Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
92.1 the Wolf.
It is Skip Clark, it's like asuperstar hour and Cooper
Allen's on the phone.
Cooper is coming to kegs.
This will be tomorrow night and, cooper, I want to be the first
to say welcome back to New York.
Dude, how are you?
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Dude, it's good to be back upstate because we used to
.
I feel like we used to beupstate like every other weekend
, and we've probably about ayear since we've been up there,
so I'm pumped to be back baby, Idon't know if it was last time
that you were here or the timebefore that, and you sell out
the place every time.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
But there was a snowstorm.
You couldn't get out.
Then you ended up playinganother show the next night.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Dude, that was like the big big Buffalo storm.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Yes, that's right go to buffalo, we wouldn't have
made it home for thanksgiving Iknow that was a little crazy.
I'm glad they told us to stayaway, but oh my goodness yeah
and it was a fun, fun two nightsin jordan definitely very
gracious of you to do that too,so that was pretty cool.
But I do want to say, you know,welcome back to new york.
Uh, you've built such a loyalfan base.
You know, working through tiktTikTok and your social media, at
what point did you realizethings were really taking off?
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Man.
I mean, it was probably when westarted touring for the first
time Me, thomas Mack, alexanderKay did a tour together back in
2021.
Or it could have been less 2020.
I can't quite remember whenpeople started showing up to
shows and tickets were beingbought and you were seeing these
people face to face and itbecame more than just numbers on
(01:29):
the screen.
That's when I think it reallystarted to feel real and we've
been trying to grow it eversince and gotten to meet a lot
of cool people along the way.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Yeah, it's the power of social media that a lot of
people really don't understand.
But you totally get it and youblend traditional country with a
modern vibe, where there'scertain I hate asking this
question, but I'm going to askit influences as you were
growing up oh yeah, I mean golly, I listened to everything,
which is probably why I'm so allover the place.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
but everything from, you know, acbc to skinner, to
all my brothers, to hootie andthe blowfish, to fit and scent,
to eminem, to, you know, tobykeithotie and the Blowfish, to
Fit and Scent, to Eminem, toToby Keith, kenny Chesney, eric
Church, those were kind of mybig country guys growing up.
Kid Rock is one of my favoritesof all time, just because he
does so many different thingsand does whatever he wants, kind
of stylistically.
So you put all of that togetherand that's kind of where our
(02:20):
show fits.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
Really cool.
Where are you right now?
Speaker 2 (02:25):
I know you're on the bus, but do you know where you
are?
We just got through some prettybrutal DC traffic and so I know
we are now about to hit somepretty brutal Baltimore traffic
and then we'll probably hit somepretty brutal Philadelphia
traffic, and then we'll be atthe Jersey Shore.
Speaker 1 (02:38):
Ah, there you go, there you go, and I'm really
kind of surprised that you'reactually on the road at this
hour, because traffic's going tobe crazy.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
About no other way to cut it.
To get over to Point PleasantBeach, new Jersey.
We just kind of had to spendall day on the bus yesterday, or
just hit traffic.
Today we chose traffic.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
You know, Cooper, you've done some pretty
hilarious mashups online.
Do fans ever shout out a randomsong request during your show?
Speaker 2 (03:04):
Man, that's actually that is our encore.
It's usually come back out,hold a crowd with their favorite
artists, songs, whatever, andthen just do like a gigantic,
pretty much crowd request mashupat the end of the show.
So we do that about every night.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
So we can expect that in Jordan at CAGS coming up
tomorrow night.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
As long as people don't leave.
You't leave 30 minutes beforewe're done, which you never know
.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
No, come on, that's not going to happen, dude, it's
not going to happen.
And you know, since you're atKegs, what is your go-to drink.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
You know I'm usually pretty simple.
I stick to Coors Lightgenerally, but I am open to just
about anything.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
Yeah, a little bourbon Jack and Coke.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
Yeah, a little bourbon won't hurt anybody.
I've been on a tequila kickwhen it comes to liquor For some
reason.
