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Brad Paisley Bio | |
Not long after the release of his debut album, Who Needs Pictures, in May of 1999, singer-songwriter-guitarist Brad Paisley became the most-nominated and most-awarded new artist in country music. He has continued that trend in the years since, having been honored with seven major award show trophies, (including three CMA Awards), back-back platinum albums, and an NSAI “Songwriter of the Year” award. Fans and critics alike have responded to Paisley's heartfelt sincerity, his way with a lyric, and most especially his healthy sense of humor and appetite for fun, which shines through once again on his latest single, “Celebrity.” The song is the first taste of his latest album, Mud On The Tires, due out this July.
“Celebrity,” Paisley's take on the zaniness of the current reality TV craze and the insanity of fame, appears to be a runaway hit in the same vein as “I'm Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin' Song),” due in part to another wild and wacky video packed with special guests and plenty of hilarity. Taking a cue from its name, the “Celebrity” video features Brad auditioning for an “American Idol” type show with actor William Shatner as a Simon Cowell-type judge, while “Seinfeld” star Jason Alexander throws a foam-flying fit when his latte isn't exactly right. Trista Rehn of “The Bachelorette” fame and Grand Ole Opry star Little Jimmy Dickens also make an appearance in the clip, which is currently airing on CMT and GAC.
Dickens also made a cameo appearance in the video for Paisley's smash hit of 2002, “I'm Gonna Miss Her,” which also featured Kimberly Williams of Father of the Bride and ABC's According To Jim (who is now Mrs. Brad Paisley), Jerry Springer, and Dan Patrick of ESPN SportsCenter. “The Fishin' Song” was a Number one song for Paisley, and a follow-up to “He Didn't Have To Be” and “We Danced,” both chart-topping ballads from Paisley's debut album, “Who Needs Pictures.”
“He Didn't Have To Be” has become a career song of sorts for Brad and a definite audience favorite. Topping airplay charts in November 1999, this moving tribute to stepfathers was written with his best friend, Kelley Lovelace, and inspired by Lovelace's relationship with his 9-year-old stepson, McCain Merren. The tune triggered countless testimonials from fans touched by the song's heart-wrenching truth and strong sentiments. Fans continue to share their own stepfather stories with Paisley at every tour stop, and the song has spawned a made-for-TV film currently being developed by the TBS Superstation and Orly Adelson Productions. Brad Paisley, Orly Adelson and J.J. Jamieson will serve as executive producers on the picture and the music featured in the movie will be composed by Paisley, who will also have a supporting actor role.
During the months following the release of “He Didn't Have To Be,” Paisley became the Academy of Country Music's “Top New Male” and took home the TNN Music Awards' “Discovery Award” as well as “Song of the Year” and “Video of the Year” for “He Didn't Have To Be.” That October, he tied Faith Hill for most nominations (six) at the Country Music Association Awards, and took home the coveted “Horizon Award.”
However, none of that could compare with one of Brad Paisley's all-time fondest experiences, which took place in the months prior to the launch of his sophomore disc. On February 17, 2001, the singer-songwriter-guitarist was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry®. Being asked to become a member was one of his life's goals and he achieved it at age 28, after some 40 or so appearances since his Opry debut in May 1999. He even borrowed the same yellow Nudie jacket Buck Owens wore on the cover of Paisley's favorite album, Live at Carnegie Hall, to wear for that special night. “That (induction) night was magical,” he says. “Perfect. In that place, you just feel so loved.”
Paisley was born and raised in Glen Dale, West Virginia, a Mayberry-esque town (pop. 1800). When he was only eight years old, his grandfather, a nightshift railroad worker who spent his afternoons playing guitar, gave him a gift: a Sears Danelectro Silvertone guitar with an amp in the case. Young Paisley mastered it quickly and soon he and his guitar were inseparable.
At age 12, he wrote his first song, “Born on Christmas Day,” which he performed in church. Soon after, he sang at a Rotary Club meeting where the program director for the local country station heard him and invited him to play on WWVA's “Jamboree USA,” the Wheeling-based station's Grand Ole Opry-style Saturday night radio show. The young prodigy wowed the live crowd and became a regular for eight years, opening shows featuring big name country artists such as Roy Clark, George Jones, Little Jimmy Dickens and Steve Wariner. Paisley says he learned invaluable lessons hanging out with the headliners, especially Wariner, who many years later would serve as host the night he was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry®.
“I could see his talent and passion even then,” says Wariner. “Back when he was a little boy sitting around backstage picking with us, he was so totally focused.”
For six years from age 14, Paisley also played the “Jamboree in the Hills” festival in the outskirts of Wheeling, West Virginia, which attracts 60,000 plus country music lovers every year. At 20, Paisley was a local celebrity and a second-year student at West Liberty State College. But he yearned for Music City. So he transferred to Nashville's Belmont University and enrolled in the Music Business Program.
While at Belmont, Paisley met Frank Rogers, a fellow-student who became his producer. The two compiled a catalog of songs, some of which they wrote together, some with other writers. Paisley served his college internship at ASCAP, the performing rights organization, which led to a meeting with talent scouts from EMI Music Publishing. One week after graduating from Belmont, Paisley signed a songwriting deal with EMI. He then began recording demos around town. Due in part to the fact that Alan Jackson had put a “hold” on one of his songs, “I'm Gonna Miss Her,” execs at Jackson's label, Arista Nashville, requested a copy of Paisley's demos. So impressed, they immediately offered him a deal.
When it came time to record the final tracks for his first album, Paisley took a bold, almost rebellious approach. He convinced his record company that his college friend and collaborator, Frank Rogers, should produce. (Rogers had never produced a major record.) Paisley convinced Arista Nashville to let him use musicians of his own choosing, several from his touring band, some who had never worked in the recording studio. He played all of the guitar parts on the record himself instead of signing up a seasoned studio ace. And, he tucked an instrumental song into the lineup.
The unorthodox approach worked. So it's no surprise that when it came time to produce Part II, his sophomore project, no one tinkered with the proven approach. And good thing they didn't since the album was certified platinum and yielded several more hits for the hardworking, young entertainer.
“Part II was like a movie and a journey,” Paisley says. “It's very visual, whereas the first album was visual, too, but with more of a pictures theme with still photographs and snapshots of life. It's almost a motion picture to some degree. So many of the songs are stories. It goes a lot further, I think, in terms of exploring who I am. The songs come from the same place but they're deeper. There's more of a journey. There's more motion to it. It moves a little more. Like any good sequel . . . I hope. If there's a common thread in this, it's just reality trying to be captured on audiotape.”
Reality gets toyed with a bit in Paisley's latest effort, “Celebrity,” a tongue-in-cheek look at the recent popularity of reality TV shows and the wackiness that ensues. The song will be featured on a new project due in stores this summer, which will hopefully pick up right where Part II left off for his fans, since Paisley thinks of his body of work as an uninterrupted whole. He says he takes seriously the responsibility of making records, things that people will keep and play for years. And the most important part of that responsibility, to him, is the songwriting.
“The thing that makes Brad such a good songwriter is he can make people cry, then turn around and have them laughing on the same record,” friend and fellow Opryâ cast member Bill Anderson says. “He understands emotions. So many young artists today have the talent but don't understand emotions.”
Writing about emotions, what's real, is what is most important to Paisley. To him, that is the essence of country music. Some Brad Paisley songs tug hard at your heart. Some of them make you laugh. His tempos are fast, slow and middle of the road. But despite all the different roads Paisley takes musically, there is no doubt about where he always lands: smack dab in the middle of country.
Publicity photo used with permission of Arista Nashville.
