Inside Hudson Westbrook’s Texas State of Mind
Photo by Peyton Dollar.
To Hudson Westbrook, Texas isn’t just home – it’s a state of mind. It’s the instinct to treat every stranger like an old friend, the unshakeable belief that you can build something extraordinary from nothing, and the rare ability to stay humble, no matter how high the climb.
It’s evident in the way Westbrook speaks – easy and unhurried – and in the way he’s carried himself throughout his meteoric rise to country music fame.
At just twenty-one, Westbrook’s voice carries a warmth and weathered depth that belies his age. It’s no surprise he rose to country music fame seemingly overnight after he released his first single, the Treaty Oak Revival-esque “Take It Slow,” just over a year ago.
One single followed another, and, suddenly, Westbrook found himself catapulted out of his comfortable life as a Texas Tech freshman, touring across the country in a van and playing for crowds that already knew the words to his songs.
Road life wasn’t easy for Westbrook, however. “It was a fantastic year, but I was just struggling with the road and struggling with everything going on,” he tells me. “If I’m not home, then I’m not who I usually am.”
This longing for home led Westbrook to pen “Texas Forever,” a heartfelt ballad about the place that will always have his heart. The song also doubles as the title track of Westbrook’s debut album, which he released earlier today.
The seventeen-track record – which Westbrook originally planned to entitle Darlin’ before he realized that he wanted the name to be something deeply personal – chronicles all of the love and loss that he has experienced back home.
The Texas Forever album cover.
Among the album’s standout moments is Westbrook’s hit radio single, “House Again,” a deeply moving song about his parents’ divorce.
“I think the way the song has been received is insane,” Westbrook says, laughing, of “House Again.” “It’s unexplainable. Numbers are numbers until you see the numbers, and then you’re like, ‘Holy crap, What’s up guys? Y’all are all here tonight.’”
While performing a hit like “House Again” can sometimes feel repetitive, Westbrook admits that it’s the stories fans share about how the song mirrors their own lives that keeps the fire alive for him.
“A girl at Billy Bob’s came up to me and started bawling and had “House Again” tattooed on her arm,” Westbrook recalls of one standout story. “She said that her ex-boyfriend had broken up with her, moved out all his stuff, and nothin’ has felt the same since he left. And I was like, ‘That’s what the whole song means. That’s so cool to see that you’re letting your trauma out with something I wrote about my own trauma,’” he shares. “Feelings are so universal around the world. It’s so cool to see that, what I feel, millions of other people feel.”
What makes the song’s success even more remarkable is the fact that Westbrook almost didn’t even release it. “I walked out of the room and I was like, ‘You know, that’s a good song,’” he shares of recording “House Again.” Yet, he was still hesitant to put it out.
“Then I went and played it when I was touring with Josh Abbott, and almost everyone would be like, ‘Hey, great set, but that song about the house, dude, that’s a banger, man.’ And the next night, they were like, ‘That’s a banger, dude, that song about the house,’ and I was like, ‘You know what? Maybe I should put it out.’”
Westbrook admits that the experience has taught him the importance of listening to fans. Now, he often tests unreleased songs during live shows and will subsequently release them if fans provide him with positive feedback.
Photo by Ian Noh.
Westbrook’s debut also features “Lie To Me,” a striking collaboration with singer-songwriter standout Mackenzie Carpenter about the untruths that couples sometimes tell to hold onto love.
“For one more night, I’d give anything/Tell me we’re alright, just ‘till the morning/Even though I know it was all a dream/Could you tell just one more lie to me,” Westbrook and Carpenter sing.
“Her new album is absolutely insane,” Westbrook says of Carpenter’s debut record, Hey Country Queen. “I called her because I was like, ‘I’ve been listening to your album, dude, for like three weeks now,’” he shares of asking Carpenter to feature on “Lie To Me.”
The record’s “Fool,” takes a different approach to heartbreak, pairing bittersweet lyrics with an irresistibly upbeat melody that masks its hopeless romantic core.
“I’ve always loved the saying, ‘I’m a fool for you,’” Westbrook says. “I think it just means a lot to me and hopefully it means a lot to other people too. It’s kinda like your heart always forgives, and then you get broken again, and your heart forgives again – you can fool me once, that’s alright, as long as you promise to fool me twice. I’ve been in that situation a few times where you think it’s gonna be different comin’ back, and then it’s not different, and then you’re still a fool, you’re still goin’ back,” he admits.
Photo by Ian Noh.
These days, however, Westbrook’s relationship with fellow Texan Stormie Goldsmith keeps him far from the heartbreak and tension that inspired “Lie To Me” and “Fool.” The pair first met last year on Westbrook’s birthday at Filthy McNasty’s in Fort Worth, shortly after Westbrook released his first single. One of Westbrook’s Phi Delt fraternity brothers – who was dating Goldsmith’s sister at the time – had advised Westbrook that his girlfriend had a sister and connected the two. Westbrook then traveled to Fort Worth – where Goldsmith lives – to shoot content for “Two Way Drive.”
