With his trademark trucker cap, wild beard and imposing frame, the 24-year-old mountain man from Jindabyne is all about authenticity in himself and his music.

It's the type of authenticity one doesn't inherit from owning a collection of Johnny Cash or Willie Nelson records.

It's gained from years spent "chasing cows in the Northern Territory" or working on the land doing "fencing, harvesting and landmarking," like Cox did before his music became viable.

It's likely why Cox's career has risen so steeply since he was crowned the Tamworth Country Music Festival's Star Maker in 2018. A self-titled album blending country, rock and blues followed and popular cuts Lake House, Red Light and Too Drunk To Drive further established Cox as one of brightest new talents in Australian country.

Understandably, that led to Sony signing Cox in August. Joining a major label has given Cox the opportunity to expand, but it'll be on his own terms.

"I think people dig it, because it's me," Cox said. "I don't f--k around. I don't try to be anybody else. I do my thing and it seems to work, so I'll keep doing that.

"I definitely put that across to them [Sony] and they were all about it. They're fully supportive and obviously they're gonna give me every bit of advice, but it's my music and if I'm not happy and behind it, it's not going to benefit them at all."

Cox's first single with Sony, Give Me Tonight, was released last month and is an anthemic slice of country-rock.

Album No.2 is almost complete and due out in mid-2020, but Cox said the rest of the record sounds nothing like the first taste.

"It's almost the black sheep of the record," he said of Give Me Tonight. "There's a lot of different influences on the album. A lot of horns.

"I've been listening to a lot Pink Floyd the last couple of years. It's actually quite different to my last record and definitely different to a traditional country record in a way that's hard to explain because there are so many different genres creeping into the mix."

Cox's live performances also don't fit the typical country stereotype. The gigs are loud and raucous.

"We call ourselves a country band, but our live shows are definitely not a country show," he said. "I think that's why people like us because our live show is an involved rock show and we jump around like idiots.

"Audience vibe off that and music only follows that same realm. Country music is where our hearts lie, but we're not limiting ourselves to that genre."

Cox has also found himself at home in Newcastle. Back in June he moved to New Lambton to be close to his bandmates and he's since been joined by his girlfriend and fellow country musician Sammy White. White, who hails from North Queensland, is a contender for the 2020 Star Maker.

"All the boys lived here or around here, so I was spending a lot of time here anyway," Cox said. "I'd been living out of my car for years, so I was finally in a financial situation to live somewhere and Newy was the spot."

Brad Cox plays his first hometown show on Saturday at 48 Watt Street.