Austin Michael: Lone Star, Positivity & Texas Grit

Episode 281 • February 13, 2026 • 01:07:14
Austin Michael: Lone Star, Positivity & Texas Grit
Outside The Round w/ Matt Burrill
Austin Michael: Lone Star, Positivity & Texas Grit

Feb 13 2026 | 01:07:14

/

Hosted By

Matt Burrill

Show Notes

In Episode 281 of Outside The Round, host Matt Burrill sits down with Texas native Austin Michael to talk about his upcoming album Lone Star and the years of work that went into bringing it to life. Austin shares how growing up in Texas shaped his identity, from tornado stories and survival skills to rodeo culture and small-town resilience. The two dive into the philosophy and positivity that fuel his songwriting, why authenticity matters more than ever in today’s country landscape, and how songs like “Why Not Whiskey” showcase the fun side of his artistry. Austin also opens up about navigating the independent music scene, the grind of building a career in Nashville, the power of live performances, and the influence of larger-than-life figures like John Daly. It’s a conversation about grit, gratitude, and staying true to who you are while chasing big dreams.

Follow on Social Media:

Austin Michael: @itsaustinmichael

Matt Burrill: @raisedrowdymatt

Outside The Round: @outsidetheround

Raised Rowdy: @raisedrowdy

Chapters

View Full Transcript

Episode Transcript

[00:00:12] Speaker A: Come on. [00:00:15] Speaker B: This is Outside the Round with Matt. [00:00:17] Speaker A: Burrill for Rage Rowdy Podcast. [00:00:20] Speaker B: What's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of Outside the Round with me, Matt Burrill. Shout out to our friends from Surfside. No bubbles, no troubles. Today we've got a very special guest guy who's played some events for us, a guy who's got some new music coming out. I've been loving the tunes he's been putting out and native of Texas, got a new record, Lone Star, which we'll be getting into. We got Mr. Austin. Michael. [00:00:42] Speaker A: Yes, sir, brother. [00:00:43] Speaker B: How you doing, dude? [00:00:44] Speaker A: Wonderfully well. Blessed and highly favored. How are you doing? Well, man, I guess highly flavored too. [00:00:48] Speaker B: Highly flavored. [00:00:49] Speaker A: So what is this? [00:00:50] Speaker B: So that is a Surfside. They say no bubbles, no troubles. It's a non carbonated. You got the green tea flavor right there. That's so it tastes like green tea with a little bit of vodka in it. [00:01:00] Speaker A: So. [00:01:01] Speaker B: Yeah, that's what it's there for, bub. [00:01:02] Speaker A: Dude, let's. [00:01:03] Speaker B: That's what it's there for. It's got a little caffeine kick in it too. The green te. Yeah, man. Natural green tea, dude. And from what I'm told, you can barely taste the vodka. Yeah, yeah, I got. I got an. I got an eight pack of iced teas over there for you, so we'll hook you up with that afterwards. [00:01:20] Speaker A: Yeah, man, I love it. [00:01:21] Speaker B: Of course, brother. So how you been, dude? [00:01:24] Speaker A: Great. I've just been really working on this album for a long time. I'm really excited to get it out, like, because it's. It's. It's a. It's a work in progress. You know, a lot of people don't realize how. How much work goes into a record, but, dude, it's. It's been what, six, eight months? I've been working on this. Really? If you go back to like the first song, I wrote on it, like three years. But back then I knew I was working towards record. I just didn't know how fast it was going to. Gonna come. Like three years went by like that, dude, you moved to Nashville. It's like time just speeds up. Like, I. I don't know how to explain it. It's just you. I moved here and I feel like it's been maybe half a year. A year. It's been like three. I'm like, holy crap, dude. I look back and I'm like, wow, I've been here a while. [00:02:11] Speaker B: Time flies, dude. It really does. So tell me about the name of of it going by Loneston. Obviously you're a Texas guy, but I feel like it's looking up at the stars as well, right? [00:02:21] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. I mean, it's, It's. I'm like a pretty philosophical guy maybe. You know, like, I like to keep things a little open ended and ambiguous, kind of open for interpretation. But man, like my, like the way that I see it, it, like the title Lone Star is one. Of course the title track is about Lone Star, but I see it as like. I mean, of course I'm married, so. So I'm like, I have a relationship, so I'm not alone. But at the same time, when it comes to, like, being productive, there's just something about, like, being in my own space, like in my own head, that I kind of have to be in solitude, like, to really be productive. And it's something me and my wife, like, my wife has had to learn a little bit. She's the best man. She really understands. But it's. It's about kind of like me having to be in my own head a little bit, and. And sometimes that makes you feel a little bit alone, but I understand that's like the necessity of how I needed to. To be productive. [00:03:24] Speaker B: That's hard to find, especially living out here in Nashville because there's so much going on. You're writing every day, you're hanging out with your homies, you got the wife at home. Like, it's. It's hard to, you know, sometimes when I get in my head, like a lone space gets to be a scary place. [00:03:39] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah. Oh, absolutely. [00:03:41] Speaker B: Find out a lot about. [00:03:42] Speaker A: It can be self deprecating if you're not careful. Like, I'm. I'm big and I'm a big believer. You know, I'm big in the Bible and everything. And there's a lot of. A lot of verses. I think if there's. One of the most repeated lines in the Bible is do not fear. And it also talks about positivity. Like, if there's anything positive, think on these things. I think that's in Proverbs, but. But yeah, man. I try to really work for as long as I can remember on being positive. Like just being like having a positive outlook and perspective on life. And I think the energy you put out is the energy you get back. [00:04:16] Speaker B: 100, 100. [00:04:18] Speaker A: And I just think, like, it. That's not, like, that's not an easy realization to come to, you know, like, that's. That took me a while to figure out, but I think just if you Focus on the good things. It, like, life will just bring more of it. I think there's this one saying. Oh, I heard this one saying. I thought it was really cool. There's a. It's kind of a question, but there's a. There's a wolf chained in the dark and a wolf chained in the light. What one survives? [00:04:49] Speaker B: Probably the wolf in the light, the. [00:04:51] Speaker A: One that you feed. Oh, isn't that crazy? [00:04:55] Speaker B: Yeah. What are you gonna put. Which basket are you going to put more of your eggs into? [00:05:01] Speaker A: 100%. [00:05:01] Speaker B: Like, what are you going to. [00:05:03] Speaker A: Absolutely. [00:05:03] Speaker B: What you going to cater to and show favoritism to? [00:05:06] Speaker A: 100%, man. I think, like, whatever you focus on is what you're. You're manifesting. And this is. This is another quote not to get too, like. [00:05:14] Speaker B: No, go for it, bro. No, I love it, man. I love. I love this stuff. Yeah. [00:05:18] Speaker A: But this is a. This is a quote I think I read, man. I hope I get. I get this right. It's. I think it's from, like, the Secret of Success or might be Outwitting the Devil that if you haven't read that book, dude, you have to go read it. I think it's by. Written by Napoleon Hill. So, so good. But the. One of the quotes that I took away from it that I really kind of adhered to was your subconscious mind endlessly works to transmute its dominating thoughts into their physical equivalent. So what it's saying is, like, pretty. Whether you realize it or not, your subconscious mind is consciously and always working on manifesting what your dominating thoughts are. Yeah, Right. So if you're always thinking about the negative side of things, what do you think you're manifesting? You know, And I mean, not to get all hippie dippy on you, dude, but I love that. [00:06:13] Speaker B: I like it, man. I like it. If you weren't doing music, I could see you doing, like, being a teacher, like, philosopher or something like that, bro. [00:06:21] Speaker A: Thanks, bro. [00:06:21] Speaker B: I did not know you had this side to you, bro. [00:06:24] Speaker A: And that's. You know, what's so funny is I've been dying. Like, I love music. Don't get me wrong. I absolutely love music. And that's my passion. That's what. What I do for a living. But one of the things that I love, even I don't want to say even more, but it's podcasts. I love talking with people. I'm a people's person, dude, so. And you'll learn. I'm a talker. [00:06:45] Speaker B: Like, I'll. [00:06:45] Speaker A: I could talk a lot. [00:06:46] Speaker B: Yeah. That's good. Those are my dream guests. Yeah. Right. When I get a guest on here and they. They don't talk a lot, it's like. Like I'm a dentist, like, pulling the teeth out, you know? But when you just go. The best podcasts are when you hear from the guest, man. [00:06:59] Speaker A: Right. [00:07:00] Speaker B: That's what it's all about for me. [00:07:01] Speaker A: I mean, I. I hope I. I can do that justice, but I've heard that a lot from guys like that. Either podcasts or. Man, what else? Like talk shows or something. Something like that. You know, whenever interviews, being on, like, the news, just in front of people, I always try to be myself, you know, how would I be off camera? It's. I try to be the same. [00:07:22] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:07:23] Speaker A: But I've heard a lot that for some reason, like, a lot of people will just kind of shut off, you know, and they'll be, like, real closed off. Like, how was your day? Good. And that's, like, all you get, you know, for me. You asked me how my day was, and I'll tell you, like, when I was born, how, like, you know, I love that, man. [00:07:41] Speaker B: So take me back. How do we say your hometown in Texas? [00:07:44] Speaker A: Van Alstein. [00:07:45] Speaker B: Van Alstine. Now, where is that at? [00:07:47] Speaker A: That's like, you know, Dallas. Yeah. Nowhere near there. [00:07:50] Speaker B: It's like, I'm like, such a Texan thing, right? You know, Dallas, you know, Houston. Nowhere