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Featured Musicians
I love music so much that I had to make a little section here for other musicians
that I listen to.
This Page is still under construction...check back for updates, links, photo galleries,
and interviews!
"BAD BOYS BAD BOYS..."
Jamey Johnson was raised in Montgomery, Ala., and grew up influenced by that state's famous country musicians
such as Hank Williams Jr., Vern Gosdin and the band, Alabama. He first picked up the guitar when he was around 10 years old
when his uncle taught him to play Alabama's "My Home's in Alabama." As a teenager, he saved enough money to buy an Epiphone
guitar he dubbed Old Maple. On Saturday nights, he and his friends would go to the grave of Hank Williams on the hill above
Montgomery to drink beer and sing the legend's songs. One night he dropped Old Maple on the tombstone and splintered its bottom.
The instrument bears that scar to this day.
He began his singing career in the clubs of Montgomery. His father thought his son might become a music teacher
or a band director. But after two years of college, Jamey abruptly quit school in 1994. For the next eight years he served
in the Marine Corps Reserve and perfected his country singing style. The same week he was discharged, the rest of his unit
was ordered to Iraq.
Having paid his dues in the honky-tonks of Alabama, Johnson gave Nashville a try. He arrived on Jan. 1, 2000,
and took a job as a salesman for a sign company. Then he worked for an industrial pumping company. From 2001 until 2004, he
helped run a construction firm, restoring buildings devastated by fires, hurricanes or tornados.
In time, he started singing at songwriter nights and met other songwriters. When those writers got publishing
deals, they hired Johnson to sing demos. (His first one was a duet with Gretchen Wilson, also a demo singer at the time.)
One of those writers, Randy Hardison, praised his talent to producer Buddy Cannon. They decided to co-produce some demos for
Johnson, but Hardison was murdered in 2002. The sudden loss brought Johnson and Cannon closer together.
Proceeding with their goals, Cannon produced some demos for Johnson and helped secure him a publishing deal.
(He co-wrote the Trace Adkins hit, "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk.") Johnson struggled to find a record deal, though, until his seventh
audition for RCA Records in April 2005. The label released his debut album, The Dollar, in early 2006. In 2007, he
won a CMA Award for co-writing George Strait's "Give It Away." His 2008 follow-up album is on Mercury Nashville.
Visit Jamey's Official Website
Visit Jamey on Myspace
The only child of Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter, "Shooter" Jennings (who officially shares his
father's first name) lived his first few years in a crib on his parents' tour bus. By age 5, he was playing drums. Between
tours, back in Nashville, he took piano lessons, didn't like them, stopped, then started teaching himself and enjoying it
more. He picked up his guitar at 14 and hasn't put it down since. He and his father recorded a few things together when they
happened to have some microphones set up and the tape recorder plugged in. Then at 16, he discovered rock 'n' roll. Driven
by a sound he heard coming together in his head -- something like Lynyrd Skynyrd mutating into Guns N' Roses -- Jennings left
Nashville a couple of years later to seek his fortunes in L.A. There, he assembled a band and named it Stargunn. For six or
seven years they tore up the local clubs, built a rabid following and earned praise from the local music press. But the Hollywood
party scene eventually began to bother him. He says, "I was posing as a rocker -- a country guy trying to be something he
wasn't." On March 30, 2003, he dissolved Stargunn and moved to New York City to spend time with his girlfriend and sort out
what he wanted to do next. An unexpected gig at the House of Blues a few weeks later revived his creativity. He returned to
L.A. to form another band, the 357s. After six weeks in the studio, he completed his first solo album, Put the O Back in
Country. Universal South released it in early 2005. With guest vocals from George Jones, Jennings' "4th of July" reached
the mid-level of the country airplay charts. Jennings portrayed his father in the 2005 Johnny Cash biopic, Walk the Line.
In 2006, he issued the studio album, Electric Rodeo, as well as Live From Irving Plaza.
Visit Shooter's Official Website
Visit Shooter on Myspace
The Jody Lee Petty band has been hard at work fine tuneing their
sound and recording new material. The band had a great summer of gigs, playing shows with Sugarland, Toby Keith, Montgomery
Gentry, Rascal Flatts, Jason Aldean and more. Their high powered, high energy brand of southern fried country is winning fans
the world over. Jody Lee Petty will keep you on your feet all night long. Check the schedule and don't miss the show when
its in a town near you! God Bless and C Ya soon!!
