10 Questions with Cooper Alan
Cooper Alan Moved to Nashville in 2018 to pursue his dreams to become a singer/songwriter in Music City. Less than…
Cooper Alan; Photo by Jared Olson
Cooper Alan Moved to Nashville in 2018 to pursue his dreams to become a singer/songwriter in Music City. Less than two years after relocating, the world shut down like many others, he turned to TikTok to keep himself busy.
Instead of spending hours watching mindless videos, Cooper decided to put the platform to good use and began to use it as a way to connect with country music fans. After sharing country covers on the social media app, Cooper then released original music on TikTok and quickly became a social media sensation.
To date, he’s racked up 6.7 million TikTok followers and garnered over 63 million likes on the platform and amassed over 481,000 followers on Instagram.
In 2021, he signed to Cooped Up Records with industry icon Victoria Shaw at the reigns as CEO and he’s continuing his musical journey into 2022.
Now on the Cooped Up Tour and preparing to release new music later this year, Cooper Alan is proving there’s more to him than viral videos.
Check out our recent Q&A with the rising singer/songwriter below.
Growing up, was there a certain moment that it clicked and you knew you wanted to pursue music and at what point did you decide it was time to move to Nashville?
It was a Kid Rock concert…long story short, I knew that’s what I wanted to do, I wanted to make people feel like that. I wanted to perform; music was my thing. I’ve been playing pretty seriously since about eighth grade. I played all through high school and college. I wanted to go to college. I went to go UNC-Chapel Hill. I needed to kind of cut my teeth a little more, learn how to entertain, learn how to work the crowd, and I also wanted the college experience and get a basketball national championship under the belt – which we did. But, I always knew I wanted to be here so, soon as I graduated, the move was here.
So you moved to Nashville in 2018 and then after two years, everything shut down. What was like that for you?
It was wild but then ended up… I hate saying it, but it’s been the best thing to ever happen to me.
Obviosuly because of TikTok. It seems like you embrace that label, being an artist who uses TikTok. What are your thoughts on being labeled a TikTok artist?
Honestly, I think it’s kind of an honor. You know, people are always wary of kind of the new thing that disrupts or whatever when it starts, but I think over time, as people have continued to see hard ticket sales from TikTok artists, big streaming numbers that are organic from TikTok artists and real fans. Then you look at a guy like Walker Hayes that had the biggest country song of the year, by far, from TikTok, so I think the narrative is kind of changing.
I think that’s a great way to look at it. I don’t see it having a bad connotation at all. Have you ever thought about it like that?
No. Any way that you reach fans, I don’t think should ever be belittled. Any way that you build a fanbase is always really cool, no matter how you reach them, whatever platform you do it on.
Was there a certain video that you shared that you remember thinking, ‘I could be onto something here with TikTok?’
I’d had a couple viral cover videos where my mom handed me guitars, all this stuff, showing up at people’s doors. But it was really “New Normal” that was my first original song that kind of popped off on there and I was like, ‘oh shit.’ I mean, now we’re getting not only followers, but people are streaming songs before there’s a demand for that music there. So, that was a huge – probably the biggest turning point for me. Then the ticket sales stuff in the past seven months has been an even bigger turning point. So, it’s been really cool.
I saw all of your posts showing the sold-out rooms saying ‘TikTok can’t sell tickets…” That’s got to be pretty mind-boggling to see that many people showing up, right?
It is. Still, it never gets old. It’s still mind-boggling every time. And then when we started doing this, we were like, you know, if we do one hundred tickets in every market, that would be awesome. We considered it a success. And then we showed up in Louisville, Kentucky, and there are five hundred people in there. And then we went to Detroit and there are five hundred people in there. It was just bigger crowds than we ever thought. People knew the words to our songs – they were eager to see it. They were just there to have fun and, you know, see some of their favorite artists from the internet and that was so, so freaking surreal.
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I was driving down the road and heard someone blasting “Can’t Dance” recently. How does it feel to have people connecting with your music?
So cool. And you know, people using my songs at their weddings or like, you know, in videos about – it’s just to see the music connect with people, for them to want to blast it in their car or on their motorcycle driving down Broadway… it’s like, ‘holy shit that’s my song.’ So yeah, or you know, first dances, engagements, people recovering from surgeries – all this stuff, that’s what you do it for, you know?
