Iowa born and raised Adam Whitehead broke out of the corporate world after years of working at Pella Windows, and managing Jimmy Johns restaurants, with his debut album reaching #2 on the Apple Music Country Albums chart – #19 on the All Genre chart – in June of 2020. The title track to that album, 'Single Mom', reached #59 on the iTunes Songs Chart, and #146 on the Music Row Country Breakout chart.
Whitehead followed his successful debut up with a second hit album in 2021, 'The Way Whitley Done It', which hit #45 on the Billboard Top Current Album Sales chart, and #75 on the Billboard Top Albums Chart. The album also hit #31 on the Breaking and Entering Trending Artists Chart. And today he is considered Iowa's most streamed county artist.
And on Saturday night, he was strumming and singing away for patrons at Rails Bar & Grill, as the Mechanical Bull rodeo fundraiser for After Prom went on in the Rails Depot event center.
With success like Whitehead has had you might have expected him to play with a full band, but he was playing the game troubadour style. A one man band, playing so close to the crowd he likely got some beer spilled on him before the night was out. The kind of up close and personal performance with chart topping singers rich folks pay big money for.
Ed Pamperin, the Proprietor of Rails, knew Whitehead's talent spoke – or rather sang – for itself. So he simply said, "he's real good," with a satisfied nod, as all around, the packed club was filled with a happy noise.
Three and a half years after going pro, Whitehead spoke about the difference his hit album made, enabling him to live his dream. "We wrote a song that we put out on all platforms," Whitehead told the Eagle, noting that after the album hit #2 on Apple's country chart, he's been full time, ever since. "It's been a great ride, a wild ride," Whitehead concluded, "and I wouldn't have it any other way."
