Koe Wetzel Celebrates New Era With ‘The Night Champion’: ‘We Got Something Really Special’

Koe Wetzel has spent the past year putting together his brand-new record, The Night Champion. Today, June 12, his sixth studio album finally arrives via Columbia Records, giving fans a taste of everything that has led up to him becoming best version of himself.

A few days before the highly anticipated release, Wetzel made the trip to Chicago to give a select group of fans an early listen. He performed a few of the songs that reflect spirit of the project produced by Gabe Simon, and its underlying theme of resilience as he celebrates surviving the “night side” of himself and coming out a champion.

“We’ve been listening to it damn near every day through the mixing process and the master process. But I think we got something really special with this record,” he admitted to the crowd at Carol’s Pub.

While the Texas native taps into his deep thoughts and vulnerable emotions throughout the 11 tracks, he doesn’t lose sight of his signature gritty, hard-edged sound. Listeners will even get a dose of lust, romance and heartbreak come to play with songs like “Magnet,” “I’ll Lock Up,” “Dollar and a Bottle” and more.

“It’s kind of where I am now: an edgy roughness to all of the songs that doesn’t give a f*ck, but there’s a tenderness to it, too. Whatever happens, I’m man enough to deal, but the focus and headspace have shifted; I’ve grown up and become okay with looking back,” he admitted.

Wetzel only included one outside cut on the entire project, “Circus.” While introducing the track to fans in Chicago, he explained it was the only song he didn’t write on the record and said there was a “damn good reason” it made the final tracklist.

The song, penned solely by Sam Harris, taps into the gap between how life was imagined versus how it actually turned out. In this case, Wetzel reflects on the dreams he once had and contrasts them with the reality, which feels much heavier and less glamorous.

Then there’s the “really sad cowboy sh**” on the record, as Wetzel describes, that comes through in songs like “When I Was,” featuring harmonies from Maggie Antone.

“We had her come on and throw some harmonies on it and it really made the song what it is,” he said of Antone’s vocals. “I’ve been telling everybody that this is probably one of the slower, sadder songs that I’ve put out in a very, very long time. I’m really excited about this tune.”

Whether you’re a fan who’s been here since day one or who jumped on the train during Wetzel’s most prominent radio hit is “High Road,” The Night Champion serves as the perfect place for all listeners to meet in one place and experience where the singer/songwriter is at in his life now.
 
 “In a lot of ways, it’s closing a chapter, and opening another one for what’s to come for the next 10, 12 years,” Wetzel admitted.

 Following “High Road,” Wetzel returned to country radio with “Hurts Like You,” the lead single from his new project.  Now he is gearing up to take the new music on the road during his 50+ date The Night Champion World Tour. The trek launches July 8 in Edmonton, Alb. and will continue with several dates across Canada before returning to the U.S. on July 23 with a show in Nampa, Idaho and running through the fall.