“We stayed up all night with all my buddies,” Westbrook recalls of his birthday. “It was just her and all my buddies, and we were all just hangin’ out, and me and her were hangin’ out the whole night.”
Upon meeting Goldsmith, who is an influencer, Westbrook found himself pleasantly surprised by her grounded nature. “I really wanted to stay away from the influencer world, but then I met her, and she was the most down to earth person,” he shares. “I think her being down to earth is why I genuinely care about her. There’s not a lot of people out there with a bunch of followers or anything like that that you meet and you’re like, ‘Wow, you’re so down to earth that I can’t believe it.’ And then she was pretty, and so it was a really cool experience to meet someone that was in that world before I became in that world and to see how she handled it too.”
Westbrook and Goldsmith. Photo via Stormie Goldsmith.
Naturally, Westbrook finds the record’s title track to be the song on the album that is most special to him. “It represents everything I’ve been feelin’ right now,” he confides. “I feel like the reason for that is because I’m just now getting introduced to the road life, ‘cuz everyone has their highway song that they write because they’re missin’ home, and Texas will forever be in my heart.”
Now, in the aftermath of the recent Texas floods, “Texas Forever” means something entirely new to Westbrook – it represents the spirit of resilience and community that defines the Lone Star State. Westbrook, inspired by the generosity of fellow Texans like George Strait, will be donating all proceeds from the sale of his merchandise to Texas flood victims through the end of the month and will be performing “Texas Forever” with Strait at the July 27th fundraiser that Strait is organizing to benefit those affected by the floods.
“I’m super excited for Texas Forever to be something bigger than just an album, to have a bigger meaning. This is too good of an opportunity to give back for everything everyone has given me,” Westbrook shares.
Photo by Ian Noh.
When I prod Westbrook for the source of his humility, he credits the fact that, only a year ago, he was a college kid who was untainted by the illusions of celebrity. He’s quick to dismantle the idea that music artists are somehow perfect or untouchable, instead likening music to any other profession – no more glamorous than the work of an accountant or nurse, just different. “I love just bein’ like, ‘Hey y’all. I put my socks and shoes on just like y’all do, and I have a profession just like you have a profession,’” Westbrook says, laughing.
Westbrook’s mom, with whom he has a close relationship, has also played a key role in shaping him into the man he is today.
“She did alright I think, I don’t know,” he jokes. “I think thoughtfulness and being kind and being present in the moment and doing little things for people – whether it’s buying your girlfriend flowers or buying your buddy a beer – little things like that that I take from my mom every day that’s been very seeable in the way I carry myself now.”
Westbrook’s mom – although initially concerned about his decision to leave college to pursue a career in music – has been one of his biggest supporters throughout it all. “She always leaves notes in my guitar cases, she’s doing my merch every night, she’s coming to shows, and she persistently texts me even if I’m not texting back,” he shares. “That means more than anything to me because I know it’s hard for her to watch her kid that she was supposed to have three more years with at Texas Tech tour the country on a bus alone, and she’s super worried about it – that’s any mom.”
Westbrook and his mom at his Grand Ole Opry debut on July 22nd. Photo via Hudson Westbrook.
Westbrook, who grew up in a Baptist family, also credits God for his success. “I’ve learned that if you don’t have God by your side through all this, then it’s gonna be terrible,” he confides. “I don’t think that, if it was up to me, any of this would’ve happened. I also don’t think I would’ve been ready for this opportunity.”
Looking back, Westbrook sees his leadership roles in student government and Future Farmers of America at Texas Tech, as well as the independence that was forced upon him due to his parents’ divorce, as critical stepping stones. That independence, he explains, prepared him for life on the road as a young artist.
“I’m very grateful that God put me in that position,” he says of the difficulties he faced before he began his music career. “Every hard time is always a hard time so that you can have a better time. Everything happens for a reason.”
When I ask what’s next for Westbrook, his answer embodies the very ethos that has carried him through his whirlwind journey to country music stardom: “Just stayin’ the same throughout it all – no matter how big it gets, no matter how small it gets, no matter what happens. Just stayin’ the same and respecting yourself in the sense of like don’t do anything that you wouldn’t do in the beginning. Stay true to Texas, and stay true to what you’re doing and who you are.”
It’s a steadfast promise to himself and his roots – a reminder that success isn’t measured by the heights you reach, but by the values you never leave behind. For Westbrook, Texas isn’t just a place. It’s the compass that guides him home. In his music, in his life, and in his heart, Texas is forever.
