Meet Austin Webb

You just can’t help but like Webb and his music.  Whether you’re talking to him on the phone or listening to one of his records, the South Carolina native comes across like an old and treasured friend.  He’s the embodiment of that famed Southern downhome charm and his songs already sound like country music mainstays even though his debut single – “It’s All Good” – was released in 2012.  “Slip On By” was released last year and Webb’s newest single, “Raise ’Em Up,” landed on country radio last month.

Pollstar caught up with Webb shortly after he finished an AT&T-sponsored tour with Jana Kramer.  “I just got off of the bus three or four days ago,” he told us. “I’m home, dog-sitting.”

You’re a recent arrival on the country music scene.  What brought you from Greenville, S.C.?

I started writing when I was 9 years old and started songwriting when I was 15.  I won a songwriting contest in 2011.  The day I won that I moved to Nashville.

Did you always see yourself as a country music artist from the get-go?

Oh, yeah. I think that’s something that’s somewhat ingrained, at least self-consciously, when you’re from South Carolina.  I eventually met Tim McGraw’s producer, Byron Gallimore.  He called me up and I thought he was a bill collector. Nobody’s calling Mr. Austin Webb from South Carolina.  I went to his house, put in a couple of songs and he offered me a publishing deal, immediately.

I was meeting with a lot of companies, and was really fortunate to do so.  Everybody was telling me I was great [but they weren’t] giving me any money or a job.  [Gallimore] took a chance and I said, “Wow!  Thank you very much.”  A couple of weeks later he offered me a record deal with his new start-up label, Streamsound Records.  I was looking at all the options.  I had other deals on the table as well. I thought to myself, “Man, I’m going to go with the guy who believes in me to begin with.”

It’s been a wide switch for me.  I’ve got a lot of attention on this label.  We put out, basically, one single that didn’t do a whole lot, it went, like, 53, but my second single (“Slip On By”) went Top 40, actually No. 38, which is crazy-fantastic for me.  And my new single, “Raise Them Up,” was released four weeks ago.  Everything is going good and I’m just blessed to be doing it.

How much time had gone by between arriving in Nashville and getting your record deal?

It was about … a little less than a year.  We all know that’s extremely fast, and I’m grateful for that.  I worked every day.  Every day I was doing something, meeting and greeting.  That’s one of my problems, I’m a little too proactive.  But I think you gotta be, as a singer.  You have to be working.

Did you have any day jobs during that time?

Oh, yeah. I used to work in construction … off-and-on while playing gigs.  But I couldn’t get a job doing anything like that that was going to work around me trying to meet-and-greet people during the day.  I got a job at Starbucks … living off of marble pound cake and cake pops, getting fat and staying skinny at the same time. It was weird.  Trying to survive but it worked.  I gave all of my family pounds of coffee for Christmas gifts.

It must be difficult to maintain relationships while doing all of that.  I’m guessing you’re not married.

No.  It’s really tough to have a relationship.  I have a girlfriend.  I think anybody who travels, gets it.  You work it out.  There’s nothing like having someone at home. For me it’s good.  Especially to make sure no one steals anything out of my house. That’s always good.

Does having a famous Texas city for a first name pretty much set your career path for you?

I think so.  There’s something .. about it.  It sounds goofy, but I think names kind of choose you, sometimes. A lot of people don’t believe it’s my real name, but it is.  I show them my I.D.  It’s so funny. I have three little nephews and they all have the most country music names you could ever think of.  One is Wyatt Webb.  He’s a Texas gunslinger.  Then there’s Abram Webb and the other is Easton.  I think with a name like Austin Webb I had to do something.  I had to pursue music.

You’ve played a lot of different venues, from small clubs to major music festivals.  As an up-and-comer how do these shows help a blossoming career?

It’s tough to say exactly which one is better.  I think there are a million different roads that get you to the same place.  I’ve played every different kind of show there is to play since I started at 15, touring by myself.  The main thing is, is if at least one person is there, that’s all I care about. … I really love just having anybody there to listen.  I play the same show for three people that I do for 50,000.

