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Who Is Ashley Cooke? The Story Behind Her Journey to Country Music

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Who is Ashley Cooke? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about her journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

Ashley-cooke-music
The Beginning:

This week we are sharing an artist with you that you should already know! Since the very beginning of her young career, we have proudly championed the talented singer-songwriter, Ashley Cooke. Today, we are sharing with you all about her journey, straight from Cooke herself!

“I grew up kind of all over the country, to be honest. I started playing music and writing songs when I was eleven years old,” began Cooke. “In moving around all the time, music was kind of the only constant I ever had.” Although she coins, Parkland, Florida as her ‘hometown,’ the singer’s childhood helped her find her way into music at an early age.

“I started writing songs kind of as a coping mechanism and I loved poetry even as a kid. […] I started writing poems down in journals and really was obsessed with lyrics, and poems, and rhyming and that kind of stuff,” shared Cooke.

Despite her parents not listening to country music when she was young, she knew it was the right fit for her when she discovered it. “Lyrics have always been my passion and my love for music, and honestly that’s kind of how I found myself in country too,” said the singer, adding, ” I really got to find country was, one, through Taylor [Swift], but also through the songwriting and the storytelling that came from that genre.”

Both Swift and Rascal Flatts were some of Cooke’s early influences in the country genre, both inspiring her to write music that made someone feel something.

At eighteen years old, instead of pursuing music, the singer headed to Nashville for a different reason. She attended Belmont University to study communications and marketing, a degree that would later help her in her blossoming career.

The Turning Point:

During her senior year at Belmont, Cooke entered a contest called ‘Country Showcase,’ on a whim. According to the singer, the contest was a huge deal for emerging artists. “It’s like the end of senior year milestone goal, where they choose 4 artists to play, and you play 2 originals and 1 cover song. […] People like Brad Paisley, and Florida Georgia Line, and Chris Young have won this competition.”

Cooke went on to win the competition, catapulting her to focus solely on music immediately upon graduation. Armed with a desire to cut her teeth in Nashville starting in 2019, she found herself without gigs to play, when the pandemic hit in 2020.

Like many of us, Cooke went home to Florida to quarantine with her family. It was then that she discovered a little app called TikTok. “I started posting on TikTok genuinely out of boredom during the pandemic,” shared the singer.

“The first video that I posted was called the ‘lay me down challenge.’ […] I was one of those weird anomalies where my very first video went viral. It got over 2.7 million views, seemingly overnight.”

She spent the rest of quarantine using her degree to really learn the platform and give her new fanbase the music they were all begging for. “For the first time in music history it feels like, labeled artists were on the same playing fields as unsigned artists because we all had the same ways of sharing our music and breaking new songs.”

At the end of the pandemic, as an independent artist, Cooke met her now manager, Rakiyah Marshall, and started releasing music and booking tours that all artists would dream of, including Cole Swindell tour and a Jimmie Allen feature.

Today:

Flash forward to today, Cooke is a newly signed Big Loud Records recording artist! “I only signed my record deal with Big Loud three weeks ago, ” the singer shared at the time of our interview. It is truly incredible how much Cooke has worked hard to accomplish in her young career.

Most recently though, the singer announced that she is going on tour with Brett Young, who is also featured on the new version of her hit, “Never Til Now.” “I wrote the song with my friend Matt Roy, who also has written a bunch of other stuff on my project,” shared Cooke, when asked about the song. “We wrote the song just me and him, powering it out in my living room. He pitched the idea originally, and I was going through a really tough break-up at the time. I was like, ‘honestly, all I want is the kind of love that you are talking about. It just catches you off guard, real, not cheesy, just someone that loves you and is there for you.’”

Originally, Cooke posted a TikTok video of her simply pointing to the romantic lyrics slide by slide. Little did she know, the song would soon go viral and fans everywhere were using the beautiful song as their first dance and wedding song.

Because she always heard a feature on it, Cooke asked her produced Jimmie Robbins, who would be a good fit. He suggested Brett Young, and the rest was history. “I felt like adding another voice to it would really elevate it.”

Cooke’s staying power is only going to increase over the next year and many more to come. She is here to stay and we are proud to have named her a 2022 Artist to Watch. Catch the songstress on tour with Young, as well as, at most major country music festivals this festival season. We also anticipate more new music coming soon!

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Ashley Cooke releases.

To keep up with Ashley Cooke, follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Ashley Cooke’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

who-is-austin-burke-raul-esparza

Who Is Austin Burke? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

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Who is Austin Burke? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about his journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

who-is-austin-burke-raul-esparza

Austin Burke // Photo Credit: Raul Esparza

The Beginning:

For several years now we have championed rising artist, Austin Burke. Today, we get to finally spotlight his incredible talent and story with you all in this week’s feature. The Scottsdale, Arizona native was pretty much born with a mic in his hands. “I started singing really when I was 2 years old,” began Burke. “By the time I was 3, I was ready to hit it big, and I went to all the sporting events in Arizona,” shared the singer.

At the time, his father would share videos of him singing the national anthem at different events, which led him to being asked to be on The Rosie O’Donnell Show at just four years old. He was invited on to the show again just four years later. “She gave me a guitar. It was a cool moment in my life and a lot of things really sparked from that.”

Another standout experience was when Burke sang the national anthem at a baseball game, where Garth Brooks was playing for the Padres. “The first time I saw Garth, I actually sang for him,” laughed the singer. According to Burke, “Garth Brooks was my day one hero,” and he still loves him to this day.

Despite early success, the singer yearned to just be a kid, so by the age of ten, he “retired” from the music industry. “I just wanted to be a kid and play baseball and hang out with my friends.”

Shortly there after, Burke’s life took a turn. His parents lost a lot in the recession, so they moved to San Diego, while the singer was in high school. According to the singer, going to school in San Diego was tough and he got bullied a lot.“That’s when I started songwriting. It was my way of coping with everything,” shared the artist, “I started to sing again.”

Moments like these would continue to happen through college for the singer, who eventually found his way to Nashville, a place he belonged.

The Turning Point:

While playing baseball at Santa Barbara for college, Burke realized something was missing. “I picked up my guitar and I found so much joy in it and so much happiness. I didn’t know what I needed to do, but I knew I didn’t want to go to L.A.” Despite growing up on country music, Burke admits not knowing anything about Nashville. Still, he picked up everything and moved.

“I always knew, I just had this feeling that I had to be in Nashville. I didn’t even know what it was, I hadn’t even been to the south or anywhere near Nashville.” Later, he added, “I was just so excited to be here. I was like where do we start. And I worked at a restaurant for four years, but everyday I was just so happy to be in Nashville, it almost didn’t matter the work that I had to do.”

Throughout his nine years in music city, Burke cultivated a sound that is all his own. “My musical influences are so diverse, but I think that’s how it is for everyone, especially for our generation. We didn’t really grow up on one thing.” He draws inspiration from 90s country, reggae music,  rap, and even artists like the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

While working on his craft and cultivating a following, Burke finally got the attention he deserved, and landed himself a publishing deal. “I signed my first publishing deal a few years ago with Thomas Rhett. I met him at the BMI awards and he was like ‘I just started a publishing company, come sign with me.’ It was literally like that.”

Today:

For the past couple of years, Burke has been quietly writing and working on his songwriting. “I stepped away from the road. I felt like I was getting too heavy into touring,” shared the singer,“I just wrote as much as I could, and obviously TR was huge in helping to pick the songs and be apart of the process.”

Burke’s hardworking is paying off. He recently released his EP, Changed Everything. The record features five high-quality songs that speak to the singer’s talent and work ethic. Through social media and working with his team, the singer was able to choose the songs for this project.

“It’s kind of a mixture of my small circle and then the fans. Definitely “Let It Burn” and “Changed Everything” came from the fans and the other three songs were songs that I wanted to put it out or my team thought were the best,” shared Burke.

Fans can expect even more music to come very soon from the singer-songwriter. According to Burke, “I am super excited about this year because I have so much music coming out. It’s probably the most amount of music I have ever put out.” The singer even let us know that his next single, “Take My Life” will be out next month. Get ready, it is only going to get bigger from here!

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Austin Burke releases.

To keep up with Austin Burke follow him on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Austin Burke’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

who-is-grant-gilbert

Who Is Grant Gilbert? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

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Who is Grant Gilbert? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about his journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

who-is-grant-gilbert

The Beginning:

In this week’s installment of our Spotlight Series, where we proudly introduce you to rising artists in country music right now, we shine our light on Grant Gilbert. The Texas native seems to be primed for success in the industry. He chatted with us about his blossoming career and his story so far.

Growing up in a small town of Santo, Texas, Gilbert’s focus was on family, sports, and music. “We have a family farm. I grew up working out there, playing sports, and grew up loving music,” shared the singer. He recalls, “Listening to my parent’s music is what made me fall in love with music.”

Gilbert gained an early appreciation for both Texas swing music, as well as, classic country. He also expressed a love for artists who blurred genre lines but leaned towards rock. “I really loved Creedence Clearwater Revival, Bruce Springsteen, and Tom Petty,” shared the artist, adding later, “That’s what made me fall in love with that blue-collar country with the rock n roll guitars kind of feel.”

The self-taught guitarist continued to play both sports and music throughout his schooling “During high school, I played football on Fridays, and Saturdays I’d be playing some taco shop or any bar and grille that would let us play,” shared Gilbert.

The singer continued to play gigs in college while he attended Texas Tech in Lubbock.

The Turning Point:

Despite studying agriculture in college, music was a constant in Gilbert’s life. “I was just playing around down there on Wednesday nights,” recalled the singer, adding later that he would play at fraternity parties, bars, and anywhere that would have him. “I kind of got a little bit of following, signed on with a booking agent, and just kept playing for anyone that would let us.”

While still in college and playing at a popular club called the Blue Light, Gilbert was able to meet some of his heroes, like Josh Abbott of the Josh Abbott Band. “I met Josh Abbott, who has been a big role model and mentor to me,” began the rising artist. “He helped me out and got me set up with a management company, and I was coming up here to write, and do anything I could to open up the doors.”

Eventually, with some encouragement, Gilbert started making frequent trips to Nashville to work on his songwriting skills and network with others in the music industry. “I started writing songs when I realized […] I was just playing all these cover shows and I was like well if I want to actually think about playing music myself, I have to write, so I just kept writing songs and writing songs,” shared the singer when asked about the early stages as a songwriter.

During one of his trips to Nashville, Gilbert was introduced to River House Artists and was subsequently signed to a publishing deal before returning home to Texas. “I am just so thankful to have a team that works hard for me and believes in me,” he shared humbly.

Today:

Flash forward to today, Gilbert is cranking out new music for fans, while he continues to build a name for himself in the country music stratosphere. Most recently, the singer dropped his most popular song to date, “She Goes Home (Dirty Breakup Song).”

A song about a girl getting screwed over after a breakup turned out to be an exciting changing of the tides for the newcomer. “We wrote it. Me, Rivers Rutherford, and JoyBeth Taylor wrote it and we just sat down one day,” begins the singer. “We were like what are we going to write today and we were all kicking around some ideas, and I had this random idea for a song called “She Goes Home.”

The write turned into a huge success, with the trio even cutting an acoustic demo that same day. Eventually, River House Artists got wind of the song and decided Gilbert had to share it with fans. The song was shared on social media first as the “Dirty Breakup Song.” The track quickly picked up steam across social media platforms, and fans were begging for its release.

“It has been the most successful thing that I have ever put out to date,” shared the artist, as he continues to churn away at more and more music. “Every day we wake up and get on the phone and we say what can we do today to push the ball down the field.” Fans can expect a bunch of new music and some shows in the near future. Definitely keep Gilbert on your radar!

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Grant Gilbert releases.

To keep up with Grant Gilbert, follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Grant Gilbert’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

who-is-karley-scott-collins

Who Is Karley Scott Collins? The Story Behind Her Journey to Country Music

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Who is Karley Scott Collins? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about her journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

who-is-karley-scott-collins
The Beginning:

Today our spotlight shines on newly signed Sony Music Nashville recording artist, Karley Scott Collins. She is an incredible vocalist with a talent for crafting heartfelt and personal lyrics. We enjoyed getting to know her and her story in this week’s interview.

Growing up in a small-town in Florida, Collins was all about the arts from day one. “I got started in music because I was an actress when I was younger,” began the singer. “When I was nine, I had got this audition and they told me I needed to learn how to play guitar for it. So, that was when I picked up my first guitar ever, and I just kind of just really fell in love with it, and pretty much never put it down.”

She recalls music being a constant in her household. “My dad would play rock music on the way to school,” shared Collins, later adding, “My Nana was playing a lot of country music when I was growing up like Willie Nelson.” Collins drew early inspiration from artists like Stevie Nicks, Guns N’ Roses, Bob Dylan, and even, Brooks & Dunn. She was inspired by the way artists like Dylan crafted a song.

“The second I picked up a guitar, I think everything kind of clicked for me […] As soon as I started to figure out how to put chords together, I started to write my own songs,” shared Collins. “My life started really focusing and revolving around music soon after that.”

The Turning Point:

Fresh out of high school, Collins started making trips to music city.“I started traveling to Nashville probably when I was around 18 and just kind of started meeting people and writing with people around here,” shared the singer-songwriter.

During one of those writes, Collins’ career began to blossom unexpectedly. “I was writing at a publishing company with a friend of mine and I played them a song that I wrote and the publisher happened to be walking by and overheard the song. I was offered a publishing deal there.” After she landed her publishing deal, the songstress continued to make connections and friends in the Nashville music scene.

“People have been really, really open to me and my music. I’m really proud to be a woman in music, that’s for sure,” shared Collins. Eventually, her hardwork paid off, and she landed a place on Sony Music Nashville’s artist roster.

Today:

With just two songs released under her label, Collins is already proving to be a star in the making. Her first release, “Heavenly” showcased her stellar songwriting and vocal ability. “Everyone has had a relationship like at the beginning of the song that really brings out the worst in you, and “Heavenly” is something that I have been wanting and really wanting at that time in my life,” shared the singer when asked about her debut song.

She later added, “I just really fell in love with that song, that day. […] It really just felt like what I wanted to step out into the world with as my debut. It really sounded like me.”

Her second song, “Tattoos,” which was released on just this Friday (4/1), is just as emotive and personal as her first song. Inspired by bittersweet memories, Collins continues to prove her artistry on this incredible new song. “Tattoos is something that I really relate to. It’s about loving somebody and not having them be a part of your life anymore, but still being stuck with all the memories you made with them,” she shared. “It’s a song that really means a lot to me and it’s really close to my heart.”

Fans can look forward to more new music comng soon from the blossoming new artist.

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Karley Scott Collins releases.

To keep up with Karley Scott Collins, follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

Karley Scott Collins’ music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

Matt-roy

Who Is Matt Roy? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

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Who is Matt Roy? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about his journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

Matt-roy

The Beginning:

This week our spotlight shines on an artist, whose debut EP, Wildflower, made us stop in our tracks! Matt Roy,  a Nashville-transplant, is a true artist and singer-songwriter that deserves all the support in the industry.

Growing up in New Jersey, Roy picked up the guitar at an early age. Drawing inspiration from artists in different genres, such as Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen, the singer knew the importance of a song. “I was playing gigs at a pretty young age,” shared the entertainer, as he reflected on his upbringing.

At the age of twelve, Roy began to perform in New Jersey, New York, and the tristate area, even learning to craft a song. Just a few years later, the singer was taking trips to Nashville to hone his talent even more. “When I was about 16-17, I took a couple of trips to Nashville and I figured out you could write songs for other people, you could release records,” shared Roy, adding later, “At that time, writing songs became sort of a more serious life and career decision [for me].”

Roy continued to play shows in the tristate area anywhere he could, including at bars and at local events, until he could head off to college. “I had my sights set on moving to Nashville and playing music,” shared the singer, when asked about his decision to attend Belmont University. “It was a pretty easy decision for me.”

The Turning Point:

With his dreams in tow, Roy headed to Nashville to attend Belmont University to work on his craft and learn more about the music business. Roy’s desire was to focus on songwriting and grow his skills. “It was a total dream come true for me to be in Nashville,” shared the singer.

Just before graduating, Roy inked a publishing deal with BMG Music. The singer-songwriter earned cuts from artists like Kane Brown, Chris Young, and Adam Doleac. Roy even earned his first multi-week number one single with Chris Janson’s song “Done.”

“I wrote that song about two years into my publishing deal,” shared Roy. “It gave me a lot of legitimacy and proved to myself and others that I could do this. It was a huge milestone in my career and something I’m ultra, ultra proud of.”

Roy spent time cultivating songs for other artists, until he finally decided to put out his first-ever artist project.

Today:

Just last month, Roy released his debut EP, Wildflower. The record features five high-caliber songs, all co-written by the singer-songwriter. “This EP is sort of the foundation of hopefully a long career doing this, and I’m going to take it step by step, and build this thing from the ground up,” shared the artist.

Each of the songs were carefully chosen by Roy to record. He wanted the record to showcase emotion, his artistry, and true-blue country songwriting. The record started off with the title track, “Wildflower,” which Roy thought was too good of a song to not release.

“I had the first four to five lines of that song written down and we just started writing that song line by line, and let the song guide us where we wanted to go,” shared the singer. This process is unique, as artists typically head into a write with an idea or a name ready, instead of lyrics.

One of our favorites on the record, “When You Lose Someone,” was inspired by a loss Roy suffered. Despite that notion, the song is relatable for anyone who has ever experienced a loss, a break-up or heartbreak in general. Roy shared that he will be continuing to push this song, as well as, “Wildflower,” and “Morning In New Orleans,” as the year progresses.

Fans can anticipate Roy to let the record breathe a little over the next few months before the singer puts out more new music. “I’m itching to play these songs on the road for people and get some reactions.” Roy is the real deal and fans should definitely keep him on their radar! We are already huge fans.

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Matt Roy releases.

To keep up with Matt Roy, follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Matt Roy’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

who-is-josh-ross

Who Is Josh Ross? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

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Who is Josh Ross? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about his journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

who-is-josh-ross

The Beginning:

As ya’ll know, we love championing new artists in country music. Today, we get to introduce you to Josh Ross, an incredible singer-songwriter from Ontario, Canada. We chatted with Ross about his journey, his move to Nashville, and his current new music, out now.

“I’ve always loved music. […] It’s a big part of my family,” began the singer. Although his father loved Rock & Roll and his mother loved artists like U2 and Bruce Springsteen, Ross’ first love was the country music genre. “I had a family friend that introduced me to Steve Earle’s music when I was five or six years old,” shared the singer. “I was kind of that weird kid in high school listening to Steve Earle’s music and friends were like what is this, but by the time I got to 12th grade, country music ended up being cool.”

Despite an early love for music, Ross focused on sports during his upbringing. In another life, the singer played hockey, was a professional motocross rider, and even played college football. After some unfortunate injuries kept him sidelined, Ross gravitated towards music. “When I was in my first year of college, a buddy of mine actually had a guitar and I would just sing along, and I started to realize I wasn’t half as bad as I thought.”

From there on, Ross would play music for fun, whether it be singing karaoke or playing at small coffee shops. Eventually, he got entered into an Emerging Artists Festival in Ontario, which led him to bigger stages and a newfound dream. “I went from playing a coffee shop on a Thursday to I got entered into this festival, and got into the top 8 of this, and on Friday, I got to play for close to 7000, 8000 people, and that was my first real show.”

The Turning Point:

The festival and his supporters convinced Ross that he had what it took to succeed in the country music industry. “It was a big eyeopener to find myself as an artist, figure out what I wanted to say, and what I wanted to sound like,” he shared. Ross was encouraged to head to Nashville to work on crafting his skills as a songwriter. After several trips back and forth, the singer decided to relocate to music city.

“I just knew that I needed to surround myself there and if you want to be the best, you have to be around the best,” shared Ross, adding later, “Nashville is one of those special places, where I can go to the house next door and that guy is a great guitar player and I go to the next house, and that guy makes tracks and stuff.”

Since 2018, Ross has worked hard at crafting his songwriting talent and discovering his own type of artistry. Combining his love of many genres, he has cultivated a sound that is all his own. “In a weird way, I think I always wrote music without knowing it. When I was a kid, I would write in a binder and write down stories about what was going on in my life,” shared the singer, when asked about his desire to write his own music. He also added, “There’s definitely an emotional side and a fun side, and I think that really translates to what I want to say, and something that people can relate to.”

Today:

With just a few songs out, Ross has already shown fans that he is the real deal. Most recently, the singer-songwriter released his first ballad, a song called “First Taste of Gone” Written by Ross with Mason Thornley, the song conveys a personal and heartbreaking message. It depicts the feelings we all go through when we finally get to the point, where a relationship is truly over. Vocally driven, Ross’ voice is the perfect combination of gravelly and strong. Lyrically, the song is poignant and deeply emotive.

According to Ross, “I was going through a lot in my life and my personal life with changes. […] It was just one of those songs where I felt like you have that moment where you have to go out again without that person, and it’s a weird feeling being like “well, I don’t have to call someone when I go home tonight” or “she’s not going to be there.”

With each and every release, Ross is cultivating his own sound, clearly influenced by his love of pop-punk music, current industry hitmakers, (HARDY, Morgan Wallen, Thomas Rhett) and rock elements. We look forward to more new music from the singer, coming later this year! Be on the lookout and keep Ross on your radar.

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Josh Ross releases.

To keep up with Josh Ross, follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Josh Ross’ music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

who-is-matt-koziol

Who Is Matt Koziol? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

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Who is Matt Koziol? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about his journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

who-is-matt-koziol

The Beginning:

Today we are introducing you to a singer-songwriter that hails from the tristate area. Matt Koziol is a true-blue country-rock artist that you are going to want to keep on your radar. We chatted with the entertainer about his love for music, his move to Nashville, and everything in between.

Growing up in New Jersey, Koziol was surrounded by hardworking blue-collar people. Although most of his family was not musical, the singer knew at just two years old that he was born to do music for a living. “I had to be two or three, and someone put on a video tape of Elvis and I was like “that’s what I want… and it still hasn’t changed,” shared the singer.

Growing up, Koziol went on to sing in talent shows, choirs, and wherever he could. “Probably since the age of 7, I was singing,” he shared. “I was singing in choirs and doing all that, and then at 12, playing in bands.”

Finding inspiration in all kinds of genres, such as Motown, rock, and bluegrass music, Koziol chased his dream to perform and sing. “I played New York a ton. I played Philly a ton. The whole northeast was my wheelhouse,” shared the singer.

After a stint in Los Angeles, a town where he started songwriting, Koziol found himself moving to Nashville to continue to pursue his dream. Armed with influences like Bruce Springsteen and James Taylor, the young twenty-something year old at the time was ready for more.

The Turning Point:

After moving to Nashville, Koziol kicked his songwriting into high-gear, even signing a publishing deal with RX Songs. “I was brought on to be their country writer,” shared the singer-songwriter. Koziol added later, “When I moved here, I always called it the greatest masterclass in songwriting.” Later, the singer also signed on as an artist to RED Creative Group.

While in Nashville, the singer continued to study different artists and songwriters in the genre. Koziol shared a love for modern-day artists like Cody Johnson and HARDY, as well as, old-school country pros, like Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings. “When you go down the rabbit hole of the older generation like Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson, it really makes you think. Willie Nelson was a really prolific writer to me,” shared Koziol.

Most recently, the singer also expressed an admiration for Kacey Musgraves, even covering her song “Rainbow” on social media. “When you look at the caliber of the three people who wrote that song, that’s what got me to want to sing it,” shared Koziol. “When I have a melody that I don’t have to work out and it just feels like, I go “okay, this is it.” It’s such a beautiful song.”

Today:

Of course, Koziol is also releasing music of his own. With a ten song album in the works and slated for release sometime in the spring, the singer is excited to be sharing his own music with the world. Most recently, the artist released his song “Slow Burn.” Written by Koziol with Wes Harllee, the song is enticing and emotive.

“We talked about past relationships […] and they ended in kind of similar ways,” shares the singer, when asked about the inspiration for the new track. “Being the people that we are, we didn’t take a lot of the anger that we had, we kind of tucked it back.” The song is a true personification of the grieving process that we all go through after a break-up.

Koziol shares, “It’s such a slow burn to get over something that took so much of our energy,” adding later, “We tried to write things that were visually honest and somewhat visceral.” It is safe to say that the singer-songwriter accomplished that!

If “Slow Burn” is any inclination of what fans can expect from the forthcoming full-length project than we are in for a great record. Fans can look forward to more new music and more touring by the singer in the months to come.

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Matt Koziol releases.

To keep up with Matt Koziol, follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Matt Koziol’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

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Who Is Breland? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

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Who is Breland? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about his journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

who-is-breland

The Beginning:

It is quite evident that the recording artist, Breland is a star in the making! Breland is indisputably an artist to pay attention to. The Jersey native has quite the collection of collaborations that serve as a testament to the music community’s appreciation for his undeniable talent. We chatted with the singer-songwriter to learn more about his journey so far.

“My parents are both ministers and they lead worship at church and they met in a gospel choir, so growing up there was a lot of gospel music around the house,” begins Breland. “They are probably the most talented married couple vocally that I’ve ever come across,” shares the singer. Later, the entertainer paid more homage to his parents. “I definitely credit them for some of the things I am doing now vocally, in terms of arrangement and even melodies as a songwriter.”

Despite his family’s obvious talent and inspiration, Breland honed his artistry during his time away at boarding high school. “Being able to establish my own identity away at high school was really pivotal. I just started telling people on campus that I was an artist,” shared the singer.

The Turning Point:

After high school, Breland continues his education by heading to business school at Georgetown University. While in college, the singer-songwriter decided he wanted to keep grinding in the music industry.

“I kind of decided I wanted to kick things up a notch with music, so I started looking for mentors that could give me meaningful feedback with what I was doing,” shared the singer, adding, “I just started cold reaching out to different producers […] Eventually, some people listened and they were down in Atlanta, which motivated me move there after college.”

Breland truly embodies a passion for the industry. “You can only control your effort. You can only control how you treat people and you can only control your mastery of the craft. I think for me it was a combination of all three of those things,” shared the artist.