That's just what works for me,but anything but vodka, yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
You know Cooper Allen is who we're taking a moment to
talk to this afternoon.
Cooper is at Kegs in Jordancoming.
You have one of the mostinteractive fan bases that I've
ever seen in country music andwhat's been the craziest or the
most memorable fan moment foryou so far?
Do you have one?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Wow, we're so fortunate to have fans that just
continue to support us and kindof lift us up from the ground
up.
That's what this whole thinghas been.
I think I got to go to a fan'swedding because they were used
to take forever their weddingsongs.
They got to show up at thewedding and sing it for their
(04:39):
first dance and that wasprobably the coolest moment in
the midst of so many awesomeones People proposing at shows,
people just having cool storiesthat they've told us and all
that stuff.
We're really lucky, man, A lotof good people out there.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
Yeah, absolutely there.
Yeah, absolutely.
I know, like I said, your fanbase is crazy in a good way.
I've been there.
I've been at your shows here intown.
I'll be there tomorrow night,but just to see the reaction of
the fans and from a stagestandpoint, when you see that,
how does that make you feel?
Speaker 2 (05:08):
oh, bro and uh, it fuels us.
For sure I got into this wholething by playing dot bars,
college bars, that bar thatwould take us.
We were a cover band but wejust kind of got addicted to
making sure the crowd has a goodtime.
And so once you kind of getthat in you a little bit, then
you want to do that every show.
And so when you look out andthey're having fun, they're
singing, they're dancing,whatever, that's the most fun,
(05:31):
most rewarding part of thiswhole thing.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
I love that.
Any surprises for tomorrownight?
Can you tease us a little bit,or is it going to be a basic
all-out Cooper Allen rockingshow?
Speaker 2 (05:42):
You know it's a different set from when we were
there last time, still playingall the ones that people want to
hear plus some new ones, butthe flow is pretty awesome and
it builds in all the rightplaces.
It's going to be all outrocking, I think.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
Are you happy with sticking with the social media
side of things?
You know, let's just be realabout it your music doesn't get
played on a lot of countrystations, However, on that
social media side and we allknow that's where people are
going to get their music.
You all happy with that.
That?
Speaker 2 (06:14):
social media side and we all know that's where people
are going to get their music.
You all happy with that.
You know, it's kind of the wayit is.
I grew up sort of hating socialmedia.
In college I hated social media.
I didn't even have an Instagram.
But you know, it's just part ofthe job and it's part of, if
you to do uh, the part wherepeople come to shows and the
shows are fun and people listento your music and all that stuff
(06:36):
.
You kind of kind of have toparticipate in the social media
part.
So I I always think that, uh,we can complain about social
media or we can realize that, um, there are people that have a
lot harder jobs than we do asmusicians and artists and uh,
you know, you just kind of bunkup and do the social media thing
and and don't complain and tryto enjoy it I don't know.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
I I wouldn't downplay the, the fact that you you
don't have a hard job, becauseyou do.
You've got to connect with yourfans.
Like I'm talking to you now,you're on a tour bus going from
point a to point b, you're intraffic, you're just.
There's so much to it and thelife of a musician.
I mean, I know as well that youknow you're at 3, 4 in the
morning before you even put yourhead down on a pillow.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
So Well, thank you.
Thank you for making me feelbetter, but at the end of the
day it's like I choose to dothis.
Nobody's got a gun to my headmaking me be on this bus and
going and playing shows.
It's my dream.
So when you finally live inwhat you dream to do, then I
think you kind of lose a littlebit of complaining rights.
(07:39):
But we always find a way tocomplain.
That's what musicians do best.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
We do that too, Cooper.
Where do you call home?
Where do you call home?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
I've been in Nashville since 2018.
Okay, from Winston-Salem, northCarolina, though.
Speaker 1 (07:51):
Okay yeah, I figured you were a North Carolina boy.
Oh yeah, man.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Joe Eels.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Well, go, orange, but do you get to go back home and
play at all?
Do you go to your hometown andkind of say, hey, I'm back for a
little bit, let's do a show?
