The Chrysler Theatre has a certain smell. It is a mix of old velvet, floor wax and the faint, lingering scent of river water drifting off the Detroit River just a few steps away. It is the kind of room that demands a certain level of showmanship, and Brett Kissel knows it. At just 27, the Alberta-born singer is already operating with the calculated precision of a veteran who has spent decades under the hot lights. He is currently hauling his "We Were That Song Tour" across the frost-bitten stretches of Canada, and he is circling back to Windsor on Feb. 11.
Kissel is not just another hat act. He is a relentless touring machine with a polished Nashville sheen that somehow manages to retain its prairie dirt. Last year, he played this same town, and while the room might have had a few empty patches, the noise level suggested otherwise. Kissel remembers the room, the heat and the way the crowd leaned into the choruses.
“We love Windsor. Last year we were here and it may not have been a sold-out show but their enthusiasm made it feel like a sold-out show,” Kissel says. “When the show was done, I said we definitely have to come back here and soon too. This time out I want to see Hiram Walker & Sons – last time we were so busy I never got to see it. It’s such a legendary piece of Windsor’s history. When we come by this time we’ll have some new music and a couple tricks up our sleeves.”
But the "tricks" he mentions are not just stage pyrotechnics. They are the songs from his latest record, *We Were That Song*, which dropped late last year. The industry has already taken notice. At the CCMA Awards in Saskatoon back in Sept. 2017, Kissel did not just show up; he dominated. He premiered the title track with a performance that felt more like a stadium anthem than a standard award show slot.
And the hardware followed. He walked away with his second straight Male Artist of the Year win. He also scooped up Music Video of the Year and Interactive Artist of the Year. That brings his career total to 10 CCMA wins. That is a staggering number for a guy who still looks like he could be carded at the bar. But Kissel understands the modern country machine. He knows that being an "Interactive Artist" is just as important as hitting the high notes if you want to stay relevant in an era where fans expect 24/7 access.
The video that secured the win was "I Didn’t Fall In Love With Your Hair," a track pulled from his 2015 album *Pick Me Up*. It is a heavy piece of work. In a genre often criticized for leaning too hard on trucks and cold beer, this song pulls the rug out from under the listener. It is a raw, unflinching look at the collateral damage of cancer.
I’m good friends with Dave and one day out of the blue he asks why I haven’t asked him to be on an album. ...He said he’d never played on a country album and thought it would be a lot of fun, so I told him I’d write or find the best rockin’ song I could find. That song was Damn!
“The song was written by watching how my grandfather was with my grandmother and her fight with cancer,” Kissel reveals. “The song is certainly for them, but it’s also for everyone who has or knows someone who has or has beaten cancer. It really does affect us all in one way or another.”
It is easy to be cynical about "sad songs" in country music. They often feel like they are engineered in a lab to trigger a specific emotional response. But Kissel’s connection to the material feels authentic because his life is so deeply rooted in the soil of his family’s ranch. He does not just talk about his heritage; he wears it. He has his grandfather’s ranch land location tattooed over his heart. That is a level of commitment that goes beyond a marketing gimmick.
And then there is Cecilia. His wife is the muse for the standout track on the new album, and their family continues to grow alongside his discography. In May of last year, they welcomed their second daughter, Aria. Balancing the chaos of a newborn with a cross-country tour is the kind of logistical nightmare that would break most people. But Kissel seems to thrive on the momentum.
But do not mistake his family-man persona for a lack of edge. Kissel is willing to push the boundaries of the genre, even if it means dragging a heavy metal legend into the studio. His collaboration with Dave Mustaine of Megadeth on the track "Damn!" is the kind of crossover that usually happens in a fever dream.
“I’m good friends with Dave and one day out of the blue he asks why I haven’t asked him to be on an album,” Kissel says. “I was taken back and I wasn’t sure if he was just joking or if he actually wanted to be on the album. He said he’d never played on a country album and thought it would be a lot of fun, so I told him I’d write or find the best rockin’ song I could find. That song was Damn! It was a great find and suits him well.”
The result is a track that bites. Mustaine’s guitar work brings a jagged, aggressive energy that forces Kissel to step up his vocal game. It is a risk. Hardcore country traditionalists might scoff, and metalheads might be confused, but it is exactly the kind of move a young artist needs to make to avoid becoming a caricature of themselves.
Watching Kissel on stage, you see the gears turning. He is a student of the game. He knows when to dial it back for a ballad and when to let the band loose. The Chrysler Theatre is the perfect venue for this kind of show – intimate enough to feel the sweat but big enough to let the sound breathe.
Tickets for the Sunday night show are sitting at $45. In an industry where "platinum seating" and "VIP experiences" often price out the very people the songs are written about, it is a refreshing price point. You can grab them online through the Chrysler Theatre box office.
Kissel is at a crossroads. He is no longer the "new kid" on the block, but he is not yet the elder statesman. He is in that sweet spot where the hunger is still there, but the skill set has finally caught up to the ambition. And if he finally gets that tour of Hiram Walker & Sons, he might just find some more inspiration in the bottom of a glass of Windsor’s finest. But for now, he is focused on the stage. And the music. And the 10 trophies that suggest he is doing something very, very right.
