A year that could change their lives. We are in the final days of 2025, which means we are still reflecting on what unfolded over the last 365 days. And, man, 2025 was a good year for country music with many memorable moments from the Red Clay Strays taking home CMA Vocal Group of the Year, to Zach Bryan setting an attendance record, and more. We’ve also been looking back on some of the best music released throughout the year, from the best debut album, artists that broke notable records during the year, our 40 Best Albums of the Year, and we’ve also been asking to hear from you regarding what you were listening to all year from your favorite album to your favorite song of the year. In short, there was a lot of good new music released this year—and looking ahead, there are some promising faces that will skyrocket onto the scene in 2026. While you never really know who will break on the scene each year, there is always the hope that a larger audience recognizes a small artist you adore. Heck, even artists hope that promising names have breakout years, like Ella Langley sharing at the ACM Awards this year, she believes Carter Faith will be the next prominent female artist. Faith’s debut record, Cherry Valley, proved Langley’s statement true as she’s a force to be reckoned with. 2026 is already shaping up to be another stellar year of country music, with confirmed albums coming from Zach Bryan, Eric Church, Megan Moroney, Kashus Culpepper, Tyler Halverson, Luke Combs, William Clark Green, and more. But out of that list of confirmed music in the pipeline, there is still a lot of music to be announced, and artists who will have a breakout year. So, we asked you, our loyal followers and readers, to share some names you’re hoping will have a massive 2026. View this post on Instagram Y’all did not hold back and sounded off a list of incredible names—some that you might already know and others that you might not yet know—that you hope have a breakout year in 2026. Take a look, and listen, to and maybe you’ll discover a new favorite artist from this list too: The Droptines Taylor Hunnicutt Fox N’ Vead Tyce Delk Emily Ann Roberts Erin Viancourt Buffalo Traffic Jam Shelly Fairchild Kenny Whitmire Wade Forester Mae Estes Sterling Elza Logan Ryan Band Clay Street Unit Dillon Carmichael Leon Majcen  Channing Wilson Jordon Nix  Lance Roark The post Country Fans Sound Off On Which Artists Will Breakout In 2026 first appeared on Whiskey Riff.