BIG AWARD. KOCO OLIVIA HICKEY ASKED FLORES WHAT’S NEXT FOR HIM. IT’S NO SECRET. STILLWATER ZONE WYATT FLORES IS QUICKLY ON THE RISE. YOU’VE HEARD THE MUSIC, YOU’VE SEEN THE CROWDS. BUT THIS PAST WEEKEND IT BECAME OFFICIAL DURING SATURDAY’S BOYS FROM OKLAHOMA CONCERT, RIGHT IN HIS HOMETOWN. WE ARE PROUD TO GIVE THE 2026 OKLAHOMA MUSIC HALL OF FAME RISING STAR AWARD TO STILLWATER NATIVE WYATT WARREN. THE HALL SAYS THEY RESERVED THE HONOR FOR UP AND COMING MUSICIANS TO APPLAUD THEIR WORK, WHILE ENCOURAGING THEM TO KEEP UP THEIR CRAFT. I DON’T DO THIS FOR AWARDS, BUT IT MEANT THE WORLD TO ME THAT THEY WOULD WANT ME TO HAVE THAT AWARD AND TO HAVE IT GIVEN TO ME BY ONE OF MY HEROES, CODY, IN FRONT OF THE STADIUM. THAT WAS JUST IT WAS HUGE. WHEN I CAUGHT UP WITH FLORES THIS WEEK, HE WAS IN NORTH CAROLINA ON HIS DRIVE ALL NIGHT TOUR, STILL TAKING IT ALL IN. IT MADE ME REALLY JUST LOOK BACK AT EVERYTHING THAT’S GONE ON, YOU KNOW, BEHIND STAGE AND EVERYTHING THAT WE PUT INTO THIS AND JUST SIT THERE AND GO, IT WAS WORTH IT. IT WAS WORTH THE CHASE. AND THE HONORS DIDN’T STOP THERE. THE HOMETOWN HERO ALSO GOT A THANK YOU FROM THE MAYOR FOR HIS EFFORTS TO RAISE AROUND $50,000 FOR WILDFIRE RELIEF. HE KEPT TELLING ME, THANK YOU, BUT I WAS LIKE, WHAT? IT’S MY HOME. LIKE, WHAT ELSE WAS I SUPPOSED TO DO? I HAD TO FIND A WAY TO DO SOMETHING. AND, AND WE’RE JUST REALLY GRATEFUL THAT WE GOT TO BE A PART OF THAT. AND, AND TO HELP OUT THE COMMUNITY. NOW HE’S LOOKING AHEAD FOR THEM TO TELL ME TO KEEP ON GOING. I MEAN, IT’S IT’S THE ONLY OPTION I GOT. THE MESSAGE IS CLEAR. ALL GAS, NO BRAKES. FLORES IS GEARING UP TO RELEASE NEW MUSIC. HE SAYS HIS LATEST SINGLE, RUNNIN ON E! IS JUST A PREVIEW OF WHAT’S AHEAD. WHILE WORKING TO KEEP RED DIRT MUSIC ALIVE. BEING RAISED AROUND A WHOLE BUNCH OF RED DIRT MUSICIANS, I WAS ALWAYS WANTING TO SIT AROUND, YOU KNOW, AND LISTEN TO ALL THE STORIES THAT HAVE COME BEFORE ME. I REALLY ALWAYS QUESTIONED WHY IT WASN’T THAT WAY ANYMORE. AND FOR BOYS FROM OKLAHOMA, IT FEELS LIKE IT’S COMING BACK. IT FEELS LIKE THERE’S THIS THIS FIRE THAT’S BEING RELIT INSIDE OF STILLWATER AND THE MUSIC SCENE. AND I’M JUST HOPING THAT IT KEEPS GOING BECAUSE THAT’S ALL I’VE EVER WANTED. GRATEFUL FOR STILLWATER STILL STANDING BY HIS SIDE. I’M JUST REALLY APPRECIATIVE OF PEOPLE SHOWING UP AND GIVING SUPPORT TO THIS LIKE THEY NEVER HAVE BEFORE. BECAUSE IF WE WANT TO SEE RED DIRT AND STILLWATER KEEP THRIVING THE WAY THAT IT ALWAYS HAS, AND IT TAKES THE PEOPLE. FLORES’S TOUR RUNS THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER, AND HE SAYS WE CAN EXPECT NEW MUSIC IN THE COMING WEEKS. FOR MORE DETAILS, HEAD
Wyatt Flores receives Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Rising Star Award during Boys from Oklahoma
Country singer Wyatt Flores was honored with the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Rising Star Award during the Boys from Oklahoma concert in Stillwater, where he also raised $50,000 for wildfire relief.
