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“Stuck Like Glue”

To hear Jennifer Nettles tell it, it’s a brand new day in Sugarland. Despite winning multiple Grammy, CMA and ACM awards—and selling more than 8 million records—the country-music duo of Nettles and Kristian Bush is embracing a creative rebirth, a musical awakening that permeates their adventurous fourth album, The Incredible Machine.

“We are in a place of discovery,” Jennifer says. “It is the essence of who we are as people in this band. There is never a moment where we think, ‘This is good enough.’ There’s always a place for growth.”

A growth that Kristian says has been encouraged by their fans, their record label, and, most importantly, by the genre-bending, all-are-welcome country-music industry. “It’s as if the industry and the culture have singled out the biggest risks we’ve taken on a record, a song like ‘Stay’ for example, and celebrated those,” he says gratefully. “They’ve embraced us at those times. We’ve tried to learn from that and this is what we’ve made.”

And what they’ve created is a dynamic masterwork. Co-written and co-produced in full by Jennifer and Kristian, The Incredible Machine is a soaring album elevated by sky-high choruses, ringing guitars, and pulsing drums that recall the beating of the album’s titular engine, the human heart.

Kristian describes it as a collection of anthems—and there may be no greater understatement. If the duo was searching for the grander side of country on their last record, the double platinum Love on the Inside, they’ve obviously found it on The Incredible Machine. From the fanfare of the album’s opener “All We Are” to Jennifer’s sublime piano-ballad closer “Shine the Light,” this is an album built for stadiums.

“This record is designed to play in very large places and to communicate with a large group of people,” Kristian confirms. “When you have an instrument as powerful and as graceful as Jennifer’s voice, you don’t want to tip-toe in. You really go for it! And those types of songs are often where Jennifer and I intersect musically.”

In fact, the pair found shared inspiration in the iconic music and films of the 1980s, their growing-up years. “We allowed ourselves to play with our influences,” Jennifer admits. As such, the coming-of-age movies by director John Hughes and songs by Blondie, Peter Gabriel, The Pretenders and even The Clash all helped fire up the Machine. “When we were writing, we asked what if John Hughes were making movies now…. Who would be on the soundtrack?” Kristian says, going on to connect the dots between rebellious country and rebellious rock. “If you dig far enough you’re going to see that The Clash and Johnny Cash had a lot in common. I like to live right where those guys meet.”

In a song like the joyous “Find the Beat Again,” for instance, Jennifer reminds the heavy-hearted among us that nothing lasts forever, while Kristian’s siren-like guitar sound—a technique he adapted from The Clash, he says—pushes the song toward its climax.

Or the call-to-arms “Stand Up,” in which the band exhorts listeners to “use your voice.” A tale of personal empowerment, the track is almost heroic in its message. It’s also one of two songs on the album to showcase Kristian’s voice. “I don’t know how many people have really ever heard me sing before,” he says of his lead verse. “For fans of the band, it’s like a whole new layer is peeled back.”

“All We Are” is equally triumphant. A rallying cry of sorts, it culminates in a mass of melodies folding upon one another. The result is breathtaking, a musical equation so intricate that it solidifies the duo’s ability to write complex fare as well as breezy, winking tunes like first single “Stuck like Glue.”

“We write songs for different reasons. There are some songs that we want to change your life and there are some that we just want to change your day. That’s what ‘Stuck like Glue’ is,” Jennifer laughs. “We don’t take ourselves too seriously, and that’s what fans love.”

They also flock to Jennifer’s knack for finding the voice of everywoman—or even everyman. One of Sugarland’s many gifts is their ability to write lyrics that transcend gender, like in their 2004 breakout hit “Baby Girl.” On The Incredible Machine, the proof is in the acoustic “Little Miss,” a profile of a woman who tries to handle everything, all by herself. “I saw my mom as that person. I see pieces of it in my own daughter. Jennifer is certainly one of those women,” Kristian says.

Aside from the powerhouse rocker “Wide Open,” written specifically for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, “Little Miss” is one of the record’s earliest penned tracks. “We were at a festival over a year ago and I was on the bus doing my makeup while Kristian was warming up,” recalls Jennifer. “I was wearing a checkered dress and he started playing this lick and singing, ‘Little Miss checkered dress.’ I popped my head out and sang, ‘Little Miss one big mess!’ The way that song was discovered was fun and really beautiful.”

And the band is confident that fans, old and new alike, will have a similar experience as they discover the gears and cogs of The Incredible Machine—a country record, a pop record, an anthem record, a ballad record, but above all, an authentic record.

“It’s just the two of us,” says Kristian. “In the story of who we are, this album is more us than we’ve ever been.”

Jennifer agrees and says the band’s rebirth is best summed up in the gentle, searching words of the album’s title track: Feels like I’m flying, wings made of light/brand new and shinin’, like a shot rung out through the night.

“That’s a wonderful metaphor and image for this newly emerging creature that Sugarland is right now, with these vulnerable but beautiful wings. The Incredible Machine is definitely us, but at the same time, there is something very precious and new,” she says. “And we want to show it to the world!”

Popularity: 3%

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“Georgia Clay”

After spending the majority of the past decade as a successful pop and adult contemporary artist, Josh Kelley returns to the Southern sound he’s loved since childhood with his upcoming MCA Nashville country release. While it may be his official debut into the country genre, Josh’s previous hits, have always contained discernible country flair.

“This record is a time capsule. It’s by far the best thing I’ve written and I’ve never been more proud,” revealed Josh, who wrote or co-wrote each of the album’s eleven songs.

“I’m finally in a genre where I can write lyrics, tell stories and be a man.”

It’s evident that this latest project is very much autobiographical, having gotten married, moved and adopted a baby girl all in the past two years. These events created the album and the stories he tells in it.

“My life has completely changed. My wife is a very strong independent woman, she allows me my own independence and from the first time my baby girl brushed her hand against my face, my life was changed. This album reflects those changes.”

Josh’s MCA Nashville project not only showcases his talents as a singer and songwriter, but reveals him to be the latest definition of a true renaissance man; a man who’s confident enough within his own skin to reveal a new take on sentimental themes by employing thoughtful lyrics.

“Georgia Clay”, the project’s lead single, recalls the carefree summers of Josh’s youth, when he and his brothers would hitch up jet skis to their Dad’s ‘77 Chevy Silverado and head down to the lake. The memories made those summers are engrained their lives, as well as the tires of that old truck.

“The whole idea behind “Georgia Clay” is that we could go back to the garage and look at that truck, which hadn’t been driven in years, and still find layers of mud stuck to the tires. That is the mud from our childhood, those memories are still there.”

With a modern country feel Josh recalls his life experiences with songs like “Great Idea”, “Ain’t Letting Go”, “Two Cups of Coffee” and “Gone Like That”. Each of these songs embrace the familiarity of times gone by, not by idealizing the past, but by presenting unique lessons learned from it.

“Gone Like That” isn’t the typical she’s gone and I don’t care take on a one night stand, it explores an unapologetically sensitive man who keeps running into what could be the woman of his dreams.

“This was the song that actually started my journey into country music. I had written and presented it to my music publisher to pitch to other artists, but they liked my demo so much they encouraged me to cut it. It was the first song I wrote that gave me the confidence to pursue a career as a country singer.”

The sentimental and emotionally charged “Naleigh Moon”, a song written for and about his beloved baby girl, dives deep into the intense connection between a father and his daughter.

“We’d only had Naleigh for a couple of weeks when I wrote this and I think it’s the best song I’ve ever written. The way the chords and the melody intertwine, it really tugs on your heartstrings. When I sang that song in the studio, I really meant it.”

Not leaving the drinkin’ & carousin’ songs entirely to his contemporaries, Josh offers up “Raining Whiskey”, a get the party started tune that’s destine to be added to every jukebox and honky tonk across the country. Referencing the song’s lyrics, It’s hard staying dry when it’s raining whiskey, Josh laughed, “That’s my favorite forecast.”

As a kid growing up in Augusta, Georgia, Josh experienced both city life and country living; thanks to his family owning a bit of farmland near their home.

“We grew up half our lives on a farm up in the North Georgia Mountains,” said Josh. “Summers were spent bush hoggin’ acres of land and life in Augusta was all about golf and music. We had the best of both worlds. There was the fun of city life, plus we got to experience the beauty of the country,” Josh continued.

The first record Josh remembers buying was U2’s Joshua Tree, but early on he was exposed to a wide range of musical styles.

“It depended on whose car I was in,” said Josh. “If it was my Mom’s car, it was Doobie Brothers, Luther Vandross, Michael McDonald. If I was with my older brother John, it was Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, Supertramp. With Dad it was all country all the time.”

During his early teens Josh and younger brother Charles (of Lady Antebellum fame) decided to form the band Inside Blue, with Charles on drums and lead vocals and Josh on electric guitar.