You’re going on tour with Tigirlily. Love them! Can you talk about being on the road and how that tour came about?
It’s going to be awesome and they’re such badasses and the sweetest girls, and I love their harmonies, their songwriting – they’re great, great entertainers. Before their internet stuff took off, they would play down on Whiskey Row every Saturday and every time I had family in town, that’s exactly – we would go to Whiskey Row for four hours and party with Tigirlily. It’s going be really cool to have them on the road and – just like with Thomas [Mac] and Alexandra [Kay], doing road stuff with your friends is really cool. I’m really lucky.
Speaking of Alexandra Kay, how did the two of you meet?
We met through 615 House stuff. So, that’s why I met Thomas and Alexandra…that’s where I met Tiger Lily. And so that was the coolest part of all that is kind of finding your class of people and finding some of your best friends in town. And now, I talk to them every single day.
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What else do you have planned for 2022? New Music? More touring?
Yeah, a lot more music, a lot more touring. I think we’ve got seventy dates on the books this year and we haven’t booked the fall yet, so it’s going to be busy and fun. And then, you know, just keep giving my fans what they want in terms of the music and let them kind of help me through that process and decide what they want. As fo the music, I will probably release a project’s worth of songs. Just release, you know, as singles. That’s just how it works best for me – for some people, projects better, for me, it’s giving each song those couple of weeks to have their time and let me promote it. So, it’ll be a lot of new music just kind of spread out.
Fans can keep up with Cooper Alan on TikTok and Instagram.
Lauren Jo Black is a longtime country music journalist, editor, host, and media personality whose work has helped shape the conversation around country music for nearly two decades. As the current Editor-in-Chief of Country Now, she has become one of the genre’s most respected voices, interviewing hundreds of country music’s biggest stars, including Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Randy Travis, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, and countless others. Over the course of her career, Black’s written work and interviews have reached billions of country music fans worldwide. A 2009 graduate of the University of Central Florida, Black began her career by founding Country Music Is Love, one of country music’s earliest independent digital publications, which she later sold to a major record label in 2015 before it was rebranded as Sounds Like Nashville. She then served as the publication’s Editor-in-Chief for more than two years. Her work has also appeared in Forbes, and she previously served as the Country Music Expert for Answers.com. Widely recognized for her expertise, Black has appeared as a featured guest on The Bobby Bones Show, BobbyCast, and Scripps News Morning Rush, providing insight on country music’s biggest moments. She has also hosted Country Now Live, a concert series featuring performances from artists including Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Riley Green, Jordan Davis, Dustin Lynch, Gabby Barrett, Brett Young, Jon Pardi, Kip Moore, Chris Young, and more. The series has welcomed thousands of fans in person while reaching millions more online. In addition, she hosted Connect With Country Now, a weekly interview series featuring conversations with rising country stars. Throughout her career, Black has earned a reputation for discovering and championing artists long before they become household names. She has covered Luke Bryan since the early days of his career, beginning when he was writing songs for other artists, including Billy Currington’s No. 1 hit “Good Directions,” before stepping into the spotlight with his debut single, “All My Friends Say” and eventually becoming one of biggest names in music. She also gave Megan Moroney her first opportunity to walk a major red carpet as Country Now’s official guest correspondent at the 2022 CMA Awards. An interview she conducted in 2018 for Forbes.com with Luke Combs that inspired his multi-week No. 1 hit, “Doin’ This.” She has also hosted stages at CMA Fest, moderated an industry panel at Country Radio Seminar, and helped lead important conversations about the evolving landscape of country music media. Beyond journalism, Black has also used her platform to support charitable causes and highlight organizations making an impact. Through Country Now Live, she has helped raise awareness and support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, while also advocating for animal rescue through Country Now’s Pupdate series, spotlighting organizations including MuttNation Foundation, Wags & Walks, and Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue. Black has been recognized as one of Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. She is a longtime member of both the Country Music Association (CMA) and the Academy of Country Music (ACM). After nearly 20 years covering country music, Lauren Jo Black has spent her career telling the stories behind the artists, songs, and moments that have shaped the genre. Her first-ever book, Country Music Forever: An A-to-Z Celebration of Icons, Songs and Stories, brings that same passion and firsthand knowledge to the page, celebrating not only the legendary artists and timeless songs that have become the soundtrack to generations of fans, but also the places, traditions, and cultural moments that have made country music one of the most beloved genres around the world.
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