Since competing on ‘The Voice Australia’ in 2022, country artist Lane Pittman said his career has gone from strength to strength.
“It’s been pretty much a rollercoaster, we’ve been doing a lot of crazy things,” he said.
“I supported Luke Combs last year on his Australian tour with Cody Johnson, we played CMC twice, we were lucky enough to be able to support Riley Green in October, released our debut EP. It’s been an absolutely wild ride the last few years.”
For the Tamworth local, riding the wave of country music’s resurgence has been a bonus – especially when it comes to proving his friends wrong.
“Country is in one of the best spots its been in a long time,” Pittman said.
“I’ve even seen it personally. I had friends who’d knock me a lot of the time throughout the early years of high school for liking country music, and then by the end of it, they were sending me songs that I’d been listening to since I was a kid!
“It feels like you’re not cool if you don’t like country music now, which is a really cool thing for me, as someone who’s been a fan of the genre ever since I can remember.”
The career move has also been made easier since Pittman finished school, having only completed his HSC last year.
“As much as I loved school and I was happy to get it out of the road, I’m so happy that I can do this full-time now,” he said.
“I’m not having to worry about asking school if I can take a Friday and a Monday off to travel to a gig!”
Pittman has already done shows in every state this year, except the Northern Territory.
Now, he’s ready to bring his songs all the way to Penrith, as part of country festival Sunset Bash.
“This is going to be my first time playing [in Penrith] in September, which I’m super stoked for!” he said.
“I’m thinking about being a little bit cheeky. I’m a Bulldogs fan through and through, so I might rock up in a Doggies jersey, just to stir up some trouble with the locals.”
Sunset Bash’s stacked line-up includes names like Travis Collins, Miss Lancaster, Duncan Toombs, Wade Forster, Andrew Swift and Cass Hopetoun, some of which are all-too familiar for Pittman, adding that Forster has previously opened for him on his tour, and he’s opened for Collins.
“The line-up is great, I know a lot of the artists on it, so it’s going to be really good to just come down to Penrith and play a festival, have fun, and really bring the country vibes back to western Sydney,” he said.
As for what he’s bringing to the table on the day, Pittman said he can guarantee a fun time.
“Me and the band, we just love to have fun,” he said.
“We just love to bring high energy vibes. I’m probably going to jump off the stage at and end up somewhere near the crowd. I love to get wild and make sure the fans have a great show, because at the end of the day, as long as they’re happy, I’m happy.”
Lane Pittman will be on at Panthers as part of Sunset Bash on Saturday, September 21. Tickets are $59. To book, visit http://www.penrith.panthers.com.au.
Cassidy Pearce
Cassidy Pearce is a news and entertainment journalist with The Western Weekender. A graduate of the University of Technology Sydney, she has previously worked with Good Morning Macarthur and joined the Weekender in 2022.