Inside Blue released a maxi cd with five tracks which were played on local radio and eventually caught the attention of The Godfather of Soul, James Brown, and his manager, who wanted to sign them.

“He loved our songs, but they wanted to change everything, so my Dad and brother said ‘no deal’. I’m glad they did that because it afforded both me and Charles the opportunity to grow up and see the world and really have things to write about.”

Never fully putting his love of music on the back burner, Josh left Georgia to attend the University of Mississippi under a golf scholarship where he studied graphic design. During his junior year, after boosting buzz for himself by way of a self-promoting internet scheme, he eventually landed his first major label deal with Hollywood Records.

2003 saw the release of For The Ride Home and the success of its Top 5 hit single, “Amazing” and in 2005, Josh released his second major label effort Almost Honest and its lead single, “Only You”.

Not long after that, Josh opted out of his Hollywood Records deal and started his own record label, DNK Records.

With his career firmly in his own hands, Josh released four independent albums between 2006 and 2008.

“I wanted the sound to be more rootsy and more organic,” he said. “That’s what I had the power to do releasing my music on my own label.”

Since then he has remained in the public eye thanks to numerous television performances, including: Ellen, Good Morning America, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Regis & Kelly, Last Call with Carson Daly and E!.

In addition to television support, People Magazine, Us Weekly, Billboard, Entertainment Weekly, Radar and Paste Magazine are among the popular music and entertainment publications that have spotlighted Josh and his music.

Josh’s music has also been incorporated into episodes of several popular TV shows, among them: The CW’s Smallville, NBC’s Scrubs, ABC’s Brothers and Sisters, What About Brian and MTV’s The Hills.

After a successful career in pop music and as an indie artist, Josh is back, this time with a country album steeped in tradition and heartfelt truths.

From the memories of “Georgia Clay”, the raw emotion of “Naleigh Moon”, the humor of “Raining Whiskey” or the lyrical seduction of “Learning You”, and every song in between, Josh Kelley simultaneously renews cherished country music traditions while bringing a refreshing energy to his latest release. He is, where he feels he’s always belonged, right here in Music City.

“It’s funny how if you keep working hard and keep trying, an opportunity comes around, and thank God it did. We’re gonna get to move back here to Nashville and this is where I’ll be the rest of my life.”

Popularity: 2%

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“Roll With It”

Easton Corbin knew he wanted to be a country singer well before he learned how to play guitar.

“One of my earliest memories is from when I was three or four,” he remembers. “I was sitting between my parents in the car and a song came on the radio—it was Mel McDaniel’s ‘Baby’s Got Her Blue Jeans On’. I began using the gearshift as my microphone. The desire has always been there.”

Born and raised in rural Gilchrist County, Fla., Easton spent much of his time on his grandparent’s cattle farm after his parents divorced when he was young. “I lived a mile from the Suwannee River,” he says. “I grew up fishing on it and I loved to work on the farm. Every weekend, that’s where I’d be.”

A member of FFA and 4-H, Easton showed cattle at the local livestock fair. Growing up the smallest county in the state on farmland nestled between two small towns had its advantages. “It’s a close community,” he says. “Everybody knows everybody.

“There’s no Walmart there,” he says. “There was a Hardee’s, but it closed. That was the only franchise fast food place in the county. Trenton has a red light; Bell has a blinking light. It’s a great place.”

While no one in his family played a musical instrument, music was a big part of his upbringing. “My grandparents liked to watch the Opry,” Easton remembers. “We’d start Saturday night off with ‘Hee Haw’ and then ‘Opry Backstage’ and then ‘Opry Live’.”

It was also at his grandparent’s house that he discovered a record player and his father and aunts’ left-behind records in a front room. “I’d go in there and play those records for hours,” he says.

When Easton was 15 years old he began taking guitar lessons from Pee Wee Melton, a local musician who had at one time played on sessions in Nashville. “He was a great mentor,” Easton says. “He was a great player and a great teacher. He was a really big influence on me.”

Every day when he got home from school, Easton would practice guitar for hours, sometimes until his fingers were raw, then help his grandfather around the farm.

Encouraged by Melton, Easton began playing lead guitar in a local band. “I’d always wanted to play and sing, but up until that time I never really did do it in public,” he says. “We’d play school functions and parties. We were too young to play bars, but we played everything else.”

