Corey Kent has officially announced his highly anticipated new album ‘Heartland Rock and Roll,' set for release on September 25, 2026 and by the sound of it, this is the record where everything clicks into place.
The 16-track project marks a defining moment for the Oklahoma native, who has spent years carving out a gritty, genre-blurring lane between country, rock and soul. Now, for the first time, Kent is putting a name to that sound. “This is really the first time I’ve been able to finally name what I’ve been working toward my whole career,” he explains. “These songs sound like where I’m from… this feels like mine.”
Alongside the album announcement, Kent has shared new single ‘Cigarette Burns,' a slow-burning, atmospheric track that leans into his smoky vocal and reflective songwriting style. Written by Zach John King, Ben Stennis, Lauren Hungate and Jameson Rodgers, the song captures the push-and-pull of a love that’s bad for you but impossible to let go of.
Built around evocative lines like “Light up an old flame even though it’s gonna hurt / I kinda love the way a cigarette burns,” the track balances vulnerability with a hazy, almost hypnotic groove. It’s a sound Kent himself likens to Kings of Leon’s ‘Come Around Sundown,' that blend of laid-back rock textures with a subtle country undercurrent.
“Cigarette Burns” follows a run of releases that have steadily introduced fans to this new chapter, including ‘Rocky Mountain Low' with Koe Wetzel, viral fan favourite ‘Empty Words,' and the stripped-back ‘Wannabe.' Each track has revealed a different side of the record, from radio-ready hooks to campfire introspection.
Produced primarily by Austin Goodloe, with additional contributions from Jon Randall and Chris Farren, ‘Heartland Rock and Roll' promises a rich sonic palette: melding warm, distorted guitars with raspy country soul and the kind of storytelling rooted in small-town life.
For Kent, this album also represents a shift in mindset. After years of feeling like an outsider in the genre, he’s now fully embracing the very elements that set him apart. “I’ve been fighting my differences for so long,” he says, “but now it’s like—let’s just use those. I’m not trying to be anybody else.”
With over a billion career streams, multiple No. 1 singles and a reputation built the hard way, from Oklahoma dive bars to major stages, Corey Kent has been steadily building toward this moment. ‘Heartland Rock' and Roll doesn’t just feel like another release; it feels like a statement of identity.
And if ‘Cigarette Burns' is anything to go by, it’s one that’s going to linger long after the music stops.
