"Cold Dead Hands," Dustin Collins' 2017 breakthrough hit, was a defiant pro-Second Amendment anthem, suggesting the Kentucky-based country singer was a bit of a rebel. In fact, Collins grew up in a musical household, one where his father played with his uncle in an actively recording group, and his straight-ahead country music certainly shows a debt to tradition while also incorporating sly modern elements, such as a fondness for the smooth, murmuring electronic rhythms of Jason Aldean and the rousing bro-country of Luke Bryan. Born in northern Georgia but raised in Bardstown, Kentucky, Dustin Collins remembers spending time in the recording studio as a child, but he wasn't drawn to music until he was a teenager. First, he played covers of classic rock and post-grunge, but soon he was drawn to country through the music of Hank Williams, Jr. Collins began playing local clubs, eventually working his way to opening spots for the Kentucky Headhunters. He earned the attention of Sammy Mitchell and Steven Battey, a pair of songwriters and producers who collaborated with him on several tunes. Next, he signed with Muddy Boy Records. His first digital single, "Stay Gone," appeared in 2015, quickly followed by "My Truck." A series of other singles followed that year -- "Love Song," "Getaway," and "Friday Night" all showed up by the end of 2015 -- and then he released the mini-album She Does in 2016. He continued to build an audience through touring, including an opening position on Aaron Watson's Vaquero tour. Collins first cracked the national country charts when "Cold Dead Hands" reached number one on Billboard's Hot Single Sales Chart in March 2017. He signed with Colt Ford's Average Joe's Entertainment and didn't release another single that year, but 2018 brought "The Barn." Both songs were featured on his mini-album It's Been Awhile, which came out in August of 2018. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine