Janson was born on April 2, 1986, in Perryville, Missouri. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee, after finishing high school. In June 2009, Janson co-wrote and recorded two duets with Holly Williams on her album Here with Me: "I Hold On" and "A Love I Think Will Last." Janson signed to BNA Records in October 2009 and released his debut single, "'Til a Woman Comes Along," in April 2010. Matt Bjorke of Roughstock gave the single a five-star rating, with his review praising Janson's vocals as well as the arrangement. The song debuted at No. 56 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts dated for the week ending May 1, 2010. After BNA was restructured, Janson left the label. He co-wrote Tim McGraw's 2012 single "Truck Yeah," played harmonicaon the track "Beer" from Lee Brice's album Hard 2 Love, and wrote the title track to Justin Moore's 2013 album Off the Beaten Path. In 2013, he signed to Bigger Picture Music Group and released "Better I Don't." Janson wrote the song with his wife, Kelly, and Pat Bunch, and Keith Stegall produced it. "Better I Don't" peaked at number 40 on Country Airplay in mid-2013. A second single, "Cut Me Some Slack," peaked at number 60 before Bigger Picture closed in 2014. That same year, Columbia Records released Take It to the Bank, which included "Til a Woman Comes Along" and other songs that he had recorded while on BNA. Janson self-released the single "Buy Me a Boat" in early 2015. The song debuted at No. 33 on Hot Country Songs after it received airplay on the Bobby Bones Show. It was officially released as a single via Warner Bros. Records Nashville in May 2015, and became Janson's first top-5 hit by August. In September, Janson announced that his debut studio album would be released on October 30. "Buy Me a Boat" peaked at No. 3 on Country Airplay and No. 1 on Mediabase.The album also includes the singles "Power of Positive Drinkin'" and "Holdin' Her". Also, in 2015, Janson co-wrote LoCash's "I Love This Life." Also, in 2016, Janson co-wrote Randy Houser's "Song Number 7." Janson performed on the third day of the 2016 Republican National Convention. Janson's second album for Warner Bros., Everybody, was released in September 2017. Its lead single is "Fix a Drink", which was followed in 2018 by "Drunk Girl". "Good Vibes" followed in 2019. On February 6, 2018, during his first, sold-out headlining show at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, country star Keith Urban invited Janson to become the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry.
Musical stylings
Nashville Gab wrote that "He is explosive on stage and completely unpredictable. I compare his live set to a wild horse, it's not meant to be tamed. He brings a blue-collar, redneck edge to every show that seems to be lacking in country music these days. Chris Janson is the future of country music..."
Personal life
Chris Janson is married to Kelly Lynn. They have four children, two of whom are from Lynn's previous marriage.
