If there’s one thing Cole Goodwin isn’t faking, it’s his country. The 24-year-old Georgia native walked into CMA Fest 2025 last month with a dusty drawl, a sharp wit, and a heart full of steel-string storytelling — and left Music City with even more fans (or as he calls them, “friends”) in his corner.
Fresh off his signing with Big Machine Records, Goodwin is quickly proving himself as a modern-day torchbearer for traditional country. With a voice soaked in heartbreak and humor, he’s not chasing trends — he’s chasing truth. And from the moment he stepped on the Good Molecules Reverb Stage during CMA Fest weekend, that truth hit like a shot of well-aged whiskey.
“I love good, authentic, genuine country music,” Goodwin told Celeb Secrets during our exclusive sit-down last month in Nashville. “It all comes from the heart. I’m not trying to fake anything — I’m just making the music I know and love.”
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There’s nothing like a heartbreak song to separate the real ones from the rest — and Cole’s newest single, “Dust On The Dancefloor,” is as real as it gets. Written alongside Jack Hummel, the track is a slow-burning ballad soaked in sorrow, pedal steel, and the kind of memory-laced melancholy that’ll stick to your soul.
“‘Dust on the Dancefloor’ is a song I wrote with my buddy Jack Hummel, and it is one of my favorite songs I have been a part of writing,” shares Goodwin in a statement. “I love old ballads, especially heartbreak ballads, and this sits right in that ‘sad song’ vein of Country music. I hope everybody loves this song and appreciates the reminiscent feel of the story it tells.”
It’s not just about a breakup — it’s about the aftershocks. The silence that lingers after the dance ends. The empty space where love used to twirl. It’s a nod to the ghosts of country past, yet still fresh enough to haunt any modern-day honky tonk.
If “Dust On The Dancefloor” is the tearjerker, “Girlfriend’s Got A Boyfriend” is the sly wink. It’s got that classic cheating-song sass — a story wrapped in twang and tied with a fiddle bow — and believe it or not, it was inspired by one of Cole’s younger twin sisters.
“We were riding in the car, and she saw something online about a guy she was talking to posting another girl,” Cole explained with a grin. “I made a joke and said, ‘Well, sounds like so-and-so’s got a girlfriend, but it ain’t my sister.’ We all laughed, I wrote it down, and the next week we turned it into a song.”
The track has quickly become a fan-favorite, blending ‘90s country vibes with Cole’s signature southern charm. It’s cheeky, catchy, and honest — exactly what country music needs right now.
Before the record deal and CMA Fest buzz, Cole Goodwin was cutting his teeth the old-school way: in clubs, fairs, and tiny Georgia honky tonks. He released his self-produced EP Soon Enough in 2023, and soon after, was voted Savannah’s Best Country Artist two years running. Now, he’s opening select dates on Luke Bryan’s Country Song Came On Tour, marking his biggest leap yet.
“I’m thrilled to be out with a fellow Georgia boy and Georgia Southern grad,” he told us, referring to Bryan. “It’s been happening so fast, I haven’t had time to slow down and take it all in. But I still love going back to play the smaller rooms. County fairs and honky tonks — that’s my bread and butter.”
Still, he’s got his eyes on the bucket list. “Red Rocks, the Grand Ole Opry, and Credit One Stadium in Charleston — those are my dream venues,” he says. “But I want the Opry to feel right. I don’t want to rush that.”
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Cole’s as down-home as they come — from his obsession with chocolate milk (shoutout Borden’s!) to his boat-and-woods lifestyle when he’s not touring. He’s not big on cowboy hats (yet), leans into the “saltwater cowboy” nickname, and proudly defines his vibe in three words: cool, funny, good-looking.
“I grew up singing in the shower. I couldn’t take the shower with me anywhere, so I just wouldn’t sing,” he joked. “But my mom and her friends finally bullied me into it one night — and it kinda stuck. You can’t shut me up now.”
Every song he writes is either pulled from his own life or shaped by stories he’s heard, lived through, or dreamed up. That authenticity shines through in everything he does — from his lyrics to the way he connects with the crowd, whether it’s a packed amphitheater or a smoky bar.
With more new music coming this summer and major stages ahead, Cole Goodwin is carving his own lane in country music — one rooted in tradition, but made for today’s audience.
Whether he’s tugging at heartstrings with a slow ballad or making you smirk with a two-timing tale, one thing’s clear: Cole Goodwin is the real deal, and country music is better for it.
“I just want people to appreciate good country music,” he tells Celeb Secrets. “Even if they don’t appreciate what I’m doing — I’m still gonna do it.”
And that’s the kind of attitude we can two-step to.
Listen to Cole’s latest singles “Dust On The Dancefloor” and “Girlfriend’s Got A Boyfriend” now, and catch him on the road this summer with Luke Bryan. For more, you can watch our interview from CMA Fest below and visit colegoodwinmusic.com.
Interview quotes have been edited and condensed for clarity. For more coverage from CMA Fest 2025, click here.
