With his vulnerable croon and love-crazy tunes, Brett Young is practically the poster boy for romance in modern country. But for a Nashville star, his background is anything but typical. For starters, Young hails from Anaheim, CA, instead of the stereotypical small Southern town. And if fate hadn’t intervened, he’d have followed a completely different path. He was a baseball scholarship student at the University of Mississippi with offers from the pros, but in 2003 an elbow injury brought his pitching career to a sudden halt. When he shifted gears to focus on his love of music, Young was initially influenced by pop singer/songwriters like Gavin DeGraw, and his early DIY recordings in 2012-13 reflect that. But when he made his move to Nashville and reset his sound, his blend of pop and R&B influences and country set him apart. His soulful, lovestruck debut single, “Sleep Without You,” started his country career with a bang, achieving platinum status. When the self-titled 2017 album it came from did the same, it was obvious there was a new star in town. Young’s 2018 follow-up album, Ticket to L.A., went all the way to No. 1 on the country charts, and its Gavin DeGraw guest appearance underlined the way Young had taken Nashville on his own terms.