North Carolina native Wesko is carving out his place in country music with a sound rooted in grit, honesty and the kind of storytelling that feels lived-in rather than polished for effect. Born Wesley Keith Holmes and raised in Duplin County, Wesko draws from influences ranging from Eric Church and Jason Isbell to Bruce Springsteen and ’90s grunge, creating a style that blends traditional country with Americana, rock and blue-collar realism. After building his audience from the ground up while balancing college and demanding day jobs, he signed with Warner Records/underscore works recordings and has continued to release music centered on real people, hard seasons and the places that shaped him.
For The Country Note’s latest Getting to Know feature, we caught up with Wesko to learn more about the man behind the music, the influences that continue to shape his sound and where he hopes the road takes him next, and we share his latest single, “By Way of Alabama.”
CN: For our readers who are meeting you for the first time, who are you—and what do you want them to know about you beyond the music?
Wesko: My name is Wes, but all my kinfolk call me Wesko. That means y’all can call me Wesko! I’m just a blue-collar guy in his 20s figuring life out with a guitar in my hand and a penchant for telling stories with words that rhyme.
CN: Take us back to the beginning. When did music go from something you enjoyed to something you knew you needed to pursue?
Wesko: It kinda happened for me. I was in Nashville for my birthday and got called up on stage by a guy performing on Broadway. I sang a song and had the epiphany that this is what I’m meant to do.
CN: Who or what has had the biggest influence on the artist you’re becoming?
Wesko: Life, work, and my family. All of which have taught me lessons and molded me into the man I’ve become. I’ve taken quite a few lessons from the elders in my life, which made me realize that when you have a dream, you owe it to yourself to chase it.
CN: Every artist has a different relationship with songwriting. Where do your songs usually begin—with a lyric, a melody, a story, or something else entirely?
Wesko: Most of my songs begin with a memory or an experience. Something I’ve lived through, whether that be a good time or a bad time. The melodies tend to follow, although they never are too pretty until I sit down and really work on ’em.
CN: What part of yourself do you think shows up most often in your music?
Wesko: I’d like to say my heart. I’m an emotional guy; I tend to feel things a little too deeply. All of my songs are my own attempt to analyze the concepts of the emotions I feel: sadness, happiness, loss, love, etc.
CN: Is there a song you’ve written or recorded that feels especially personal to you? What makes that one different? Tell us about “By Way Of Alabama.”
Wesko: “Helene” is probably the most deeply personal song I’ve ever written. That was my shot in the dark to help people I care about. And to think that I actually did contribute to the recovery efforts of the people in Western North Carolina tugs on my heartstrings.
“By Way of Alabama” is my take on all the early country I grew up listening to, and if you take a close listen, you’ll hear all my references. Some about Alabama the band, John Prine, Dolly and Kenny Rogers, Tracy Lawrence. All in all, it’s just a really fun song. I had fun writing it and recording it!
CN: Your path into music is pretty unconventional. You didn’t pick up a guitar until you were 20 and were working in a sawmill at the time. What made you pick one up, and how quickly did you realize music might change the direction of your life?
Wesko: I was actually in college, working full time as a supervisor for an erosion control company, and after I picked up a guitar I started playing four hour cover gigs on the weekends in Greenville, NC. I was busy, stressed, and trying to figure out my purpose in life. That’s what gave birth to the songwriter in me, basically just talking about how I was feeling in song form.
I didn’t think I had much talent, but writing songs gave me an outlet and that outlet ended up changing my life in such a positive way.
CN: By the time you started writing songs, you had already spent years working, living and collecting stories outside of the music business. How have those experiences—and your North Carolina roots—shaped the kind of songwriter you’ve become?
Wesko: I think it’s made me deeply identify with normal people. Just because I don’t have a music background, I wasn’t raised to do this. I was raised to find a decent job and to work. It really made me realize that the stories of everyday life, those struggles, are perhaps the most monumental and miraculous ones, and they don’t get talked about or celebrated enough.
CN: “Helene” came from a deeply personal connection to North Carolina and eventually led to Luke Combs inviting you to perform at the 2024 Concert for Carolina. What do you remember about writing that song, and what was it like to see it take on a life beyond you?
Wesko: I just remember being overcome with grief for my people who were suffering just hours away from me and feeling helpless, like I couldn’t do anything to help them. My buddy and cowriter, JD Williamson, felt the same way, so we just put pen to paper and wrote the song in about a half hour.
To see the song take on its own life, for people to latch on to it and use it as intended, was such an emotionally fulfilling experience. That’s why I do this whole thing. Just to help people. I felt like I did my job during that time.
CN: You’ve already had the opportunity to write with storytellers like Randy Montana, Ruston Kelly and Liz Rose. What have you learned from being in rooms with writers of that caliber while still developing your own voice?
Wesko: Randy, Liz, and Luke Laird have all been in this business for much longer than I have, so I take it like I’m an apprentice training for a job I want to have. I’m able to learn how to craft the things I want to say in an easily digestible format and still keep the soul of the song itself. One thing I’ve learned from Luke is that most of songwriting is feeling. You gotta feel a song to believe in it. Ruston Kelly is both a phenomenal songwriter and vocalist, and writing with him was a crazy experience. What made it super crazy was that I’m such a massive fan of his and we got to write for my project. What?! Had imposter syndrome in that write for sure, but the song we got is sick.
CN: What has surprised you most about pursuing music professionally—something you didn’t expect when you started?
Wesko: It’s harder work than any other job I’ve ever had before. Mentally challenging. But it’s also rewarding at a whole different level.
CN: What’s something about you that fans would probably never guess from listening to your music?
Wesko: I was almost a lawyer. Music saved me from law school.
CN: When you’re not writing, recording or performing, what does a perfect day look like for you?
Wesko: I’d start the morning out with a quick 18 holes of golf, hit the gym, then recline at the house and watch whatever might come on the TV with my dog and my girlfriend. If I’m back in North Carolina, my days are filled with hunting.
CN: If you could collaborate with one artist—past or present—who would you choose, and why?
Wesko: Bruce Springsteen. In my opinion, he’s one of the greatest American songwriters to ever do the thing, and he’s one of my biggest influences.
CN: What was the first concert you ever attended, and what do you remember most about it?
Wesko: Jason Aldean in 2009. He’d just released “Big Green Tractor” and had Colt Ford opening for him. The reason I remember this concert is because somebody threw a beer bottle at him on stage – Treaty Oak style.
CN: What song by another artist do you wish you had written?
Wesko: “Carolina” by Eric Church.
CN: If we looked at your current playlist, what artist or song might surprise us?
Wesko: Paul McCartney. Been on a heavy Beatles kick lately. Paul is the man.
CN: What’s one piece of advice you’ve received that has stayed with you?
Wesko: In the wise words of my grandpa Keith, “You may not come in first, but do your damnedest to make sure the guy that did knows you were there and he need not get real comfortable.”
CN: Finish this sentence: People would understand me better if they knew ______.
Wesko: That when I start something in life, I start it with the intention of being the best at it. That’s my goal. Accept the failures, roll with the punches, and learn. Never quit, keep pushing.
CN: If you could describe this chapter of your life in one word, what would it be—and why?
Wesko: Evolution. I feel like I’m really hitting my stride like I haven’t ever hit it before.
CN: Finally, what’s ahead? What should fans be watching for next?
Wesko: Something big is coming. A full-length project is in the cards, and it would be full of the best songs I’ve ever written.
Keep up with Wesko HERE.