The Best Country Singers Of 2023

Jared Baly
Updated October 1, 2023 14.8K votes 1.9K voters 39.4K views
Over 1.9K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The Best Country Singers Of 2023

From tailgates and tan lines to beers in their tears, 2023's country music scene is hotter than ever. Both industry legends and budding singer-songwriters are releasing new music while also embarking on national concert tours. The year's most popular festivals, Stagecoach and Tortuga, once again hit the road with headliners Shania Twain, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Kane Brown, Luke Bryan, and Chris Stapleton – as well as national tours by some of your other favorite country superstars. Her Royal Highness Dolly Parton never ceases to build open her empire of businesses, music, charities, and television specials; and millennial superstars Morgan Wallen and Luke Combs continue to dominate the Billboard country charts with their undeniable bangers. 

Which trending country musicians are you most excited to see live, and whose records are you currently listening to? Vote below for the best country artists of 2023, and be sure to also check out this year's top new country songs afterwards.

Most divisive: Walker Hayes
Ranked by
  • Morgan Wallen
    1

    Morgan Wallen

    1,626 votes
    Morgan Cole Wallen (born May 13, 1993) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He competed in the sixth season of The Voice, originally as a member of Usher's team, but later as a member of Adam Levine's team. After being eliminated in the playoffs of that season, he signed to Panacea Records, releasing his debut EP, Stand Alone, in 2015. In 2016, Wallen signed to Big Loud, releasing his debut album, If I Know Me, in 2018. The album includes the singles "Up Down" (featuring Florida Georgia Line), "Whiskey Glasses", and "Chasin' You". If I Know Me reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. Wallen's second album, Dangerous: The Double Album, was released in January 2021, and in February 2021 became the only country album in the 64-year history of the Billboard 200 to spend its first seven weeks at No. 1. It went on to spend a total of ten weeks at that spot, the first album to do so since Whitney Houston's Whitney in 1987.
  • Luke Combs
    2

    Luke Combs

    1,455 votes
    Luke Albert Combs (born March 2, 1990) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Born and raised in North Carolina, Combs began performing as a child, most notably performing at Carnegie Hall. After dropping out of college to pursue a career in music, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he released his debut extended play, The Way She Rides, in 2014. In 2017, Combs released his debut album, This One's for You, which reached number four on the Billboard 200. Combs released his second album, What You See Is What You Get, on November 8, 2019. The album topped the charts in multiple territories, becoming his first to do so. A deluxe version of the album was released on October 23, 2020, including the song "Forever After All". Combs' music has earned him two Grammy Award nominations, two iHeart Radio music awards, four Academy of Country Music Awards and six Country Music Association Awards, including the 2021 Entertainer of the Year award, their highest honor.
  • Chris Stapleton
    3

    Chris Stapleton

    1,000 votes
    Christopher Alvin Stapleton (born April 15, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He was born in Lexington, Kentucky, and grew up in Staffordsville, Kentucky, until moving to Nashville, Tennessee, in 2001 to pursue a career in music writing songs. Subsequently, Stapleton signed a contract with Sea Gayle Music to write and publish his music.As of 2018, Stapleton has amassed credits writing and co-writing over 170 songs. He has co-written six number-one country songs including Kenny Chesney's five-week number-one "Never Wanted Nothing More", George Strait's "Love's Gonna Make It Alright", and Luke Bryan's "Drink a Beer". His songs have appeared on many artists albums including Adele, Brad Paisley, and Dierks Bentley. He has co-written with several artists as well including Vince Gill, Peter Frampton, Sheryl Crow and Ed Sheeran. Stapleton has been recognized with several awards including five Grammy Awards, seven Academy of Country Music (ACM) Awards, and ten Country Music Association (CMA) Awards. As a vocalist, Stapleton sang lead in two bands before he started recording as a solo artist including a bluegrass ensemble from 2008 to 2010 called The SteelDrivers. After that, he released his solo debut: the critically acclaimed studio album titled Traveller (2015), which reached number one on the US Billboard 200 and was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His second studio album From A Room: Volume 1 was released in May 2017, and earned him a second CMA Award for Album of the Year and also a Grammy Award for Best Country Album. From A Room: Volume 2 was released in December 2017.
  • Jason Aldean
    4

    Jason Aldean

    765 votes
    Jason Aldine Williams (born February 28, 1977), known professionally as Jason Aldean, is an American country music singer. Since 2005, Jason Aldean has been signed to Broken Bow Records, a record label for which he has released eight albums and 24 singles. His 2010 album, My Kinda Party, is certified quadruple-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His 2012 album Night Train is certified double-platinum, while his 2005 self-titled debut, 2007 album Relentless, 2009 album Wide Open, 2014 album Old Boots, New Dirt are all certified platinum. Of his singles, 19 have reached number one on either the Hot Country Songs or Country Airplay charts with "Why", "She's Country", "Big Green Tractor", "The Truth", "Don't You Wanna Stay" (a duet with Kelly Clarkson), "Dirt Road Anthem", "Fly Over States", "Take a Little Ride", "The Only Way I Know" (a collaboration with Luke Bryan and Eric Church), "Night Train", "When She Says Baby", "Burnin' It Down", "Just Gettin' Started", "Tonight Looks Good on You", "Lights Come On", "A Little More Summertime", "Any Ol' Barstool", “You Make It Easy”, and “Drowns the Whiskey” (a duet with Miranda Lambert). Eight more of his singles have reached the top 10.
  • Cody Johnson
    5

    Cody Johnson

    722 votes
    Cody Johnson (born May 21, 1987 in Sebastopol, Texas) is an American Texas country singer-songwriter. He has self-released six albums; the sixth album Gotta Be Me debuted at number two on Billboard's Country Albums chart.
  • HARDY
    6

    HARDY

    597 votes
    Michael Wilson Hardy (born September 13, 1990), known professionally as Hardy, is an American country music singer and songwriter. He has written songs for Florida Georgia Line, Chris Lane, Blake Shelton, Dallas Smith, and Morgan Wallen, and has released his own music through Big Loud Records.