An impromptu audition at a local music store led to a slot on the Suwannee River Jam, a nearby festival that attracts thousands of people and national touring acts. “It was just me and a guitar in front of a 40-acre field full of people,” Easton remembers. “It was great.”

Soon he was opening for other national acts when they played the area, including Janie Fricke and Mel McDaniel, the man whose song Easton had performed in the car years earlier.

After earning a business degree through the College of Agriculture at the University of Florida, Easton took two important steps. “My wife, Brinn, and I got married on September 2, 2006, and on October 14 we moved to Nashville,” he says. “I always knew I wanted to move up here. There was never any question about it. I didn’t want to wake up one day and wish I would have tried it, but I had to get my education first so I had something to fall back on.”

Easton, who had been making regular trips to Nashville to perform at writer’s nights, took a day job at a local Ace Hardware and his wife found a job at a doctor’s office.

When a distant cousin, also a professor of music management at the University of Montana, heard Easton’s music, he asked if he could send it to some of his Nashville contacts. Among those who were impressed by Easton’s music was booking agent James Yelich, who asked if he could hear him play in person. Easton, eager for a shot to pursue his dream, quickly agreed.

Also at the meeting was Joe Fisher, who had recently joined Universal Music Group Nashville as Senior Director of A&R. The two men were blown away and Fisher quickly signed him to the label.

Easton, whose musical influences include George Jones, Merle Haggard, George Strait and Keith Whitley, found a kindred spirit in producer Carson Chamberlain, who years earlier had toured with Whitley as his steel guitar player and bandleader. “We really hit it off,” Easton says. “I love traditional music and he does too. I knew he was the producer for me.”

The two men began working in earnest. “We worked our butts off trying to find the right songs,” Easton says. The result is an over-the-top album that includes cuts from Nashville’s top songwriters, including Mark D. Sanders, Wynn Varble, Tony Lane and David Lee, among others.

First single, “A Little More Country Than That,” which was written by Rory Feek, Don Poythress and Varble, paints a picture of rural life that speaks to Easton’s small town sensibilities. “Even though I didn’t write it, this song identifies who I am,” he says. “It shows character and that’s important where I’m from. You learn to say ‘yes, ma’am’ and ‘no, sir,’ and to open the door for the ladies.”

Among the songs included on the album are three Easton co-wrote with Chamberlain and Sanders during a trip to Colorado. “When I came to Nashville I realized how important it was to write songs,” Easton says. “The opportunity to sit in a room with experienced songwriters and learn their craft has helped me become a better writer.

“I’m still working and developing as a writer, but I was fortunate enough to get some songs on the album,” Easton says, perhaps more humble than he needs to be.

“The Way Love Looks,” which Easton co-wrote with Chamberlain and Sanders, is a love song pure and simple. “It’s just a fun upbeat song,” Easton says. “I love the line ‘when you beg and plead to go fishing with me and I have to bait your hook,’ because that’s what happens when I take my wife fishing.”

Tony Lane, David Lee and Johnny Park wrote “Roll With It,” which speaks to the important things in life like sunsets and pick-up trucks. “I love that one,” Easton says. “I can imagine listening to it just floatin’ down the river on the boat on a Saturday.”

The tender “I Can’t Love You Back,” written by Chamberlain, Clint Daniels and Jeff Hyde, has a universal message of loss. “It can mean different things for different people,” Easton says. “She could have died, she could have left him—people can interpret it the way they feel.”

Now that his life long dream is upon him, Easton says he’s ready. “I just want to make great country music,” he says. “Just the opportunity to play music for a living is a great thing. I’m just thankful to have the opportunity to do what I’m doing now.”

Popularity: 2%

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“Christmas Eve”

In a town full of attractive Country stars, it takes a lot for a young female singer to stand out and catch the attention of Nashville’s music industry crowd. Eighteen -year-old Rachel Holder is up to the challenge.

“I’ve already learned that it takes more than a few good songs to make it in Nashville,” says Holder. “These days, I don’t think that there’s any one formula for success, necessarily, but I know you have to have faith in yourself, passion for the music and a serious will to succeed. And great songs!” she emphasizes.

Though still in her teens, Rachel’s talent as an artist matured fairly quickly. As a child performer, Rachel split time between attending school in Chattanooga and performing theater shows in Pigeon Forge, one of Tennessee’s most popular tourist destinations. By the time she was old enough to drive, she had added more than 800 Broadway-style shows to her resume, often performing two or three shows a day to packed houses. With the experience she gained on the small stages of Pigeon Forge, the teen singer-songwriter decided it was time to make the jump to the big stages of Music City. With a new single out and a debut album in the works, Rachel is poised to be a star in Country music, and perhaps beyond.

