Who Is Ethan Garner? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

Full name – Ethan Garner
Birthdate – 01/31/2003
Hometown – Jefferson, Georgia
Current city – Nashville, Tennessee
Musical influences – The Eagles, Elvis Presley, Bon Jovi
Label – RECORDS Nashville

Current Single – “Put the Wine Away”  (as of date of article: 09/07/2026)

Today’s spotlight artist is rising singer-songwriter, Ethan Garner. We chatted with Garner all about his upbringing, his love for music, and of course, his brand new project, The Georgia Kid. Keep reading to learn more.

Growing up in Georgia, Garner had music all around him. His father was a huge music fan and talented singer himself, always playing classic records. He also played Southern gospel and Christian music and even recorded an album of his own. “My dad was a very big fan of music. I mean, there was always a lot of classic records on and a lot of like The Eagles, Elvis Presley, that kind of stuff,” shared Garner.

While the singer-songwriter loved music, he didn’t start seriously pursuing it right away. In high school, he was more focused on playing football, but his love for music and entertainment was always there. The singer recalls having almost every inch of his bedroom walls covered in posters and magazine clippings of artists he loved.

It wasn’t until college that Garner started to really explore music for himself. While attending Georgia Southern, he began playing in bars and watching other Georgia artists like Luke Bryan and Cole Swindell build careers in country music. Seeing their success helped make the dream feel possible for him too, and eventually, Garner began making trips to Nashville.

Around the same time, the singer also found a deeper connection to his faith. After a period of partying in college, Garner traveled on a mission trip to Panama, an experience that changed his relationship with his faith. “I think it was the first time I really experienced a strong, genuine interaction with the Holy Spirit,” he shared. “I had been kind of a believer, Christian faith my whole life, kind of just go to church, but that felt like it was my own kind of relationship.”

Later that summer, he spent several weeks in Thailand on another mission trip before returning home and making the move to Nashville to attend Belmont University.

The Turning Point:

Shortly after moving to Nashville, Garner’s career began to take shape in an unexpected way. While at Belmont, the singer needed an internship for his degree and reached out to a friend at River House. After sending over his résumé, Garner received some brutally honest feedback. “He said, ‘This résumé sucks,’” Garner recalled with a laugh.

Instead, his friend encouraged him to start posting videos on TikTok. He took his advice, sharing a Katy Perry cover that quickly took off. Soon, management meetings began coming in through Instagram direct messages, eventually connecting him with his current manager, who introduce him to a publisher. Within his first couple of months in Nashville, Garner had both a manager and a publishing deal and began diving headfirst into songwriting.

Although Garner had always respected songwriters, writing was not initially the part of being an artist that excited him most. He loved the idea of touring, playing shows, and being in the studio. Over the last few years, however, songwriting has become one of the most important parts of his artistry. “I think over the last two years, now more than ever, I think it’s the most important thing to me,” he shared, adding, “I think I’ve really grown into figuring out how to say what I want to say.”

Today:

Now, Garner is ready to introduce himself with his debut EP, The Georgia Kid, which came out on September 4th. The project gives fans a taste of his Georgia roots, his personality, and the type of artist he hopes to be moving forward. “I feel like this is a great introduction,” shared Garner. “I’ve always kind of straddled that left of center line, not being super traditional, and there’s a lot of cool stuff in this. It just gives you a little glimpse of what’s to come in the future.”

When it came to choosing songs for the project, Garner paid attention to what fans were already gravitating towards. “Put the Wine Away” was the first original song of his to really take off on social media after he posted it on a whim. “I remember I just threw it up randomly and it had a couple hundred thousand views the next day,” he shared.

Still, The Georgia Kid is about more than what performed well online. Garner wanted the collection of songs to tell his story. “Heart of Georgia” references real places near where he grew up, while “Put the Wine Away” shows off his personality and some of the retro influences that have shaped his sound. “There’s just some good personality and some storytelling in this,” he shared. “It does a good job to really tee off what the rest of my career will look like and sound like.”

“Put the Wine Away” came to life after Garner found himself playing around with a riff and different melodies before a writing session. Pulling from the old-school music he grew up on, the playful track centers around the idea of not needing alcohol to enjoy a moment with someone. While Garner is excited about the entire project, he currently names “Put the Wine Away” and “A Classic Southern Man” as his favorites.

With The Georgia Kid officially out in the world, he  is ready to keep the momentum going. Fans can expect more music and plenty of live shows, something the singer believes is one of his biggest strengths. “I think our best thing is live performance,” he shared. “We love playing shows.”

With more music on the horizon and a debut project that gives fans a true taste of who he is, it’s safe to say the rising artist is one to keep on your radar.

Connect:

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

To keep up with Ethan Garner, follow him on Instagram , Facebook, and TikTok.

Ethan Garner’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.