Knoxville, TN · indie rock · folk rock

Briston Maroney

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Nashville guitar-pop with a rasp and a big chorus — festival-ready without being calculated about it, 'Freakin' Out on the Interstate' still the calling card.

Briston Maroney grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee, where as a teenager he played guitar in the bluegrass band Subtle Clutch, busking on street corners and playing venues including Dollywood and Knoxville's Rhythm N' Blooms festival. At fifteen he auditioned for American Idol, advancing to Hollywood as one of thirty semi-finalists before being cut.

He studied music at Lipscomb University in Nashville before dropping out in 2018, a period that also brought a breakup, a stint in rehab, and moves between Knoxville, California and Florida before he settled back in Nashville and committed to music full time.

Maroney self-released the EPs Reason to Shake in 2015 and Big Shot in 2017 before signing to Canvasback Music and Atlantic Records, whose Carnival EP in 2018 included 'Freakin' Out on the Interstate,' later certified Gold. Its follow-up, the Indiana EP, produced 'Fool's Gold,' which appeared on Taylor Swift's Apple Music playlist.

His songs pair scrappy, fuzz-edged guitar with a hoarse, cracking voice and choruses built to be sung back. The writing leans toward restlessness, adolescence and the anxious edges of growing up, drawing on early listening to John Prine, Bob Dylan and Neil Young.

He has since released three studio albums for Atlantic, most recently Jimmy in 2025, and 'Freakin' Out on the Interstate' remains his best-known song. He has been in a relationship with the singer-songwriter Samia for several years.

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indie rockfolk rock