near there. [00:07:57] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:07:58] Speaker B: Either of those places. [00:07:59] Speaker A: I'm like, shoot, maybe I can get miles wrong, but I'll just say time. I'm about. I'm about an hour and a half, two hours north of Dallas. [00:08:08] Speaker B: Okay. [00:08:08] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:08:09] Speaker B: So up near that Oklahoma line, almost. [00:08:10] Speaker A: Yeah. I'm like. I'm almost an Okie man. Yeah, it's pretty close. Cutting it close. Yeah. [00:08:15] Speaker B: What was it like growing up out there? [00:08:17] Speaker A: Flat. [00:08:18] Speaker B: Flat tornadoes? [00:08:20] Speaker A: No, you know, not. Not too many of those. We've had a couple, but not anything too crazy. We. Well, actually, hold on. A couple years ago, we had this tornado run by. I wasn't there, but it ran through our property. We have, like, 30 acres. [00:08:38] Speaker B: Because you grew up roping and doing stuff with cattle, right? [00:08:41] Speaker A: Yeah, dude, I love that stuff. And that's. That was my first passion. That's what I thought I was gonna do is rodeo, but music. Gotta. Got a hold of me first. But, dude, the tornado, like, this little. It was so windy and, like, so cloudy. You couldn't really see anything, but it was like, you definitely knew something was close. And there was, like, known tornadoes in the area. Well, this one like sweat must have come across the property because, dude, there was trees. I'm like, I'm Talking about like 3, 4 foot in diameter pine trees that were ripped in half. Like just literally pulled, like pulled off of out, like out of the ground and thrown across the property. It was like insane. And actually a bunch of branches broke off of these trees and they went flying like darts and they one like impaled my. We have like this little camper trailer. [00:09:32] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:09:32] Speaker A: It's like kind of my dad's studio. It's like a hangout spot. And it like impaled this studio, dude. Like, like a dart just like this whole branch just right through the. The campers. Nuts. [00:09:44] Speaker B: Yeah. The power of those things is crazy because we get them out, so we get. We get the scares of them out here now. Yeah. Which is wild because it wasn't always like that. Yeah. [00:09:51] Speaker A: We're not really in tornado alley, are we? [00:09:53] Speaker B: It's like shifted over. Like Kentucky gets. Kentucky gets it all the time in Alabama and Mississippi and we're like easy in between. But growing up, because I grew up in the northeast, so for me, the whole idea of a tornado was like something I'd see in a movie. [00:10:06] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:10:06] Speaker B: But it's like they're. [00:10:08] Speaker A: Dude, it's so wild. [00:10:09] Speaker B: And it's like it could be on one street and not be on the other. [00:10:13] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:10:14] Speaker B: And just how direct their path is. [00:10:17] Speaker A: Oh, 100%. And what's the craziest part about them is you'd think like when it gets windy, that's when you have to worry, dude, it's when it's dead silent. That's the scariest part. Because you'll be like on tornado watch or something. It'll be super windy. You're like, oh my God, we're in the middle of a tornado. No, like that's. It's quite a ways out. Whenever it gets real still, that's when you got to worry. [00:10:38] Speaker B: Because sucking all that air. [00:10:40] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly. Because high pressure moves to low pressure. Right. So if you kind of. If you kind of find like a little equilibrium and everywhere surrounding is high pressure, that's where the tornado comes. Like, that's where it's going to like funnel, you know? So that's what you got to watch for. We actually, when I moved here, we lived in an apartment on the third floor, like the top floor. And we were like terrified that we were gonna get like just ripped. Ripped out of our apartment and thrown across the city, you know, so we like went down in the stairwell and like stayed There I had my ham radios and everything. I was listening to the radio and we're just like, man, I hope everything is. Is all right. And the surrounding areas ended up getting hit pretty hard. Like one of my buddy's houses got demolished. [00:11:24] Speaker B: Was that out in East Nashville? [00:11:25] Speaker A: Yeah, I think it was like. Was it Nolensville? [00:11:28] Speaker B: Nolensville. Okay, so down more towards. [00:11:30] Speaker A: Okay, yeah, I think it was. I think it was down that way. Yeah, a little bit. But yeah. Dude, scary time. [00:11:35] Speaker B: Yeah. You were talking about the ham radio. You came in with a backpack with radios. [00:11:39] Speaker A: Yeah, dude. [00:11:40] Speaker B: And I was like, does this guy. Are you like a park ranger on the side or something? Explain to me what's. What's going on with that. That bag? I think you got it next to you. Yeah. You can even pull some of it up if you want. Where to, where to begin? You could do. Yeah, like. Yeah, like right there. And make sure that's in frame. Yeah, it's kind of in frame. So what all do you have in here, dude? [00:11:59] Speaker A: I mean I have, I got like road flares. This is kind of my edc. [00:12:04] Speaker B: What's edc? [00:12:06] Speaker A: Everyday carry. [00:12:07] Speaker B: Okay. [00:12:07] Speaker A: Yeah. So it's like this has got like little multi tool stuff that I use on a daily basis. Kind of stuff like toothpicks, hot glue. [00:12:14] Speaker B: You could survive in the wild with this. [00:12:16] Speaker A: Yeah, that's the point. [00:12:18] Speaker B: If you have nothing that if you have none of the normal luxury stuff. [00:12:21] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. [00:12:22] Speaker B: You have it all 100%. [00:12:24] Speaker A: And most like it's kind of evolved a little bit to be a little more of just a. A pretty elaborate edc. So it's not like if I needed to survive in the wild, it's. It has the essentials. [00:12:35] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:12:36] Speaker A: But I'm not going to thrive in the wild with this. I have my other go bag. Yeah, that's, that's like I have the hammocks, the. All the camping gear. I have like a portable, portable battery that's like. Should last a couple of weeks. [00:12:49] Speaker B: Wow. [00:12:49] Speaker A: Yeah. Like I'm. [00:12:51] Speaker B: I'm crazy about what led you to be. Have such an emphasis on the ultimate what if. To me, the, the end of the doomsday stuff is the ultimate what if. [00:13:01] Speaker A: Oh, for sure. 100. I think a lot of it is just. I don't know, I. I'm obsessed with like preparation. I don't. I want to be prepared for everything. [00:13:10] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:13:10] Speaker A: You know, I'm that kind of guy that's like I'll just have so many unnecessary things on me. [00:13:16] Speaker B: Like I like all your little patches On. [00:13:18] Speaker A: Thanks, bro. [00:13:20] Speaker B: Jesus. I saw that trick, bro. You can slide that back down now. [00:13:26] Speaker A: I gotta see the. I gotta see the candy first. Then I get in. In the van. I'm not stupid. [00:13:32] Speaker B: Show me the money, right? Show me the candy, Damn it. That's awesome. How long. How long have you kind of had that. That passion or that. That drive to be super prepared? Or is that something that growing up on a ranch kind of taught you? [00:13:45] Speaker A: Dude, I think both. You know, I think I really. I don't know what you'd call this, but I have, like, a tendency to get obsessed with things. Like, ever since I was little, I would always. I would get in. In interested in something. Right. Like, for instance, one was archery. Like, I was real big into archery. And then I have to, like, know everything about it. I started making bows. I started making arrows. Like, the whole, like, building the whole bit. I started making them out of plumbing pipe, doing the whole thing, man, whatever. [00:14:16] Speaker B: You could get your hands on. And you're like, I can make something out of this. [00:14:19] Speaker A: Oh, 100. I made my own little bow, making j. The whole bit. And I just get obsessed with it, and I want to get. I get to a point where I'm, like, satisfied, where I'm like, okay. I feel like I'm good enough at that. And then I move on to something. Like, it just dies. Like, the. The passion just kind of dies for me, and I'm like, okay, cool. It's cool. What's next? Yeah, and, dude, I went through, like, archery, hunting, fishing. Those aren't really hobbies. They were more of a lifestyle for me. Yeah, but, dude, I even went through, like, skateboarding and. And scootering. Yeah. How. [00:14:52] Speaker B: How old are you? [00:14:54] Speaker A: 23. [00:14:54] Speaker B: You're 23? [00:14:55] Speaker A: Just turned 23. [00:14:56] Speaker B: Okay, well, happy belated birthday. [00:14:57] Speaker A: Thanks, man. [00:14:58] Speaker B: Just turned 23. So. Yeah, I mean, I'm thinking, because we're. I'll be 31 on Friday, so I'm not 8 years old then. You. So we're slight. We're like, kind of the same generation, but there's a little bit of, like, a difference. And a lot of the. A lot of the folks around your age group grew up with the iPads and this and that. But it sounds like you were outside, and you were very much the make your own fun out of whatever you could find. [00:15:19] Speaker A: Dude, 100. I was the kid that was like, I found a few sticks, and I'd figure out how to make, like, something out of it, you know, and whether it was just, like, for fun, like, make my Own little toys, like, toy gun or something. But, dude, I was also kind of, like, crazy. Like, I feel like my parents were kind of, like, genuinely worried because sometimes it was. It was more often than not, actually. When I was. When I was younger, for years, I would wake up really early, and we. We had some property, you know. [00:15:49] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:15:50] Speaker A: So I had, like. We had all sorts of guns, but I, like. I really used a lot of, like, pellet guns and stuff. Yeah. And maybe. Maybe a.22 on occasion. And then, you know, like, when I went through the archery phase, I'd go out with a bow. But every morning, dude, I'd wake up with the sun, go outside and go hunting. And a lot of times, before