Warren Zeiders Reflects On People’s Choice Country Awards Nominations: ‘I Feel Honored’ [Exclusive]

Warren Zeiders is just a few days away from learning his fate at the second annual People’s Choice Country Awards. The rising star has had a monumental year and as a result, he has been nominated in the categories of New Artist of 2024 and New Artist Song of 2024 with “Betrayal.” 

Humbleness and gratitude are exactly what Zeiders expressed as he reflected on the recognition he’s received ahead of the star-studded show. Not only does he admit to feeling pride for the work he has been able to accomplish in the past year, but he also acknowledged the efforts of those around him, from his team to his current tour mate, Jelly Roll, and of course, the fans. 

“Honestly, I feel honored, and I feel a sense of appreciation. People around me work extremely hard and I think, as well, I do put in the effort, I do put in the work. So this is just a way of showing that you put in the time and effort and, you know, things like this can happen. It’s just an awesome opportunity to kind of get some more light shed on my name and with all the things that are going on right now with the next radio single with ‘Relapse’ and being out here on tour with Jelly Roll for the Beautifully Broken tour,” he told Country Now. “It’s been awesome to get in front of that many people and gain that many more fans night after night and kind of win some people over. So being in the position I am right now, I attest it to the people around me, I attest it to the fans that believed in me early on when I was just first starting to post on social media.”

Faith is also a leading support system that Zeiders has found to be a pivotal part of his journey thus far. 

“Obviously, the most important one is my faith. I think the good Lord’s had a plan for me all along and I think this is just another example of his will and his plan unfolding for me,” he added. 

Showing Support For Fellow Nominees

The “Pretty Little Poison” singer finds himself in good company in these nods. For New Artist of the Year, he is vying against a group of artists who have made great strides this year, including Shaboozey, Chase Matthew, Chayce Beckham, Dasha, Koe Wetzel, Nate Smith, and Tucker Wetmore. 

“I think it’s awesome. Obviously, everyone’s got their things about them, and everyone’s had their own individual successes through this year,” Zeiders said before praising some of his fellow nominees. “I mean, Shaboozey’s had a huge breakout year with his hit song, Koe’s been around the block for some time now, but this most recent year with some of his success on socials and I’ve played a couple of festivals with him this past summer. Tucker’s new to the scene, just with some of his new songs, so obviously there’s a lot of competition out there. But all you can do is keep your head down and focus on yourself and see how the whole thing unfolds and shuffles out.”  

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Touring With Jelly Roll

The live celebration will take place on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry on Thursday, September 26. Unfortunately, Zeiders will not be in attendance as he is set to serve as an opener for yet another stop on Jelly Roll’s Beautifully Broken Tour. Coincidently, Jelly Roll was crowned last year’s winner of the PCC New Artist of the Year category, so if Zeiders does pull out the win, he will have the perfect person to celebrate with.  

“I’ll speak it into existence, when I do win, him and I will have to celebrate backstage because it’ll just be a full circle, honestly a laughable moment just with him winning last year and everything,” he shared. 

Latest Project, ‘Relapse,’ Offers A Glimpse Into New Musical Chapter

Zeiders’ PCC nominated tune, “Betrayal,” appears on his latest project, Relapse, a collection of 10 tracks that he hinted is just an “appetizer” for what he’s got cooking up at the moment. 

With this collection of songs, he set out with the goal of showing “diversification” amongst his sound. He achieved this with hints of acoustic songs and vocals that resemble work on his first project, 717 Tapes the Album, and tracks that he says feel like “a reimagined or a reincarnated version” of his debut album with Warner Records, Pretty Little Poison.

“I think that with ‘Relapse,’ there’s more stuff to come that are based in that world, of a new sonic sounds that I’m finding and have really enjoyed creating in that space, whether it’s something like ‘Relapse’ or something in the vein of one of my songs called ‘Sin So Sweet’ or ‘Intoxicated,’ which is more rock influence. It’s a really fun time for me with this creative process and the project is the start. There’s more stuff to come but it’s just been a fun time to really grow and expand and kind of show a new side to me.”

Relapse Headline Tour Coming Spring 2025

Looking ahead to the next few months, Zeiders expects to hit the ground running in 2025 with the launch of his Relapse headlining tour with 23 new dates across Europe and the U.S. He was excited to share that the trek features stops in some of his biggest venues to-date and is already 50 percent sold out. Tyler Braden will serve as a special guest on the run that kicks off on March 27 in Nashville, TN. 

“Just keep your eyes and ears open because there’s so much more exciting news to come and we’re gonna finish this year with a bang and then 2025 is gonna open up with a bang.”

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How To Watch

Hosted by Shania Twain, the two-hour People’s Choice Country Awards will air live on Thursday, Sept. 26 at 8 p.m. ET/PT across NBC and Peacock from the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville. The “Live From E!: People’s Choice Country Awards” red carpet event will get the party started at 6 p.m. ET/PT on E!.