Country music singer Wyatt Flores, a Stillwater native, received the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Rising Star Award during the Boys from Oklahoma concert in his hometown over the weekend.“We are proud to give the 2026 Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Rising Star Award to Stillwater native Wyatt Flores,” said an announcement during the event. The award is reserved for up-and-coming musicians to recognize their work and encourage them to continue their craft. “I don’t do this for awards, but it meant the world to me that they would want me to have that award,” Flores said. “And to have it given to me by one of my heroes, Cody, in front of that stadium, that was huge.” >> Video Below: Country music fans take over Stillwater for The Boys from Oklahoma concertFlores is currently on his Drive All Night Tour. He spoke to KOCO while traveling to North Carolina. “It made me really look back at everything that’s gone on behind the stage—and everything we’ve put into this—and just go, ‘It was worth it. It was worth the chase,’” he said. The weekend’s honors didn’t stop there. Flores also received a thank-you from Stillwater’s mayor for his efforts to raise approximately $50,000 for wildfire relief. “(He) kept telling me thank you. But I was like, ‘Well, it’s my home.’ What else was I supposed to do? I had to find a way to do something. We’re just really grateful we got to be a part of that and help out the community,” Flores said. >> Video Below: Fans from across the country are gathering in Stillwater for The Boys from Oklahoma concertThe message is clear: All gas, no brakes. Flores is gearing up to release new music, including his latest single, “Running on E,” which he says is just a preview of what’s to come. He is also focused on keeping Red Dirt music alive, a genre deeply tied to Stillwater’s music scene. “Being raised around a whole bunch of Red Dirt musicians—I was always wanting to sit around and listen to all the stories that came before me,” Flores said. “I always questioned why it wasn’t that way anymore, and for Boys from Oklahoma, it feels like it’s coming back. It feels like there’s this fire being lit inside of Stillwater and the music scene, and I’m just hoping it keeps going, because that’s all I’ve ever wanted.” >> Download the KOCO 5 App | Subscribe to KOCO 5’s YouTube channel | Sign up for KOCO 5’s Morning NewsletterHe said he is grateful for Stillwater still standing by his side. “I’m just really appreciative of people showing up and giving support to this like they never have before. Because if we want to see Red Dirt and Stillwater keep thriving the way that it always has, it takes the people,” he said. Flores’ tour runs through the end of November, with new music expected in the coming weeks.Top Headlines TIMELINE: Oklahoma alert day brings risk of severe storms with tornadoes Tuesday Investigation underway after person shot in head in southeast Oklahoma City American husband is released without charges in his wife’s disappearance in the Bahamas 2 found dead inside rural McClain County home, sheriff’s office says Hyundai recalls nearly 300K vehicles for seatbelt issue
Country music singer Wyatt Flores, a Stillwater native, received the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Rising Star Award during the Boys from Oklahoma concert in his hometown over the weekend.
“We are proud to give the 2026 Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Rising Star Award to Stillwater native Wyatt Flores,” said an announcement during the event.
The award is reserved for up-and-coming musicians to recognize their work and encourage them to continue their craft.
“I don’t do this for awards, but it meant the world to me that they would want me to have that award,” Flores said. “And to have it given to me by one of my heroes, Cody, in front of that stadium, that was huge.”
>> Video Below: Country music fans take over Stillwater for The Boys from Oklahoma concert
Flores is currently on his Drive All Night Tour. He spoke to KOCO while traveling to North Carolina.
“It made me really look back at everything that’s gone on behind the stage—and everything we’ve put into this—and just go, ‘It was worth it. It was worth the chase,’” he said.
The weekend’s honors didn’t stop there. Flores also received a thank-you from Stillwater’s mayor for his efforts to raise approximately $50,000 for wildfire relief.
“(He) kept telling me thank you. But I was like, ‘Well, it’s my home.’ What else was I supposed to do? I had to find a way to do something. We’re just really grateful we got to be a part of that and help out the community,” Flores said.
>> Video Below: Fans from across the country are gathering in Stillwater for The Boys from Oklahoma concert
The message is clear: All gas, no brakes. Flores is gearing up to release new music, including his latest single, “Running on E,” which he says is just a preview of what’s to come.
He is also focused on keeping Red Dirt music alive, a genre deeply tied to Stillwater’s music scene.
“Being raised around a whole bunch of Red Dirt musicians—I was always wanting to sit around and listen to all the stories that came before me,” Flores said. “I always questioned why it wasn’t that way anymore, and for Boys from Oklahoma, it feels like it’s coming back. It feels like there’s this fire being lit inside of Stillwater and the music scene, and I’m just hoping it keeps going, because that’s all I’ve ever wanted.”
>> Download the KOCO 5 App | Subscribe to KOCO 5’s YouTube channel | Sign up for KOCO 5’s Morning Newsletter
He said he is grateful for Stillwater still standing by his side.
“I’m just really appreciative of people showing up and giving support to this like they never have before. Because if we want to see Red Dirt and Stillwater keep thriving the way that it always has, it takes the people,” he said.
Flores’ tour runs through the end of November, with new music expected in the coming weeks.
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