If there’s one thing that Rachel Holder conveys almost immediately in person, it’s her unflappable sense of confidence. She was simply born to be a performer, and it shows. One story in particular illustrates that point, and her demeanor, perfectly.

When she was only 15, Rachel attended an intimate Vince Gill concert in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with her parents. In between songs, the aspiring singer raised her hand and boldly (yet politely) asked to join the superstar on stage to sing a duet. Vince, surprised and somewhat amused, agreed, and only moments later the two were bringing down the house with a version of “Oklahoma Swing.” (Search for it on YouTube and see for yourself). Then there’s the story of Rachel successfully booking herself to sing the national anthem at a Los Angeles Lakers basketball game at only 14-years-old. Rachel Holder is, in a word, fearless.

Of course, Rachel’s debut single, “Chocolate,” proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that this engaging young lady has a thirst for originality and a creative streak a mile wide. “Chocolate” is pure pop-Country brilliance, but it also belies Rachel’s intensity and seriousness as a true artist. Look no further than her a cappella version of the Roy Orbison classic, “Crying,” – sung in Spanish, no less – to understand the depth of her talent (also on YouTube). However, it was Rachel who wisely recognized the light-hearted appeal of a song like “Chocolate” to release as her first single.

“I chose that song because I could really relate to the lyrics, and I think that a lot of other women will, too,” she laughs. “I’m excited about the way the song has come together, and I really think that the video for it is such a unique concept that people will definitely stop and take notice,” she continues.

Working with renowned Nashville industry veterans such as acclaimed producer and publisher Chuck Howard, film and television producers Marvin Baker and Ann Gillis and songwriter Bill Luther, Holder has set herself up for success. Naturally, in Rachel’s mind, failure is not an option.

Still only 18-years-old, this blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty has come a long way from the stages of Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, but the path she’s on in Music City should take Rachel Holder much, much further.

Popularity: 2%

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“Country Girl 101″

All it takes is a quick glance at the song titles on Leah Seawright’s new album, Country Girl 101, to realize you’re dealing with a new kind of country girl—not simply one who grew up poor (which she did) but one who also grew up very smart, emotionally sure-footed and with lots to say. From the light-heartedness of “Don’t Take My Lexus” and “Soft Abs Hard Arteries” to the somber empathy of “Strong,” “Over The Storm” and “Feeling You Gone,” Seawright’s songs are like intimate conversations with a close friend. The thoughts and attitudes are authentically her own. She wrote or co-wrote 13 of the album’s 14 songs.

A native and still a resident of Fort Payne, Alabama—the home lair of the supergroup Alabama—Seawright was immersed in music from birth. “I guess I was predestined to do this,” she says. “My mom and my dad are both musicians and singers. As far back as I can remember we’d have people over on the weekends. Mom would sing and dad would play the guitar. In fact, he could play just about anything he picked up.”

It should be noted at this point that Seawright has an even closer link with the band Alabama. Its longtime drummer, Mark Herndon, recently emerged from musical retirement to become her drummer. More on that later.

When Seawright was in the third grade, her family moved from the Sand Mountain side of Fort Payne to Lookout Mountain. “I had this horrible speech impediment when I was in elementary school,” she recalls, “and had to take speech classes. It’s a terrible memory, but I was able to overcome it. I would sing and sing and sing. Then I went through those awful pre-teen years when I hid and sang.”

Ever so gradually, Seawright built up confidence in her singing. “I was in the ninth grade when this band made up mainly of school-age kids put up signs that they were auditioning for background singers. So my friend and I applied. But when it came time to go to the audition, we were both so nervous that neither of us showed up. They called and convinced us to try out. And I guess you could say they ‘hired’ us. We didn’t get any money, but we thought we were stars. I started singing backup and worked my way over the next few months into singing the lead on a song. I remember to this day that the song was Reba McEntire’s ‘Rumor Has It.’ That’s how it all started. I stayed in that band for a couple of years.”

Singing in the band wasn’t her only job, however. “Oh, Lord, I’ve done every kind,” she moans. “Once I worked at an outdoor store where I had to skin deer, dip minnows and do all that other country bumpkin stuff. We definitely were poor, and we moved a lot. We lived in housing projects in different towns. But kids don’t notice that stuff. All I knew was that when I got off the bus at the housing project, all my friends were there. I thought I had it made.”