For me it’s different vibes.  I love the festivals, I love the lineups, but there is something to be said for a more intimate feel of a club date when there’s like 1,000 people in there and you’re getting a lot more time with them than playing the big festival where Keith Urban is headlining and I’m fifth on the bill. … It’s a tradeoff but every single show I get I’m thankful for, so it’s hard to say.  But I think every artist kind of feels that way in a sense.

This is my third single.  It’s my second single that’s actually getting traction.  “Raise Them Up” is the new one. … I put it out strictly because I wanted to show people a lighter side of me.  With “Slip On By” it showed a very intimate, kind of introspective side of an artist, and I wanted people to see the fun side, what I really do at shows.  95 percent of my shows are all high energy because people want to be entertained.

Since I was a kid … I played a lot of these sad little intimate songs.  You’re sitting there playing for people in listening rooms.  I don’t want to depress people. I want them to have a good time.  People spend their hard-earned money not to be bored and depressed. I’m there to bring the party.

Which entertainers give you a good time?

I think we’re so lucky right now to be in country music.  I’m very lucky to be a part of it. It blows my mind that I’m even a part of it.  … I think Luke Bryan is awesome.  Florida Georgia Line – those are high-energy people. … My problem is I’m such a fan of all the new music that it kind of puts me under the rug. Charlie Worsham, Brett Eldredge, Kacey Musgraves, Cole Swindell – I think there is so much talent out there right now and there’s so much progression in country music.  It’s shining through and there are a lot of changes that are about to happen and I’m just trying to be part of it.  Man, almost every show I go to is really fun, especially a Luke Bryan show. That’s why he’s (ACM’s) Entertainer of the Year.

You just completed a tour and you’re also doing one-offs.  Have you locked down a band lineup or do individual musician schedules determine who will back you for any given show?

I have a locked-in band, pretty much. … These guys want to have work.  They’re all pros; they have to have income coming in [and] I’m keeping them busy for the most part.  … I’m proud of them.

When you first arrived in Nashville, what surprise you the most about the town?

I don’t know if I was ever surprised.  I’ve had a lot of common sense growing up. … I think that things excited me more.  You know how when you’re getting ready for a trip?  You envision what it’s going to be like and then you get there and it may not be exactly like [that].  … [Nashville] is a great place to live, a great place to be. Country music fans come here.  It’s awesome.  I think it’s better than I even thought it would be.

Did you meet people who were interested in your music but wanted you to change what you were doing?

A lot of artists are easy to mold and a lot of artists know who they are.  Fortunately, for me, I knew who I was at a very young age and I wasn’t going to bend or change my sound to be commercially viable.  I was lucky that I had a commercial sound.  A lot of artists do change.  I’m not saying that’s a shame.  People change in life, in general.  For me, I don’t think that’s ever affected me or what I’ve done.

Were you a big country music radio listener while growing up?

I was.  What’s so funny about it is that I think [being] well-rounded is important, especially as an artist.  I think you should have your strong suits but also be able to fit in the form.  Just like there’s a structure.  If a song sounds crazy, it still has a structure to it. Everything has to have a backbone or a skeleton.  I think it’s hard to write a song now without thinking of verse, verse, chorus, bridge.

Growing up, I listened to a lot of country radio, especially Alan Jackson and Vince Gill.  Kris Kristofferson wasn’t on the radio but I was fortunate enough to listen to him. His songwriting skill, to me, influenced the people who were on the radio.  And I wanted to be the one of the people on the radio.

Things are popular for a reason and there’s nothing wrong with that.  People think of the word “commercial” as a negative word.  But it’s not. It’s a symbol of what the masses are listening to.  I wanted to appeal to everyone.  I wanted everybody to feel what I felt.  That’s why I got into it.

When did you start getting fan mail?

Probably … about two years ago but I’ve gotten little things through the years.  I just got some Denver Bronco glasses in the mail. … Sometimes you’ll get baked bread.

My girlfriend actually gets mad because she thinks I care more about my fans than I do her. … I truly love people who listen to my music and country fans that keep us going.  To have them reach out to me … I see them as celebrities and they see me as a celebrity, so it makes it kind of weird.  I’m just thankful to have anyone who pays that much attention to me and what I’m doing.  Anything I get in the mail is awesome.  I keep a box of pretty  much everything.

