Photo Courtesy of Broken Bow Records
Broken Records Magazine’s Markos Papadatos spoke with the very talented and genuine country music singer James Wesley on December 12, 2011. A Kansas native, Wesley talked about his latest radio single “Didn’t I” and his endeavors in the country music industry.
“I found out today that ‘Didn’t I’ is #24 on Billboard Hot Country Charts,” Wesley reveals to Broken Records Magazine. “We’ve moving up! It’s been great! I cannot thank radio enough for all of their support. It’s finally starting to get heard. The song has been accepted so well and the people love it. Every time we go out, it appears that there are more and more people singing along with me. It doesn’t get any better than that.”
This year, Wesley was one of several male country artists that opened up for global singing sensation Taylor Swift. “That was great!” Wesley exclaimed. “It was so much fun because all the people in her camp are the greatest. There are not many artists that let you go out and perform in front of that many people. At night, there were anywhere from 30,000 to 60,000 people out there. My fan-base has definitely gotten larger because of her. It was a great tour, and hopefully, I could do it again with her.”
“I got to do a show with Hunter Hayes and Randy Montana. They are all good guys,” he acknowledges. “We had a good time.”
In addition to opening for Swift’s tour, he also opened up for Miranda Lambert, who is the reigning CMA Female Vocalist of the Year. “Miranda had an awesome crowd! I played with her in Kentucky. It was a lot of fun,” he says.
In his Grand Ole Opry debut last year, James Wesley shared the stage with yet another female country music sensation, Suzy Bogguss. “I’ve always thought that Suzy Bogguss had a great voice, and I introduced myself to her that night at the Opry, and she was very nice, and such a sweet person!”
Fortunately for Wesley, ever since his Opry debut in October of 2010, he has performed at the legendary Grand Ole Opry stage, an astonishing fourteen times. “I cannot thank them enough for allowing me to be on that stage!”
Wesley’s proudest professional accomplishments include performing at the Grand Ole Opry, as well as getting asked to open for Taylor Swift. Particularly impressive about the latter milestone, is that Swift handpicked all of her opening acts herself for her tour, which makes it even more compelling.
This year, Wesley was a part of the Country Music Association (CMA) awards, an award ceremony that is dubbed as “country music’s biggest night,” and was the first artist to walk down the red carpet. “That was pretty cool,” he admits.
When asked about his pre-show rituals prior to performing live, he remarks, “I like to get by myself and get my thoughts in order. I do vocal warm-ups before every show, since that’s important. I do push-ups and jumping jacks, in an effort to get my blood pumping.”
A song that is expected to be on his forthcoming CD is “You Should Be Here With Me.” “It’s a cool love song, and it’s one of the very first songs I found when I came to Nashville. It’s one of my favorites.”
On balancing fatherhood with a music career, Wesley states, “I’m still trying to get used to it. It can be tough, since the hardest part is being away from home. I have a boy and a girl, and they are both really good kids! I have a great wife too who does a lot at home. I’ve got the best of both worlds.”
In addition to singing, Wesley enjoys fishing, hunting, and restoring old cars and trucks.
Regarding his future plans, Wesley notes that he would like to have a successful career in country music, as well as one of his own songs on his next album. “I take it one day at a time, and I try to put out the best music that I can,” Wesley says.
On the importance of staying physically fit, Wesley shares, “I work out when I can, I run, and I try to keep in shape. I do my push-ups and my sit-ups and I run when I can, especially when I’m in hotels.”
Wesley lists his dream duet choice as “Adele.”
Wesley concludes by expressing his gratitude for his country fans. “Thank you for coming out to my shows and for supporting me. Thank you for all of your Tweets and Facebook messages. It doesn’t get any better when you have people like that are behind you, and want nothing but the best for you. I want nothing but the best for them too. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Without them, I wouldn’t be here. In country music, the fans are everything. They make things happen!”
To learn more about James Wesley, visit his official website.
About the author
