Tucker Wetmore, who is already making waves as one of country music’s hottest rising stars, has released his long-awaited debut album, What Not To.
Packed with deeply personal storytelling, high-energy anthems, and lessons of love and heartbreak, the Chris LaCorte produced project gives Wetmore the chance to officially introduce himself to fans while uncovering the truth behind his life over the past 25 years.
“This is my first moment, my first opportunity to kind of scratch the surface on letting the world know who I am and where I came from and why I am the way I am. And I think even the album art is just raw me and it’s just my face, and that’s what I wanted because the album is definitely scratching the surface on letting people know who I am. I think everything happened so fast for me last year that nobody really got the chance to get to know me.”
Wetmore confidently noted that everything about this album, from the sequencing of the tracks to the album art, was “super intentional.” Co-writing 11 of the 19 tracks, he captures the highest highs and toughest lows, with the overarching theme of growth and stepping outside his comfort zone running through each track.
Heartbreak, Healing, And The Journey Tn Between
From the joy of love to the pain of heartbreak, Wetmore uses these stories as a way to reflect on his journey and share a more vulnerable side with his fans.
“I definitely knew that I wanted to kind of tell my truth behind some of those themes. And there’s a couple different themes. We got the theme of gambling in ‘Casino,’ and my take on that is life’s a gamble no matter what you’re doing in life. And then there’s a theme of whiskey and there’s a theme of relationships and breakups and being a love,” he explained during an appearance on The Pupdate with Country Now.
Tracks like “Takes One To Break One,” “Give Her The World,” “Drunk On Her” and more explore the aftermath of heartbreak, with Wetmore drawing from his own experiences. This theme also comes to light in the addictive single, “3,2,1,” which struck a personal chord with Wetmore as he was going through a breakup of his own when he first heard it.
Other standout moments include Wetmore’s first No.1 at Country radio with “Wind Up Missin’ You” as well as his current viral hit, “Brunette.” Drawing from his own dating history, the clever yet reflective track finds him playfully admitting that every girlfriend he’s ever had has been blonde and realizing maybe it’s time to switch things up.
“‘Brunette’ is talking about…maybe I should try something else because the old stuff wasn’t working and it just all falls under living and learning and try new things and which is what the whole album is,” he explained.
Why “Drinkin’ Boots” Is For The Fans
Along the way, the singer/songwriter is documenting milestones of his career, like with anthemic “Drinkin’ Boots,” which came to life during his first-ever co-write in Nashville. This song, while unreleased, been a fan-favorite among his listeners for years, so with it finally out now, Wetmore is saying “thank you” to those who have been supporting him since the start.
“I originally wasn’t going to put it on the record, but I was sitting there one night thinking, what can I do for the fans and what can I do for the people that have been here for a long time to kind of tip the hat and say, ‘Hey, I’ll listen to you guys. If you guys want something, all you got to do is ask and I’ll give it to you.’ This is probably one of the first times I get the chance to tip my hat to those OG fans and be like, ‘alright, this is your song. Do with it what you will.’”
Inside The Vulnerable Title Track
The title track, “What Not To,” holds the emotional weight within the entire album, as Wetmore gets brutally honest about breaking generational cycles and learning from someone else’s mistakes. At the same time, he finds himself trying to hold onto the one thing he does know, which is what not to do.
Due to the sheer vulnerability in this track, the Washington native says he wasn’t planning on ever playing it life. However, he realized it could actually be a “really special moment” in his shows.
“I know how much music has done for me in my life and how much it’s helped me and that’s why I originally wrote that song. That’s why I started loving music all those years ago is just my therapy. And I think one of my goals in my career is making products that help people what not to I think, ‘What Not To’ is going to do that. And so I was like, no, this needs to be a very vulnerable moment. So we started off just me and the piano, and then my band kicks in with the second chorus, and it’s a special impact moment of the show.”
What Not To Tracklist:
1. “Whatcha Think Is Gonna Happen?” (Matt Jenkins, Ben Stennis, Michael Tyler)
2. “3,2,1” (Josh Miller, Summer Overstreet, Jordan Reynolds)
3. “Bad Luck Looks Good On Me” (Tucker Wetmore, Julian Bunetta, Jackson Foote, Jaxson Free, Steph Jones)
4. “Casino” (Josh Jenkins, Alex Palmer, John Pierce and Michael Tyler)
5. “Takes One To Break One” (Matt Jenkins, Josh Miller, Ben Stennis)
6. “Brunette” (Chris LaCorte, Chase McGill, Josh Miller, Blake Pendergrass)
7. “Wind Up Missin’ You” (Tucker Wetmore, Thomas Archer, Chris LaCorte)
8. “Give Her The World” (Tucker Wetmore, Madison Kozak, Chase McDaniel)
9. “Goodbye Whiskey” (Tucker Wetmore, Thomas Archer, Ross Copperman, Jacob Hackworth)
10. “When I Ain’t Lookin’” (Austin Goodloe, Thomas Archer, Michael Tyler, Tucker Beathard)
11. “Drink Alone” (Tucker Wetmore, Jacob Hackworth, Chris LaCorte, Chase McGill, Jameson Rogers)
12. “Bad Habit” (Tucker Wetmore, Corey Crowder, Chris LaCorte, Jameson Rogers)
13. “What Not To” (Tucker Wetmore, Jacob Hackworth, Chris LaCorte, Chase McGill, Jameson Rogers)
14. “Break First” (Michael Tyler, Matt Roy, Lauren Hungate, Matt Dragstrem)
15. “Drinkin’ Boots (Demo)” (Tucker Wetmore, Jared Keim, Michael Lotten)
16. “Drunk On Her” (Jaxson Free, Gabe Foust, Jacob Hackworth, Chris Tompkins)
17. “Silverado Blue” (Tucker Wetmore, Brett Sheroky, Dan Wilson)
18. “Wine Into Whiskey” (Tucker Wetmore, Jacob Hackworth, Justin Ebach)
19. “Whiskey Again” (Tucker Wetmore, Jacob Hackworth, Chris LaCorte, Chase McGill, Jameson Rogers)
In honor of this milestone release, Tucker Wetmore will make his late night television debut onABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Tuesday, April 29. He’ll perform his high-energy track “Bad Luck Looks Good On Me” on ABC at 11:35 p.m. ET, 10:35 p.m. CT and 11:35 p.m. PT or stream on Hulu the next day.
He will also continue to visit new cities on the U.S. leg of his headlining WAVES ON A SUNSET TOUR 2025, before joining Thomas Rhett’s BETTER IN BOOTS TOUR 2025 this summer as direct support across 33 dates.
The post Tucker Wetmore Offers An Unfiltered Look At Love, Heartbreak, And Lessons Learned On Debut Album, ‘What Not To’ appeared first on Country Now.