my parents were even up, I'd have. I'd shot a squirrel or a rabbit or something. [00:16:12] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:16:13] Speaker A: And I would have it, like, killed, cleaned, and cooking on a fire by the time they get outside. [00:16:18] Speaker B: Wow. [00:16:19] Speaker A: Yeah. And they're like. I remember one time my dad walked out on the porch and I had, like, this fire, and I had this. This, like, squirrel carcass just doused in barbecue sauce. [00:16:29] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:16:29] Speaker A: And my dad was sitting there, like, he walked out the. Out the door. He's like, I don't know what I'm gonna do with you. Like, that's some Jeffrey Dahmer stuff, dude. That's wild. And I'm just. I don't know where it came from. [00:16:41] Speaker B: It's Jeffrey Dahmer stuff. I think it's that you had an interest in that lifestyle and you're. And you just learned from a young. I mean, that's nothing I did. Being in New York, we didn't. Running around killing squirrels. I hear the squirrels, if you prepare them right, are pretty good, though. Yeah. [00:16:55] Speaker A: I quit eating, like, all the rodents and. Dude, I eat. Ate everything. When I was a kid, Like, I would. I would. I never wanted to waste a killer. I would never just kill, just to kill. Unless it was, like, a hog or something. Like a nuisance that was. And it wasn't like, just the idea of it being a nuisance. Something that was actively harming. [00:17:13] Speaker B: Ripping up your fields. [00:17:14] Speaker A: Yeah. Ripping up the fields, harming the livestock, like that kind of thing. That's more of a. That's where the protector in me comes out a little bit. But if I just went out to kill, or I was. I was hunting, it would always. Always try to utilize it. And that's obsessed over the Native Americans because they would utilize every bit of the animal. [00:17:32] Speaker B: Every bit of their life came from the world that they lived In. [00:17:35] Speaker A: Yeah. And there was also like, such. This. This, like, such deep gratitude, like, when they would. Would have a kill, like, even back in, like, the buffalo days, like, they would go kill a buffalo and they would. They would skin it. They would use the hide. They would use the bow. Bow bones. [00:17:53] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:17:53] Speaker A: They would chew the sinew and use it as, like, adhesive and ties and stuff. Like, they would utilize every bit of it. And not only that, but it was like a respect. Like a genuine respect for the animal. Yeah. Like, thank you for. [00:18:05] Speaker B: Thank you for existing. So. [00:18:06] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:18:07] Speaker B: Provide for myself and those around me. [00:18:10] Speaker A: And I just love that you could. [00:18:11] Speaker B: It kept their civilization 100. [00:18:13] Speaker A: And I think it's like a. It's a mutual respect where you're. You're still able to live off the land and do what you need to do and go hunt. But then there's also, like, this accountability that's. That's kind of goes with it. [00:18:27] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:18:27] Speaker A: Where you're like. You watch yourself from being too excessive. You know, like, nowadays it can be. Get to the point where you're just like, oh, I want a bigger trophy on my wall, you know? And I mean, like, that's cool. But if I were to kill a trophy buck, I'm not saying I won't kill a trophy buck. I would absolutely do that. [00:18:44] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:18:44] Speaker A: But if I do, I'm gonna use every bit of the animal. I'm not just gonna, like, kill it, get the trophy, and call it a day. [00:18:50] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:18:50] Speaker A: You know? [00:18:51] Speaker B: Yeah, man. I want to talk about some of the music stuff that you've got going on. Why not? Whiskey has been on repeat for me. No way. [00:18:58] Speaker A: Really? [00:18:58] Speaker B: It's been on repeat because I've been saying we all love our sad country songs. And there's the different subsects of the genre, obviously. You know, Nikki T. And I with Razor Eye, we listen to a lot of music. That's kind of what we do for a living, you know, it's fun. But I've been saying. I've just been craving, like, the fun country songs. [00:19:20] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:19:21] Speaker B: And fun in that they make people want to dance. They make you want to crack open a cold. Whatever. Cold Surfside and just give you that feeling of, like, that 2000 stuff that we grew up on, the 2010s era that we grew up on. And why not? Whiskey for me is like that. It's just. It's a honky tonkin fun country song. [00:19:41] Speaker A: Thanks. [00:19:41] Speaker B: Thank you for putting that out. [00:19:43] Speaker A: Absolutely. [00:19:43] Speaker B: It makes me happy that that is, like, coming back. Talk about that song a little Bit, dude. [00:19:48] Speaker A: Why not? Whiskey was actually one of the first songs I wrote when I came to town. [00:19:52] Speaker B: Really? [00:19:52] Speaker A: Yeah, I was like one of the first. First five, maybe. I want to say it was like I wrote it three years ago maybe. And we kind of got on the room and. And that was kind of what I told him. I was like, look, I got with two other writers. I think it was Shane, dude, I'm so bad with names. This was a long time ago. [00:20:12] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You had just got in the town, got in the room with some. [00:20:15] Speaker A: Joe Clemens was one. I remember that. [00:20:17] Speaker B: Love Joe. [00:20:17] Speaker A: Joe, Clem and Shane. I can't remember. [00:20:20] Speaker B: Was it minor? Minor, minor. [00:20:22] Speaker A: Thank you, Shane. [00:20:23] Speaker B: And OG who wrote a lot of those songs back in the day. [00:20:26] Speaker A: Yes. And I can't like, I'm so sorry to Shane, dude. [00:20:29] Speaker B: We love you, Shane. I know. Thank you for writing all those hits. I love that guy. [00:20:32] Speaker A: I'm just so bad with names. [00:20:33] Speaker B: It happens. [00:20:34] Speaker A: And I hadn't seen those guys for so long, I'm surprised I was able to remember them. [00:20:38] Speaker B: But. [00:20:39] Speaker A: But yeah, I was in the room with those guys and I remember just getting in there and being like, man, we've had enough of the breakup stuff. And I was like, I just want to write something that's real. Let's write something that's fun. Let's like cut loose and just have fun with it, you know? Like, I don't. We don't have to write some crazy story. It doesn't have to be a heartbreak. And I also at the time was like very interested in like. Hardy was very, very influent, influential for me, like inspired me a bunch of. I love the way that he was able to storytell and flip a hook. [00:21:12] Speaker B: He's just a country boy poet, dude. [00:21:14] Speaker A: Oh yeah, like the best. Yeah, 100%. It'd be like a dream, right, for me to get in the room with that. [00:21:20] Speaker B: Hear that, Hear that? Hardy tracker in the room with Hardy. [00:21:24] Speaker A: Hit me up, dude. Let's. Let's do it. But yeah, he was like super influential at the time. Well, I mean always. He always will be. But I remember I was on like I was listening to nothing but his stuff. [00:21:40] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:21:41] Speaker A: And I was just obsessed with how he could storytell and at the same time flip a hook. And so I was like, let's write something. If it has to be about a breakup, so be it. But let's like focus on the positive side, you know, kind of like what I was saying, like, let's not drown in the self pity and like, oh, it's so horrible. That's like, kind of one of those, like, shrug your shoulders, well, whatever kind of songs. [00:22:05] Speaker B: Like a Brad Paisley, I'm going to miss her Bentley somewhere on a beach. I mean, Dirks was like, the king of that stuff where it was, like, drunk on a plane. It's like you're. You're. You're going on that honeymoon trip from the girl that you broke it off with right before the big day. And it's like a fun drinking anthem. [00:22:24] Speaker A: Right? [00:22:24] Speaker B: It's about a breakup. [00:22:26] Speaker A: That's what I'm saying. [00:22:26] Speaker B: That's. To me. What. Why not Whiskey? [00:22:28] Speaker A: Absolutely. And that's. That's, like, I just wanted to take. Especially since, like, for some reason, a lot of. For some reason, there's just, like, a tendency to write breakup songs, I think, because a lot of people are affected by it, and a lot of writers are living that life, you know, and so, like, it comes from a real place, which is what you want in a song. [00:22:47] Speaker B: Yes. [00:22:47] Speaker A: Yeah. But for me, when I'm like, I'm gonna put my name on it and I'm gonna be singing this, I want it to kind of be real. And, you know, I'm like, happily married, so it's kind of hard for me to sing breakup songs. So I remember at the time being very focused on trying to, like, if it was about a breakup, make it happy. Like, my first song that I. I released was Ain't Got Me, at least since I got to Nashville, and Ain't Got Me was about a breakup. But it's like, you have everything. You took my. My keys. You took my Netflix password. You took the, like, everything, but you don't have me. And it's like, it's your loss, not mine. And it's kind of like a ha ha funny. And I just love that, like, that I'm gonna miss her. Yeah, I love that stuff. [00:23:30] Speaker B: It's the. It's the irony of the happy while singing about the sad between the happy. And it's like the tempo. And sonically, it's fun. [00:23:39] Speaker A: Absolutely. [00:23:40] Speaker B: Me and Nikki T. Like to call that cold beer country. [00:23:43] Speaker A: Okay. [00:23:43] Speaker B: That's what is what. Like, it's. It's the songs that you picture in the honky tonk. I mean, even the bro country stuff factors into that. Like, I spent a lot of time back in my drinking days where I was at those FGL shows pounding fireball at the tailgate, you know, and it's like, oh, fireball whiskey. That old camp whiskey. There's stuff you know, we're manifesting an FGL comeback. Like Raise Rowdy. [00:24:05] Speaker A: We've. [00:24:05] Speaker B: We did the. We successfully with our buddy Brian Frazier, brought back the butt rock stuff. We were doing memes about Creed