Speaker 2 (08:08):
go to your hometown and kind of say, hey, I'm back
for a little bit, let's do ashow yeah we try to do one or
two North Carolina shows a year,maybe one in Winston, one in
Charlotte, charlotte or Raleigh.
I try not to overflood it toomuch, but, god, there's nothing
better than being home, andgenerally when I'm home I
usually just want to chill andsee family and kind of not play
a show.
I kind of want to chill and seefamily and kind of not play a
(08:29):
show.
I kind of want to go out andsee a show or drink to a band at
a bar.
So that's usually what we'redoing.
I got you.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
I got you hey Cooper.
If you were not doing music,what do you think you'd be doing
right now?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Oh wow, either something really boring or you
know, this is this is kind ofindirect answer to the question.
But my dream, like retirementjob is to be like a JV
basketball coach at a highschool.
Cool and like maybe teachhistory or something.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Really.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
That's kind of I don't want the varsity
basketball job.
That's too much pressure.
I just want JV A little funwith the kids, so to speak.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
Yeah, and I would assume that you're a basketball
fan, then Die hard.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
Being from North Carolina, you get it.
As a Syracuse guy, I do.
Being from North Carolina, man,it's a religion.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
I do you know?
Cooper, real quick, I'm goingto let you go here in a second,
but tell me about the showtomorrow night.
What can we expect?
Speaker 2 (09:32):
It's going to be awesome, it's going to be
rocking.
I always say, if you know meand if you like me, you're going
to have a wonderful time.
If you do not know my stuff, oreven if you don't like me, you
will still probably have fun.
There's something in there foreverybody.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
I, I love that when you say that, well, even if you
don't like me, you know what.
They're not going to be thereif they don't like you.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
I'm just saying, and you pretty much sell out kegs
every time you're there.
Sometimes their wives make themcome to be there, I got you
Cooper Allen.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
look forward to seeing you tomorrow night.
I want you to travel safe andyou know, just so looking
forward to this Because you rockthe place.
92.1 the Wolf.
It is Skip Clark, it's like asuperstar hour and Cooper
Allen's on the phone.
Cooper is coming to kegs.
This will be tomorrow night and, cooper, I want to be the first
to say welcome back to New York.
Dude, how are you?
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Dude, it's good to be back upstate because we used to
.
I feel like we used to beupstate like every other weekend
, and we've probably about ayear since we've been up there,
so I'm pumped to be back baby, Idon't know if it was last time
that you were here or the timebefore that, and you sell out
the place every time.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
But there was a snowstorm.
You couldn't get out.
Then you ended up playinganother show the next night.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Dude, that was like the big big Buffalo storm.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Yes, that's right go to buffalo, we wouldn't have
made it home for thanksgiving Iknow that was a little crazy.
I'm glad they told us to stayaway, but oh my goodness yeah
and it was a fun, fun two nightsin jordan definitely very
gracious of you to do that too,so that was pretty cool.
But I do want to say, you know,welcome back to new york.
Uh, you've built such a loyalfan base.
You know, working through tiktTikTok and your social media, at
what point did you realizethings were really taking off?
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Man.
I mean, it was probably when westarted touring for the first
time Me, thomas Mack, alexanderKay did a tour together back in
2021.
Or it could have been less 2020.
I can't quite remember whenpeople started showing up to
shows and tickets were beingbought and you were seeing these
people face to face and itbecame more than just numbers on
(01:29):
the screen.
That's when I think it reallystarted to feel real and we've
been trying to grow it eversince and gotten to meet a lot
of cool people along the way.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Yeah, it's the power of social media that a lot of
people really don't understand.
But you totally get it and youblend traditional country with a
modern vibe, where there'scertain I hate asking this
question, but I'm going to askit influences as you were
growing up oh yeah, I mean golly, I listened to everything,
which is probably why I'm so allover the place.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
but everything from, you know, acbc to skinner, to
all my brothers, to hootie andthe blowfish, to fit and scent,
to eminem, to, you know, tobykeithotie and the Blowfish, to
Fit and Scent, to Eminem, toToby Keith, kenny Chesney, eric
Church, those were kind of mybig country guys growing up.
