DYLAN COTRONE

Dylan Cotrone says it was a happy accident that made his music go viral and set the Bradenton native on a path toward becoming a full-time musician. It all started about a year ago. Cotrone was on the way home from a long day of work bussing tables at The Waterfront Restaurant on Anna Maria Island. Country artist Zach Bryan’s “Burn, Burn, Burn” came on the radio, Cotrone said.

“On my way home I heard that song by Zach Bryan and I thought, ‘I’ll cover it when I get home,’” Cotrone said. Later, he sat down in front of his phone with his guitar and recorded the song. “I didn’t post it. I drafted it and kept it in my files, and then that next morning I was listening to it and accidentally posted the video on TikTok,” Cotrone said.

Then there was no going back. Friends told him that his video was showing up in their social media feeds. And strangers were seeing him too. In the coming weeks, the video gained thousands of views and admirers who loved Cotrone’s voice. “It accidentally made my dreams come true,” Cotrone said. “It also gave me the confidence to post more videos.” As he posted more songs, both covers and originals, his social media following continued to soar. Now Cotrone’s TikTok videos have attracted over 12 million views and 620,000 followers. TikTok helps Bradenton artist launch music career Seizing on the social media success, Cotrone began recording some of his songs in the studio and releasing them to an even wider audience on streaming services like Spotify.