Kidd G at the Rust Belt -- September 29.
Thursday, September 29, 8 p.m.
The Rust Belt, 533 12th Avenue, East Moline IL
Boasting nearly one million followers on TikTok alone, rising country star Kidd G. headlines a September 29 concert at East Moline venue The Rust Belt, his 2021 debut album Down Home Boy a recording that led Country Swag to rave, "Clearly influenced by hip-hop, emo, and country music, Kidd G’s sound is one that’s all of his own. It's like nothing you have ever listened to before – and that's a good thing!"
As a kid growing up in small-town Georgia, Kidd G first started creating his own songs at the age of 15, and soon arrived at a gritty but melodic sound equally inspired by classic country and hip-hop. On the heels of his chart-climbing breakthrough single “Dirt Road" – an October 2020 release whose video surpassed 5 million YouTube views in little over a month and now has 13 million views to date – Kidd G followed it with his debut EP Teenage Dream. Now having surpassed 1.5 million monthly Spotify listeners, the singer/songwriter's tracks have seen radio play from KIXX Country Radio in Australia, and reached new peaks on highly coveted country playlists including Amazon Music’s Country Heat (peaked he peaked at number two), and Spotify’s Hot Country (where he peaked at number 10).
Born Gabriel Horne and raised in the Georgia town of Hamilton (population 1,130), Kidd G got his start singing at the age of 11 with the full support of his music-loving family (his great uncle played bass in Fleetwood Mac, and both his parents are hobbyist singers). Within several years, he’d set up a makeshift studio in his bedroom and started recording with his friends, partly mining inspiration from new age rappers such as Juice WRLD. One of his first viral moments was his video “Letter to Juice”, a minute-long verse over a melancholic beat paying homage to the late artist. But while early tracks like his debut single “Sorry” lean toward traditional hip-hop, Kidd G later brought an element of old-school country into his songwriting. “I love country because it feels so natural to me, and you can really tell stories in the songs,” he has noted, naming Hank Williams Jr. among the artists he grew up on. As he continued posting his music on SoundCloud, Kidd G soon amassed a dedicated following drawn to his down-home charm and the honest detail of his lyrics. With the arrival of his hit single “Dirt Road,” that following grew exponentially as Kidd G saw the nostalgia-soaked track gain serious traction on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and land on coveted Spotify playlists including Fresh Finds Country and Next from Nashville.
Kidd G. plays his East Moline engagement on September 29, admission to the 8 p.m. all-ages concert is $20.75-99.75, and more information and tickets are available by visiting TheRustBeltQC.com.
