Why ‘Hicktown’ is a Special Song for Jason Aldean

Jason Aldean brought Backstage Country’s Elaina Smith to 2005 when he heard his debut single “Hicktown” on the radio for the first time. It wasn’t just going to be another country music hit, but it was also the start of a career that would go on to dominate country charts and fill arenas and stadiums for nearly two decades. 

To Aldean, it’s more than just a song that put him on the map. 

Aldean shared that people often ask him what his favorite song is. He admitted that it’s a really difficult question for him to answer since a lot of his songs came about at different points in his career. But he’s certain about one thing: “’Hicktown’ was that one that launched us. I mean, that will forever be a special song for me.” 

He also mentioned other special songs in his career: “’She’s Country’ was really the song that really kind of threw the gasoline on the fire. And then here comes ‘My Kinda Party’ and all those things, ‘Dirt Road Anthem’ that took everything to a new level. So, it's really hard to say, ‘Well, that was my favorite.’ Or that was because they all kind of were really important parts of my career that got us to this point.” 

Aldean also shared the memorable time he heard his songs on the radio for the first time: “I was going over to a friend of mine's house. His name's Justin Weaver. He's a songwriter here in town. I was going over to his house, and I was like, ‘Yeah, I'll be over there in a few minutes. I'll stop by the store.’ I was going to grab some beer and go to his house. Well, as soon as I went to get out of the truck, I heard the kick drum to ‘Hicktown, come on the radio.” 

Instead of going to his friend’s house, Aldean just started driving around the parking lot: “I thought it was the coolest thing ever. And that was the first time. So, I went over to his house and I'm freaking out because I just heard my song for the first time. And as a new artist, when you're getting started, if you want to hear a new artist's song, you have to listen to radio from like two in the morning to like six in the morning.” He added, “This was like ten or 11. And it came on and I was like, ‘Oh, man.’ People are still awake at this hour, so maybe people are hearing the song, but it's a big deal.” 

Don't miss this opportunity to hear Jason Aldean from May 26–30 on Backstage Country. For more of his music, tour dates, and official merch, visit his website here.