Dolan is celebrating a big win. The singer-songwriter has been named the Grand Prize winner of Wide Open Country's 2025 Song Contest for his track "Some Hearts Catch All the Breaks."
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Co-written with Rob Alley, the song was borne out of a bad day.
"I was in that headspace of just not having the greatest outlook on things at the moment," Dolan told Wide Open Country. "I started talking to Rob and we came up with this idea."
While Dolan is accustomed to pitching many of his songs to other artists, he knew he wanted this one for himself.
"I love this song. I connect with it. There's something about it," he said. "... The way the song sat and the way it sounded, it almost had in my mind a little bit of an acoustic, kind of Chris Stapleton vibe. I'm a big Stapleton fan. I love the opportunity to sing some kind of a gritty thing like that."
Audiences quickly connected with the track, given that its theme is a universal one.
"I know that that song can connect with people on an emotional level, whether they're in a place like that right now, or it's a place they they have been before," he said. "... That's such an important thing about songwriting, finding ways to connect with people on an emotional level."
The positive response to the song proved what Dolan has long believed, that "a song doesn't necessarily have to have all the extra production and all that kind of stuff to really shine through."
"It's very stripped down. It's one guitar and one singer," he said. "There's something about that, I think, that sticks out a little bit."
Dolan Speaks Out About Winning Wide Open Country's Song Contest
Wide Open Country agreed, and the song was named the Grand Prize winner. As part of his prize, Dolan was awarded $5,000. After splitting the prize money with his co-writer, Dolan said he'll put the remaining funds towards his monthly travel from Texas—where he lives with his wife and four kids—to Nashville.
Dolan's prize package also includes the opportunity to have his song mixed and mastered by Kevin Salem. The musician said he's "pretty stoked" about that, since recording songs "can get very expensive."
As part of the contest, Dolan also won an A&R mentorship with Scott Graves, which he's "really looking forward" to.
"Nashville is a big city, but when it comes to the music world, it's a very small town. It can be tough to navigate... There's all these different layers to the industry that can be confusing when it comes to labels, and publishers, and all the different things," he said. "[I want to] work on the best ways to connect with the right folks in the industry to get more songs out there and to get them heard."
What to Know About Dolan
Dolan's rise in the industry has been swift, as he started his professional music journey less than three years ago. Music, however, has always been a part of Dolan's life. He served as a music minister in a church for 15 years, and even spent time singing in a Chris Stapleton cover band.
That varied past has led to Dolan's unique sound, one that fuses country, soul, and rock.
"The country roots are there, the storytelling and a lot of the sound elements, the conversational nature of it. But I grew up in church with a lot of gospel, so I like that gospel/soul influence. My voice tends to go that direction a little bit," he said. "I grew up loving rock and roll too, so why not put that in the mix and try to carve out my own little spot?"
His vocals, meanwhile, are often compared to that of Chris Stapleton and Luke Combs, two artists that he's inspired by.
"In a world of fast and fake, I'm neither of those," he said. "I want any music that I put out to be authentic. I want it to be able to connect with people on a certain level and not feel like something that was just turned out and heard before."
Dolan Looks Ahead
Looking ahead, Dolan said that 2026 is "going to be a big year."
"I've got a team together, and we are working on a full album project this year... I've got a great producer on board and it's going to be a good time," he said. "There are a couple of collaborations on this album with some other artists that I'm super excited about."
Given where he is in his career now, Dolan encouraged other artists considering entering the contest to "just go for it."
"If you've got a song that you feel like connects with folks it's absolutely worth it," he said. "... You're never going to know for sure if you have a shot, if you don't try. For me, it was confirmation that I'm on the right path."
Photo by @hwmphotography