and Nickelback and all that, like four or five years ago, and now it's like that's all back or like we gotta have some part in the. The FGL dude come back. [00:24:21] Speaker A: So many people hated on FGL and. [00:24:23] Speaker B: Just like they hated on Nick Nickelback and Creed and Lip Biscuit, but they're. [00:24:27] Speaker A: But they're like household names, you know, like there's. Whether you like them or not, like, they were so unbelievably influential to the. The whole country. [00:24:38] Speaker B: Look at the guys. They were that bridge between Aldean and Luke Bryan and Dirt in that era to Wallen Hardy, Ernest Kane Brown, all the stuff that came after him. You don't have Morgan Wallen, dude, without Tyler Hubard and Brian. [00:24:52] Speaker A: That's exactly what I was about to say. Yes. It's like if it weren't. Not even just because, like, he went out. Out on tour with them and that's like kind of where he started, but also. And like he started writing with him, I think was. He was trying to sign to, like their tree vibes or something. [00:25:05] Speaker B: Tree vibes, which was under the big loud stuff. [00:25:07] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, exactly. So, like, they kind of took him under. Under their wing. So we wouldn't have Morgan if it weren't for them. I mean, he could have found his own way, but. But at least the way he did come about, like, we wouldn't have had that. And all things aside, man, like, I. I love their sound. I think it's killer. [00:25:25] Speaker B: The boundaries that they pushed. [00:25:27] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:25:27] Speaker B: Sonically. [00:25:28] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:25:28] Speaker B: It just. It took country and made it even more of a party because it's always. It's always had that party element to it, you know, Even if even the sad songs like People Get Drunk to Mama Tried by Merle Haggard. Sure. And they always will. [00:25:42] Speaker A: Family tradition. [00:25:42] Speaker B: Yeah, exactly. You know, like the. The classic stuff like that, man. What's it like for you being an independent artist and the fact that you've hit over 8 million streams in the last 12 months. [00:25:53] Speaker A: Thank you. [00:25:54] Speaker B: That's. That's very impressive. But what's it like doing it with a small team and really betting on yourself, man? [00:26:01] Speaker A: It's. It's a journey, for sure. It's just. It's. You kind of have to be borderline delusional like it. Which is kind of weird for. For me to say, but you have to be like. So you have to believe in yourself so much, to the point where it's like. Especially in, like, social media days now. [00:26:20] Speaker B: Yeah, dude. [00:26:21] Speaker A: So there's such an overabundance of content, and you're trying to, like. You're trying to make your video one of the top 10, 20, even 50 in the. How many millions of videos that are posted a day is crazy. And then, like, say you get zero views on a video or a couple hundred views on a video or something. You're like, what the heck? You know, like, that didn't work. You have to be able to look at that and go, I don't care what anybody says. That's cool. You know? And I think that it's that mentality. Mentality. Maybe it's that mentality you have to have that's just very resilient and, like, unwavering and. But all things mentality aside, I think it's. It's been fun, man. I, like, really enjoy. Like, I have a management team, and they've been very supportive, and they believe in the music just as much as I do, which helps. Definitely. [00:27:16] Speaker B: You need your champions. [00:27:17] Speaker A: Oh, yeah, Absolutely, dude. Because after so long of, like, writing and pitching songs, cutting songs, and you just don't get that. The recognition, maybe, or the kickback that you expected, it's just like, it's very easy to get down about it, but you just have to be strong. [00:27:38] Speaker B: Especially when you're talking about being alone in your head. That can be a dangerous place for any artist. Because then on the flip side, it's like you sign a record deal and you do all this stuff, but then you think it's going to work because there's people telling you it's going to work, and then it doesn't work. I feel like that's almost even a worse place. [00:27:56] Speaker A: Yeah. No, 100%. And I have, like, sympathy for a lot of those guys. And that's why it's been so important to me, because we have. We've been presented with a couple offers. [00:28:07] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:28:07] Speaker A: But I want to make sure that it's the right one, you know, Like, I don't want to be. I'm not going to. I've always said I'm not going to take the first deal that comes across my desk just because it's the first deal. I want to make sure that the people I've always said this is what I need from a deal in order to accept it, is that I need a team. That one has the capabilities, like the relationships or whatever. The financial backing, whatever it is, the capabilities to make something big. And then second, which is most important, the willingness to utilize those capabilities. Because sometimes you'll have people that are capable of it just won't do it. And I need in from a team. I need somebody that's, that's capable and willing to utilize that capability. And then what to me is the most important is they genuinely believe in what we're doing. And that's like not trying to make a quick buck. Not like a, oh, like I see the numbers on that are doing good. We can hop in, maybe throw a little bit at it, make a little bit of kickback. That's cool and that's great and good on them. But for me, when I'm just looking at what's best for my career because I'm running a marathon, dude, I'm not running a 100, 100 meter dash. [00:29:19] Speaker B: You know, and you're, and you're 23, you're just getting. [00:29:21] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly. So I'm like, dude, I'm. I'm doing everything I can and I'm going to do, I'm going to work as hard as I can for as long as I can and as long as I need to until I find those people. But it's just, that's really important to me is I need somebody that is going to be able to look at a song that we put out and maybe it didn't get the kickback we thought it would. [00:29:42] Speaker B: In my head, it looks. It sounds like a partnership. You want to have good partners just like you have with your wife. Sounds like she's a great partner and she's your other half. And she compliments you just like you compliment her. Your management team. Yeah. Champion you and their partners in the business that you're the CEO of 100. You're the CEO of this thing, man. [00:30:01] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:30:01] Speaker B: You know, and you're looking for the right partners to help take your company, which is your brand and your music, to the next level. [00:30:07] Speaker A: And that's so funny that, that you kind of drew the, you kind of compared the, the relationship between an artist and management or an artist and, and the label to. To marriage. Because I was just talking to my manager the other day. I thought it was so funny. [00:30:23] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:30:23] Speaker A: And he was like, he was like, dude, it's kind of like a marriage. Like you're kind of like married to each other in a way. Like you kind of put up with each other's crap. [00:30:35] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:30:36] Speaker A: And because you're, you're in it for the bigger Picture, you know, you're both equally bought in, and you're both, like. You both want it just as bad. And I think that's so important, dude. And he, like, my manager called it a marriage almost. And I was like, yeah, dude, that's. [00:30:50] Speaker B: So funny that it's investing in something that you guys can achieve together. [00:30:54] Speaker A: 100. [00:30:55] Speaker B: And that's what management is. And you. You're. You invest. Your. You and your wife invest in each other. Yeah. Live the best life that you can while you're on this earth. [00:31:04] Speaker A: Exactly. [00:31:04] Speaker B: You know, it's absolutely. It's a very. [00:31:06] Speaker A: It's. [00:31:06] Speaker B: To me, it's a very similar, like, comparison. Yeah. Some of these songs that we've got coming out before the record, which I can't wait for it to come out. I think it'll be announced by the time we release this podcast, so we'll say March 6th. That comes out. Which is going to be sick. You have. Coming out this Friday from when we're recording. It'll be out by the time this comes out. Back in the Saddle. Yeah, tell me about that one, dude. [00:31:27] Speaker A: So that one was like. [00:31:28] Speaker B: I like the title. I mean, it's out. [00:31:30] Speaker A: It's. It's. [00:31:31] Speaker B: It's one that. It's one that's been out there. Been out there before. But. [00:31:34] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:31:34] Speaker B: With you being a guy that grew up on a ranch and. But I'm sure there's, like, a twist to it. [00:31:39] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:31:39] Speaker B: Like, there is. [00:31:40] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, it's. What's so crazy is that is probably the realest song that I've. I've ever written, because I. What's funny is, like, I was hanging out with a buddy, and we just went and got, like, a bottle of Crown, and we're, like, just hanging out, having a good time, and he starts playing this lick, and it's the. It's the lick on Back in the Saddle, you know, And I just heard that, and I pulled my phone out and hit record and I just went off. I like, freestyle, like, 40% of it right off the bat. Because I was just. It was one of those moments, and this is one that I've learned. You can't force. Like, you just cannot force creativity, and especially when it comes from a real place. And this, like, he played that lick and, dude, I'm telling you, like, this song just fell out. It just, like, poured out of me. And it's. It's. It's about pretty much moving to Nashville and leaving my old life behind and kind of the sadness associated with that. Like, I thought I was gonna go into rodeo. I thought I was gonna rope and, and ride and like, I thought that was gonna be my life and I was gonna be close to family and very, very family oriented. [00:32:47] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:32:47] Speaker