Sam Lowry Hunt (born December 8, 1984) is an American country music singer, songwriter and former college football player. Born in Cedartown, Georgia, Hunt played football in his high school and college years and once attempted to pursue a professional sports career before signing with MCA Nashville in 2014. Prior to his successful solo career, Hunt was credited for writing singles for Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, Billy Currington and Reba McEntire. His debut RIAA gold-certified album Montevallo, which includes three plantium US Hot Country Songs chart-toppers – "Leave the Night On", "Take Your Time" and "House Party", made Hunt the first country artist to have all of the singles from his debut album to peak within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and the second solo male in the SoundScan era to lead Top Country Albums and Hot Country Songs being a new artist with his first album. The lead single from the album, "Leave the Night On", peaked atop concurrently on the Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts, bringing Hunt to be the first artist in 22 years to reach the top of three country charts simultaneously since Billy Ray Cyrus. He is also the first rookie male artist in the past two years to be a No. 1 on Top Country Albums, and the first country act as a main artist since Clint Black to occupy both year-end number one country album and single with Montevallo and "Take Your Time". Upon the launch of his career, Hunt has quickly assumed recognition from both inside and outside the country music community for his boundary-breaking artistry, incorporating use of R&B and pop into the production and songwriting of his songs. He has been honored with numerous awards, including one American Music Award, one Academy of Country Music Award, and one CMT Music Award, as well as nominations for Billboard Music Awards and Grammy Awards.