Entertainment Music Jake Owen Biography Print Jake Owen. Getty Images for BeautyKind: Con / Getty Images Music Country Music Top Artists Top Picks Rock Music Pop Music Alternative Music Classical Music Folk Music Rap & Hip Hop Rhythm & Blues World Music Punk Music Heavy Metal Jazz Latin Music Oldies Learn More By Shelly Fabian Updated on 11/26/17 Name: Joshua Ryan Owen Birthday: August 28, 1981 Hometown: Vero Beach, FL Country Style: Contemporary Country Jake Owen Songwriting Jake Owen co-wrote all 11 tracks on his debut album Startin' With Me, and 8 of the 10 songs on his sophomore release, Easy Does It. Musical Influences Merle Haggard, Vern Gosdin, Keith Whitley, Alabama -- I could go on forever -- Waylon Jennings Suggested Songs "Yee-Haw""Startin' With Me""Don't Think I Can't Love You""Eight Second Ride""Something About a Woman" Similar Artists Some other artists with music similar to Jake Owen Trent Tomlinson Darius Rucker Luke Bryan Recommended Albums Startin' With Me (2006)Easy Does It (2009) Biography Joshua Ryan Owen was born on August 28, 1981, in Vero Beach, FL. He has a twin brother named Jarrod Moore. Growing up, Jake participated in a variety of sports, but excelled in golf, and was pursuing a career as a pro. He won his first tournament at age 15. After graduating from high school, he went on to Florida State University, where he had a position on the golf team. Unfortunately, he was injured in a waterskiing accident, which resulted in surgery, and he was unable to play the game the sport. Fortunately, for fans of Jake's music, he decided, while recovering from his injury to take up the guitar, and soon he was playing in a local bar. This lead to his interest in songwriting, and later to his move to Music City. While opening up a savings account in Nashville, Jake talked with the teller, mentioning he was a singer and songwriter. She asked him if he had any recordings, and he gave her a CD of his songs, which she passed on to the Warner/Chappell Music publishing company. "Ghosts" Leads To Record Deal The next step towards Owen getting his record deal was meeting songwriter and producer Jimmy Ritchey. They got together with Chuck Jones to write some songs, and the result was the song "Ghosts." They pitched it to Kenny Chesney, who put it on hold but eventually didn't record it. But, the song did get Owen noticed by Sony BMG execs, who signed him to a record deal with RCA Records. This is where Owen was asked to change his name, so as not to be confused with Josh Turner or Josh Gracin. Yee Haw! Jake released his first single "Yee Haw" in early 2006, and it became his first Top 20 single, peaking at No. 16 on the charts. His debut album, Startin' With Me, was released in the summer of 2006. He gained recognition that year as an opening act for both Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood. Owen had further success with his second single, the title track, which spent more than thirty-five weeks on the charts, and became his first Top 10 song, peaking at No. 6. In 2007, Owen was added as an opening act for Alan Jackson and Brooks & Dunn. He released his third single, "Something About a Woman," in September, and then joined Sugarland's CMT Change for Change Tour, along with Little Big Town. It was on this tour that the three acts began performing the Dream Academy song "Life in a Northern Town" during shows. They also performed it on the CMT Music Awards in 2008. No Sophomore Jinx In 2009, Jake released his sophomore album, Easy Does It, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Country Albums chart. The lead single, "Don't Think I Can't Love You" is Jake's highest charting single to date, sitting at No. 4 on the April 11, 2009, Billboard Country Songs chart.