Jimmie Allen

James Edward Allen (born June 18, 1985) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He was signed to Broken Bow Records imprint Stoney Creek, for which he released the two singles "Best Shot" and "Make Me Want To" and the 2018 album Mercury Lane. In 2021, he won the Country Music Association Award for New Artist of the Year, the second black artist to do so (in 2009, Darius Rucker was the first). He is the first black male country artist to be nominated for Best New Artist in Grammy history.

Early life Allen was born in and raised in Milton, Delaware, United States, but moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 2007. During most of his first few years in Nashville, he experienced poverty and often lived out of his car. and befriended Scotty McCreery, who eventually won the competition that year. Allen and McCreery later reconnected and toured together after the release of Allen's debut album.

Career Allen signed a publishing deal with Wide Open Music, a songwriting imprint formed by singer-songwriter Ash Bowers, in 2016. Similarly, Rolling Stone Country writer Brittney McKenna compared Allen's contemporary R&B influences to those artists and Maren Morris. Allen said that the song's title and central theme were inspired by his grandmother and his son, who was 4 at the time of the song's release. "Best Shot" was a Number One hit on the Billboard Country Airplay chart in November 2018, making him the first Black artist to send his debut single to the top of that chart. The album's second single, "Make Me Want To" released to country radio on February 1, 2019, and it also became a Number One hit on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.

Allen also recorded a cover of Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper's "Shallow" with Abby Anderson in May 2019. The recording was made into a video as well.

In 2020, Allen released "This Is Us", a duet with Noah Cyrus. It was included on his new EP, Bettie James, which was released on July 10, 2020. The project's second single was "Freedom Was a Highway," a duet with Brad Paisley, which was released on February 1, 2021. It became Allen's third Number One hit and Paisley's twentieth on the Billboard Country Airplay in February 2022.

Allen became the first Black solo performer to win New Male Artist of the Year at the 2021 ACM Awards (at which he also performed a duet with Brad Paisley). In September 2021, Allen was announced as one of the celebrities competing on season 30 of Dancing with the Stars. He and his partner Emma Slater were the ninth couple to be eliminated, ultimately placing 7th.

On November 10, 2021, he won New Artist of the Year at the CMA Awards. 15 days later, he performed at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. In February 2022, Allen announced that he would be a guest mentor on American Idol (season 20).

He also featured on Noah Schnacky's "Don't You Wanna Know" for his 2022 album Thoughtfully Reckless and a duet with Nick Carter in "Easy".

Allen release the lead-off single, "Down Home," to his third studio album Tulip Drive on March 8, 2022. The album was released on June 24, 2022.

In 2023, Allen was a coach and judge on My Kind of Country.

Personal life Allen married his wife, Alexis Gale, in 2021 after the couple had been dating for two years. At the time of their relationship, Allen had a son from a previous relationship and Gale was pregnant with a second child. In April 2023, Allen stated through social media that he and Gale would be separating, and that Gale was pregnant with a third child.

Lawsuit and termination from record company On May 11, 2023, Variety reported that an unnamed former manager of Allen's had filed a lawsuit against him, as well as his management company Wide Open Music and Ash Bowers, who serves as both the owner of Wide Open Music and as Allen's record producer. The manager alleged as part of the claims that Allen had sexually and verbally abused her, and that she had been fired from her role after bringing these allegations to Bowers. As a result, Allen's record label, BBR Music Group, suspended the artist effective immediately. On June 1, 2023, the Western Idaho Fair, held in Boise, Idaho, dropped Allen from scheduled performances on the grandstand lineup and announced that he would not be attending the fair that year. Further reporting from Variety on June 8 published similar reports that a second anonymous woman, who stated that she and Allen had a long-distance relationship for several months that culminated in him sexually assaulting her in a Las Vegas hotel and recording their encounter on his cell phone. Later the same day, Taste of Country confirmed that BBR Music Group dropped him as an artist.

The former manager agreed to drop the sexual assault case against Allen on March 14, 2024.

Tours Headlining Down Home Tour (2022)

Supporting Brad Paisley 2021 Tour (2021) (with Brad Paisley) The Denim & Rhinestones Tour (2022–23) (with Carrie Underwood)

Discography Albums Title Details Peak chartpositions Sales US US Country Mercury Lane Release date: October 12, 2018 Label: Stoney Creek Formats: CD, digital download, streaming 128 11US: 13,800 Bettie James Gold Edition Release date: June 25, 2021 Label: Stoney Creek Formats: CD, digital download, streaming — — Tulip Drive Release date: June 24, 2022 Label: Stoney Creek Formats: CD, digital download, streaming — — "—" denotes releases that did not chart

Extended plays Title EP details Jimmie Allen Release date: October 6, 2017 Label: Stoney Creek Formats: Digital download, streaming Bettie James Release date: July 10, 2020 Label: Stoney Creek Formats: Digital download, streaming

Singles As lead artist Year Title Peak chart positions Sales Certifications Album US USCountrySongs USCountryAirplay US AdultPop CAN CAN Country 2018 "Best Shot" 37 5 1 33 79 1 US: 146,000 RIAA: Platinum Mercury Lane 2019 "Make Me Want To" 49 7 1 — — 5US: 34,000 RIAA: Platinum — — 57 — — — Tulip Drive "—" denotes releases that did not chart

As featured artist Year Title Album 2020 "Hometown Heroes"

Other charted songs Year Song Peak chart positionsCertifications Album USCountrySongs 2020 "Good Times Roll" 31 RIAA: Gold 2019 "Shallow" (with Abby Anderson) "Make Me Want To" Justin Key 2020 "This Is Us" (with Noah Cyrus) Dustin Haney 2021 "Don’t You Wanna Know" (with Noah Schnacky) Chris Beyrooty 2022 "Down Home" Chris Beyrooty and Jimmie Allen