Adages like “hard work pays off” are used so frequently, but when you hear a story like Cody Hibbard’s, they’re proven true.
Years spent in the United States Naval Academy, and later, as a pipeliner, instilled a work ethic in Hibbard that he has brought into his music career; becoming one of the genre’s brightest rising artists, just four years after releasing his debut single.
Millions of streams, countless curated playlist placements and hundreds of shows followed that single, “Half Whiskey Half Lonely,” all of which combined, as well as that work ethic, brought Hibbard to the attention of Droptine Recordings and Sony Music Publishing, who recently signed the Oklahoma native to a joint venture publishing deal.
Before all of that, though, his now-famous work ethic was being instilled in him from his adoptive parents as he learned the ropes of life at an early age.
“That work ethic was all I knew,” says Hibbard. “I didn’t know anything other than working for what you get in life. I learned that life is tough. You take the punches, but at the same time, you don’t let them run you over. That’s all I knew for the longest time. It’s all I still know.”
Hibbard put that mentality to work in the United States Naval Academy, before injuries forced him to transition into a career in pipelining, which he admits was initially his long-term career path.
“I didn’t know if I would have been in the fields as much as I got older. At the time, I was easing my way in,” says Hibbard. “I thought something in that area would be what I did for the rest of my life. That’s what I had mind.”
His mind began to shift, though, after a day of work when he was asked by a waiter to sing at a Tex-Mex restaurant.
“I was going to another job, and on the way, we stopped in town with some friends to eat. The waiter was acting a little funny. He said, ‘Man, I don’t want to offend you, but you don’t sound how you look, and I think that’s cool,’” says Hibbard. “My buddy said ‘You think that’s weird? You ought to hear this guy sing.’ The waiter asked if I played guitar, and I went in my truck, pulled a barstool out and played all three songs I knew.”
Once he finished those three songs: “Tennessee Whiskey,” “Don’t Close Your Eyes” and “Fishin’ in the Dark,” Hibbard was offered to play a full set at the restaurant.
“The manager was filming it, and she asked if I’d play a four hour gig, and I told her I would once I learned some more songs,” Hibbard says with a laugh. “That’s how this whole thing started.”
That performance started Hibbard on a track towards writing songs of his own, which culminated in the release of his debut single, “Half Whiskey Half Lonely,” in September of 2019, and putting together a band to take on the road.
“I met a guy who asked if I wrote music. I told him I didn’t, and he told me to give it a shot,” says Hibbard. “My guitar player for that summer said we ought to get a band together, and we played our first full-band show in October of 2019. Even then, I was still working the pipeline. I didn’t think it would ever take off.”
But take off, it did, as Hibbard’s debut effort has gone on to earn millions of streams and laid a solid foundation for his career.
“My idea of recording that song was getting things off of my chest. I wanted to be on my death bed and be able to say that I tried it, even if it was just for fun,” says Hibbard. “I didn’t send it for playlisting, because I knew nothing about it. It was pretty cool when we saw the streams trickling in. I call that song my baby, because it changed my whole life.”
Just four months later, Hibbard’s life changed again when his song “Dying Breed,” released on his EP Memory and a Dirt Road, quickly struck a chord with his fanbase, becoming a blue-collar anthem and a staple at his live shows.
“That’s the life I live in a song. We say it live: ‘If you don’t listen to any other song all night, listen to this one,’” says Hibbard. “’Dying Breed’ is an anthem for the people busting their ass to make a dollar; the people who don’t ask for too much, put their noses down and go to work.”
Part of that work for Hibbard was beginning to take trips to Nashville, where he inundated himself with the lay of the land in Music City.
“I’m not a city person at all. I grew up in the middle of nowhere where you could barely see your neighbor’s house,” Hibbard says with a laugh. “It was good to see, though. The city itself and the talent are great. It’s a tight-knit community. Everyone knows everyone and has a story about everyone. It was cool to see the fraternities and sororities of singers and songwriters.”
Just as Hibbard was hitting his stride, Covid hit the live music industry, and with attendance restrictions largely keeping headliners out of venues, Hibbard says he jumped at the chance to play those rooms and keep his momentum rolling forward.