While in Atlanta, Breland added more genres to his catalog of music interests. “I kind of developed an appreciation for country music around that time because it was my first time truly living in the south. I was like man these people in country music have figured something out, there’s a formula that they have that I would like to figure out, I want to tap in.”

The singer also credits artists like Stevie Wonder, Keith Urban, Drake, Nelly, and Justin Bieber as some of his inspirations. When it comes to songwriting, Breland shared,”it’s a lot of Motown music like 60s and 70s, the evolution of pop.”

Today:

Breland burst on to the scene with his cross-genre hit, “My Truck,” According to the singer, “’My Truck’” was kind of a demo I had made after living in Atlanta for a few years and there was enough of me in it that I wanted to put it out independently.” This song was the starting point of Breland’s desire to explore the crossroads between the country and hip-hop genres.

“I was really interested in the intersection between country and hip hop, giving that they are both the preeminent genres in the south and recognizing that there’s not really a whole lot that separates the listener base if you look at every factor, other than race.”

Breland also credits the collaborations in hip hop music as his inspiration for his own collaborations. So far in his young career, the singer has already dropped music with Nelly, Dierks Bentley, Keith Urban, Mickey Guyton, and more. “I don’t really go into any of these things thinking I have to be on this song as an artist, I just want to create something and whatever is meant to happen will happen,” shared Breland.

Just this week, Breland premiered his latest collab, a brand new song “Praise The Lord” featuring Thomas Rhett, which the two performed together Monday Night (March 7th) on the ACM Awards. “I know that it’s a song that’s sticky, it definitely gets into people’s heads, and it’s kind of different and adds something cool to the country algorithm. And to have Thomas Rhett on it, I think will really surprise a lot of people and make perfect sense.”

Breland also revealed his debut album, CROSS COUNTRY will be out early this summer.

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Breland releases.

To keep up with BRELAND, follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Breland’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

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Who Are the Nashvillains? The Story Behind Their Journey to Country Music

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Who Are the Nashvillains? The country-rock trio joined us to chat about their journey to country music. Get to know the rising stars here…

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Nashvillains // Photo credit: Annie Noelker

The Beginning:

Today our spotlight shines on one of the most unique acts in country music right now. The Nashvillains, comprised of three incredible musicians, Troy Johnson, Brett Boyett, and Scott Lindsey are a band you are going to want to know about ASAP. The trio is a true gift to music fans.

Johnson, Boyett, and Scott were all primed for success in the music industry at an early age. They all lived full and prosperous lives, prior to forming their band. Nashvillains’ lead singer, Johnson has been playing music all his life. “I have always done it since the age of 5, I kind of woke up singing and I just haven’t stopped. Music has always been the trajectory of my life.” The singer headed to Belmont University in Nashville for college and has been cutting his teeth in the industry since.

Scott also attended Belmont University around the same time. “I’m originally from a place called Beaver Dam, Kentucky, in the heart of bluegrass music,” shared the band member. “I was raised on music and I thought everyone played music, baseball, and basketball growing up.” Scott grew up heading to writes in Nashville with his father, as well as, playing gigs at honky-tonks in music city at as early as sixteen.

Nashvillains’ guitar player and record producer, Boyett got his start in his home state of Colorado. The artist even studied classical guitar, when he attended college in Texas. “I was playing the country circuit in Texas and I was writing songs and he encouraged me to move to Nashville,” shared Boyett about the encouragement he got from George Jones’ bass player. The artist also played in a rock band in New York City, but it was in Los Angeles, where he really honed his skills as a composer and as a songwriter.

Boyett’s faithful move to LA, where he worked on shows like Reba and wrote and produced, the highly-acclaimed feature ‘Forever My Girl’, was the start of the Nashvillains. He just did not know it yet!

The Turning Point:

While working on Forever My Girl, Boyett hired Johnson to sing the demos and background vocals. The two immediately bonded and formed a working friendship. Boyett also was introduced to Scott, during the same time in his life. “We hit it off and I started talking about how I was moving back to Nashville and I wanted to work with this singer I had been using for demos, Troy Johnson, and he was like, ‘oh yeah, I know Troy. We write for the same publishing company.'”

As it turned out, both Scott and Johnson had offices across the hall from one another at the publishing company and knew each other well. After the trio all became friends, Boyett finally pitched his idea of the Nashvillains to the men. “I had this idea of the Nashvillains, this kind of dark, country, cinematic country thing and we all got together,” shared Boyett.

After some convincing, both Scott and Johnson were on board, and the trio that is Nashvillains was born.

