In January, Sam Hunt was named Taste of Country's No. 1 Artist to Watch in 2014. Now fans can find out why. The singer has signed to MCA Nashville and released a video for an R&B-flavored love song called 'Speakers.' Watch it now, during this ToC exclusive premiere.

You already know of Hunt, even if you don't know the Georgia-raised, former college football quarterback by name. He wrote Keith Urban's 'Cop Car' and Kenny Chesney's 'Come Over.' He's also responsible for Billy Currington's current single 'We Are Tonight.' All three songs represent a different side of this country newcomer, but it's Currington's brand of country that's most similar to what Hunt does on 'Speakers.'

"Baby you're now on fire, girl you’re on fire / Out in the dark, wrapped up in the stars / So right, girl I'm so high / You and me, wild and free / Way out in the woods no body for miles / Love in the back of the truck with the tailgate down just us and the speakers on,” Hunt sings on 'Speakers,' a song found on his 'Between the Pines - Acoustic Mixtape' album.

Fans have quickly embraced Hunt's polished cadence. He says he struggled as a songwriter when he first moved to Nashville. Then he found co-writers that embraced what he was doing. "Shane McAnnaly is a really good friend of mine," he told ToC earlier this year. "He’s one of the first guys that really embraced what I was doing with an open mind."

"I remember hearing some of his demos when I went in to write the first time with he and Josh Osborne. I was at that point of frustration, where I decided, 'I’m going to go in and play ‘em this idea that’s different.' And they completely embraced it and we wrote that day and from there we just ... started writing and not really thinking of where it would fit in."

He'll admit to R&B influences, but assures fans his heart is with country music. 'Speakers' touches on themes present in many of the most popular songs of today. Hunt's approach on 'Speakers' etches the first grooves for a new subgenre to live in. It's one without a catchy name, but if it catches on there's little doubt others will follow.

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