David Kersh

"There was this big pipe shaped like an upside-down J sticking up out of the ground," said Kersh. "I looked at my brother and my girlfriend and I said, 'That right there is a sewer exhaust pipe.'" Not only did he identify the thing, he also gave a detailed explanation of a sewer exhaust pipe's function. It's not the kind of information one expects to get from one of country music's brightest young stars.

Kersh doesn't look old enough to have held a job other than the one he has right now but it turns out the 26-year-old native of Humble, Texas, has done his share of manual labor "in order to support my golf habit," he said. He also attended college "in hopes of pursuing a more prestigious golf habit." But when his band started to burn up dance halls across Texas, something had to go and it wasn't going to be golf.

"We were competing with several bands for the same audience." We were thinking we needed to do something special," he said of that pivotal time. "We needed to give people something to look at, not just listen to." He got the inspiration he needed when Garth Brooks sold out three shows at Texas Stadium in a matter of hours. Right then, Kersh knew what he had to do.

"We went to work on the live show. I knew we could have that kind of energy and put on a show that just pulled out all the stops. So that's what we did and we started to develop a following. It didn't matter if it was Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday, we had a thousand people at every show. People wanted to see us over another band because the other bands were boring."

Keep in mind that this guy used to lay sewer lines. When Kersh speaks with confidence, he's not bragging; it's just his way of telling his story. He doesn't need to be reminded of his roots. He knows he's from Humble.

Kersh spends most of his time on the road now but he's never far from his family. His dad and stepmom run his fan club and his younger brother handles the tour merchandise. Having 11 people on the tour bus and being related to one of them sounds a bit constricting but Kersh thrives on it. "I know, I'm abnormal," he said. "It means a lot to have my brother on the road with me because I get to see a family member every day. We've always gotten along incredibly well. I don't think we've ever had a fight."

The sense of family extends to the band, which the frontman characterizes as six good compadres who enjoy a little friendly competition every now and then. "Every time my steel guitarist does a lead, he's trying to outdo the fiddle player or the keyboard player or the lead guitar player because they are such awesome musicians. There's a camaraderie and a love for one another, but they're always trying to show each other up. I just strum my acoustic because I can't pick a lick."

Basically, Kersh's goal is to take his country-flavored party from town to town, completely wow the crowd, then come back later on and knock an even bigger audience off its feet. His manager, Mark Hybner, and agent, William Morris Nashville's Rob Beckham, are on board to help Kersh make it happen.

"What we want to do during the next year and a half is build a foundation," he said. "We do gigs not so much to make a million dollars, but to get me in front of a large number of people, so next time I come to that town, I can ask for a little more money and attract a bigger audience."

Already, Kersh's fans seem to be doing their part to create a buzz around his live shows. A devoted group that follows Kersh just about anywhere in Texas and recently provoked him to stage dive after nailing him with Silly String. Then there was the incident at a rodeo arena where enthusiastic fans just about flattened the object of their adoration.

"It was a weird situation because we were down in the arena and the crowd had to stay up in the stands," said Kersh. Well, I jumped off the stage and ran down the side of the arena and I invited them to come down onto the ground. Little did I know what was going to happen. Well, I got hugged a bunch and then I said, 'Y'all come with me' and started running to the stage. Not only did they outrun me, they just about ran over me."

While he enjoys the rowdiness, Kersh knows how to read an audience and has no problem tailoring his set – and his career plan – to suit his fans. A lot of young people have contributed to his success and he's determined not to neglect them. This summer, he's got a lot of fair dates on his itinerary and he hopes those shows will give him an opportunity to connect with the under-age crowd.

"I have a lot of younger fans that I don't get to perform for as much as I'd like because of the clubs. I think the fairs will allow me to play for more younger kids," he said.

Paying special attention to teens could be Kersh's wisest investment in his future. "Connecting with young people – I'm hoping – is a good way to establish a long term career, which is exactly what I want. I want to be around for a long, long time."