Who Is Trey Lewis? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music

This week our spotlight shines on Birmingham, Alabama native, Trey Lewis. Lewis has been grinding in the music industry for over a decade. Although his viral song “Dicked Down In Dallas” might have introduced you to him, there is so much more to the singer-songwriter’s story. 

Despite the fact that Lewis did not start playing music until he was nineteen, he grew up loving music. “I remember looking at him and thinking man I might want to something like that someday. That’s pretty cool- being a songwriter,” he tell us, sharing about a family friend. As a child, the singer recalls listening to the music his mom and sister were into.

“I’ve always been a fan of country music […] In the 90s, back then we had a ton of female country singers. We had Jo Dee Messina, Lorrie Morgan, Martina McBride, Trisha Yearwood, The Chicks, all these great female country artists.” Lewis also credits artists like Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw, and Jason Aldean as some of his early influences.

Over the years, his music taste began to widen. “When my sister went off to college and it was just me in the house, that’s where I started to find the music that I liked,” he shared. “I went through a rap phase and a hardcore metal phase, but like, I feel like country music was always a part of that.”

Unfortunately, Lewis hit a rough patch in his adolescence. He found himself in and out of jail and addicted to drugs. However, when he was nineteen he went to rehab and has been sober for the last fourteen years and counting. “Part of me getting sober, I was working at a smoothie shop and took half my paycheck and my grandfather gave me the other half and I went and bought a guitar and I taught myself how to play it.”

Lewis candidly added later, “Music totally saved my life. I don’t know where I would be without it.”

The Turning Point:

Though getting sober is what allowed him to pursue his dream of playing music for a living, Lewis’ endless drive and determination is what propelled his career forward. Three years ago, the singer-songwriter made the move to Nashville to pursue a music career.

Lewis spent time playing countless shows across the southeast of the United States. He played cover songs and some unreleased originals, garnering fan after fan. He continues to grow his organic fanbase, even to this day both in person and on social media.

The singer felt blessed to be making a living playing music, but yearned for some more success as his own artist. “I’ll never forget, that one day I’m driving around in my van and I was like,” he begins. “God if all you want me to do is play cover songs for a living, that’s fine, but wouldn’t it be cool for me to have a little success and show people to never give up.” Soon after that his song, “Dicked Down In Dallas” went viral.

His success on social media led him to share more and more original songs on TikTok, ultimately leading to his most recent EP, Shut the Door. “I’ve been sharing songs on TikTok and people were like ‘when is this song coming out?’ ‘when is this song coming out!?’” he tell us.  “I just said screw it, instead of doing a single, let’s just put five songs out.”

Today:

Lewis’ EP is a collection of five songs that really give the listener an inside look into what he is all about as a person and as an artist. Whether he wrote the song or chose to cut it, every song was hand-selected by Lewis. “My life is so different now where I’m at today. I’m finally making a decent living and things are great in my life. I feel like I’m turning the corner on a lot of stuff,” he shared, as he discussed the meaning behind the title track.

On the record, Lewis has more cheerful songs like “Backup Man” and more nostalgic songs like “Whatever Happened To That.” On one of our favorite songs off the project, “Anybody Other,” fans get a taste on the unapologetically authentic side of the singer. “I just am who I am and that’s all there is to it,” shares Lewis.

Ultimately, the project is solid. According to Lewis, “I do think all the songs do go together, sonically and lyrically. […] I feel like there’s a song on the EP for everybody even though every song is not for everybody.”

Fans can expect even more music coming soon too! “We’re going to keep coming at you all with more music and the best music we can.” There is truly no stopping Lewis!

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