Are you writing songs all the time?

I haven’t written in so long.  I used to write every day.  There’s part of me that always writes.  There’s two sides of songwriting.  Every day you can write … or you can hold things in and have a huge catalog later.  When I moved to Nashville I had a tackle box for a brain.  I had nothing but hooks.  Basically, I went fishing and emptied out a lot of hooks. Now I’m stocking my tackle box.  Right now I’ve been so busy with the career that I haven’t had a lot of time to sit down and write songs.  But I still have a lot of ideas cooking. That’s never going to stop.

You mentioned signing a publishing deal before you landed on a label.  In other words, your first introduction to the business was as a songwriter.

Yeah.  That was almost enough for me.  I was like, “This is awesome.” I have a quota.  I think I’m supposed to write 12 songs a year and that’s easy to do.  12 songs, maybe as a third co-writer, that’s a third of a song.  I used to write 200 songs a year. Now I don’t write that much.  I’ve always tried to get to the point where people write them for me. I love writing songs but I think that’s a lost [art].  Everybody writes their own songs now and people don’t cut outside songs.  But mark my words on this one – I cut the best songs possible.  Garth Brooks did it and look at his career.  Alan Jackson did it [and] he’s a songwriter.  It’s for the fans, it’s not for you.  I don’t care about my name being on [the song].

During your first two years in Nashville you must have played a lot of local clubs.  Any favorites?

Getting up in the industry here, I played all the open mics.  The Bluebird, Hotel Indigo … Commodore Grille.  I’ve never played a lot of Broadway (district) gigs.  I’ve played on the streets.  There’s a funny video of me playing on the street one day … outside the Ryman Auditorium.  I’m just goofy and cocky and said, “I want to play here in two years.”  And in two years I did. I played the Grand Ole Opry here.  That’s my favorite place to play in Nashville.

As a young country music artist, was there a sense of awe to play the Opry and walk out on that stage where so many greats have played before you?

Of course.  It’s an honor to be there.  To play the Grand Ole Opry is such a big deal.  To remember its roots is extremely important.  It’s impossible to go out there and not feel something spiritual every  time.  I played Kris Kristofferson’s “Why Me, Lord?” when I was there my first time.

When do you think you’ll release an album?

I hope the summertime.  Record labels don’t usually release an album until they’re going to sell.  I’m hoping this song gets up in the 30s for them to release it.  I think once this song hits the Top 30 we’ll probably be looking at pushing out the record in the summertime.  I think people want it and I just want to give them what they want. Hopefully it will be a good record.  I’ve been working really hard on it.  I think we have 12 sides cut now and we’re ready to release it.  It’s just kind of waiting.

Where do you hope to be five years down the road?

I hope to still be alive.  That’s always my main goal.  I’m happy to wake up.  I hope to be alive, happy and well, and spending as much time with my folks as I can.  The career is important but doesn’t necessarily define who I am. I just hope to be able to look in the mirror and think, “Wow! I’m happy with my life.”

Upcoming shows for Austin Webb:

May 1 – Nashville, Tenn., Greer Stadium (Nashville Sounds Concert series prior to game)
May 17 – Milwaukee, Wis., House Of Harley
May 21 – Birmingham, Ala., Rogue Tavern
May 25 – Concord, N.C., Charlotte Motor Speedway (Coca-Cola 600 Race Day Pit Party)
May 31 – Detroit, Mich., Comerica Park (99.5 WYCD Downtown Hoedown)
June 14 – Thornville, Ohio, Legend Valley (WCOL Buckeye Country Jam)
July 11 – Farmingville, N.Y., Pennysaver Amphitheater At Bald Hill (with The Band Perry, Maggie Rose)
July 12 – North Stonington, Conn., North Stonington Fairgrounds (North Stonington Fair)
July 18 – Brooklyn, Mich., Field Adjacent To Michigan International Speedway (Faster Horses Country Fest)
July 26 – Cottageville, W.Va., Jackson County Junior Fairgrounds (Jackson County Jr. Fair) 

Please visit AustinWebbMusic.com for more information.