In early 2024, Texas native Dylan Gossett’s breakthrough song “Coal” became his first Billboard Hot 100 hit, and went on to become certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. He followed with more homespun, organic tracks like the romantic “Beneath Oak Trees” and his 2025 self-written and self-produced debut album, Westward.
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With his sophomore album Ramblin’, out Friday (Sept. 25) on Big Loud Texas / Mercury Records, Gossett aims to strike a balance between some of the more rustic fare of his previous projects and evolving his sound with even more full-bodied instrumentation.
“I’m like a kid on a playground,” Gossett tells Billboard. “There’s still those stripped-back songs on this record that I love, and honestly, they’re some of my favorites on the record. But we got to do the big drum kit, open things up and widen the sonic space of each song. That’s why I think it feels a bit more complete than Westward might have been. I feel like there’s more layering. The lyrics still hold up and have the same storytelling element, but a lot of these songs, you just want to put on with your friends in the car and just jam them.”
He’s previewed the new album with songs like the deceptively breezy “Clothesline,” which centers on the emotional turmoil of being in relational limbo, and the plucky, longing “Loving You Like That.” Though sonically he broadens his sound, some of the songs themselves are drawn from deep in his writing catalog, including a few songs that didn’t make it on Westward.
“‘Running From the Sun’ is an older song I wrote, and then ‘Snow Melt,’ a few of those had been written before Westward,” he says. “But some of the cooler songs on Ramblin’ that I love were buzzer-beaters. Two weeks before we had to submit [the album], I’m like ‘Can we get into the studio?’ And the idea turns into songs like ‘The Old Me’ and ‘Loving You Like That.’”
Elsewhere, “Honeysuckle” looks at the values of his family and home in Texas. After his initial career breakthrough, instead of making a predictable move to Music City, the Texas A&M graduate has stayed close to his roots deep in the Lone Star State.
“I have no reason to leave. I’ve got so much family here and my wife and I love it. When I need to go do work, I’ll fly to Nashville real quick, or New York or L.A., and can come back home the next day. I like being able to separate work and home. It helps keep my head clear a bit,” he says.
Ramblin’ also nods to the swift changes in Gossett’s personal life; “My Boy” embraces his journey into fatherhood.
“It’s been great. Luckily, I [married] a person that understands this world and is so supportive and is a great mom, so it’s been fun to see this family expand. It’s not easy when you have a one-month-old and you’re away for six weeks or so, but we make it work. They’ll come visit, or we’ll FaceTime and it’s one of those things where I’m blessed enough to where when I’m home, we’re not working 9-to-5 jobs and we get to spend the entire day with him. Those moments matter and they add up.”
It seems Gossett’s son, who was born earlier this year, is already showing a curiosity for music.
“He loves looking at the guitar and he’s starting to grab things, so he can feel the guitar strings and that’s been fun to see,” Gossett says. If his son one day ends up following in Gossett’s musical footsteps, he says he hopes to have plenty of wisdom to pass down.
“The industry is not the prettiest place of all time, but hopefully we raise him in a way that has a good foundation. I would support it. I’d probably give him a couple of tips on things I messed up early on or something, but that would be awesome.”
Gossett just wrapped stints opening for The Red Clay Strays, as well as opening for Mumford & Sons on their Prizefighter Tour.
“Mumford was one of my biggest inspirations ever,” Gossett says. “When we got the [initial] call, it was like, ‘This is an opportunity, it’s a possibility.’ Months went on and I was like, ‘We’re probably not going to get this, it’s been too long.’ But then we finally got the official call and it was the craziest, easiest ‘Yes’ of my life. I was like, ‘Move everything, we just can’t skip out on this.’ And those guys are amazing. Marcus [Mumford], the very first show, made a point to come and talk to us and we got to meet the rest of the guys and hang out a bit. They were just super welcoming, and we got to play with them at [Chicago Cubs’ home] Wrigley Field, which was surreal.”
Gossett is currently co-headlining tour with fellow country-folk troubadour Charles Wesley Godwin, where they trade off closing the evening in different markets.
“We had shows in Texas and I was ending the night, and the shows we’re doing in the Carolinas and East coast are more [West Virginia native] Charles’ area in closing the shows. It just feels like a party. Charles, I was listening to his albums top to bottom before I ever had a song out, so it’s just really cool.”
After launching his career viral hits like “Coal,” he knows well the pressures artists can feel to maintain a steady cadence of releases to remain in the algorithmic conversation. But with two albums and a couple of EPs under his belt, he says he’s worked to find his own balance in the battle between quantity and quality.
“I focused on it in the past, and I think I’m starting to understand this cloud of smoke that is around social media and putting out music. You get so caught up in it, and a lot of it is smoke and mirrors. I’m okay with taking a break to make sure that the quality of stuff I’m putting out is good. When you see something like, ‘Oh, I’m falling down in the public view’ or whatever, it doesn’t really matter that much, as long as the next song you come out with is good and you’ve taken your time with it. It also gives people time to breathe.”
Whether he’s playing in amphitheaters, concert halls or stadiums, Gossett remains focused on the songs.
“Writing is my passion. I love doing it,” he says. “I wrote two songs yesterday. I want to co-write when it makes sense to. I feel like it’s not my first instinct, but some song ideas, I want to get a different input or get new ears on it. That’s when I go to guys like [his brother and songwriter] Blake [Gossett] or Colton [Forrest Hardy] and the guys in the band that understand my sound, but have their own thing, too. I’m just trying to make the best songs possible.”
