Tucker Wetmore had a hard time focusing during his recent interview on The Pupdate – and we can’t blame him. The rising star stopped by the Country Now studio to chat about his whirlwind year, the vulnerability within his debut album, and the stories behind his latest fan-favorite tracks, all while hanging out with a few adorable puppies from Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue.

Over the past year, Wetmore has hit milestone after milestone, from signing his first major label record deal to racking up back-to-back Billboard Hot 100 hits, securing RIAA PLATINUM-certified debut singles “Wine Into Whiskey” and his first No. 1 at country radio, “Wind Up Missin’ You,” making his Grand Ole Opry debut, and more.

Most Surreal Career Moment Yet

With so many pinch-me moments stacking up, when asked to name the most surreal one he’s experienced in his career so far, Wetmore joked, “probably this, hanging out with these dogs.” But in all seriousness, he took a moment to reflect on how much his life has changed in the past year.

“I mean, if you think about it, I just started releasing music at the top of last year. And so it’s been a little over a year since I dropped ‘Wine Into Whiskey,’ which was my debut single. And it’s just been a crazy ride ever since,” he admitted.

Wetmore doesn’t take a single second of his success for granted. In fact, he explained that he makes it a point to pause and reflect during every show.

“I feel like every time I get to walk on stage is a blessing from the Lord above. And I try to take a couple seconds during every show to remind myself, ‘Wow, this is the coolest thing in the world.’ And kind of just have a moment of silence while the band’s getting ready to do something else, or I just look out and I think to myself, ‘Thank you. Thank you, Jesus for allowing me to do this.’”

WATCH

Inside Wetmore’s Debut Album, ‘What Not To’

While the puppies were more interested in playtime than listening to the country star pour his heart out, they still got the kind of one-on-one time with Wetmore that most fans can only dream of. It’s safe to say he was in good company as he continued to showcase his vulnerability while discussing his just-released debut album, What Not To. The Washington native began by exploring the title track and why he felt it was fitting to make this the name of the record.

“Honestly, at first I didn’t want to use it as a title track,” he admitted. “It was one of the easiest songs I’ve been a part of because it kind of just fell out on the paper. It’s all real stuff. And it was just a bunch of dudes sitting in a room wearing our hearts on our sleeves for a couple hours just talking about life in general. But it just made sense for the whole feel of record. And I just kept going back to the title ‘What Not To’ and it just made sense. The whole album’s talking about living and learning and the stuff that I’ve lived and learned through in my life.”

With this being his first-ever record, Wetmore emphasized how important it was for him to use these 19 tracks, 11 of which he co-wrote, as a way to officially introduce himself to fans in a much deeper way than he’s ever done before.

“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,” he explained. “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.”

Everything about this Chris LaCorte-produced project, from the sequencing of the tracks to the album art, was “super intentional,” according to Wetmore. He opens up about the themes of heartbreak, love, and lessons learned that can be found throughout each track.

“I definitely knew that I wanted to kind of tell my truth behind some of those themes,” he said. “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 in love.”

Stand-Out Tracks On The Project

His debut album also features a handful of personal milestones, including “Drinkin’ Boots,” which was the first song he ever co-wrote after moving to Nashville. This song, while unreleased, been a fan-favorite among his listeners for years, so adding it to the record was his way of saying “thank you” to those who have been supporting him since the start.

“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.’”

Other standout moments include his current viral hit, “Brunette,” and his latest single “3,2,1” that continues its climb at Country radio.

“When I first heard ‘3,2,1,’ a couple of my buddies sent it to me and my immediate thought was, ‘wow, this song feels really good.’ I was also going through a breakup at the time…” he admitted, pausing to deal with a pup biting his finger. “I really started listening to lyrics a couple days after it got sent to me, and I started really relating to it in that time going through the breakup and everything like questioning, did I make the right decision? Is that the one that got away kind of deal? And that’s what the song’s talking about. So I just related to it lyrically and it made me feel good listening to it.”

A Brand-New Live Show For 2025

Although he is a true dog lover at heart and his considered getting a four-legged friend of his own, Wetmore is the first to admit that he is far too busy to add anymore responsibility to his place.

“I can barely take care of myself, let alone another living being,” he joked.

The “Silverado Blue” singer isn’t lying when he says his schedule is packed. He’s currently in the midst of the U.S. leg of the WAVES ON A SUNSET TOUR 2025 and will soon join Thomas Rhett’s BETTER IN BOOTS TOUR 2025 this summer as direct support across 33 dates.

“We rearranged the whole set. We got new onstage stuff, we got a whole new production of a show, and it’s kicking, it’s fun. We’re playing ‘Bad Luck Looks Good In Me’ live, and that’s been doing good,” he shared. “We’ve been playing ‘Brunette,’ which is a very fun moment in the show that seems to be a fan favorite right now and I’m very thankful for that. In a vulnerable sense, I think ‘What Not To’ I needed to come around on that. At first I was like, ‘no, I’m not playing that song live.’ And then I started thinking about it a lot and I was like, no, that could be a really special moment.”

While Tucker Wetmore is grateful for all the milestones he’s hitting, he was also honest about the sacrifices that he knows he’s making in order to chase his dream.

“I’ve got tons of nieces and nephews and I’m missing them grow up. And the home life, I miss out on a lot of that and just seeing my family and my friends back home. Some of ’em are getting married, some of ’em are having kids now, and I feel like I’m kind of missing out on it, but I’m doing what I love and you can’t really put a price on that,” chart-topping singer acknowledged. “I know down the road I’ll have some time to spend some time with them, but right now it’s grind time.”

To hear more from Tucker Wetmore, including the makings of his debut album, his upcoming Ryman Auditorium debut, and more click above to watch the Pupdate. 

About Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue

Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue, a foster-based 501c3 charitable organization based in Middle Tennessee, is run primarily by volunteers. Proverbs is totally dedicated to all animals they rescue. For more on Proverbs and to donate, click HERE. 

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