Jimmie Allen

Turns out 32-year-old country newcomer, singer/songwriter Jimmie Allen, isn’t really new to the scene at all.

The country crooner dropped out of the University of Delaware with $21 to his name over a decade ago to pursue his dream of making it big in Music City. He worked a slew of odd jobs in Nashville to try and make ends meet while doing writers’ rounds and even did a stint of living out of his car. If you ask if he knew he’d reach these levels of success one day, he’ll tell you he did. Not how or when. But he was sure his drive would get him there. The tenacity paid off.

“Ever since I was a kid I knew at the age of like 9 or 10 that music was what I wanted to do for a living and I’ve been chasing it down ever since,” says Jimmie. Hailing from Milton, Delaware, young Jimmie sunk himself into school plays, church choir, playing the drums, piano and some bass guitar. His adeptness for creative writing stems back to his youth in which he loved to develop characters and storylines for potential movies.

It’s evident Jimmie’s craft has been influenced by his eclectic taste in tunes as a boy, listening to Alabama, Ricochet, Prince, Michael Jackson, George Strait, Three Doors Down and Tupac in his high school years. Influenced by this crowd, his smash hit single “Best Shot” leans in towards R&B-flavored country. It topped off at No. 1 in Canada country radio in December 2018 and spent two weeks as the most played song on country radio in the U.S. The meaning behind the song channels Jimmie’s unwillingness to ever give up.

As for the music video, viewers are treated to charming home videos and pictures from Jimmie’s time growing up with his family in Delaware. He made the choice to focus on his loved ones in the song because for him, “What makes me want to wake up every day and be better and quote unquote ‘give my best shot,’ per se, is my family. I’m super close with them.”

The release of his debut album in October 2018, Mercury Lane, was highly anticipated following the success of his self-titled EP and “Best Shot”. The name is derived from the street he grew up on in Milton. It’s clear a great deal of his musical – and personal – identity is centered around his idyllic family life. “It’s like holding onto memories because I realized in order to go where I need to go, I had to move. And life is all about keeping memories in the past and just progress,” he continues, “And sometimes the progress takes you different places.” Although he stresses he always wants to leave his work up to interpretation for every listener, for him, “Mercury Lane” is an homage and walk down memory lane. “It [the album] is just a process, a process through life. It talks about relationships and never quitting, you know, chasing your dreams no matter the obstacles,” Jimmie reveals.

Jimmie is currently on the road with fellow American Idol alum, Scotty McCreery. Funnily enough, they both competed on Season 10, however Scotty ended up the reigning champ, with Jimmie getting cut just before the Top 24. With the Seasons Change tour serving as Jimmie’s first as a solo artist, he’s been learning cues from Scotty and soaking it all in. “It’s been fun getting the chance to see Scotty’s show and getting the chance to perform mine in front of his fans,” Jimmie adds, “I’m just learning a lot about the road and trying out different things.”

He’ll be heading back out on Kane Brown’s Live Forever Tour for select dates. Expect to see Jimmie back on the festival circuit as well as focusing on his next single. He’s also diving into his passion for film with exciting acting and movie opportunities.

2018 proved to be a generous year for the country star. With “Best Shot” reaching number one on Country Airplay in November, Jimmie became the first African-American country artist to shoot a debut single to the top. The recent increase in discourse concerning inclusion in country music has been applauded by many, including Jimmie. “Honestly, country music stemmed from Blues. So for me, when people bring up, ‘How does it feel to be a black guy in country music?’ I was like, well that’s how country started, you know,” he admits. He has never viewed the genre as a “white thing”. “It started with black artists such as Chuck Berry and Ray Charles. And that’s when country came from bluegrass and then went Western,” Jimmie mentions, “Now it’s kind of coming back around to the intent of country music, which is inclusion. A place for everyone to kind of really talk about what’s on their hearts. So for me, it’s good to see it getting back to where it started.”

Words by RACHEL HILL | Photos by CATHERINE POWELL