We all have highs and lows in life. Jason Aldean recently opened up to Taste of Country about the lowest point in his career. Now, Aldean is a megastar with numerous hits and other successes under his belt. But as with all things, there was a time of doubt and uncertainty before the fame and chart-breaking songs.
"Hicktown" was the single that put Aldean on the map and let everyone know the impact he'd soon make in the world of country music. Before that, Aldean had to scratch and claw for every little surge of forward momentum.
"I was starving, I had a brand new baby. My oldest daughter had just been born, I didn't have any money," Aldean recalled. "I wasn't thinking longterm. It was like, 'I need to get this song going just so I can generate some money to, like, keep from losing my house and to be able to buy diapers.' Those kind of things."
When it seemed like nothing was going to pan out, it was hard for Aldean to imagine the position he'd find himself in today. "For it to turn into what it has, I never ... I dunno, maybe I was just kind of naïve to the point of thinking that it could ever become this."
Jason Aldean Recalls The Lowest Points Of His Career
"I was very much small potatoes, going, 'I need to make 5 grand, so I need to make 5 grand today somehow, how does this happen?' It was more like survival," Aldean recounts. Unfortunately, I'm sure many people can relate to that day-to-day "figuring it out" process.
"There's still a lot of things that I want to accomplish. You know, I feel like I've been able to accomplish a lot of the things that I set out to do, originally, and more. ... I think I've done things in my career that I never dreamed I would have done. I started playing music when I was 14 years old."
Aldean concludes with a poignant Rolling Stones nod, emphasizing where he'd like his career to go in the future. "I mean look at like people like the [Rolling] Stones. They're up there, and they're still going out playing stadiums. I just feel like this is one of those gigs that if you're in it, you're kind of a lifer."
