’90s Hitmaker Rhett Akins Announces New Album, His First In 20 Years
Rhett Akins announced his new album during an Opry appearance. (Photo credit: Union Country/YouTube)
’90s country music fans rejoice! Rhett Akins is back with a new album nearly 20 years after his last release.
Long before Rhett Akins was known as Thomas Rhett’s dad, he was one of the hottest acts in country music. He was signed to Decca Records in the mid-’90s. His third single “That Ain’t My Truck” became his signature song, though it never topped the charts. His first No. 1 song, “Don’t Get Me Started,” came following the release of his second studio album, Somebody New, in 1996.
Rhett Akins toured with Reba McEntire in 1995 and 1996 as he made himself a radio staple of the decade with hits like “She Said Yes.”
In addition to being a successful solo artist, Akins is a prolific songwriter.
In 2018, Rhett was named ACM’s Songwriter of the Year, and was named the association’s Songwriter of the Decade in 2020.
His songwriting credits include his own songs, “Don’t Get Me Started” and “She Said Yes,” as well as songs for Blake Shelton (“Honeybee”), Luke Bryan (“Huntin’ Fishin’ and Lovin’ Every Day” and “I Don’t Want This Night to End”), Thomas Rhett (“Look What God Gave Her,” “Life Changes,” and “Star Of The Show”), Jon Pardi (“Dirt On My Boots”), and many, many more.
RELATED: 25 COUNTRY SONGS TURNING 20 IN 2025
In total, Rhett has charted 34 #1 hits over the course of his 27-year career. He also earned the CMA Triple Play Award an unprecedented 7 times. “The award is presented to a songwriter who penned three No. 1 singles in 12 months and he won it in October 2010, January 2012, February 2014, February 2015, February 2016, February 2017, and again in February 2018,” his website says. In July 2021, Rhett was announced as a inductee into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.
During a recent Opry appearance, Rhett Akins announced that he’s been back in the studio recording a new album.
Before singing a new song titled “Daddy Was Right,” Akins told the Opry crowd that he’s in the studio all the time recording demos and working with other artists. “But, it’s been 20 years since I’ve been in the studio making a record for myself. I’ve just been in the studio doing that, and it’s going to come out sometime in the spring. Last time I made a record there wasn’t no such thing as streaming songs. There was no such thing as the internet or a cell phone.”
More information about Rhett Akins’ return will be announced in the near future. In the meantime, watch Rhett sing his chart-topping hit, “Don’t Get Me Started,” during an a 1997 appearance on Prime Time Country below.