A: So I thought that I was going to be back in Texas rodeoing and doing that whole thing. And then, well, I moved to Nashville. And as much as I love music and as much as I love Nashville, it's just. I miss home, you know, it's hard to say it any other way. And getting back in the saddle was just like a way for me to, to put that idea, like bottle that idea. And I never really, I thought this was funny. I never really thought I would be missing work. Like, I never really thought I would be missing roping or riding or working on the ranch. Like I think it says, getting back in the saddle, back to my roots, putting boots in the gravel and just like working on the ranch, like everyday life, man, like maybe a pipe was busted or livestock got caught in the. [00:33:32] Speaker B: Fence, or you're building a fence or putting this up or putting a paddock. [00:33:37] Speaker A: Here, this or that, there's something always going on there. And for some reason I just, I enjoyed that, man. I really did. And I enjoyed working with livestock. I enjoyed like, I enjoyed every bit of it. So it's just like, it's a little bit of me reminiscing and going, man, it's, it's sad that I'm not doing that anymore, but I'm also working towards that. Like I know where I'm going. I know where I'm going with music. So that kind of keeps me grounded because I'm going to be here for as long as I need to to make this happen. And then once I, once I have enough, I mean, I'm never going to stop doing music. I'm always going to do music. But once I have enough money going to buy a ranch and I'm going to get back to that lifestyle, dude, I want to be the guy that's, that's real. I don't want to be somebody that's like sings the songs about it and then doesn't really do it. Right now I feel like that kind of guy. I feel like a poser cuz I'm living in Nashville. [00:34:25] Speaker B: You. [00:34:26] Speaker A: But you did it. Yeah. Oh yeah. [00:34:27] Speaker B: I used to do it. So that's the thing for me, it's like you're singing about the stuff that, you know, like, like you go. We go back to that 2000s era with the comparisons like Luke Bryan singing, even though he Was living in Nashville, singing about that Muckley Creek water. [00:34:40] Speaker A: You know, that is a good way to put it. [00:34:42] Speaker B: You know, it's like you're singing about stuff that you grew up with. [00:34:45] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:34:45] Speaker B: You know, that's, you know, it's. You're singing about your version of nostalgia. Like, my version of nostalgia would be going to a Yankees game or doing the. Going to that local pizzeria that was in the. That was in the same strip mall as the movie theater and just. And not. Not being old enough to drive. So I'd walk from my house to my buddies, you know, be like singing about that. Now I'm not living in New York. I'm living in the South. I can't go. [00:35:08] Speaker A: You're from New York? Yeah. [00:35:09] Speaker B: I grew about 30 minutes outside New York City. [00:35:11] Speaker A: No. [00:35:11] Speaker B: So it's like I grew up, like, I'm not, I'm not out here singing about that like, or talking or living or covering New York media. Like, I still listen to all the New York sports stuff or whatever. But I can talk about it because I did live it, even though I've been living here for seven years. You can talk about your. The rodeo stuff. Growing up right near that Okie. Right near that red river. You know, it's. Yeah. The red dirt. But even like, like how they talk about the Red river that runs through. You know, like, you're like, you can talk about all that because you did live it. You can talk about being a kid running around with your first pelican upgrade to a 22 because you did that stuff, man. You know, so I wouldn't feel like a poser because you're not doing it currently because you, you sing about the stuff that you know and you spent your. Sounds like 20 years living and doing that stuff. [00:35:58] Speaker A: Dude. Actually, thank you saying that. That's. That's a really cool perspective because for some reason, maybe it's just like it's the earning inside me that wants to do it. Yeah, dude. [00:36:08] Speaker B: And being here, it's like we're in a bubble, you know, Nashville feels like a bubble. Yeah. And when I first moved here, I would go visit home and whatever and I'd have FOMO of missing whiskey jam or missing this thing's going on or, oh, I'm missing. I'm missing this pop up shot, so and so's bar, you know, because we don't realize, like, I'm out. I feel like I'm out of the bubble now because I've traveled a bunch with doing the music stuff. But it's like when you're here, especially when you first get here those first couple years, which is where you're. Where you're at, it feels like you're. You really are out of touch with, like, the outside of Nashville. [00:36:44] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:36:44] Speaker B: Scene. Oh, you know, so I get why you would feel how you feel about missing home and all of that, because you're, You're. We're kind of isolated in what's happening in town. [00:36:55] Speaker A: Oh, absolutely, dude. And I think, like, you. You kind of purposely immerse yourself in what's going on in Nashville so you can kind of stay up to date and, you know, keep up with the Joneses a little bit and kind of keep up with everybody else. I've always been bad at that. I've always been so bad at, like, the sports and, and I've never been interested in. In those kind of things, which is funny coming from Texas. Yeah. [00:37:15] Speaker B: But you're interested if, If Browning comes out with the new model of a rifle, you're gonna know the specs of that thing inside and out, and you're gonna try and get on a pre order list for it, you know? [00:37:25] Speaker A: Sure. My buddy Barrett just actually came out with, I think. I think they call it like the Mach 22 or something like that. [00:37:31] Speaker B: I would have no idea what you're talking about. Like, everybody's different and has their. Has their things, you know, So I wouldn't say you're bad about the sports thing. It's just you're. You're into. You're. You're into different. [00:37:42] Speaker A: Something else. You're into different stuff, man. Dude, I love. Those are two really good perspectives. Maybe it's like the FOMO of, like, me wondering if I'm missing out, but just not really. Karen, I would say life. [00:37:54] Speaker B: I would say you're not really missing out on much. You got a great wife. You guys got kids yet? [00:37:58] Speaker A: No, we're. She's definitely got the baby fever, so. [00:38:01] Speaker B: Okay. Okay. But I say that to say you've got. You've got a great wife, you've got a great life. You're. You're living your dream. You can't really put out a damn record. Like, dude, life is great, you know, but we still have that yearning of, like, the fomo. Like, FOMO still manages to be a thing. [00:38:19] Speaker A: I think it's just like the human. The human mind. Like the Bible says, like, man will never be the eyes of man will never be satisfied. Satisfied. So, like, you're. You're always wanting to do better. And I think There's a part of that that's good. It's like striving to be better, to become something better. And I think that's important to have, but at the same time, being able to balance it with the ability to appreciate what you already have. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like, not getting so caught up in the destination that you forget to enjoy the journey. Yeah. You know what I mean? That's something that I. I wanna. I'm endlessly working towards getting better at, you know, Because I think you can always get better. [00:38:54] Speaker B: Hey, man, it's a balance. What were you, a New Year's resolution guy? [00:38:57] Speaker A: Kind of. I mean, or goals. [00:39:00] Speaker B: What were the goals for? Now we're in January of 26, which still blows my mind. It's 2026, I keep saying. Right. I keep. Like, we talk about, like, what we are, festivals that we do over the summer, and I'm like, oh, next year's festivals. Next year, My. Oh, man, It's. [00:39:13] Speaker A: It's. [00:39:13] Speaker B: It's 2026. [00:39:14] Speaker A: It's. [00:39:14] Speaker B: Dude, 2016. [00:39:16] Speaker A: It feels like yesterday. Yeah. Like, it's crazy to say that. 2016 was 10 years ago. [00:39:20] Speaker B: Yeah, I know, dude. [00:39:20] Speaker A: It's like. I think that was. Was it 2016, 2018, when FGL was like going. [00:39:26] Speaker B: 2016 was like. That was when the whole. That was. That was so Cruise came out. 2012. Oh, I remember that. I remember. I remember that because that was my senior year. That was my senior year of high school into my freshman year of college. Yeah, I saw FGL seven times from 2013 to 2015. Yeah, they came up north a lot. But what were some of the goals. [00:39:44] Speaker A: For you this year, man? I think just make everything a little better. I wanted to be a better. I want to be a better son. I want to be a better husband. I want to work on being. I'm not a dad yet, but, I mean, maybe to a dog. I'm a dog dad. [00:39:57] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:39:57] Speaker A: So, I mean, I want to work on being better for everybody around me because I can be. I don't want to say I can be difficult, but I can. I could definitely have my times, you know, where I could be better, and I want to work on that. But when it comes to, like, goals and career wise, I can see us getting signed this year. If. If it's. If it's God's will, you know, we'll see. Maybe, maybe not. But those are all kind of things that I don't want to, like, associate success with. What I want to do is I want this record to go gold. That's my. My goal. Like, it might not be this year, but that's what I'm going to be working towards endlessly. And I think it's whether it's with a label or independent, like 100, that's my goal is to get this record to at least go gold. Because I want. I want a gold plaque, man. Like, once I have that, I'm like, all right, I can. I can. I can do this. You know, it's like maybe just a physical representation of kind of accepting, like, hey, you can do this. You know, it's hard idea or emotion maybe to bottle or. Or convey, but. But yeah, I'd say that's what I'm working towards. I want this. This record to hit 100 million streams, however I need to do that, man. But that's. That's what I'm working