Kane Brown wasn't sure he was going to make it. But there was one thing he was certain about: He was never going to give up.
The singer from humble beginnings has become one of the brightest new singers in music and arguably country music's most successful act of the year.
"I never had the 'I-know-I'm-going-to-make-it' mentality. I always had the 'I'm-never-gonna-give-up' mentality," said Brown, who grew up in Georgia. "I'm very competitive. Like, it's with anything. If you say you're gonna beat me in a video game, no, you're not."
In this Nov. 7, 2018 photo, country singer Kane Brown poses for a portrait in New York. The singer from humble beginnings has become one of the brightest new singers in music and arguably country music’s most successful act of the year. (Photo by Drew GurianInvisionAP)
"I feel that's the attitude you have to have if you're trying to make it in this game," he added.
Part of Brown's competitive nature comes from playing sports. He said as a kid he wanted to become an athlete when he was older, but he also enjoyed singing. That's when he began posting videos of himself singing cover songs to Facebook, where he built a solid fan base.
Now, the 25-year-old has three No. 1 country hits with "What Ifs," ''Lose It" and "Heaven," the most played song on country radio this year. His self-titled debut album is a platinum success and his sophomore effort, "Experiment," debuted at No. 1 on both the pop and country charts last month.
In this Nov. 7, 2018 photo, country singer Kane Brown poses for a portrait in New York. The singer from humble beginnings has become one of the brightest new singers in music and arguably country music’s most successful act of the year. (Photo by Drew GurianInvisionAP)
And Billboard named him second on its year-end list of top country artists — only behind the incomparable Chris Stapleton.
Despite all the success, Brown still wants more: "I'm in huge competition with myself and I always try to outdo myself."
At times, Brown has been seen as an outsider in the country music world, mainly because he is biracial and has multiple tattoos. But he said his individuality is also an advantage, and he encourages other artists on the rise to embrace what makes them unique.
In this Nov. 7, 2018 photo, country singer Kane Brown poses for a portrait in New York. The singer from humble beginnings has become one of the brightest new singers in music and arguably country music’s most successful act of the year. (Photo by Drew GurianInvisionAP)
"Don't try to fit in with anybody else or be anybody else because I feel like if you stand out and you're unique, that's what makes people fall in love with you," he said.
"Don't listen to anybody telling you, 'You can't do something,'" he added. "I've been told 'no' my whole life and now I'm just trying to prove everybody wrong."
Online: https://www.kanebrownmusic.com
In this Nov. 7, 2018 photo, country singer Kane Brown poses for a portrait in New York. The singer from humble beginnings has become one of the brightest new singers in music and arguably country music’s most successful act of the year. (Photo by Drew GurianInvisionAP)
For more on the AP's 2018 Breakthrough Entertainers honorees, visit: https://apnews.com/tag/APBreakthroughEntertainers
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Ukrainian court on Friday ordered the detention of the country’s farm minister in the latest high-profile corruption investigation, while Kyiv security officials assessed how they can recover lost battlefield momentum in the war against Russia.
Ukraine’s High Anti-Corruption Court ruled that Agriculture Minister Oleksandr Solskyi should be held in custody for 60 days, but he was released after paying bail of 75 million hryvnias ($1.77 million), a statement said.
Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau suspects Solskyi headed an organized crime group that between 2017 and 2021 unlawfully obtained land worth 291 million hryvnias ($6.85 million) and attempted to obtain other land worth 190 million hryvnias ($4.47 million).
Ukraine is trying to root out corruption that has long dogged the country. A dragnet over the past two years has seen Ukraine’s defense minister, top prosecutor, intelligence chief and other senior officials lose their jobs.
That has caused embarrassment and unease as Ukraine receives tens of billions of dollars in foreign aid to help fight Russia’s army, and the European Union and NATO have demanded widespread anti-graft measures before Kyiv can realize its ambition of joining the blocs.
In Ukraine's capital, doctors and ambulance crews evacuated patients from a children’s hospital on Friday after a video circulated online saying Russia planned to attack it.
Parents hefting bags of clothes, toys and food carried toddlers and led young children from the Kyiv City Children’s Hospital No. 1 on the outskirts of the city. Medics helped them into a fleet of waiting ambulances to be transported to other facilities.
In the video, a security official from Russian ally Belarus alleged that military personnel were based in the hospital. Kyiv city authorities said that the claim was “a lie and provocation.”
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that civic authorities were awaiting an assessment from security services before deciding when it was safe to reopen the hospital.
“We cannot risk the lives of our children,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was due to hold online talks Friday with the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which has been the key international organization coordinating the delivery of weapons and other aid to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said late Thursday that the meeting would discuss how to turn around Ukraine’s fortunes on the battlefield. The Kremlin’s forces have gained an edge over Kyiv’s army in recent months as Ukraine grappled with a shortage of ammunition and troops.
Russia, despite sustaining high losses, has been taking control of small settlements as part of its effort to drive deeper into eastern Ukraine after capturing the city of Avdiivka in February, the U.K. defense ministry said Friday.
It’s been slow going for the Kremlin’s troops in eastern Ukraine and is likely to stay that way, according to the Institute for the Study of War. However, the key hilltop town of Chasiv Yar is vulnerable to the Russian onslaught, which is using glide bombs — powerful Soviet-era weapons that were originally unguided but have been retrofitted with a navigational targeting system — that obliterate targets.
“Russian forces do pose a credible threat of seizing Chasiv Yar, although they may not be able to do so rapidly,” the Washington-based think tank said late Thursday.
It added that Russian commanders are likely seeking to advance as much as possible before the arrival in the coming weeks and months of new U.S. military aid, which was held up for six months by political differences in Congress.
While that U.S. help wasn’t forthcoming, Ukraine’s European partners didn’t pick up the slack, according to German’s Kiel Institute for the World Economy, which tracks Ukraine support.
“The European aid in recent months is nowhere near enough to fill the gap left by the lack of U.S. assistance, particularly in the area of ammunition and artillery shells,” it said in a report Thursday.
Ukraine is making a broad effort to take back the initiative in the war after more than two years of fighting. It plans to manufacture more of its own weapons in the future, and is clamping down on young people avoiding conscription, though it will take time to process and train any new recruits.
Jill Lawless contributed to this report.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Ukrainian young acting student Gleb Batonskiy plays piano in a public park in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, April 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
