Successful Black country singers are exceedingly rare due to a number of factors that continue to plague the genre. Country music is, at its core, seen as the music of southern whites, in large part due to their domination of the genre and country’s tendency to fixate on this group. Even Lil Nas X, who has since earned profound success as a singer and songwriter, was snubbed at the 2019 Country Music Awards despite “Old Town Road” gaining the prominence of, at the time, being the longest-running U.S. number one track of all time.
Despite the hurdles this genre erects for them, a number of exceptionally talented Black musicians have clawed their way to the top of Billboard’s country music charts. Among them is Jimmie Allen, a 36-year-old American country singer with roots in Delaware and Nashville, Tennessee.
Allen has been pursuing his musical career for decades. In his early years, he struggled immensely with this goal. He experienced persistent poverty while starting out in Nashville and was denied spots on both America’s Got Talent and American Idol. Thanks to some of the connections he made during the audition and preliminary rounds, however, Allen’s participation in these shows ultimately helped pave the way for his future in country music.
After befriending and performing with Scotty McCreery, who went on to win season 10 of American Idol, Allen began to make genuine progress toward his dream of being a country music star. He got a publishing deal in 2016 and released his first official single in 2018. That single, “Best Shot,” rocketed him into mainstream popularity. Numerous awards, a new baby, and a successful album later, he became the first solo Black artist to win New Male Artist of the Year at the 2021 Academy of Country Music Awards.
All of this success has seen Allen’s income skyrocket over the last decade. The vast majority of his personal fortune comes from his thriving career in music, which is still in its early years. Despite this, his net worth is estimated to be around $1.5 million, according to Exact Net Worth. Once he’s been a household name for a decade or two, this number is likely to double itself several times over. Allen isn’t overly focused on growing his wealth at the moment, though. Instead, he is busy enjoying parenthood⏤he has a six-year-old and a one-year-old—as well as building his fanbase and planning out his next album. He’s also enjoying his run on season 30 of Dancing With The Stars.