| James Wesley |
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503
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James Wesley
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Birth name: |
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Born: |
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Origin: |
Mound Valley, Kansas |
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Years active: |
1999-present |
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Labels: |
Warner Bros. |
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Facebook: Twitter: Website: |
503
Phoots comi...
"I've always been a big believer in tradition," declares James Wesley. "A lot of the old ways are the best ways: family, God, treating people right, doing what you're supposed to do. I think it's time to come back to what's real. That's what country music is about."
James Wesley puts those core values into his music with a whiskey-smooth voice and a timelessly winning way with a great country song. Wesley sings directly to real people about real things that profoundly affect real lives-and from his small-town upbringing to his blue-collar work ethic, he has a deep understanding of what those folks are longing to hear.
Wesley grew up in tiny Mound Valley, a community of about 200 people in Southeastern Kansas. He first discovered country music via his grandmother's record collection, which included heaping helpings of classic crooners like Marty Robbins, George Jones and Ray Price. His mother was the first to notice Wesley's own talent for singing when she overheard him belting out his favorite songs behind his bedroom door. "She heard me and said, 'I'd love to have you sing in church.' So that's what I did," says James.
By his late teens he was singing in local nightclubs and beginning to think about making music his life. After setting his sights on Nashville and making the big move, he took a construction job to make ends meet and began learning the ropes of the Nashville music business. He met hit songwriter Rodney Clawson and producer Dan Frizsell soon after, and the three began recording together. Their work caught the attention of Broken Bow Records, which signed Wesley.
"I know there's more people out there than just me who want to hear something that grabs you and makes you go, 'Wow, that's me-that's how I feel, that's my day, that's my family,'" he says. "When you swing a hammer every day, when you're out there doing what you have to do, you learn a lot of compassion for the people that do it day in and day out."
James Wesley hopes to do what he loves to do for a long time to come. "I want to be in it for the long haul," he says. "I want to do those songs that everybody wants to hear, and that everybody can feel. I want to be the guy who tells the stories, and tells it like it is."
James Wesley puts those core values into his music with a whiskey-smooth voice and a timelessly winning way with a great country song. Wesley sings directly to real people about real things that profoundly affect real lives-and from his small-town upbringing to his blue-collar work ethic, he has a deep understanding of what those folks are longing to hear.
Wesley grew up in tiny Mound Valley, a community of about 200 people in Southeastern Kansas. He first discovered country music via his grandmother's record collection, which included heaping helpings of classic crooners like Marty Robbins, George Jones and Ray Price. His mother was the first to notice Wesley's own talent for singing when she overheard him belting out his favorite songs behind his bedroom door. "She heard me and said, 'I'd love to have you sing in church.' So that's what I did," says James.
By his late teens he was singing in local nightclubs and beginning to think about making music his life. After setting his sights on Nashville and making the big move, he took a construction job to make ends meet and began learning the ropes of the Nashville music business. He met hit songwriter Rodney Clawson and producer Dan Frizsell soon after, and the three began recording together. Their work caught the attention of Broken Bow Records, which signed Wesley.
"I know there's more people out there than just me who want to hear something that grabs you and makes you go, 'Wow, that's me-that's how I feel, that's my day, that's my family,'" he says. "When you swing a hammer every day, when you're out there doing what you have to do, you learn a lot of compassion for the people that do it day in and day out."
James Wesley hopes to do what he loves to do for a long time to come. "I want to be in it for the long haul," he says. "I want to do those songs that everybody wants to hear, and that everybody can feel. I want to be the guy who tells the stories, and tells it like it is."
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