The Countrytown & KIX Country Centre Stage Artist is Kaylee Bell

Countrytown in partnership with KIX Country is proud to announce country-pop singer-songwriter, Kaylee Bell as this week’s ‘Centre Stage’ artist. Every week we'll be shining a light on a single artist across all platforms including online features, airplay, and social support.

Born in Waimate, New Zealand, Kaylee has been singing country music and learning guitar since the age of four and started songwriting at 14. Competing in talent quests around New Zealand, she won the New Zealand Gold Guitar at 18 which led to her attending her first Tamworth Country Music Festival. Following earning her degree at Christchurch Performing Arts, she moved to Australia in 2011. 

In 2013, she was crowned Toyota Star Maker, making her the first New Zealand born artist since 1990 winner Keith Urban. The win led her to release the single Pieces with Jared Porter and earned the duo a 2015 APRA Award for ‘Best County Music Song’ and the overall grand prize at the US Unsigned Only Competition, marking the first time a non-American had won.

Her debut album, Heart First, was released in 2013 as well as the title track. In 2016, she released her breakout single Getting Closer, written with Morgan Evans, the song raced up the streaming charts. Singles One More Shot, Who I Am, Keith, Wasted On You, Light On and Home, Be With You followed, as did 2021’s The Red EP, which charted at #9 on the Independent Charts.

In 2021, Kaylee released three collaborative singles That Summer with Josh Mirenda and a crossover second rendition with Kiwi pop artist Lepandi, Before I Met You with The McClymonts, and Living Free with Lindsay Ell, as well as her second studio album, Silver Linings. She was chosen as the face of Spotify's EQUAL campaign which saw her featured in Times Square, New York representing female in music globally.

She competed on season 11 of The Voice Australia in 2022, where she performed her own self-penned song Keith, penned as a tribute to judge Urban. Due to a technicality, she joined Jess Mauboy’s team where she was later eliminated in the battle rounds.

Keith, however, became a global hit with over 30 million Tik Tok plays, 9 million Spotify plays and is charting in the US, Canada, UK, Norway, NZ and took the #1 spot All Genre in Australia for a week ahead of Harry Styles and Luke Combs. The track also become the most streamed country song of the year, with over 12 million streams. Kaylee currently has the title of the Most Streamed Country Artist for Australasia in 2022, boasting over 40 million global streams to date.

Following her Same Songs collaboration with James Johnston, which currently sits at #3 on the Countrytown Hot 50 Country Airplay Chart, Kaylee recently released her new single, Small Town Friday Nights. Co-written with Nashville hitmakers Lindsay Rimes (Kane Brown, Thomas Rhett) and Phil Barton (Lee Brice), Small Town Friday Nights is an anthem and a call for celebration for anyone who grew up in a small town and loves to throw it down on a Friday night.

She recently opened for Brad Paisley on the New Zealand leg of his World Tour alongside Evans and MacKenzie Porter in Auckland. Kaylee has previously opened for Alan Jackson, Lee Kernaghan, The McClymonts, Evans and The Chicks and performed with Urban on his Light The Fuse World Tour of Australia in 2014 and again on his 2016 ripCORD World Tour in Wellington.

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Keep up to date with Kaylee Bell and follow her on Facebook here.