Max McNown lives by the famous proverb, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Life over the past two years has been a whirlwind for the 24-year-old. In 2023, he started garnering attention with “A Lot More Free,” an acoustic number reflecting on a former flame, and set the stage for his blossoming career.
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As one of five siblings growing up in Bend, Oregon, McNown credits his parents for offering a sage piece of wisdom that has shaped his musical journey: “I don’t know what you’re going to do, but whatever you choose to do, you’ll do it very well.” “That was always the reinforcement that they gave me, and that always calmed my mind,” McNown tells American Songwriter about his parents’ words. He has vivid memories of his father sitting in the hallway between his and his brothers’ rooms, playing guitar and singing songs by Zac Brown Band, Jack Johnson, and others.
“Some of my earliest memories are lying next to him and listening to him strum that guitar and play for us,” McNown reflects. “Music was instilled in me.”
Tragedy struck the family when his younger brother, Brock, was diagnosed with lymphoma and had to undergo a stem cell transplant during the pandemic (he’s been in remission for nearly two years). “When he was in the worst of his experience going through cancer treatment, he always said, ‘I don’t want to survive this just so I can live again. I want to survive this so that I can live with the perspective that being this close to death has given me,’” McNown recalls of his brother’s statement.
In the midst of Brock’s cancer battle, McNown was feeling pulled to carve his own identity and was considering a move to California to pursue his dreams. One night while a friend was visiting, McNown played some strings over poetry he wrote in high school, to which his friend said, “You could do this professionally.” With that, McNown took the first step and performed at a local gig for 90 minutes and was rewarded with 96 dollars, a free taco, and a young woman’s number she left on a $5 bill (“The joke is that those are the three necessities in life, right?” he quips). It was that moment that the words of his parents’ advice finally clicked. “That was the first big sign that this is what I’m going to do,” he says. “I gave it my all.”
From there, the aspiring singer committed to posting on social media daily to get in the habit of putting himself out there, particularly posting covers of Zach Bryan and Tyler Childers’ songs, whom he cites as two of his musical inspirations for their ability to blend “poetry over simple chords and make a difference.” His world changed when a friend encouraged him to do covers of Bryan’s unreleased songs and posted a video of him singing “Get Out Alive” on a Bryan Facebook fan page.
Bryan’s father saw the video and praised, “Well done, sir,” which then led to an increase in McNown’s following. He saw another boost when he auditioned for American Idol in 2023 and received a Golden Ticket, but ultimately, he left the show to pursue a solo career when he started seeing momentum behind “A Lot More Free” brewing on social media.
“I didn’t really want to be the game show winner, so we decided to go all in on ourselves,” he says. The decision paid off. “A Lot More Free” landed at No. 15 on the Billboard Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart, as well as inside the Top 30 on both the Billboard Hot Country Songs and Pop Airplay charts.
After a series of EPs, McNown released the album Night Diving in January 2025, followed by the deluxe album Night Diving (The Cost of Growing Up)in July 2025. “It was released out of necessity,” he says, revealing that much of part two was written before part one. “I think of albums as phases of life, and all of these songs were written in the same phase of life. So they’re meant to be together.”
Night Diving sees him processing the turmoil of a relationship, while The Cost of Growing Up finds him in a lighter place with his current girlfriend. The first half was inspired by an awe-inspiring and “surreal” experience he had while night diving, describing how, submerging into the depths of the ocean with nothing but a flashlight, he was surrounded by a blackness his eyes had never seen.
“I realized that Night Diving is also a metaphor for digging into the parts of yourself that aren’t pretty, and digging into the things that are really difficult to confront and learning the most about yourself when you do that,” he explains of the album that touches on heavy themes of heartbreak, betrayal, and mental health awareness. “The Cost of Growing Up is the optimism in that, realizing that you’re not alone and all of the things that you’re going through are a part of growing up and living life. It’s not always going to be perfect, but it’s always worth pushing forward and living.”
Now that he’s in a healthy, happy relationship, McNown reveals that he envisions a long future with his current partner (and has even made her cry with some of the romantic songs on Growing Up). But he will continue to walk toward his bright future one step at a time. “Life is often two steps forward and one step back. It’s taking the cost with the understanding that is a part of growing up. There’s going to be waves of difficulty, and trials that are going to be placed in your life, and how you handle them is the most important thing of all,” he says. “That’s what the whole album is meant to represent.”
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