Stephen Wilson Jr. Releases 'søn of dad (deluxe)'

The Indiana-born, Nashville-based rising star Stephen Wilson Jr. has released a deluxe edition of his critically-acclaimed debut double album søn of dad via Big Loud Records.

The LP features two new tracks taken from his viral Live at the Print Shop performance: the moving dedication to his late father “I'm A Song” and a gripping reinterpretation of Ben E. King's “Stand By Me,” as well as ten acoustic versions of fan favorites like “Cuckoo,” “Year To Be Young 1994,” “Father's Søn,” “Grief is Only Love” and more. Additionally, a preorder for a 4-disc deluxe edition vinyl is now available. The deluxe album arrives as Wilson Jr.'s debut album enters its seventh consecutive week within the top 10 of the iTunes country album chart where it hit No. 1 multiple times.

Next month, Wilson Jr. will continue his wildly popular søn of dad tour with an entirely sold-out run through Pittsburgh, Detroit, Toronto and more. Find a full list of tour dates below and at stephenwilsonjr.com.

About “I'm A Song (Live at The Print Shop),” Wilson Jr. shares: “A song can be a bookmark in a 10 million+ page book that can take you right to the very paragraph and page. A story is what a song is, and our species lives for stories. 'I'm A Song' was the song that made it all make sense for me. A cache I found along the trail that gave form to what I was chasing. My fathers' favorite song, he told me. A song I couldn't play for a while but one that came back to me when it was time. Time is the thread that is stamped along the way as our chosen path is woven for the length it is given. A path I chose because my father was a song, and it demands to be sung.”

On the deluxe album, he states: “In an attempt to continue the conversation after the release of søn of dad, we've been traveling all over the world playing these songs and watching them evolve with a few new welcome additions to the story. Playing them stripped down and in full band settings. Each performance is an opportunity to learn something new about the song. Here's some additional data we collected along the way. søn of dad (deluxe) version out now.”

To start off the year, The Tennessean named Wilson Jr. as one of the top Nashville artists to watch in 2025. This follows his late year appearances on Bert Kreischer's Bertcast and The Dan Patrick Show. He also previously released his interpretation of “Stand By Me,” which was called “the cover you need to hear” by Rolling Stone and has garnered over 20 million views across social media.

In 2024, Wilson Jr.'s career skyrocketed with his late night television debut on NBC's Late Night with Seth Meyers, followed by performances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert's #LateShowMeMusic series and Later… with Jools Holland. Last fall, CBS News' Jeff Glor traveled to Nashville for Wilson Jr.'s first major television interview, which was followed by a performance of three songs on CBS Saturday Morning. Last year, Wilson Jr. also shared the stage with Brothers Osborne, The Cadillac Three, Midland and HARDY, the latter of which appeared on the duet version of “Father's Søn” released last year.

2025 Tour Dates

1/21: Key West, Fla. - Mile 0 Fest

2/20: Glasgow, Ky. - Plaza Theatre (SOLD OUT)

2/21: Huntington, W.V. - The Loud (SOLD OUT)

2/22: Pittsburgh, Pa. - Thunderbird Café & Music Hall (SOLD OUT)

3/6: Cincinnati, Ohio - Bogart's (SOLD OUT)

3/7: Columbus, Ohio - The Bluestone (SOLD OUT)

3/8: Lansing, Mich. - Grewal Hall at 224 (SOLD OUT)

3/13: Detroit, Mich. - Saint Andrew's Hall (SOLD OUT)

3/14: Toronto, ON - The Opera House (SOLD OUT)

3/15: Buffalo, N.Y. - Town Ballroom (SOLD OUT)

3/27: Wichita, Kan. - TempleLive (SOLD OUT)

3/28: Fayetteville, Ark. - George's Majestic Lounge (SOLD OUT)

4/4: New Orleans, La. - Hogs for the Cause

4/6: Georgetown, Texas - Two Step Inn

4/10: Carrboro, N.C. - Cat's Cradle (SOLD OUT)

4/12: Knoxville, Tenn. - Bijou Theatre (SOLD OUT)

4/25: Wilkesboro, N.C. - MerleFest

6/14: Kværndrup, Denmark - Heartland Festival

8/2: Brownstown, Ind. - Jackson County Watermelon Festival

11/9: Miramar Beach, Fla. - Whiskey Moon

ABOUT STEPHEN WILSON JR.

Stephen Wilson Jr.'s journey from the hollers of southern Indiana to Nashville, Tenn. has been a winding road; he's been a two-time Indiana State Golden Gloves boxing champion, an accomplished food scientist with dual degrees in microbiology and chemistry from MTSU, a lead guitarist of an indie rock band, a songwriter, and most importantly, a son. In 2016, he ditched his laboratory-bound nine-to-five at Mars, Inc. and signed a publishing deal with BMG Nashville where his alchemic song craft immediately made waves, earning cuts from Caitlyn Smith, Old Dominion, ‪Tim McGraw, Sixpence None the Richer, ‪Leigh Nash, and more.

2023 proved to be Wilson Jr.'s breakthrough year, signing with Big Loud Records and releasing his debut double album søn of dad: a triumphant, genre-spanning set of 22 songs dedicated to his late father and given to the world on the five-year anniversary of his death. The album was named the No. 1 album of 2023 by Holler who called it “a record for the ages,” and earned a spot as one of the best albums of the year from Rolling Stone, Wide Open Country, music critic Grady Smith, and Whiskey Riff. Lat year, he hit the road with HARDY, Brothers Osborne, Charles Wesley Godwin, and The Cadillac Three with festival appearances at C2C, Tortuga, Stagecoach, Country Thunder, and more, alongside breakthrough television performances on CBS Saturdays, Late Night with Seth Meyers, Later...with Jools Holland, and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert's Late Show Me Music series. 

Photo credit: Acacia Evans

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