Kid Rock is one of my favoritesof all time, just because he
does so many different thingsand does whatever he wants, kind
of stylistically.
So you put all of that togetherand that's kind of where our
(02:20):
show fits.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
Really cool.
Where are you right now?
Speaker 2 (02:25):
I know you're on the bus, but do you know where you
are?
We just got through some prettybrutal DC traffic and so I know
we are now about to hit somepretty brutal Baltimore traffic
and then we'll probably hit somepretty brutal Philadelphia
traffic, and then we'll be atthe Jersey Shore.
Speaker 1 (02:38):
Ah, there you go, there you go, and I'm really
kind of surprised that you'reactually on the road at this
hour, because traffic's going tobe crazy.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
About no other way to cut it.
To get over to Point PleasantBeach, new Jersey.
We just kind of had to spendall day on the bus yesterday, or
just hit traffic.
Today we chose traffic.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
You know, Cooper, you've done some pretty
hilarious mashups online.
Do fans ever shout out a randomsong request during your show?
Speaker 2 (03:04):
Man, that's actually that is our encore.
It's usually come back out,hold a crowd with their favorite
artists, songs, whatever, andthen just do like a gigantic,
pretty much crowd request mashupat the end of the show.
So we do that about every night.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
So we can expect that in Jordan at CAGS coming up
tomorrow night.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
As long as people don't leave.
You't leave 30 minutes beforewe're done, which you never know
.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
No, come on, that's not going to happen, dude, it's
not going to happen.
And you know, since you're atKegs, what is your go-to drink.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
You know I'm usually pretty simple.
I stick to Coors Lightgenerally, but I am open to just
about anything.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
Yeah, a little bourbon Jack and Coke.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
Yeah, a little bourbon won't hurt anybody.
I've been on a tequila kickwhen it comes to liquor For some
reason.
That's just what works for me,but anything but vodka, yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
You know Cooper Allen is who we're taking a moment to
talk to this afternoon.
Cooper is at Kegs in Jordancoming.
You have one of the mostinteractive fan bases that I've
ever seen in country music andwhat's been the craziest or the
most memorable fan moment foryou so far?
Do you have one?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Wow, we're so fortunate to have fans that just
continue to support us and kindof lift us up from the ground
up.
That's what this whole thinghas been.
I think I got to go to a fan'swedding because they were used
to take forever their weddingsongs.
They got to show up at thewedding and sing it for their
(04:39):
first dance and that wasprobably the coolest moment in
the midst of so many awesomeones People proposing at shows,
people just having cool storiesthat they've told us and all
that stuff.
We're really lucky, man, A lotof good people out there.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
Yeah, absolutely there.
Yeah, absolutely.
I know, like I said, your fanbase is crazy in a good way.
I've been there.
I've been at your shows here intown.
I'll be there tomorrow night,but just to see the reaction of
the fans and from a stagestandpoint, when you see that,
how does that make you feel?
Speaker 2 (05:08):
oh, bro and uh, it fuels us.
For sure I got into this wholething by playing dot bars,
college bars, that bar thatwould take us.
We were a cover band but wejust kind of got addicted to
making sure the crowd has a goodtime.
And so once you kind of getthat in you a little bit, then
you want to do that every show.
And so when you look out andthey're having fun, they're
singing, they're dancing,whatever, that's the most fun,
(05:31):
most rewarding part of thiswhole thing.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
I love that.
Any surprises for tomorrownight?
Can you tease us a little bit,or is it going to be a basic
all-out Cooper Allen rockingshow?
Speaker 2 (05:42):
You know it's a different set from when we were
there last time, still playingall the ones that people want to
hear plus some new ones, butthe flow is pretty awesome and
it builds in all the rightplaces.
It's going to be all outrocking, I think.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
Are you happy with sticking with the social media
side of things?
