Who Is Track 45? The Story Behind Their Journey to Country Music

Natives of a smalltown in Mississippi, siblings Jenna, KK, and Ben Johnson, also known as Track45 spoke with NYCountry Swag to tell us all about their upbringing, their journey to Nashville, and what they’ve been up to this year.

 

Taking us back to their childhood days, the trio explained in our most recent chat all about their influences and how music just always seemed to be there. Their granddad was the director of their church choir and they all saved up their own money to purchase instruments and learned to play together. “We always say, we started out in the nursing home circuit,” they laugh. Playing the cello, guitar, and fiddle respectively, they recall playing Hank Williams’s classic “Jambalaya” at a nursing home and then started finding gigs around their smalltown. Eventually, two years later they landed a gig at a Bluegrass festival at Dollywood playing four shows a day for a week, and in that moment is when they realized they couldn’t see themselves doing anything else with their lives. Performing and perfecting a craft at such a young age (10, 12, and 14), the trio proved they were self-motivated as well as had the overwhelming support from their parents to pursue their dreams.

Just a few short years later, they decided to move to Nashville to chase those dreams even further. “That was a pretty big move, going from the same little town, in the same little house, in the same rooms our entire lives but we understood if we wanted to make this dream a reality, we had to move where the music was happening,” Ben tells us. “On the wall, we would put up post-it notes that had our dreams and goals that we wanted to accomplish like, sign individual publishing deals, sign with a manager and the biggest goal was always get a record deal.”

They certainly put the time in, committing to school, day jobs and still finding time to write at least two songs a day for two years before they really started to see their hard work pay off. Jenna, KK, and Ben are all incredible songwriters and have signed those publishing deals, having their songs cut by artists like Justin Timberlake, Charlie Puth, Lee Brice, HARDY, and Lauren Alaina. Ben just celebrated his very first number one as a songwriter when Lee Brice’s “One Of Them Girls” hit the top spot on country radio and stayed there for 3 weeks.

Most recently, they crossed that big goal off their list, signing a record deal with Stoney Creek Records/BBR Music Group and they just released their debut EP titled Smalltown. When discussing how they chose which three songs to introduce their music to new fans, they tell us; “These three songs told that story the most cohesively, these songs are the first chapter in the larger story that we are telling. What made us into who we are, we want to keep telling that story, there will be more chapters coming soon and we will continue to keep telling our story through our music.” The trio harmoniously blends their voices to create a modern and fresh sound blending all of their influences throughout their lives. Each track showcases not only their voices but their relatable songwriting, something that will intrigue country music fans.

Looking ahead, Track45 can’t wait to return to live music, bringing these three songs and many more to the country music fans they have made along the way. They also look forward to continuing to release new music, letting the world know where these siblings from Meridian, Mississippi have been and where they are going.

Fans can join our Weekly Round-Up e-newsletter here, for the latest in country music and more news about future Track45 releases.

To keep up with Track45, follow them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Small Town EP is now available everywhere you buy or stream music. Take a listen below and check out more new recently released music on our ‘New Country Music’ playlist. Be sure to the playlist a follow for your weekly new country music fix.

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