What people are saying about Jody Lee Petty;
“Country music just got dangerous and sexy again. With his unique
blend of style, charisma and rich vocals, this southern boy has a very bright future ahead of him.” Krista Smith, West
Coast editor, Vanity Fair Magazine
“Jody Lee Petty is the best country/southern rock front man
since Ronnie Van Zant” Jon Ingles, DJ for allsouthernrock.com
“Jody Lee Petty has the complete dream country rock package;
great music, great voice, great looks, great band and great stage presence. Jody Lee is a true star on the horizon.”
Geoff Hughes, Mid-Atlantic Entertainment
“Thanks to Jody Lee Petty, my faith in the Country genre has
been restored. He’s a country boy with a voice that comforts like a cool summer breeze, and lyrics that get right to
the heart of the matter. So if you’ve never heard Country music, this is the place to start. And if for some reason
you stopped listening to it… it’s time to listen again.” Rhonda Fletcher, Mayberry Magazine
Visit Jody Lee Petty's Official Website
Visit Jody Lee Petty on Myspace
If you ask any member of the Dirt Drifters how it all came to be, they would probably tell you Divine Intervention.
It started with five roads that hit some detours and dead ends but eventually re-routed into one. It involves so much more
than music, and so much more than songs. Heartache, life changes, career changes, tears, blood, and a drive that endures.
Five guys, one dream, and a little bit of luck . . . The Dirt Drifters:
Brothers Matt and Ryan Fleener grew up in Oklahoma listening to their dad’s band rehearsing in the garage
and traveling on the weekends as part of the family dream. The sons of a mechanic and a schoolteacher, they cling to their
blue-collar roots, and that upbringing can be heard in their songwriting. After hitting a lot walls in Nashville chasing the
dream as a duo and songwriters, they met up with the rest of the Drifters somewhere around the 5-year mark.
Jersey rocker, Jeff Middleton traveled south to Nashville after hearing Garth Brooks one night and swore to
himself that he was going to be a successful songwriter and musician. Walking away from business jobs with big money, he rolled
the dice with his guitar and threw a seven one night when the idea of the band was born. Listen close and you can hear Jersey
in the Dirt Drifters. `
Bass Player Ron Gomez cut his teeth in the LA music scene, and later traveled to New York searching for home,
not long after he drifted into Nashville refusing to give up on dreams. A product of the 80’s rock scene, he brings
his own unique vibe and style and to the band. He was introduced to the other fellas one night over a bathroom-remodeling
job and a six-pack of beer.
Louisiana’s own Nick Diamond is the son of a preacher man and one hell of a drummer. Brought up in the
church playing multiple instruments, he eventually settled on a stool behind a kick and snare. Choosing a path of his own
he loaded up and headed to Nashville, three years later he met the members of The Dirt Drifters at – where else - church.
The Dirt Drifters now travel all around the States making fans and kickin’ up dust. Their never say
die lifestyle got them a record deal with Warner Bros. Nashville, and the newest band to hit country music is screaming down
the road with a sound unlike anything else in Nashville.
Visit Lee Brice's Official Website
Visit Lee Brice on Myspace
Country singer and songwriter Lee Brice walks a path between traditional honky tonk sounds and
contemporary rock & roll; as Brice puts it, his music sounds like what would happen if Hank Williams, Jr. and John Mayer had a love child. Brice was born in Sumter, a small town in South Carolina, where
he was raised on the gospel songs his family would sing in church. At the age of seven, Brice began learning the piano, and
at ten he started writing his own songs, soaking up the influences of his father's country LPs by Alabama and the Oak Ridge Boys. It wasn't until Brice enrolled in high school (where he won the school talent contest three years
in a row) that he was exposed to rock & roll, and he began developing a taste for a broader variety of music; he also
found a role model in chart-topping Nashville star Garth Brooks. Brice had a talent for football, and he attended Clemson University on a gridiron scholarship,
but when an arm injury spoiled his ability to pass the ball, Brice decided that music rather than civil engineering was where
his true passion lay, and he moved to Nashville on the advice of Doug Johnson, who would sign Brice to a publishing contract
when he became an A&R man at Curb Records. Some of Brice's songs were recorded by Jason Aldean, Cowboy Crush, and Keith Gattis, but he didn't lose his dream of recording his own material, and in the fall
of 2007 he released his first album, Picture of Me, which included the single "She Ain't Right." Another career boost for Brice came in 2007 when
Garth Brooks recorded his song "More Than a Memory" as one of four new tunes appearing on Ultimate Hits, a career-spanning compilation that featured Brooks' first new recordings since 2001. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
Visit The Dirt Drifters Official Website
Visit The Dirt Drifters on Myspace
Shelton Hank Williams III was born December 12, 1972, in Nashville, TN. As the grandson of Hank Williams and the son of Hank Jr., he was country music royalty before he ever sang a note. But he didn't immediately follow his
forebears musically, choosing instead to bang around the Southeast, playing drums in punk and hardcore combos and smoking
prodigious amounts of weed. It was the outlaw spirit of his lineage, alive and unwell and floating in the bong water. By 1996,
steep child support payments and his thirst for Mother Nature had forced Hank III onto to the straight and narrow, and he
signed a contract with Music City giant Curb. The label issued Three Hanks: Men with Broken Hearts, which brought the voices of all three generations of Williams men together via the ghastly miracles
of modern technology. It was about as far from what Hank III wanted as he could get and signaled the beginning of his stormy
relationship with Curb.
