9 Things to Know About Chris Young

Chris Young turns 35 on June 12, and while his big day may look a bit different this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the country star still has plenty to celebrate.

Young first began making a name for himself in Nashville back in 2006 when he competed on and won Nashville Star, which would ultimately become the launching pad for his career. Since then, he’s released six studio albums, scored 11 No. 1 singles, headlined his own tours and become a member of the Grand Ole Opry. He’s currently preparing for the release of his seventh studio album and has released the songs “Raised on Country, “Drowning” and “Town Ain’t Big Enough.”

Read on to learn more about Young.

He won ‘Nashville Star’ in 2006

Young was crowned the winner of Nashville Star in 2006, landing himself a contract with RCA Records, which is still his label home today. On May 2, he celebrated 14 years with the label with a post on Instagram, writing, “14 years on a label as of today. Very thankful to anyone who has listened to my music(and will listen in the future) over the years for making this possible! #cheers #ifyouknowyouknow.”

He almost died when he went into septic shock

In 2013, Young had a cut on his leg that led him to go into septic shock while on a plane. “I went into septic shock on the plane. Took me to the ICU. Almost died,” the “Losing Sleep” singer recalled during an appearance on CBS This Morning. “I never really broadcast it so much. But they came in and they were like, ‘Hey, we’re gonna take you into surgery now ’cause your blood pressure is so low, we’re concerned about organ failure.’” He ultimately went into emergency surgery so doctors could remove the infection and recovered after spending time in the hospital.

He’s from a town called Murfreesboro

Young is a Tennessee native, having grown up in Murfreesboro, which is around 30 minutes outside of Nashville. Before his big break on Nashville Star, he was working as the house singer for Cowboys Dancehall in San Antonio, Texas before auditioning for the show in Houston.

“When I open my mouth, I sound country. I think a big part of that is growing up in Tennessee, and I think that’s a big reason why I was really in country music from the get-go as a kid,” Young told Southern Living. “I was able to grow up where the Opry is easy to get to, and I was right in the middle of the songwriters, the producers, and the artists. That’s definitely had a big influence on the kind of musician that I’ve become, and the ability to work with a lot of those people.” As for his favorite Southern food, it’s fried chicken.

He had to cancel a performance at CMA Fest after cutting his hand with a knife

In 2014, Young was scheduled to play a set at Nissan Stadium during CMA Fest but had to cancel his performance after he cut his left hand with a kitchen knife. At the time, CMT reported that the star had been making dinner on Thursday after returning home from his annual fan club party, which was held on the General Jackson showboat. He underwent surgery the next day at a Nashville hospital to repair damaged tendons in his hand. In addition to his Saturday night performance, he also canceled a four-hour autograph session that had been scheduled for Friday.

When he was younger, he wanted to be either a lawyer or an astronaut

Before deciding to pursue country music, Young contemplated becoming a lawyer, although when he was younger he shared that he wanted to be an astronaut. He had been interested in music from a young age, performing in theater productions, singing in his high school choir and performing in local clubs. He also continued to play shows while in college, performing at bars in the evenings before going to class the next morning.

“I had like the worst time for music theory,” he told CMT.com. “My music theory class was at eight o’clock in the morning, so it never failed – I would be there with big X’s on my hands from a show we played the night before, and I’d still smell like the bar. I would be like, ‘Please, no one notice me. I’ll just sit back here in the corner. Don’t call on me for anything.’”

He loves breakfast food any time of day

Young is definitely a breakfast for dinner person, as he likes breakfast food at any time of day. One of the breakfast foods he loves the most is Pop-Tarts, so much so that he received four cases of them when he graduated high school. 

Country music is in his blood

Young’s grandfather, Richard Yates, was part of the Louisiana Hayride, which was a country music radio and television show broadcast from Shreveport, Louisiana. The Hayride helped launch the careers of a number of artists and Elvis Presley even performed on the show.

He’s a fan of Will Smith and Margot Robbie

When asked about his celebrity man crush and girl crush by Glamour in 2015, Young named Smith and Robbie, respectively. “They are both awesome, and I’m a comic book nerd, and they are both in Suicide Squad together,” he said. “I’m really excited about seeing that.”

He loves everything Christmas

Young told Southern Living that his favorite Christmas memory from childhood is “Probably just being able to spend Christmas time with my family and driving around looking at lights.” “That’s a memory from a couple different years,” he shared. “I’d be in the car with my mom, my dad, and my sister, and we’d drive around playing Christmas music, and looking for lights on people’s houses. It’s one of those memories that totally takes me into that Christmas spirit, 100 percent.” The singer added that his favorite Christmas gift was his very first guitar.