You know, let's just be realabout it your music doesn't get
played on a lot of countrystations, However, on that
social media side and we allknow that's where people are
going to get their music.
You all happy with that.
That?
Speaker 2 (06:14):
social media side and we all know that's where people
are going to get their music.
You all happy with that.
You know, it's kind of the wayit is.
I grew up sort of hating socialmedia.
In college I hated social media.
I didn't even have an Instagram.
But you know, it's just part ofthe job and it's part of, if
you to do uh, the part wherepeople come to shows and the
shows are fun and people listento your music and all that stuff
(06:36):
.
You kind of kind of have toparticipate in the social media
part.
So I I always think that, uh,we can complain about social
media or we can realize that, um, there are people that have a
lot harder jobs than we do asmusicians and artists and uh,
you know, you just kind of bunkup and do the social media thing
and and don't complain and tryto enjoy it I don't know.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
I I wouldn't downplay the, the fact that you you
don't have a hard job, becauseyou do.
You've got to connect with yourfans.
Like I'm talking to you now,you're on a tour bus going from
point a to point b, you're intraffic, you're just.
There's so much to it and thelife of a musician.
I mean, I know as well that youknow you're at 3, 4 in the
morning before you even put yourhead down on a pillow.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
So Well, thank you.
Thank you for making me feelbetter, but at the end of the
day it's like I choose to dothis.
Nobody's got a gun to my headmaking me be on this bus and
going and playing shows.
It's my dream.
So when you finally live inwhat you dream to do, then I
think you kind of lose a littlebit of complaining rights.
(07:39):
But we always find a way tocomplain.
That's what musicians do best.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
We do that too, Cooper.
Where do you call home?
Where do you call home?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
I've been in Nashville since 2018.
Okay, from Winston-Salem, northCarolina, though.
Speaker 1 (07:51):
Okay yeah, I figured you were a North Carolina boy.
Oh yeah, man.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Joe Eels.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Well, go, orange, but do you get to go back home and
play at all?
Do you go to your hometown andkind of say, hey, I'm back for a
little bit, let's do a show?
Speaker 2 (08:08):
go to your hometown and kind of say, hey, I'm back
for a little bit, let's do ashow yeah we try to do one or
two North Carolina shows a year,maybe one in Winston, one in
Charlotte, charlotte or Raleigh.
I try not to overflood it toomuch, but, god, there's nothing
better than being home, andgenerally when I'm home I
usually just want to chill andsee family and kind of not play
a show.
I kind of want to chill and seefamily and kind of not play a
(08:29):
show.
I kind of want to go out andsee a show or drink to a band at
a bar.
So that's usually what we'redoing.
I got you.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
I got you hey Cooper.
If you were not doing music,what do you think you'd be doing
right now?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Oh wow, either something really boring or you
know, this is this is kind ofindirect answer to the question.
But my dream, like retirementjob is to be like a JV
basketball coach at a highschool.
Cool and like maybe teachhistory or something.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Really.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
That's kind of I don't want the varsity
basketball job.
That's too much pressure.
I just want JV A little funwith the kids, so to speak.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
Yeah, and I would assume that you're a basketball
fan, then Die hard.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
Being from North Carolina, you get it.
As a Syracuse guy, I do.
Being from North Carolina, man,it's a religion.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
I do you know?
Cooper, real quick, I'm goingto let you go here in a second,
but tell me about the showtomorrow night.
What can we expect?
Speaker 2 (09:32):
It's going to be awesome, it's going to be
rocking.
I always say, if you know meand if you like me, you're going
to have a wonderful time.
If you do not know my stuff, oreven if you don't like me, you
will still probably have fun.
There's something in there foreverybody.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
I, I love that when you say that, well, even if you
don't like me, you know what.
They're not going to be thereif they don't like you.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
I'm just saying, and you pretty much sell out kegs
every time you're there.
Sometimes their wives make themcome to be there, I got you
Cooper Allen.
Speaker 1 (09:57):
look forward to seeing you tomorrow night.
I want you to travel safe andyou know, just so looking
forward to this Because you rockthe place.
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