John Michael Mongomery

Date: Aug 22, 2018

Location(s):

Grandstand

View Itinerary

Date: Wednesday, August 22nd, 2018

Time: 7:30 PM

Tickets: (Track-side)

Adults (ages 13+) are $15
Children are Free
Grandstand seating is Free

BIOGRAPHY

John Michael Montgomery has turned an uncanny ability to relate to fans into one of country music's most storied careers. Behind the string of hit records, the roomful of awards and the critical and fan accolades that have defined his phenomenal success lies a connection that goes beyond his undeniable talent and his proven knack for picking hits. Since the days when "Life's A Dance" turned him from an unknown artist into a national star, John Michael’s rich baritone has carried that most important of assets--believability. Few artists in any genre sing with more heart than this handsome Kentucky-born artist.
It is readily apparent in love songs that have helped set the standard for a generation. Songs like “I Swear,” “I Love the Way You Love Me” and “I Can Love You Like That” still resonate across the landscape--pop icon and country newcomer Jessica Simpson cited “I Love The Way You Love Me” as an influence in a recent interview. It is apparent in the 2004 hit “Letters From Home,” one of the most moving tributes to the connection between soldiers and their families ever recorded, and in “The Little Girl,” a tale of redemption that plumbs both the harrowing and the uplifting. It is apparent even in the pure fun that has always found its way into John Michael's repertoire--songs like “Be My Baby Tonight” and “Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident),” where John Michael's vocal earnestness takes musical whimsy to another level.
Now, with the release of Time Flies, which he co-produced with Byron Gallimore, John Michael takes another big step forward, strengthening his position as one of the most versatile and compelling vocalists on the country scene. With songs like "Forever" and "If You Ever Went Away," he proves he is still the master of the power ballad, a man capable of bringing honest emotion to life in song. He brings his ever-present sense of humor to bear on "With My Shirt On" and "Mad Cowboy Disease," songs with wickedly skewed sensibilities. With songs like "Drunkard's Prayer" and "All In A Day" he explores two dramatic facets of human existence, and with "Brothers Till The End," John Michael celebrates the family background that led both him and his brother Eddie, of Montgomery Gentry, from a small-time family band to the top of the charts.
The emotional centerpiece for John Michael is "All In A Day," the song that contains the lyric that gave the album its name.
Each song, he says, reminds him of an era in his life and an artist or style of music. "What Did I Do" is reminiscent of "the gritty Hank Jr. stuff we played in our honkytonk days," while "Loving And Letting Go" "reminds me a bit of Lionel Ritchie and the Eagles, artists that helped mold me into the artist I am today."
John Michael has indeed founded his own label--Stringtown Records, named for a hamlet near his Kentucky home. He is one of a handful of long-established stars able to take the next step and become label executives as well as artists. John Michael launched Stringtown after parting company with his last label, at a time when major and larger independent record companies in Nashville were retrenching and consolidating.
Now that he has launched Time Flies, he is looking to expand Stringtown's reach.
"I'll continue making records for myself," he says, "but I'd also love to find other artists to produce, hoping I can open some doors and make some dreams come true like mine did. I love finding hit records and producing them, and I see that down the road for myself."
It is a vision whose origins lie in deceptively modest beginnings. John Michael Montgomery was born in Danville, Kentucky, to parents who imparted a lifelong love of music.
John Michael took over lead singing chores after his parents divorced, and he performed for a while in a band called Early Tymz with Eddie and their friend Troy Gentry. Nashville talent scouts began hearing about and then seeing John Michael perform and by the early '90s he had a record deal.
The hits followed steadily, with songs like "Rope The Moon," "If You've Got Love," "No Man's Land," "Cowboy Love," "As Long As I Live," "Friends" and "How Was I To Know" establishing him as one of the elite acts of the era. He received the CMA Horizon award and was named the ACM's Top New Vocalist, setting off a long series of awards that included the CMA's Single and Song of the Year, Billboard's Top Country Artist, and a Grammy nomination. Heavy touring meant he kept the close touch with fans he had begun in the clubs back home. "You get to know your fans and what they like more and more through the years," he says, "and you kind of gravitate towards one another."

ACHIEVEMENTS:

• 16 million albums sold
• 15 Number One Singles
• 4 ACM Awards
• 3 CMA Awards
• 1 American Music Award
• American Songwriter Magazine— Artist Of The Year
• 4 Billboard Awards—Single, Top County Artist, Top Male Artist
• 2 Grammy Nominations

HEAVY METAL CERTIFICATIONS:

John Michael Montgomery - 4 X Platinum
Brand New Me - Gold
Kickin’ it Up - 4 X Platinum
Leave A Mark - Gold
Life’s A Dance - 3 X Platinum
I Swear - Gold
Single What I Do Best - Platinum
Kickin’ It Up - Gold - Long Form Video
Greatest Hits - Platinum

DISCOGRAPHY:

Time Flies - Stringtown Records - October 2008
Letters From Home - Warner Bros. - April 2004
Mr. Snowman - Warner Bros. - October 2003
Very Best of John Michael Montgomery - Warner Bros. - August 2003
Pictures - Warner Bros. - October 2002
Love Songs - Atlantic - February 2000
Home To You - Atlantic - May 1999
Leave A Mark - Atlantic - May 1998
Greatest Hits - Atlantic - October 1997
What I Do the Best - Atlantic - September 1996
John Michael Montgomery - Atlantic - March 1995
Kickin’ It Up - Atlantic - January 1994
Life’s A Dance - Atlantic - January 1992

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