Who is Drew Baldridge? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music
Who is Drew Baldridge? The singer-songwriter joined us to chat about his journey to country music. Get to know the rising star here…
Drew Baldridge // Photo credit: Russ Harrington
Quick Facts:
Full Name – Drew Baldridge
Birthdate – July 29th
Hometown – Patoka, Illinois
Current City – Nashville, Tennessee
Musical Influences – Trace Adkins, Brooks and Dunn, Josh Turner
Label – Lyric Ridge Records
Current Single – “She’s Somebody’s Daughter” (as of date of article 9/30/24)
The Beginning:
This week, we chatted with singer-songwriter Drew Baldridge about all he has endured in the music industry over his decade long career in country music. Baldridge shared his story in a relatable and inspiring way. Keep reading to learn more.
“I grew up in a little town called Patoka, Illinois in Southern Illinois [on a farm],” began the singer. “I grew up playing in church and took piano lessons when I was really young and picked up guitar when I was sixteen, got hooked, and started playing at all the local bars around my hometown.”
Because of his country lifestyle, Baldridge naturally gravitated towards both gospel music and country music. When it comes to country music, the singer recalls feeling seen by the artists of his generation. Some of his first loves were artists like Alabama and Josh Turner.
“I lived country music songs everyday, and I didn’t really realize it, but I loved listening to it because they were songs about me, songs about where I came from. I didn’t realize it, but when I started writing songs that’s kind of what came out, songs about my little town, songs about the heartbreak I was going through, songs about the backroads, all that stuff.”
The Turning Point:
Upon graduating high school, at just nineteen years old, Baldridge made the move to Nashville, Tennessee. Almost instantly, the singer hit the ground running, performing at bars on Broadway like Tootsie’s. In 2012, the singer earned his first publishing deal, which catapulted into more fans and eventually a record deal.
“I started touring all around the country, and then around 2015, 2016 we signed our first record deal, and I thought I made it. […] Then we put out a couple of songs and none of them really took to radio. Couldn’t get anything up the charts, and it was disheartening to say the least,” shared Baldridge candidly about this journey.
Later, in 2019, the singer put out a batch of songs, including one which he sent to radio. “We put out a song to radio, and I thought it was going to be it. […] My label closed down 3 months later, and I thought ‘Man, I’m going to hop right into a new record deal,’ but that wasn’t really my story, no one was interested in signing me, and then COVID hit, and I was one of those artists that was viewed as one who had a shot, but it didn’t work out.”
Despite the hardships, Baldridge’s journey of perseverance continued. “2020 was a hard year because I lost pretty much everything in that time, and I didn’t know what to do. I had this song in 2019 called “Senior Year,” and suddenly all these Senior high school kids around the country started using the song in their TikTok’s. I thought I had to do something.”
The singer began offering Zoom concerts to anyone who wanted them for the class of 2020 graduates. This catapulted into being invited to play by schools in person for social-distancing events, as well as, radio picking up his song “Senior Year.”
Despite this success, Baldridge still was not making a living from music. He decided to put out a video offering to play a show in anyone’s backyard. “I thought I’d get five or ten shows, but we ended up getting 20 something thousand messages, so I went around the country for two or three years, and played in over 300 people’s backyards, just me and a guitar.
During all that time, Baldridge was posting on social media. “I ended up getting married, and I had this song called “She’s Somebody’s Daughter,” and it was my wife’s favorite, so I made a wedding version just so she could dance to it with her dad on our wedding night,” he shared Adding, “We went on our honeymoon. And I woke up the next day with over ten million views on the song.”
Today:
Flash forward to today, “She’s Somebody’s Daughter” is officially the first country song put out by an independent artist to hit the top spot on the country radio charts. By believing in himself, creating his own record label, and hiring staff, the singer-songwriter was able to accomplish something incredible with an incredible song.
“I’m overwhelmed and incredibly honored that ‘She’s Somebody’s Daughter’ has reached No. 1. on country radio,” he shard in a press release. “I wrote this song six years ago and though I always dreamed we would get to this point, it felt so far away. In my heart, I knew ‘Daughter’ was special, and just needed the right team to help me share it with country radio and fans everywhere. I am so thankful to everyone who has supported me and believed in me over the years. This is truly the best day.”
Heading into the rest of this year, Baldridge has a ton of tour dates and more music coming down the pipeline, as long as fans continue to want them. “I try to put out real songs, and it’s been fun over the last couple of years to be able to be myself and not have to put on any different face,” shared the singer.
Stay tuned for more music and checkout the tour dates here!
Connect:
Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news and announcements about future Drew Baldridge releases.
To keep up with Drew Baldridge, follow him on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook.
Drew Baldridge’s music is available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released tunes on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to give the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.