towards. [00:41:19] Speaker B: That's awesome, man. Yeah, that's awesome. Have you gotten to go out and do a lot of shows on the road yet, or is that. [00:41:23] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thanks to the. To my management, I was able to get land a few tours with Justin Moore and Randy Houser, Joe Nichols. [00:41:31] Speaker B: What were those like, dude? And which one came first? What was the first. [00:41:36] Speaker A: The first tour, I actually just made a plaque that I put on the wall because I'm very, like, sentimental guy, dude. [00:41:41] Speaker B: It's cool to have to have that stuff. [00:41:44] Speaker A: And I'm like, I love memories. I think memories are the thing that we all, like, value more than we realize. Yeah. Because I think like, physical things or presents or gifts or whatever are nice, but you kind of. You forget about those. Like, if to put it in. In perspective, like birthdays, I could buy you something for your birthday, or we could go take a trip to Colorado and go skiing. Yeah, you're never gonna forget that trip. You might forget the whatever I get you. [00:42:13] Speaker B: Yeah, the material thing. [00:42:15] Speaker A: Material thing, you know, But I'm so sorry. [00:42:19] Speaker B: What was the first. First tour you went on? [00:42:21] Speaker A: Yeah, I'm like, I'm so crazy. I can get off on a tangent, but the first tour I went on was Justin Moore and Joe. Randy Houser. That's what it was. Justin Moore and Randy Houser was first. That was 2024, I believe. [00:42:38] Speaker B: Okay, so coming up on two years ago. [00:42:40] Speaker A: Yeah, 20, like late 2024. Maybe 2025. The second one I know was 2025. That one was Joe Nichols. [00:42:50] Speaker B: Now, what show experience had you had before that? [00:42:54] Speaker A: Dude, I played a lot in Texas. You did? Dude, I was my own before I moved to Nashville. Like, I was wearing all the hats, man. I was like the creative director, the songwriter, the producer, the content guy. I was like the editor, the marketer, the booking agent, the label, everything. You were the. [00:43:14] Speaker B: You were the independent artist. [00:43:15] Speaker A: Yeah, the independent. Yeah, exactly. And so, dude, my. Me and my grandma. My grandma was like my first booking agent, which is so funny. She literally got a book of every single venue in Texas. And we called every number in that thing, dude. Wow. Every number. And I was like, hey, my name's Austin Michael. This is my rate. This is what I'm doing. I just put this. At that time, I think I just put an album out because I wrote this. This album when I was like 15 and recorded it in a barn and put it out. And like, I was like. Because I thought, like, an album is what artists do, you know? Like, I didn't really understand the. The concept of singles. I was like, an album is what we're. What we're doing. Ironic. Part of the whole thing is that that whole album I wrote about who's now my wife. I just met her at the time, and I, like, wrote this whole album about her. And then we ended up getting married. I thought it was pretty cool, but. [00:44:07] Speaker B: That's very cool. [00:44:08] Speaker A: But, yeah, man, like, I called every venue in Texas and I played a lot. I mean, I was playing. That was the only thing I did really, outside of working on the ranch. That was how I. How I made a living was. Was gigging, dude. I mean, I was up doing the late nights, like midnight to 2am sometimes I would even like. I don't know if this is like, legal or. But I was like, kind of avoiding the answering. What? Like my age. When they would ask me how old I was. [00:44:42] Speaker B: Yeah, because you wanted the opportunity to play and you weren't in there starting any problems. You were up there to play guitar. Exactly. [00:44:47] Speaker A: And when you're like 15, you know, if I'm like, oh, I'm 14 or 15, some of them were fine with it. [00:44:52] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:44:52] Speaker A: But some people would just be like, oh, we can't have that in the bar, or whatever. [00:44:56] Speaker B: Even though you're not touching a beer. [00:44:58] Speaker A: Yeah, well, I never drank before I was legally able to see. [00:45:05] Speaker B: I feel like that. That makes a lot of sense, though, that you were gigging young because. And I feel like that gives such a leg up because there's so many guys and girls that have that social pop that blow up on a Tik Tok or an Instagram or YouTube Shorts or Facebook or whatever. Mostly Tik Tok and they've never played a show and then they're getting booked because they're able to sell tickets, but they don't know how to be in front of people. [00:45:31] Speaker A: People. Yeah. [00:45:32] Speaker B: And that, to me, is something that's becoming lost. Because it used to be you broke an artist 100 by getting that guy or girl on the road. [00:45:39] Speaker A: Absolutely. [00:45:40] Speaker B: And to start at a young age, I feel like that story used to be very common. Yeah. Now it's. It's kind of like a lost art where it's kind of reversed now. [00:45:48] Speaker A: Yeah. No. 100%. I think, like, social media is definitely. I don't want to say throw. Throwing a wrench in the whole process, but it's definitely changed. [00:45:56] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:45:56] Speaker A: The country music industry, for sure, in a lot of ways, but, yeah, in good ways. I mean, it gives the people that wouldn't have had an opportunity an opportunity to get out there. [00:46:05] Speaker B: Yeah. There's more power to the artists through social media 100. There's more power which works in the independent artist also for the consumer, because they're not just having to listen to whatever's on the radio. [00:46:16] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:46:17] Speaker B: Or whatever's coming through. [00:46:18] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly. [00:46:19] Speaker B: Find it wherever. And no matter what community you grow up in, you got Internet. Nowadays, almost everybody has one of these to where it's like. It's such a great medium and like a broadcasting channel to get your stuff out there. But there's so many guys and girls that they have their moment online. [00:46:34] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:46:34] Speaker B: They don't know how to be on a stage. And now it's like, you've had some moments pop online, but you know how to be on a stage. You've been doing that thing a long time. [00:46:43] Speaker A: Yeah, man. And that's. I 100 agree with you, man. I think the showmanship is something that's not necessarily becoming forgotten because I think anybody that's going to have a long career in music is going to have to either be good at it or get good at it. [00:46:56] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:46:56] Speaker A: But showmanship is definitely a huge part of it. And I've always been a people's person, so I can almost kind of be a jerk when I get on stage because I'm like the guy that's like, I'm not going to sing this song to you guys. I hear every one of you guys. [00:47:09] Speaker B: It's called Work in a crowd, brother. That's not a problem at all. You work in a crowd. [00:47:13] Speaker A: I'll, like, point them out too. Sometimes I'm like, hey, cuz, I know if you get one person, all you need is one person start clapping. Then you got the whole crowd. It's all you need. And a lot of times, especially when you're like, first, like, walking on, playing a few songs, they don't really know who you are, where you come from, if they jive with you or not. And you kind of got to force yourself into their bubble in a way. You're like, hey, I'm playing this song. Like, I know you know it. Sing along. Come on. Like, let's have a good time. You have to, like, invite them to have a good time. [00:47:43] Speaker B: You do. Yeah, you do. Especially as an opener where they might not be familiar with what was that experience like of doing the opener thing in front of two guys that you grew up listening to? Randy Justin. [00:47:54] Speaker A: That was like, mind boggling to me because, like, going on tour, Justin Moore was ruling. Justin Moore and Jason Aldean were ruling the radio. And Randy Houser were just like dominating radio. When I was growing up, like, the ones didn't make it back home and. Yeah, Backwood, dude, that song. Have you seen that live? [00:48:15] Speaker B: Yes. [00:48:16] Speaker A: Oh, yeah, bro. Insane. They do, like this little. I'm not gonna ruin their second. Oh, so good. If you haven't seen a Justin. So you have to. Yeah. And that's one of the coolest things about going on tour was I was able to, like, not only be the guy up on stage, but I was a consumer. I was like one of the. I was the audience dude. And I would go out. What's so funny? I would walk directly off stage, out into the crowd, and not just to mingle and talk with everybody, but to see the show. Like, I'd. Every show. I've seen it a hundred times. [00:48:48] Speaker B: And you probably pick up on things. [00:48:50] Speaker A: Oh, 100. [00:48:51] Speaker B: As a guy who's coming up right now, learning from some legends. [00:48:55] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. But sorry to answer your question back to, like, how was that like, learning how to do that, Man? It's. It's definitely a process, kind of like learning that you are. I don't want to say the underdog, but you are kind of like nobody really knows who you are, so you kind of gotta make your presence known. [00:49:13] Speaker B: Gotta win them over. [00:49:14] Speaker A: Yeah, you have to. And I mean, I don't in the most humble way possible. I. I think I'm. I'm pretty good at that, you know, I think mainly because I'm a people's person and I just enjoy relationship. I'm one of those guys. It's like, just because I'm on stage doesn't mean that I'm, like, putting on some show, and I'm, like, pretending that I'm better than all y'. All. Like, I'm here with you. I want to sing these songs with you. [00:49:37] Speaker B: Yes. [00:49:37] Speaker A: Like, let's have a good time. I'm not standing on the stage because I think I'm better than you. I'm just wanting to have a good time with you, you know? And so it's. I don't know, man. I never really had too much of an issue because. And if I did, I was. I'd kind of, like, stop and just be like, all right, I'm not. I'm not gonna play until you guys. Every one of you guys are clapping or singing this song with me, you know? And a lot of times, I'll, like, mess with them. I'll play, like, Pickup man or something. There's something women like about it, you know? And then just like, stop. And I'm like, oh, wow. Like, you guys really don't know Pickup Man? Like, that's really disappointing. [00:50:12] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:50:13] Speaker A: Like, if you don't know this one, I don't know if we can be friends, you know? And you kind of poke at him a little bit, and then like, okay, this guy's cool. He's not just, like, some jerk on stage, like, trying to shove his music down our throat. He's trying to have a good time. Yeah. [00:50:25] Speaker B: And how long were those sets? They were like, what, like, 15, 30 minutes? [00:50:28] Speaker A: 45. Yeah, about 30. 