“We ended up signing with a booking agency during that time. Everything started opening up at 25 or 50 percent, and a lot of places couldn’t get their big headliners, because they needed their full money to get back to playing. We gained more momentum by doing those shows,” says Hibbard. “We started honing in. We didn’t have anything else to do other than set up and play. If they paid us decent money, that was great, but if not, we’d gain some fans. It helped us get this thing off the ground.”
With that newfound momentum in tow, Hibbard stayed busy in the studio, releasing several singles before the release of his self-titled EP in 2021, which allowed him to put his diverse influences on display.
“We knew everybody was sitting at home. If people did go to work, there probably wasn’t a whole lot of work to be done, so the goal was to keep dropping new music for them,” says Hibbard. “That EP showcased a bunch of the styles I grew up on. That’s what country music is about. There’s such a contest of what’s country these days, and it pisses me off to no end. Where I grew up, everybody was country. I had buddies that would put a wad of dip in, wear their cowboy boots outside of their jeans and bump Eminem or Nickelback. We were country, but we grew up with those different influences, and that’s what that EP was.”
With two EPs and a handful of singles under his belt, Hibbard was approached by Droptine Recordings and Sony Music Publishing to sign a co-venture publishing deal, which he signed this year.
“I always told myself that I was going to do this myself until I couldn’t anymore. It got to the point where I needed a team,” says Hibbard. “It’s pretty nuts. I’m still new to this whole thing. I never thought I would be doing music full-time, I just enjoyed doing it and putting music out. The biggest thing is seeing them appreciate the hard work that my team and I have put in. They’ve given me the opportunity to keep working, and that’s all I’ve asked for.”
Hibbard’s first release after the ink dried, “We Speak Country,” offered him the opportunity to provide a sequel of sorts to “Dying Breed,” something he realized his fans were clamoring for.
“People always asked for another ‘Dying Breed’ type of song. We wanted to do the same thing and portray that same emotion, but do it differently,” says Hibbard. “’We Speak Country’ is an anthem for people that don’t get recognized: the farmer, the teacher and anybody that goes out and minds their own business, lets life happen and lives it to the fullest.”
Written by Carlton Anderson, Kasey Tyndall and Logan Wall, Hibbard says he immediately knew he needed to record “We Speak Country” after hearing it for the first time.
“I told Jim at Droptine to let me know if he ever came across a song that was related to blue-collar life. We happened to be sitting around, and he played ‘We Speak Country,’ and I knew I needed to cut it,” says Hibbard. “Sometimes the person with the right background needs to cut a song. I felt ‘We Speak Country’ fit me. It’s a song about what I knew.”
Hibbard says the same blue-collar mindset he entered the music industry with is the same mindset he carries into “We Speak Country” and beyond, which he attributes to his upbringing.
“Growing up, I wanted to be better than everyone, and I was going to find a way to do it. If it wasn’t god-given talent, I was going to work for it,” says Hibbard. “I’ve been told ‘no’ all my life. I was put straight up for adoption. I was told ‘no’ from day one. With that on my mind, I can continue to be told ‘no,’ and continue to work to prove people wrong.”
In continuing to do so, Hibbard moves forward with full confidence in who he is as an artist and as a man.
“I care for people, though it doesn’t always look like it because I’ve got resting bitch face,” Hibbard says with a laugh. “I show it through tough love, though. You can ask my band: there’s some days they hate me, but they know I’ve always got their back. When I write songs, I hope they touch someone in one way or another. I want to make this place a little better when I leave it. And to do that, it’s all about putting in the work.”
Hibbard approaches the midpoint of 2023 with plenty of work on his plate in the studio, the road and on social media.
“We have some more good songs in the cooker,” says Hibbard. “On top of that, I’m an avid outdoorsman and hunter. I’m a private guy, and I’ll admit that I hate social media with a passion, but I’m trying to get better at it. People want to know the artist behind the songs, so we’re going to do that. Hopefully touring picks up here as well. I’m just going to keep grinding. The only thing I know for sure is we have ahead of us is work.”
And though his current line of work is different from how he envisioned it just a half-decade ago, Hibbard is happy with the road he’s taken.
“I have a pay stub somewhere that says 100-something hours on it. I went from doing that and working my knees, elbows and back into the dirt to now doing this,” says Hibbard. “I’m almost on vacation every day. I get to express myself, enjoy what I do and make new fans and friends along the way. That’s all you can ask for.”
*Cody’s music is featured on The Best of Pro Country playlist!*
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