Kane Brown Praises Mom For Hiding Childhood Challenges From Him

Kane Brown had a troubled childhood growing up, but he didn't know it. The "Heaven" singer's mother did such a good job masking the troubles, that he didn't initially realize the truth about his heritage.

"My mom just did so good at hiding things," Brown tells CMT's Cody Alan. "I know this sounds crazy, and it's probably going to go viral when I say this. I didn't know I was mixed until I turned nine years old, which is wild. I just thought I was all white because I didn't know my dad. My mom ended up telling me and I was like, 'What! What do you mean?'

"So I started learning all kinds of different new things. Growing up as a kid, I never thought about stuff like that," he adds. "I just lived life."

The 24-year-old, who spent part of his childhood homeless with his mother, is proud that he can now help others in his family with his success.

"The roles aren't reversed because she's still my mom but, I can help her out whenever she needs it now, which is awesome," Brown tells ET Canada. "You know, I can help my whole family because my Nana was a big part of my life too and I can help her whenever she needs it."

Brown scored a platinum-selling No. 1 hit with "What Ifs," his duet with Lauren Alaina, and earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records, for becoming the first artist to top five country charts, which Brown did on Oct. 28 by simultaneously claiming the No. 1 spots on Billboard's Country Digital Song Sales (with "Heaven"), Country Airplay, Hot Country Songs, Country Streaming Songs (with his Lauren Alaiana duet, "What Ifs), as well as the Top Country Albums (with Kane Brown).

"It feels amazing," Brown says of his success. "I feel like country radio finally let me in. It's just one of the goals that I've been searching for and finally got it. I remember I was on the road and once we got to the Top 20, that's all I kept doing was watching the chart counting down. It was a real thrill once it hit No. 1."

Brown is spending much of the next several months opening for Chris Young on his Losing Sleep World Tour, as well as playing several fairs and festivals. Dates can be found on his website.

Photo Credit: Instagram/kanebrown_music