Hudson Westbrook Launches the Hits Me Tour and Country Music Has Its Next Great Headliner

1.5 billion global streams. Back-to-back sold-out nights at Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth before the tour even settled into its stride. An ACM New Male Artist of the Year nomination earned in fewer than two years of releasing original music. We have been tracking Hudson Westbrook‘s rise all year here at Sunset Country Fest, and this week he officially launched the Hits Me Tour, his biggest headline run yet: 24 dates across North America, a stacked supporting bill, and a growing country audience that keeps showing up in numbers that are genuinely hard to ignore.

Why the Hits Me Tour Is the Biggest Moment Yet for Hudson Westbrook

Hudson Westbrook is from Stephenville, Texas, which is Red Dirt country: the same geographic and musical territory that shaped Turnpike Troubadours, Parker McCollum, and Koe Wetzel. He took those roots and layered in the modern Nashville production sensibility that makes his songs feel stadium-ready from the first listen. The combination has been working at a level that is difficult to overstate. His catalog cleared 1.5 billion global streams in under two years, which is the kind of number that puts an artist on every major booking agency’s radar at once.

The Hits Me Tour opened with two consecutive nights at Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth, and both sold out. Billy Bob’s is not just a venue. It is a benchmark. Filling it twice in a row signals a genuine and loyal fanbase built on something more durable than playlist algorithm placement, and that distinction matters to us as we track which artists in 2026 are building something with staying power.

The Artists on the Bill and Why This Package Matters

Joining Hudson Westbrook on the full Hits Me Tour run are two artists who deserve attention in their own right. Kenny Whitmire is a Georgia-based country artist who recently signed to MCA Nashville, and singer-songwriter Ethan Burdick brings a songwriting pedigree that has already generated real industry attention in 2026. These are not default opener slots filled at the last minute. They are curated picks that give each night a sense of discovery and upward momentum.

For country fans who track who is touring with whom, this bill is a signal. The artists who build their live audience by surrounding themselves with quality talent are consistently the ones commanding major festival slots two years later. The Hits Me Tour is constructed exactly the way a real headliner’s tour should be.

• 24 North American dates anchored by two sold-out nights at Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth
• 1.5 billion global streams accumulated in under two years of releasing original music
• 2026 ACM New Male Artist of the Year nominee, one of the most watched new country artists in Nashville this year
• 2026 opening slots on Morgan Wallen’s Still The Problem Stadium Tour and Bailey Zimmerman’s Same Night Different Rodeo Tour
• Stagecoach, Windy City Smokeout, and Country Concert 2026 among his major festival appearances this year

The Florida Connection Every Central Florida Country Fan Should Know

The Hits Me Tour already has Florida in its footprint. A stop at Florida Horse Park in Ocala brought the show to Central Florida’s region, roughly 60 miles from the Greater Orlando area. That is worth noting for fans in Apopka, Winter Garden, and across Orange County: Hudson Westbrook is not bypassing the South on his way up. He is building his audience here, on the same stages where country music’s most loyal fanbases live.

For us at Sunset Country Fest, artists like Hudson Westbrook are exactly why we track country music the way we do. We are building toward April 3, 2027, and the artists making this kind of move in the fall of 2026 are the ones we will be watching most closely between now and then.

Frequently Asked: How Many Streams Does Hudson Westbrook Have and Where Is He Touring?

Hudson Westbrook is from Stephenville, Texas, and has accumulated over 1.5 billion global streams in under two years of releasing original music. He is a 2026 ACM New Male Artist of the Year nominee. His fall 2026 Hits Me Tour runs 24 North American dates, with a recent Florida stop at Florida Horse Park in Ocala. Full tour information and tickets are available through Live Nation.

Hudson Westbrook is at the exact moment in a career when everything starts to click. The streams are there. The live draw is there. The right tour partners are there. We will be following every date on the Hits Me Tour this fall, because this is how country music’s next great headliner gets built: one sold-out night at a time. Sunset Country Fest 2027 is a country music festival taking place in Apopka, Florida, in the Greater Orlando area, on April 3, 2027. Mark your calendar and keep following Sunset Country Fest for lineup announcements, ticket info, and all the country music coverage you love.

Sources & References

• MusicRow: Hudson Westbrook To Launch New Headlining Hits Me Tour In September
• All Country News: Hudson Westbrook Is Taking Over This Fall
• Live Nation: Hudson Westbrook 2026 Tour Dates and Concert Schedule
• Yahoo Entertainment: Hudson Westbrook Hits Me Tour Coming

Disclaimer: Important Notice

The information published in this article is based on publicly available data from official sources, press releases, and music industry publications available at the time of writing. Tour dates, ticket prices, venue details, setlists, album release schedules, award nominations, lineup announcements, and all other details referenced in this article are subject to change at any time without prior notice.

Sunset Country Fest makes no representations or warranties, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information contained herein. All changes, cancellations, rescheduling, postponements, or modifications to any events, releases, tour dates, award results, or announcements referenced in this article are the sole responsibility of the artists, record labels, talent agencies, concert promoters, venues, and any other third parties involved.

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Last updated: September 3, 2026 · Sunset Country Fest Editorial Team · Contact Us