Today:

Fans can look forward to the Nashvillains debut album Tumbling Down coming out this Friday, March 4th. “I think that our uniqueness comes from the fact that we actually did draw from each other’s unique backgrounds,” shared the trio. “There’s a lot of different influences in this band. We all three have such diverse backgrounds with where we are from and the music we grew up on.”

The record is a complete concept album that is a unique conglomerate of everything that makes the trio mesh together effortlessly.“We’re all kinda musicologists in a sense that we get all the genres, but we each have a different proclivity to play. And I think because of that a push and pull that’s what creates the [Nashvillains.]”

Tumbling Down is both unique and relatable, begging listeners to listen to the project from start to finish. “One of the coolest things about this is that people should listen to the album from start to finish. It’s a concept album, so there’s an overall story and an arc to the entire album, so each song relates to the next one,” begins the band. “We hadn’t heard of anyone else doing that in country music, so we thought that might be a really cool approach to take with this and we had a pretty good story that we thought would work and we kind of wrote around that.”

Fans can also anticipate unique instrumentation to go along with the rock-country vibes of the upcoming project.“I think we’ve really embodied the name ‘Nashvillains.’ We’re definitely country and we’re definitely based in Nashville, but we sort of have a skewed view of what the Nashvillains sound is and we can kinda explore.”

Country music fans can look forward to the trio supporting the record with tour dates in the upcoming months. Until then, make sure you check back this Friday for our full review of the record!

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news about upcoming Nashvillains announcements and releases.

To keep up with Nashvillains, follow them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

“Tumbling Down” is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

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Who Is Minnie Murphy? The Story Behind Her Journey to Country Music

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Who is Minnie Murphy? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about her journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…

who-is-minnie-murphy

The Beginning:

Some people are just born to be in the industry, and Minnie Murphy is one of those artists. A singer-songwriter with music in her veins, Murphy knows how to craft a lyric and a good song. She shares with Country Swag all about her journey thus far.

“I was born in California but we moved to Washington state when I was a baby,” begins the songstress. At an early age, Murphy recalls her parents playing music professionally. “I just kind of grew up around it and my parents played four nights a week. […] That whole lifestyle is what I’ve always known.”

She credits her parents as early influences on her musical interests. Murphy’s musical inspirations run the gamut of genres. She loves classic rock, country, and even Jazz music. “I’ve just kind of soaked it all in. I love R&B and Jazz singers, that probably might be my first love,” she shared. “The vocalists, the real Jazzy singers that do a lot of improv and scatting, but country music has always been a part of me. I love the values instilled in it and I love Nashville.”

At ten years old, Murphy learned how to play piano, which eventually led to her songwriting too.“Once I learned that basic theory, I started writing songs,” she shared, adding later, “In high school, my dad and I would come to Nashville and do co-writing with other writers in town. We put together a 5 song demo and pitched it to some labels.” This led to a series of adventures in Nashville for the singer.

The Turning Point:

Fresh out of high school, Murphy landed a record deal with SONY. Unfortunately, the singer never released music, under the label, due to a merger that left her without a label. Not one to give up, Murphy cut her teeth at the Nashville bars and restaurants, and eventually landed herself another record deal.

When that deal fell through too, the songstress still did not quit! Murphy utilized her connections to land herself a publishing deal at Johnny Morris’ company. “I put my apron down and I walked in there by myself and I asked if I could be a writer. And I’ve been there for the past eight years,” declared the artist.

After several years working as a writer, something began to shift in Murphy. She credits having a son and really honing her skills as a songwriter for giving her the courage and the desire to work as an artist again.“Working at this publishing company and getting better as a songwriter and then having a son, that’s what kind of  made me want to put music out again.”

Today:

Flash forward to today, fans can rejoice in Murphy’s newest single, “Get Over It.” Written by the singer with Don Bedell and Trafton Harvey, the song feels like an old-school country song. “We were like how should we write this and we kicked around some different angles, but we usually resort to a drinking song if we get stuck, and I just thought that the title fit.”

Murphy took that retro-country inspiration to turn the song into one of her favorite tracks that she has ever been a part of. The single is the first of many singles off the songstress’ upcoming debut album. “I just thought, I should make an album and build off this vibe,” shared Murphy. “We’re going to release some singles off of the LP. It’s seven songs and then we’ll put the whole thing out.”

Fans can look forward to this next chapter for Murphy. She will continue to be cutting songs and crafting songs over the next year. Keep your eyes and ears peeled!

Connect:

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news about upcoming Minnie Murphy announcements and releases.

To keep up with Minnie Murphy follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Minnie Murphy’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.