Williams was in a tight spot. While his name, face, and uncanny vocal resemblance to his grandfather
almost guaranteed him a thriving country audience, he had no patience for Nashville's squareness and rigid control. He and
his Damn Band could wow a crowd with a spot-on set of gorgeous country balladry and spirited honky tonk. But III could just
as easily shift gears into screeching, Black Flag-style punk rock with his hard-rocking combo Assjack. He was the kind of
anomaly enormous record companies couldn't stand -- eminently marketable, yet defiantly unpredictable.
Curb issued Hank III's proper debut in September 1999. Entitled Risin' Outlaw, it presented 13 rough-hewn country numbers colored by Hank's honky tonking vocals. And while
he played his share of "country" gigs to support it, Williams also appeared at the 2001 Vans Warped Tour alongside punks like
Rancid. The irascible III also dismissed Outlaw as a label-controlled fiasco almost immediately after its release. After a few years of touring
and trying like mad to be released from his Curb contract, III returned to wax in early 2002 with Lovesick, Broke & Driftin'. While Outlaw had featured material from outside writers, the new LP was all Hank III but for a previously released
cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Atlantic City." He also produced, recorded, and mixed it by his lonesome in just two weeks.
At this point Hank's relationship with Curb became even more strained. The label refused to
release his appropriately named This Ain't Country LP, which featured songs like "Life of Sin" and "Hellbilly." At the same
time, it refused to grant Hank III the rights to issue it on his own. He and the record company reached an impasse, which
III only exacerbated with the "F*** Curb" T-shirts he sold through his thriving website. Thrown Out of the Bar, his third
honky tonk album, was scheduled for release in 2003, as was the long-awaited This Ain't Country. Additionally, III issued
extremely limited-edition releases through his website (often in quantities of 100 or less) and continued to play bass in
Superjoint Ritual, the brutal side project of Pantera frontman Phil Anselmo. The double-disc Straight to Hell was released March 2006 on Bruc Records (the fledgling rock division of Curb). The first CD contained
songs with elements of traditional country warped to fit Hank III's rebel attitude, while the second disc boasted only one
song that featured just Williams, his guitar, ambient noises, and a slight story that those coming down from drugs might enjoy.
Ever in the outlaw mode, Williams released Damn Right, Rebel Proud in 2008. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
Visit Hank III's Official Website
Visit Hank III on Myspace
| Old Southern Moonshine Revival |
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Sometimes, a band comes along and does "their thing" a little bit outside the box. A little
bit different from the norm or the standard. Sometimes it's a song, or a sound, or even a fresher take at writing. Sometimes
all of that comes together at once, and that could be considered a Revival.
In February of 2007, Old Southern Moonshine
Revival (OSMR) came together for the first time onstage for a forty-five minute set for about 300 people. The reaction was
a unique one to say the least. The crowd had lots of questions following the performance. "How long have they been doing this?
or "Are they from here?" But most importantly, "Where can I get their CD?"
Three weeks later, OSMR would headline one
of North Carolina's top music venues for the first time. The reaction, the same. Only a little bigger, a little more fervent.
In May of 2007 through June of 2007, OSMR played six very key shows for such a young band. They opened for former American
Idol, Josh Gracin, followed up 2 weeks later opening for Jason Michael Carroll. In the ensuing month they would open for Cross
Canadian Ragweed, followed by their first radio appearance on country station 93.1 “The Wolf”. The radio station
had OSMR playing the Greensboro Coliseum's pre and post-show parties for the Tim and Faith Tour.