45 minutes. [00:50:31] Speaker B: Okay. That's a pretty good amount of time. [00:50:32] Speaker A: Yeah, man. I mean, my favorite set is. I don't know. I mean, 30 is really strong because you can pack all your. Really, the best songs into that. But now I've written so much, man, I feel like 45 minutes to an hour, I can. [00:50:46] Speaker B: I can pack a pretty good headline thing yet. Or not. Not a ton. [00:50:50] Speaker A: I played one show. It was a showcase. I played one headlining show, and. And we. I don't think we packed it out, but it was more than I expected. That exit in, like, I was. It was pretty cool, man. [00:51:01] Speaker B: Yeah, man. It's tough to go out there and do the headlining thing right now because the clubs, like, that's the world that I came from. I was a. I was a tour manager and on the road with different bands for about five. [00:51:11] Speaker A: Were you really? [00:51:11] Speaker B: So, yeah. So a club doing all the clubs around. Around the United States, and the club shows just there aren't. They don't seem to be as many of them. And it's harder to sell tickets now. Because of all the festivals, which we love our festivals, we do a lot of work with them. But like the festivals and then like the bigger scale shows, it's like, yeah, the, the people aren't. People don't seem to be coming out for the 15 to 25 ticket like they used. [00:51:33] Speaker A: And I think Covid really had a lot to do with that. [00:51:36] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:51:36] Speaker A: I think just the idea of like the, the fear mongering that came along with, with COVID just like really, it affected a lot of people especially, dude. I mean, you're, you're forcing the, the young generation to be like, you're. You're forcing them to be introverted. Like they, they don't really. They didn't get to experience the outside world for a long time, you know, for few years of the most vital part of their life. [00:52:02] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:52:03] Speaker A: Where their brain is still like developing. And I think that along with social media and cell phones have really like, affected people's like, want to go out. [00:52:16] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:52:17] Speaker A: Like they're, they're just willingness maybe. Yeah. [00:52:21] Speaker B: Yeah. The live experience is different now than 100 before. Did you grow up going to concerts. [00:52:25] Speaker A: And stuff, you know? No, I never did. I was always like, I lived under a rock, bro. I lived on the range. [00:52:32] Speaker B: Yeah, you were on a bunch of acres. [00:52:33] Speaker A: And I was like, why pay, why I was such a redneck? I was just like, why pay $50 to go see it live when I could just watch a video of it live after for free, you know? [00:52:44] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:52:45] Speaker A: And dude, I definitely did. I watched live shows of Morgan Wallen before he was big, like back in, in 2016, 2017, when he was like playing the small shows and stuff like that. I remember watching him on, on YouTube and his live set and how he interacted. To see him grow has been crazy. But along with everybody else, I watched live shows of all my favorite artists like Justin Moore and Jason Aldean and all those, all those guys, man, I just, I really enjoyed the showmanship part of it. But no, I never really experienced concerts. The first one I experienced was, I think it was a Jason Aldean concert. And I was like, yeah, they're fun. This is what it's about, you know? [00:53:30] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:53:31] Speaker A: And I went with. My manager was like, you've never been to a show before? I was like, no. I mean, I was always like, I've been to a show, I've played shows. Yeah. I just never went to be in the audience of a show necessarily or a concert. And so he's like, we're going, we're going to the show. I was like, all right. And we show up and I was just like, wide eyed and bushy tail the whole time. I was like, holy smokes. Like, this is what I've. This is what I'm doing it for. Like these people right here screaming these lyrics back to this guy because it affected them somehow some way. That's what the dream is, man. Like, that's what I. I'm doing this for. I love it. [00:54:13] Speaker B: That's awesome, man. I have on here about you knocking on doors and sleeping in your car. [00:54:18] Speaker A: Yeah, dude, tell me, tell me about. [00:54:20] Speaker B: What was happening with that, bro. [00:54:22] Speaker A: It. That was. That's a long story, but I'll try to keep it short. [00:54:25] Speaker B: You got time. [00:54:26] Speaker A: Okay, good. Because I was like, I hope you're. I hope you booked out the rest of your day because this is like. Yeah, but dude, what's. What's so funny is I never really thought I was gonna come to Nashville. And I actually said that like, I was a Texas guy. I'm staying in Texas, staying home. Like I said, very family oriented. So I don't. I didn't want to disassociate with family or like separate from family. So I was like, no, I'm staying here. This is where I'm build a family. This is where like I'll just. I was super stubborn, so I'm like, I'm just gonna make it happen here. And I put a lot of extra workload on myself because I was having to be the manager and the booking agent and the producer. I had to learn to produce to, you know, do my own music. But. But man, sorry, what was the sleeping. [00:55:09] Speaker B: In your car, knocking on doors, dude, so sorry. [00:55:13] Speaker A: The way I'm trying to wonder how I get into this, because it's a long story, but I'll just tell you the part first and then I'll tell you. How was it? [00:55:20] Speaker B: Was it here? Was it while you were here in Nashville? Was it back in Texas? It was here. [00:55:23] Speaker A: No, it was here in Nashville. So I didn't really think I was going to go to Nashville. I didn't really want to and I got pushed to. And I'll tell you kind of a little bit more about that in a minute. But I got pushed to come here and when I did, like I said, I'm super stubborn and I didn't have that much money and I just saw the prices of Airbnbs and hotels and I was like, like, hell, I'm paying that. Heck no. So I'm like, I'll Just sleep in my car. I don't care. So I would find hotel parking lots, you know, where I could. I could sleep in that you didn't have to pay. Dude. I would drive till 2am in the morning trying to find a parking lot that you didn't have to pay $5 to park at because I was that cheap. [00:56:01] Speaker B: Really? [00:56:02] Speaker A: Yeah, dude. And I would. I would sleep in these. These parking lots and I would have rights every day. And I would go into the hotel and in the morning and it was kind of like strategic because I'd walk in, go to the bathroom, right? I'd have like my little toiletry bag with like my toothbrush and everything. And I'd go get my hair wet in the sink and I'd spend a little bit of time in the bathroom. So the people that just saw me walk in aren't gonna like. I kind of give them time to kind of leave or move around or there's different people in there, you know. By the time I come back out, my hair is all wet. Looks like I just took a shower coming down from my room, grab some breakfast and a coffee, go to my. My right. [00:56:41] Speaker B: Wow. [00:56:41] Speaker A: Yeah. That's how I survived out here for like a week. But. But yeah, man. I mean, like, I kind of rough in it, but I enjoyed it, you know, I would like, stay up late at night because I couldn't sleep because all the noise, and go live played. Play on TikTok Live. I'd roll the window down on the driver's side, crack the window just a little bit, and stick the neck of the guitar out there so I could play. [00:57:05] Speaker B: Wow. [00:57:05] Speaker A: And then sometimes, like, some parking lots had security guards, like, driving around, you know, and sometimes I would be in a parking spot maybe I wasn't supposed to be in, and just like, just to be safe, I would time it about every five to 10 minutes, the security guard would come around and I would like pull the guitar back in. And it's so funny because all these people on live are just seeing me every five to 10 minutes, go like this. And I'm like, I'm getting low and like getting my guitar down. [00:57:33] Speaker B: Yeah. They're like, what? [00:57:34] Speaker A: What the heck's going on? I'm like, sorry, the security guard. And, you know, I get. Go back to playing for another five, 10 minutes. And then they'd. I got like to the point where I could time like one, two songs and then have to duck again. And. And yeah, dude, I'd do that all night. And then I'd get in the back, lay down, go to sleep, wash up in the morning, go to my right. That's like, wow. Yeah, I did that for a week, week and a half or so. And the story of how I got there was, like, I said I was kind of wearing all the hats. I was doing everything myself. And my dad at the time was doing some business with some guys, and he happened to be in the room with John Daly, and for some godforsaken reason, they gave my dad the Ox. My dad is, like, not a. A music consumer, like, never has been. He owns one song, and that's Ring of Fire. Like, if you give my dad the ox, like, you're in for it, dude. Like, you're hearing Ring of Fire on repeat, right? So my dad, like, he gets the Ox, I guess, plays the one song that he has. Then he's like, well, don't have anything else. And he didn't have any subscription, you know, deals. So he was like, all right, I guess I'll just start playing Austin's demos, because I would send him all my