Country music is blessed with so many stars in the making. While the genre is changing in terms of the different subtypes of country music, one thing is for certain, country music continues to produce the best songwriters. Today’s spotlight artist, Noah Rinker is both a star in the making and an incredible songwriter. We chatted with the rising star all about his story, his signing with Warner Records, and of course his newest project, The Pines EP. Keep reading to learn more.

“I grew up just outside of Yosemite National Park in a a tine town called Shaver Lake, and it was super awesome growing up there,” began Rinker. “It was small-town vibes, and growing up there was really cool because I got to experience a lot of nature and being out in the elements.”

The California-native grew up simultaneously loving nature and music from as early as he could remember. “I started playing piano when I was four, and I started playing in church as soon as my hands were big enough to reach an octave on the keys. That started my deep love for music,” he shared. Eventually, Rinker learned how to play guitar too, and at just sixteen years old, he was writing his own music. “As I worked harder on that, everything just kind of blossoming and changing as life went along, and I experienced things like heartbreak, love and loss, and all those good things that really kicked the real songs into gear.”

The singer-songwriter drew inspiration from artists across different genres.“I grew up listening to Cat Steven, which was very folk stuff, and my mom loved the artist Jewel which is a pop-country vibe, and Sara Bareilles”, and Christian-contemporary radio. All of these different things, and also my parents would throw on Foo Fighters and Blink 182, and a bunch of rock stuff, and I disproved Jon Mellencamp and John Mayer, and I think it’s so across the board that I just fell in love with all of it, and I wanted to make honest, truthful music that felt like where I was from and what I experienced. And when you grow up where I grow up, it does sort of aligned with the more rural elements of story-telling and those natural elements that are specific to growing up in a rural lifestyle.”

The Turning Point:

For Rinker, music was a constant in his life. Whether it was falling in love with music from John Mayer, Tyler Childers or King of Leon, the story-telling consistently kept him locked into music. “Writing songs to me was the only thing that mattered. I remember the day when I learned a lot of songs were written by a bunch of songwriters but it kind of broke my heart in a way but it also energized me in a way because there are people that come together and write stuff, and then there are artists who write their own stuff, and I really have focused on wanting to do that,” he shared, adding, “I’ve written with other people at well, but I love writing by myself and being able to be in the captain’s chair of my own story.”

While Rinker knew that he loved music, he didn’t really have a plan for how he would make his dream a reality. He just continued to write music, and found a way to share it with the world through social media.

“It’s really crazy how you can play to as many people as you can to the internet from the comfort of your backyard fire pit,” he shared. “I started making videos. Some with my dog and some outside in my backyard of me just playing songs that I have written and little unreleased snippets, and they started going I guess you can say, viral on the internet, and it was really fun because I was just at home in the mountains making this music, and putting it out through my phone, and so many people were starting to pay attention.”

His vitality on social media led to him catching the attention of industry people over at Warner Records. “I partnered with them, and we’re both working together to bring my vision to life,” shared the singer, who signed his record deal with the label in July of 2024.

Today:

Flash forward to today, with a dedicated team in his corner, Rinker is releasing his best music to date. Most recently he shared a six-song EP called The Pines with the world.

“‘The Pines’ project is by far my favorite thing I put out to date,” shared the artist. “It’s the most musically-developed version of what I have to offer so far.  Some of the songs are actually kind of old. I wrote “Restless Eyes” and “Rodeo” like over two years ago, and those are two tracks on the EP, and I really just collected a bunch of things that felt like they were super congruent and were the most honest to me. I really had an amazing time putting it together and really bringing the production to life the way I wanted to.”

The record as a whole is a cohesive project that speaks to where Rinker’s been and where he is going. It’s honest, introspective, and real, something that we can expect from the singer-songwriter’s music in the future too. “My first EP that I ever put out called After Dark was entirely self-produced and self-made, and it was on the simpler side because I made the entire thing in my bedroom, and this project is more fully realized version of my production ability and a bigger look into my songwriting and tells such truthful stories that are kind of gut wrenching in a way and beautiful in others.”

As we head into 2026, Rinker’s growing fanbase can expect more music to come and even more shows. To head to a show near you, check-out his tour dates here.

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Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news about future Noah Rinker releases.

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Noah Rinker’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.