Different Man Explained
Different Man is the third studio album by American country music singer Kane Brown, released on September 9, 2022, through RCA Records Nashville.[1] Brown co-produced the album, which was preceded by the singles "One Mississippi", "Like I Love Country Music", and "Grand", with "Thank God", a duet with his singer-songwriter wife Katelyn Brown, which impacted country radio on September 12.[2] The songs "Leave You Alone" and "Whiskey Sour" were also released ahead of the album.[3] The album was promoted with the Drunk or Dreamin' Tour, which ran from September 17, 2022, to September 8, 2023.
Content
Brown co-produced one of his albums for the first time, which took time to adjust to, with Brown saying that "We went from a demo to a master recording to redoing everything. I was listening to the album and not liking the sounds. [...] We kept revamping things, working and finding the sound I've been looking for, adding in more rock and country sounds".[4] The New York Times described Brown's duet with his wife Katelyn as a "folk-pop duet" and "Grand" as "post-Drake R&B", but that the album overall is "determinedly traditional", bookended odes to Brown's "rural Southern roots".[5]
Commercial performance
Different Man debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200, including number two on the Top Country Albums chart with 46,000 album equivalent units.[6] The album also reached number six in Canada and number 17 in Australia.
Personnel
Musicians
- Kane Brown – lead vocals (all tracks), background vocals (1–4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 15–17)
- Josh Reedy – background vocals (1–4, 8–10, 12, 14, 15, 17)
- Matt McGinn – background vocals (1, 6)
- Ilya Toshinskiy – banjo (1, 4, 9, 15, 17), acoustic guitar (2–4, 7–17), ukulele (15)
- Jimmie Lee Sloas – bass guitar (1–4, 7, 9–12, 15–17)
- Aaron Sterling – drums (1–4, 6–12, 14–17), percussion (1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 12, 17); congas, shaker (11)
- Dann Huff – electric guitar (1–4, 8–10, 12, 14, 16, 17), programming (1, 3, 4, 9, 12, 15, 16), synthesizer (1, 4), Dobro (3), piano (4), mandolin (3, 17), bass guitar (9), twelve-string guitar (10, 17), acoustic guitar (14, 16)
- Derek Wells – electric guitar (1–4, 7–12, 14–17)
- Lars Thorson – fiddle (1, 9, 17)
- Charlie Judge – organ (1, 8–11, 15, 16), strings (1, 2, 8), synthesizer (1, 2, 4, 8–12, 14, 17); horn, timpani (2); piano (4, 8, 11, 15, 16), keyboards (7), celeste (16), whistles (17)
- Justin Niebank – programming (1–4, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14–17)
- David Huff – programming (1–4, 7–9, 11, 12, 14–17), synthesizer (7), slide guitar (16)
- Josh Hoge – background vocals (2)
- Paul Franklin – steel guitar (2–4, 7, 10–12, 14–17)
- Dave Cohen – organ, piano (3)
- Jordan Schmidt – background vocals (4)
- Stuart Duncan – fiddle (4, 10, 15)
- Alex Wright – synthesizer (4)
- Eric Arjes – background vocals (5)
- Andrew Goldstein – guitar, keyboards, programming (5)
- Solomon Philcox-Littlefield – acoustic guitar, electric guitar (6)
- Devin Dawson – background vocals (6)
- Lindsay Rimes – background vocals, electric guitar, keyboards, programming, synthesizer (6)
- Justin Schipper – steel guitar (6)
- Shy Carter – background vocals (7)
- Craig Young – bass guitar (8, 14)
- Jesse Frasure – programming, synthesizer (10, 11, 15); bass guitar (15)
- Trey Keller – background vocals (11, 12, 16)
- Natalie Stovall – fiddle (13)
- Ernest Keith Smith – background vocals (16)
Technical
- Kane Brown – producer (6, 13)
- Adam Ayan – mastering (1–4, 6–17)
- Dave Kutch – mastering (5)
- Drew Bollman – mixing (1, 2, 4, 7–12, 14–17), recording (2–4, 9–11, 15, 16), engineering assistance (3)
- Justin Niebank – mixing (1–4, 7–12, 14–17)
- Adam Hawkins – mixing (5)
- Jeff Braun – mixing (6, 13); vocal production, vocal engineering (5)
- Buckley Miller – recording (1, 7, 8, 12, 14, 17)
- Lindsay Rimes – recording, editing, overdub engineering, producer (6)
- Ilya Toshinskiy – recording, editing, overdub engineering, producer (13)
- Kyle Manner – recording (13)
- Chris Small – editing (1–4, 7–12, 14–17), vocal engineering (3)
- David Huff – editing (1–4, 7–12, 14–17)
- Andrew Goldstein – editing, producer (5)
- Eric Arjes – editing (5)
- Simon Philcox-Littlefield – overdub engineering (6)
- Dann Huff – overdub engineering (1, 2, 4, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14–17), producer (1–4, 7–12, 14–17)
- Jaime Sickora – overdub engineering (2)
- Russell Terrell – overdub engineering (3)
- Trey Keller – overdub engineering (11)
- Steve Marcantonio – overdub engineering (16)
- Zach Kuhlman – engineering assistance (1, 7, 12, 17)
- Eric Fleming – engineering assistance (2)
- Kam Luchterhand – engineering assistance (2, 9, 15, 16)
- Lucas Glenney-Tegtmeier – engineering assistance (2, 9, 15, 16)
- Sean Badum – engineering assistance (3, 10, 11)
- Jordan Reed – engineering assistance (8, 14)
Charts
Year-end charts
Notes and References
- Web site: Kane Brown's New Album 'Different Man' Features Duets With His Wife Katelyn & Blake Shelton. Music Mayhem. August 4, 2022. September 9, 2022.
- Web site: Kane Brown previews duet 'Thank God' featuring his wife, Katelyn Brown. KRTY. September 7, 2022. September 9, 2022.
- Web site: Kane Brown Reveals 'Different Man' Album Tracklist, Including Duet With His Wife. Taste of Country. Vaughn. Grace Lenehan. August 5, 2022. September 9, 2022.
- Kane Brown Synthesizes Influences on Album 'Different Man': 'I Found the Sound I've Been Looking For'. Billboard. Nicholson. Jessica. September 8, 2022. September 9, 2022.
- Web site: Kane Brown Didn't Fit the Country Music Mold. So He Made His Own.. The New York Times. Shteamer. Hank. September 4, 2022. September 9, 2022.
- Bad Bunny's 'Un Verano Sin Ti' Has Most Weeks at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Since 2016. Billboard. Caulfield. Keith. September 18, 2022. October 1, 2022.
- Top Country Albums – Year-End 2022. Billboard. March 5, 2023.
- Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2023. Billboard. November 22, 2023.
- Top Country Albums – Year-End 2023. Billboard. November 22, 2023.