In July and August,
the guys went back into the studio to continue work on their self-titled debut album, and would open for Reckless Kelly. In
September of 2007, OSMR would go on to have another whirlwind month of headlining some of the biggest and best local and regional
venues NC had to offer, with more radio spots, landing them their first radio single release "New Pair of Boots", which would
go on to be one of the top 600 requested songs of 2007. OSMR by this time was making strong connections in Nashville, and
had entertained several meetings between the 5 trips that were made from High Point to Nashville.
In October 2007,
OSMR wrapped up recording for their debut CD. Packed the house at the CD release event at Ziggy's in Winston-Salem, and two
weeks later were in Nashville for a showcase at the legendary Exit/In. In November of 2007, OSMR played their second showcase
at Nashville's Fuel, while writing new material for their second album.
In December 2007, the guys played acoustic
shows to large crowds in between recording sessions and prepared themselves for 2008. All this was in 2007, well, 10 months
of 2007 to be exact.
2008 started where ’07 left off. OSMR has been packing out music venues, selling music,
recording, and working hard on spreading their music throughout the world. The whole band has an active role in not only the
process of making music, but tireless self-promotion. Whether it is playing an acoustic set on a friend’s back porch
or personally corresponding to fans around the globe, OSMR refuses to allow any leaves to be unturned in the strenuous process
of spreading “The Revival”. And those efforts have hardly gone unnoticed.
OSMR has sold music and/or merchandise
all across the United States, as well as to 6 different countries around the globe. Their music is self-written, self-produced,
and packaged and shipped by the band. Like the music, the band has a unique line of fast-selling merchandise that is designed,
marketed, and shipped by OSMR.
The Revival’s online presence has also seen the fruits of hard work. The official
band web site has been visited by people in over 40 countries, and averaged 100,000+ unique views a month. While their Myspace
fan base is quickly growing with plays in the thousands every day.
For such a young band, OSMR has some of the most
loyal and faithful listeners possible. Their music is on countless podcasts throughout the US and Europe. In June 2008, listeners
in North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, and Virginia, voted OSMR “Country Band of the Year” for 2008
at the Carolina Music Awards.
This is what OSMR has done since early 2007.
Are you ready for the future?
Visit OSMR's Official Website
Visit OSMR on Myspace
Gary Allan was born Dec. 5, 1967, in Montebello, Calif., with the name Gary Herzberg. He was raised in La
Mirada, Calif., and in his teens, he began to play the honky-tonk circuit. After turning down a record deal while still in
high school, Allan eventually signed to Decca Records in 1996. Two singles from his tenure there reached the Top 10: "Her
Man" in 1996 and "It Would Be You" in 1998. When Decca folded into MCA Nashville, Allan followed, releasing the album Smoke
Rings in the Dark in 1999. The smoldering title track and "Right Where I Need to Be" propelled the album to platinum status.
Keeping his trademark traditional sound intact, the 2001 album Alright Guy offered two more hits, "The One" and "Man
to Man."
Despite his numerous hits, Allan was nominated for the CMA Horizon award -- given to newcomers -- in 2003.
That same year, he released the album See If I Care, with the hits "Tough Little Boys" and "Songs About Rain."
In 2004, Allan's wife committed suicide. Rather than retreat, he issued the album Tough All Over in
2005, earning a Top 10 hit with "Best I Ever Had" and the best reviews of his career. He spent much of 2006 touring with Rascal
Flatts, playing for more than a million fans.
Visit Gary Allan's Official Website
Visit Gary Allan on Myspace
Country singer, songwriter, and guitarist Matt Stillwell grew up in the Appalachian Mountains
in the western part of North Carolina, which gave him a grounding in rural musical styles, although he listened to a wide
range of pop music during his teens, from Garth Brooks to Guns N' Roses. He attended Western Carolina University, earning All-Southern Conference honors
as a baseball player. Moving to Nashville to seek a career in music, he developed contacts with some of the city's best musicians,
who later played on his debut album. He didn't wait to score a major label record contract, but instead toured the South with
his guitar, gradually building up a following. He self-released Take It All In on his own Still 7 Records label on June 13, 2006. Two years later he released Shine. The album's title track was also the anthem for the two-day music festival Stillwell created,
Shinefest. Planned as an annual event, the inaugural Shinefest 2008 was held in Fontana Dam, NC. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music
Guide
Visit Matt's Official Website
Visit Matt On Myspace
| Johnathan Singleton and The Grove |
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Since signing his breakthrough publishing and
production deal two years ago with Crosstown Songs Nashville, multi-talented singer/songwriter Jonathan Singleton has been
caught up in a creative whirlwind that’s left him little time to be chilling at the airport “Watching Airplanes”—the
name of the track he co-wrote (with Jim Beavers) for superstar Gary Allan that became one of the biggest country hits of the
past year. The first single from Allan’s 2007 release Living Hard, “Watching Airplanes” spent more than
thirty weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, peaking at 2. For the week ending February 19, 2008, the song was 1
on the Country Aircheck/Mediabase airplay chart.
