Even though the rest of the world got to know Thomas Rhett a little better when he won his first Academy of Country Music Award in early April, his diehard fans have been with him for a while now. Because Rhett's been at this country music thing for more than four years.

His debut song "Something to Do With My Hands" was released in February 2012.

Them there was his “Beer With Jesus” follow-up.

"It Goes Like This" and “Get Me Some of That” came out the next year.

Then in 2014, there was "Make Me Wanna."

Then in 2015, there was "Crash and Burn" and Rhett's ACM Award-winning "Die a Happy Man."

All those hits, and Thomas Rhett is only 26. So he has got a lot of life left to keep turning out country tunes. Which is why he hopes that little kids are listening to him now so they can kind of grow up with him and his music.

“I would love for a kid who’s 8 right now, when he gets to high school to be like, ‘Man, I listened to your old stuff,’” Rhett said in a recent radio interview. “Like, tell me that ‘Crash and Burn’ was one of his jams in high school. That’d be pretty cool.”

Rhett and Nick Jonas taped an episode of CMT Crossroads last week in Nashville, so look for that to premiere this summer.