demos, you know. So he just starts playing all my demos. And then story has it, rumor has it that John, in John Daly fashion, was, like, sitting at the end of the table. There's a whole bunch of people there, and he just told everybody to shut up. He's like, whoa, shut up. Who is this? And my dad was like, well, that's. That's my son. And he was like, give me the phone or give me the speaker. And supposedly he held the speaker up to his ear and listened to the song like, three or four times on repeat and, like, all the way through. And it's like two. One, two o' clock in the morning at this time. And I'm. I'm at the. At home working on a song in the studio. I get a call from a random number and a text from my dad that says, answer it. And I was like, okay, well, this must be serious. And so I answer the call and I hear, listen here, mother. You know? Yeah. And I'm like, you know, that's John Daly for you. And I'm like, whoa, who is this? He's like, it's John Daly. He's like, where are you? I said, I'm at home. He goes, where's home? I said, texas. He goes, you need to get your ass in Nashville yesterday. And I said, no, sir. I'm a Texas cat. I'm staying in Texas. And he goes, like, hell. Hangs up on me, calls his buddy is. Calls his buddies in Nashville, schedules me Three rights and calls me back, goes, hey, you have three rice in Nashville. Better be there. I was like, really, Uncle John, dude. John? Yeah. John Daly Publishing is how I got to town. So, like. [01:00:06] Speaker B: Yeah, you have you still, like, kept in touch with. [01:00:09] Speaker A: Yeah, man. I. I'll hit him up like he was just in that Happy Gilmore movie, and I'll hit him up there. I'm like, dude, those lines are hilarious. I had no idea. Like, I had no idea it was in the movie. Yeah. And then I see him, and I'll go to, like, one of his golf tournaments or something like that every once in a while. Like, there's, like, Big John. I don't know if it's John Daly tournaments, but, like, he'll be at good boy events sometimes or, you know, and I'll kind of coordinate with him. I think he's actually working on an album. He just sent me his. His album the other day. It's pretty cool, dude. He did it. I don't know if I'm allowed to say this, but he did a cover of an old country song that I really love. Yeah, I think it's pretty cool. He's such such a cool dude. Yeah. Like, genuinely one of the coolest guys I'm playing with. [01:00:48] Speaker B: Yeah, he's a one of a kind man. So if. So we know. Lone stars coming out March 6th. [01:00:55] Speaker A: Yes, sir. [01:00:56] Speaker B: What do you hope people get from that record? Like, what do you hope it makes somebody feel? And how. Would you kind of preview, summarize how important this. This album is to you? [01:01:06] Speaker A: Yeah, man, I. I just. I hope people feel seen from this. You know, I feel like if any. If there's some folks out there like me, you know, I have a tendency to get in my own head, and sometimes that makes you feel alone. And I almost. It's a necessity for me. I have to be in that. That state of mind sometimes in order to be productive. And sometimes it can lead to self deprecation. It can lead to, like, negativity or pessimism and. And it's like, I try to. To steer away from that. And I'm also big in, like, philosophy and stoicism, and so there's a few stoic songs on there, like, Cowboys Don't act like that. But I just hope that these songs can speak to people and help them through a time. Maybe help, like, allow them to feel seen. Like, it's. I'm not the only one. You know what I mean? And then I wanted to. I kind of wanted a variety. I wanted a little bit Of. Of all the emotions, I kind of wanted to take them through a journey, you know, like, cowboys don't act like that is actually a true. It's about stoicism. But then at the end of the song it flips and it's like, well, I. I did do the things you aren't supposed to do, technically. Yeah. And I ended up getting the girl. You know, it's kind of the story, but I kind of wanted to. To go through all these different emotions and kind of take these people through a journey and in hopes that one, they feel seen and two, like a part of that journey is like self realization, like realizing who you are, where you come from, sticking to your roots, being proud of it, you know, like, instead of feeling like you need to fit in with everybody, maybe just own the fact that you're a lone star, you know, like, even though sometimes you can feel alone, that doesn't mean that you are. Yeah. And that's like, that's kind of what I hope to get across with people. And maybe, maybe that's my message. But at the same time, I want them to be able to kick the record on. I want them to be able to have a good cry. I want them to be able to reminisce and. And have a little bit of nostalgia. And then I want them to be able to kick back and drink a beer and have a good time, you know? So like. And another thing that was important to me about this record is I wanted people to hear. I wanted to keep it very real and pretty raw, you know, and kind of like country music. I kind of wanted to record it like an older. An older record with hints of modern stuff, you know, and just staying true to who I am, even if it's weird. But one of the things that were really important to me is I wanted people to hear this and go, that's a sick record. But I have to hear that live. Like, I just have to go to a show. That's what. What I hope people get from this is, is one feeling seen and like, maybe helping them in their own self development journey and encourage them to get out to a show, man. [01:03:52] Speaker B: Awesome, dude. Well, hey, I can't wait to get out to a show, brother. I'm very. I'm very excited and can't wait for Lone Star to be out, bro. [01:03:59] Speaker A: Me either, dude. It's like I'm like, I'm waiting, counting the countdown. [01:04:04] Speaker B: It's almost like the birth of a child kind of put a lot of work. It's about eight, nine, Months. You said you worked. Yeah. Right. [01:04:12] Speaker A: Yeah. I mean, if you go back to the first song we wrote on the record, it was like, three years ago. [01:04:17] Speaker B: Yeah. [01:04:17] Speaker A: And fun story about Back on a. On a Bar Stool, which is one of the first songs that might be the first song. No. Why not? Whiskey was Back on a Bar Stool was shortly after that. And that was one. That was my first song that people freaked out about. And they were like, whoa, don't send this anywhere. We're sending this to Jason Aldean or this guy. And it was. It got pitched to Jason Aldean, and some guys tried to get it to Morgan. I don't know if it ever got there, but. And at the time, I was like, that was like, the song for me. And I was like, no, like, I don't want them to cut it. I want to cut it, you know? [01:04:53] Speaker B: Yeah. [01:04:54] Speaker A: Because it was kind of like my baby at the time, you know, And. But after writing more and understanding getting kind of in. In the industry a little more, I understand that's like. That's kind of a given. [01:05:04] Speaker B: Like, it's not a. That's not a bad thing. [01:05:06] Speaker A: It's not a bad thing. It's a great thing. [01:05:07] Speaker B: Yeah. [01:05:08] Speaker A: And I think it's actually important to. Especially the songs that you might not cut because there's so many songs that you write all the time. [01:05:15] Speaker B: Yeah. [01:05:16] Speaker A: And it's like, there's no way that you could release all of them. So I definitely want, like, if. If I had it my way, every one of my songs would be released and, like, either me or by another artist. Yeah, that'd be killer. [01:05:28] Speaker B: That would be killer. [01:05:29] Speaker A: And I have a few on hold right now that I'm pretty. [01:05:31] Speaker B: That's awesome, buddy. But we'll talk about that off the mic. [01:05:33] Speaker A: Heck, yeah. [01:05:33] Speaker B: Sure, dude. Well, hey, I appreciate the hell out of you coming out. [01:05:36] Speaker A: Absolutely. [01:05:37] Speaker B: Thank you for. For sharing and hanging out. And, dude, I'm very excited for where 202326 is going to take you. [01:05:43] Speaker A: It's going to be me, too. [01:05:44] Speaker B: A good freaking year. The year of Lone Star. I am stoked, brother. [01:05:49] Speaker A: I love it, dude. Thank you so much for having me on. It means the world. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to talk and kind of speak my mind a little bit, bro. [01:05:56] Speaker B: Absolutely, man. That's what it's all about. [01:05:58] Speaker A: Share what I've been working towards. So, dude, I really appreciate it. Love what you're doing here, and I'm looking forward. Looking forward to the next year and. And looking forward to watching this podcast yeah, dude. [01:06:07] Speaker B: Oh, man, it's gonna be fun. You can do it. And enjoy some Surfsides. I got an eight pack. Yeah, over there. Could take that home with you. Y' all be sure to check out our boy, Austin Michael Lone Star. Comes out on March 6th. He's got a bunch of other tunes out get on Spotify, whatever streaming service you use and check them out. Give him a follow on all the social media platforms as well. Big shout out to our friends from Surfside. No bubbles, no troubles. For on us, visit ray.com. my man, Austin. I'm Matt Perill. This has been outside the R. [01:06:38] Speaker A: I. [01:06:38] Speaker B: A Never been a good kind for stay one place for too long? I ain't never been the best at S I love you to a girl I love? Only got a couple tricks up my sleeve? They usually just make them leave? So if you know me? If you really know me? You know I'm just a two trick pony? Maybe the drinking and the money for show? I'm just a two trick on it. [01:07:13] Speaker A: Yeah.
Previous Episode
Next Episode

Other Episodes

Episode

August 19, 2019 • 00:43:21
Episode Cover

Sofie Lynn

Singer-songwriter Sofie Lynn joins the guys on this week's episode. Sofie, a native of LA, stopped by the studio on her 2nd trip to...

Listen

Episode

May 10, 2021 • 01:18:08
Episode Cover

Rob Williford

Episode 69 we sit down with the one and only 'Rowdy' Rob Williford! Rob invited us over to the 'Observatory' to sit down and...

Listen

Episode

December 20, 2021 • 01:24:31
Episode Cover

Industry Series: Promotion, Label Life and Taking Chances w/ Megan Hinde

Megan Hinde joins Matt for Part 2 of our Industry Series. Megan works in a several facets of the music world here in Nashville...

Listen