While the widespread success of “Watching Airplanes”
is establishing the Jackson, Tennessee native as a prolific, first call Nashville songwriter for other artists, he is also
currently in the studio, about ten tracks deep into a new project with his own eponymous band Singleton. The album, scheduled
for release this fall, is being produced by major Nashville hitmaker Dann Huff and is the first of five recordings Singleton will
make under his agreement with Universal South Records. Singleton's songwriting deal is with Crosstown Songs (aka Diver Dann
Music) and his production deal is with Diver Dann namesake Huff, whose incredible list of credits includes Reba McEntire,
Kenny Rogers, Faith Hill, Wynonna, Carrie Underwood, LeAnn Rimes, Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts and Bon Jovi.
Huff has
long had the Midas touch for creating mainstream pop/country hits, but he is moving a bit left of center in creating a dynamic
new vibe with Singleton , creating a more roots-rocking, bluegrass sound for the singer and his longtime band’s latest
recording. “Being part of Dann’s publishing and production companies is the perfect place for someone who writes
the way I do,” says Singleton, whose lyrics focus on the here-and-now simplicity of everyday life. “Dann’s
very in tune with where I’m coming from as a writer and singer, and he’s never felt inclined to do the straight
down the middle pop thing with me that he does so well with other artists. The new songs have more of an edgy old school country
rock flavor that’s got both of us very excited. My main criterion for a good song is one that makes me want to pick
up the guitar and play again and again. It’s never about what’s commercial or how it will reap a certain audience,
but all about having that gut instinct that it just feels good.”
After nearly a year away from being the lead
singer and guitarist for his band—which up till recently was known as The Grove—due to his ongoing commitments
in Nashville,Singleton, who currently lives in Franklin, Tennessee, is gearing up to do a full slate of live gigs in the coming
months everywhere from Nashville to Kentucky, Mississippi and Chicago. Despite several personnel changes since officially
forming in Jackson back in 2000, The Grove has never wavered from its trademark sound of raucous rock/R&B sound with
a little country thrown in the mix. Squeezing as much emotion from the burnt frets of his guitar as his gritty smoke and soul-covered
vocal chords, Singleton cut his teeth with The Grovenot only as a writer, but also as a charismatic live performer. Over
the years, the band played steadily at Barley’s Brewhouse in Jackson while also touring and opening for several major
artists. They also released two independent CDs, including More Than People (2002).
Singleton was born into a
family with an audience - his father was a preacher in the Church of Christ and his mother was a talented singer/songwriter
who declined a small recording deal to look after her children. At age 16, the naturally gifted guitarist formed his first
band with his brother Josh. The Smoking Jackets was a blues-rock band that at one time was the official touring band of the
NASCAR circuit, showcasing for several record labels (including MCA and Island Def Jam) before evolving into The Grove. Singletonlater
attended Northeast Community College in Booneville, Miss. where he and the other members of his band were a part of the school’s
Campus Country program, a scholarship program designed to prepare young musicians for life in Nashville.
2008 has
continued to be a great year for Singleton. He was nominated for breakthrough songwriter of the year by "Music Row Magazine." Also,
Singletonearned an Academy of Country Music nomination for single of the year for "Watching Airplanes." Billy Currington's
new single "Don't" was penned by Jonathan Singleton and Jim Beavers.Jonathan Singletonand the Grove's forthcoming record
is in the works. The guys are currently getting a few notches in their belt around the country playing gigs. Opening for the
likes of Joe Nichols, Phil Vassar, Carrie Underwood, Jason Michael Carroll, Blake Shelton, Eric Church, and many others. Singleton recently
prerecorded the "Legends and Lyrics" series, to air in December. The PBS original series found Jonathan on stage opening for Patty Griffin, Kris Kristofferson, and Randy Owen. We look forward to having much more to report
later.
Visit Jonathan Singleton and The Grove on Myspace
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