Country music singer Chase McDaniel’s hard work may have finally started to pay off after he spent years working 17-hour shifts, six days a week as a bartender to finance his passion for music.
Nearly 20 million preview streams later, he officially dropped his new single “Project” at exactly midnight on May 27, and it sky-rocketed to No. 1 in just two hours on iTunes across all genres, as well as in the United Kingdom and Canada, with loyal fans rejoicing at his success.
“I’ve dreamed about this since I was a kid,” McDaniel told The Epoch Times.
Having just resigned six days earlier from his job as a bartender in Nashville, Tenn., the singer reflected on the dedication and commitment that led him to reach his goal, as well as the inspiration behind the song.
“Double shifts … open to close and re-opening the next morning with sometimes three or less hours of sleep,” said McDaniel, who found a work ethic within himself that helped launch his singing career in just two short years.
It was during this time that he wrote “Project,” the song he least expected to top the charts, and one he free-styled with his producer Jerry Jacobs in under 30 minutes.
“I didn’t know if anybody would relate to it,” McDaniel told The Epoch Times.
Prior to its full release, the singer teased a clip of the song on social media last month, garnering an explosion of new fans across a number of platforms.
In the clip, McDaniel stares into the camera from his car before the song begins with a simple question in his deep Kentucky accent:
“Have you ever went through a phase after a breakup and, uh, been the toxic one for a while?” he asked. “I wrote a song about that.”
Launching into a self-reflective diatribe of how the singer should “settle down, make my momma proud,” while being a work-in-progress not yet ready for a relationship, the song has appealed to fans across all ages, genders, and nationalities.
The tune has even gained admirers from self-described “non-country” fans.
“Waited impatiently for this to come onto Spotify and it’s been on repeat all morning, I don’t even listen to country,” one fan posted on social media, prompting a re-share from McDaniel.
McDaniel first discovered his love of music at nine years old thanks to his great-grandfather—“Papaw”—who encouraged him to sing and signed McDaniel up for talent shows, sometimes even behind his back, telling him one day he was going to be a big country star.
Papaw’s prediction began taking root when McDaniel was only 15 years old, already attracting large crowds thanks to his deep voice. Standing at his old town country venue, he performed Johnny Cash covers, which earned him extra money alongside “countless” other jobs he worked at the time to help support himself.
McDaniel faced heavy challenges growing up, often not knowing what he would come home to because of his father’s tumultuous drug addiction. Amid this unpredictable home environment, music soon also served as a coping mechanism for him.
This became especially true after his high school graduation, when his father tragically took his life.
“Music for me was a way to connect to … male role models in my life,” McDaniel said. “It was my mode of connection for people who felt safe to be around.”
Among such role models were his grandfathers, who often drove him to church and practiced singing with him. In addition to serving as a bridge for McDaniel to connect with those closest to him, music was also a much-needed outlet.
“I just desperately needed somebody to connect with back then,” McDaniels explained, adding that he makes a constant effort to be open and honest about his experiences and music in the hopes that it will resonate with others struggling the way he did.
“My dad never told anybody he was struggling, and neither did I,” McDaniel said. “And I let it almost kill me.”
Thankfully, music was his “constant,” serving as his medicine and therapy in a time he wasn’t aware such treatments yet existed.
This is why, McDaniel explains, his tagline is “music for your journey through the chaos.”
“I just feel like it’s my purpose. My mission.”
As of this month, he says he’s still been singing at friends’ weddings for a few hundred dollars a day, with Nashville as his home-base for performances. His last live show sold out in under 45 minutes.
Still surprised that he was able to sell tickets, the Greensburg, Ky., native has approached each success with heavy gratitude.
“I just feel crazy, crazy fortunate,” McDaniel says.