Not long after she graduated from high school, Seawright went with some friends to a fancy supper club in Attalla, Alabama, just outside of Gadsden. Unbeknownst to her, while she was enjoying the food and music, her friends slipped a note to the bandleader suggesting he invite her to sing a song with the group. He did and she did. “After I finished the song,” she says, “they called me back up to the stage and told me they were looking for a female singer.” She took the job. “That earned me a little extra money on the weekends. I worked as a waitress during the week. I met my future husband there at the supper club. He played keyboards in the band. He also had a little recording studio, and I started working and writing there.”

Over the next few years, Seawright gave birth to three children. But she continued singing and writing. She also recorded two gospel albums. Even so, her fans kept pushing her to do a country record. “I finally told them,” she says, “that when I can write the songs and feel like they’re good enough, I’ll do it. I’m not opposed to singing other people’s songs. But I think it means a lot more when you write your own. I feel like the people listening to you sense that you’re coming from a real place. And it’s fun telling the stories behind the songs when you’re performing. With other people’s songs, you don’t know the stories.”

In 2004, just a few months after Seawright gave birth to her third child, she heard about a local singing contest. “It was being advertised on the radio station and friends were telling me about it,” she explains. “But I’d just had a baby and I was feeling sort of blah. On the last day to sign up, I was in the kitchen and I thought, ‘I’m going to turn the radio on and if they’re advertising it at that moment, I’ll know it’s meant for me to enter.’ I turned on the radio, and they were advertising it. So I signed up.” She won the prize for Best Solo Artist. But even more significant, she met her future producer and co-writer, Frank Green, who was one of the contest judges. Seawright kept performing with her band locally, sometimes opening shows for the likes of Mark Chesnutt and Exile. And she and Green began writing songs together. The upshot of that artistic alliance is Country Girl 101.

Last summer, Seawright met Mark Herndon through a mutual friend. At the time, the former Alabama stick man was working as a corporate pilot. Seawright coaxed him to come to her husband’s Stillbrook Studios in Fort Payne and hear some of the music she’d recorded. “He was listening to it and liking it,” she remembers. “So I just jokingly told him he needed to come out of retirement and be my drummer and that we’d go to the top together. I was just joking.” After mulling over the prospect, though, Herndon took her up on it. He even played a few licks on the new album and wrote the liner notes, in which he praises her for being “genuine and authentic.”

Looking back down the road she’s traveled to reach this point, Seawright says, “It’s just been a roller coaster. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’ve always been a glass-half-full gal.” Well, whatever her glass is half full of, you can be sure it’s high octane.

Popularity: 2%

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“I Love Beer” by Rio Grand

DANNY RIVERA
- Lead Vocals, Acoustic and Electric Guitar, Banjo, Dobro and Lap Steel.
Danny began his musical career as a roadie for a south Texas band. Down time between shows left room for one of the band members to show him a couple of chords on the guitar. Those three chords sparked an interest in performing that has been going strong ever since. “Once it’s in your blood – it’s hard to stop”, he says. Life on the road landed him a regular gig with capital recording artist Allison Paige, which in turn united him with Tommy Rennick and Graham Artist Management. Two years later, their combined efforts brought to life Rio Grand and a record deal with Curb Records.

TOMMY RENNICK
- Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals.
Tommy started dabbling in music at the age of 16 when his uncle bought him a red Gremlin bass. With influences from Creedence Clearwater Revival, Tom Petty and the Beatles he honed his playing skills and landed his first gig at 19 with 37 South a Corpus Christi hometown band of his high school buddies. Four years at Texas A and M and a music degree later, he began playing with Allison Paige where he met Danny Rivera. It was a year later that the two formed what was to become Rio Grand.

FRED STALLCUP
- Lead and Acoustic Guitar, Backing Vocals.
The youngest of three musical brothers, Fred began playing guitar at age 11. As the boys grew, they began playing nightclubs and bars from El Paso to Jacksonville. Over time they found they enjoyed the art of writing original music over performing and disbanded. Fred pressed on with various bands but found most members not cut out for a grueling tour schedule. Out of frustration, he took a day job and a break from the business. But it wasn’t long until he was approached by a member of Herbert Graham’s Management team and asked if he’d be interested in playing with a new band called Rio Grand. He’d seen them perform and his answer was “It’s magic and I have to be a part of it.”

Popularity: 3%