easy – but it’s been paying off. Rising from the vibrant Red Dirt country scene as the embodiment of authenticity, Kent set his sights on Nashville as a teen, bringing his self-penned catalog of country-rock anthems with him. But after the pandemic coincided with the loss off his first publishing deal, Kent was forced to move to Texas and get a job on a paving crew to pay the bills, yet he stubbornly refused to call music quits. Honkytonks and dancehalls on both sides of the Red River became his stomping ground, and slowly but surely, the black bandana spirit grew.   Fast forward a few years and the hit single “Wild As Her” proved he was right all along An untamed tribute to a free-spirited stunner, the track re-invigorated Kent’s career as a Platinum-certified Number One at country radio, and the lead single off his major label album debut, Blacktop. And while momentum kept building, with Kent hitting the road alongside Jason Aldean, Ashley McBryde, Parker McCollum and more, the mainstream moved to claim they knew it all along. Next-big-thing accolades came in from CMT, Opry Next Stage, and more, but even as Kent became the most played new artist on country radio for all of 2023, he kept the underdog, who-cares-about-conventional-wisdom mentality. And so did his fans.   Despite never cracking country radio’s Top 40, Kent’s trust-your-gut second single “Something’s Gonna Kill Me” went Gold (and is now approaching Platinum status), proving his message was connecting – even if the old guard couldn’t hear it. “There was no real measurable success at radio, but it’s an anthem, a creed,” Kent explains. More than that – it’s a motto fans get tattooed on their skin.   For Kent, the point was that his fans have the same independent spirit he does, and he took that lesson into his next chapter. Settled in to his ranch in Texas and intent on being fully present as husband and father, while also achieving his dreams, his second album is all about finding balance, keeping clear eyes on what’s important – and waving that Black Bandana for all to see.   “When I was an indie artist, I was just making art for the sake of making art,” he explains. “But it’s really easy to think ‘Is this going to work? Are people going to like this?’ And the further I go down that rabbit hole, the less happy I get. So this record is simple: It’s just like ‘What do I want?’”   Co-writing six of Black Bandana’s 10 songs, what Kent ultimately wanted was to mix themes of integrity, resilience and family with a sonic setting befitting the mission. Finding the midway point between Bruce Springsteen and Brooks & Dunn, cinematic electric guitars and heart-pounding drums meet a warm, gravel-road rasp, as Kent brings classic rock into the present tense.   Paired with sweeping, spacious atmosphere and the subtle undercurrent of a gathering thunderstorm, it’s the perfect musical score for some Great Plains poetry, filled with heartbreak and hope. And these days, the hit maker is trying not to overthink his art. It if feels right, it probably is.   “It’s supposed to be fun,” he admits. “Not everything has to be about climbing a ladder. … I wrote a lot of this record at my ranch in Texas, just staring out the window at our three horses and our three kids riding four wheelers. I’m trying to create songs about life, where I do life. And I think that’s unique.”   “Black Bandana” helped set the tone. Co-written with Rocky Block, Jordan Dozzi, and Brett Tyler, the slow-burning call to stand your ground pairs tender country-rock reverence with a big-picture mindset, helping tie all of Kent’s struggle, success, and plans for the future together. The album was almost finished when he wrote it, Kent says, but he was happy it “derailed” the project.   “It encapsulates the journey. The reason we’re here is because we didn’t give up, and the whole record is a call to action against all odds,” he explains. “When the going gets tough and everybody quits, you be the one that stays the course and never gives up. I think there’s a lot of people that relate with that.”   Other tracks fuse that call to action with Kent’s let-it-ride mentality. The dark and smoky soul of “Ain’t Gonna to Lie” kicks the album off, mixing Skynyrd with Stapleton and a rough-edged ‘70s rock spirit for a tune that on the surface, finds a guy fessing up about the damage to his broken heart. But really, it’s another call to be unapologetically honest, in whatever you stand for.   Tunes like the less-is-more stunner that is “Damn Good Country Song” beg for a chance to get destroyed by love, matching Kent’s tender growl with a bare minimum of back alley R&B production – just enough to make the torchy track strut. And while “Never Ready” emerges as a fully-realized full-circle ballad, with Kent acknowledging the fleeting nature of our most precious blessings, tracks like “Now or Never (feat. Lauren Alaina)” seek to strike while the romantic iron is hot – a seize-the-moment power duet built on orchestral “’80s hair metal ballad vibes.”   “Break Like That” smolders with a singalong promise of fidelity, and while “Rust” tributes a love that will weather the elements, tracks like “Nothing But Neon” and “This Heart” sway with somber classic rock heartache. In the end, Kent finishes on the “raw” and reflective ballad “So Far,” tracing his journey in stark acoustic lines while also rededicating himself to his wife. It’s a love letter – and a look back – but like the black bandana he wears, also a reminder. He may have stuck to his guns and come a long way, but the road doesn’t end here.   “We all face our own demons. We all face our own setbacks, and I hope this record serves as encouragement,” he says. “It would be really easy to lean on the past and go ‘Look at what I’ve done,’ but I’m still excited about the records I’ve yet to create. I’m excited about the shows I haven’t played yet. I’m excited about unlocking new levels of my craft, and writing more songs that people connect with deeply. …I still live for those moments.”