Little Rebellion Music

UCB: Hi Craig! Thanks for taking time to talk with us today. How are things going?

CC: Things are going really well. I’m a blessed man, for sure.

UCB: It certainly sounds like it! First, let me say congratulations on the birth of your newest daughter, Kinni Rose. How old is she now?

CC: She is 10 weeks old. We got a lot of girls in the house now!

UCB: How is Preslee (age 2 ½) adjusting to having a new baby sister?

CC: She loves it. From the get go we told her that was her baby. We let her feed her, we let her hold her and rock her and all that stuff – basically its her baby.

UCB: Your first video just came out this week. How exciting was that?

CC: The ‘Family Man’ video came out yesterday. Funny thing is that the schedule said it would come on at 5:20 in the morning here in Nashville and I don’t have GAC at my house. But my in-laws, they are full time motor-home people, and are actually here and parked in my front yard. At 5:00 yesterday morning I went and knocked on their door because they have dish network and so we watched it in their motor home.

UCB: What was that like for you – actually seeing it for the first time?

CC: I had seen the roughs and the final edited version, but to see it come on right after another video and it shows my name and it says new release and all – it was a really cool feeling. I have to pinch myself every day, sometimes, just to make sure all of this is real and really happening.

UCB: I want to go back to the beginning. How did you get the bug to start writing and the desire to perform? Where did that come from?

CC: There was always music in our house. I grew up in a strong southern Baptist home in Southern Georgia and we went to church 3-4 times a week, so southern gospel music was a big part of my life early on. But when I was 15 years old I won a contest, Jimmy Dean True Value Country Showdown. I won and beat out all the local contestants in my hometown. So if there was any 1 occasion that probably put the bug in me, it would be that. It’s when I decided, “Wow, this is something I really enjoy and who knows, maybe I could go somewhere with this thing.”

UCB: Who are some of your musical influences?

CC: Definitely there are a lot of musical influences in my music, from the way I perform and the way I write. I grew up with southern gospel and I love harmony and the quartet aspect of music. But when it came time where I could decide what kind of music I wanted to listen to, it was during that whole 90’s boom with Alan Jackson and George Strait. I grew up, in my honest opinion, in the golden era of country music. The reason I love country music like I do is because of those guys. You can hear some of their influences in my music.

UCB: If you could envision down the road, a dream tour that you would love to be a part of, what would that look like?

CC: I don’t think there is a country music artist out there that wouldn’t want to be on George Strait’s tour. I’d love to be on a show with him, any of the legends. I’d like to be on tour with Brad Paisley, I think he puts on a tremendous show. Rascal Flatts … Any of those guys. I’d love to be in front of thousands of people that just love country music. So whoever can put that show together, that’s the show I want to be on.

UCB: A lot has been said over the last few years about “traditional” verses “modern” country music and the debate over it never seems to go away. Where do you stand on that?

CC: Music is music and country music has an outlet for lots of styles of music. But if the fans out there, if that’s what they want to hear, and the song is a hit, it’s a hit … and it doesn’t matter what station it is on. That’s the bottom line and that’s the way I feel. It doesn’t matter what genre it is or what station it is on.

UCB: You had an exciting milestone recently, in addition to the birth of Kinni Rose, debuting at the Grand Ol’ Opry.

CC: Oh wow – yea! You know what? I compare it to that – my babies being born and my wedding day. It is something that I will never forget and something that I’ve always wanted to do. If all this went away, right now, I’m satisfied … I was on the Opry stage and stood in the circle.

UCB: I hear people talking about the Opry circle. What is it about that circle, for you?

CC: It’s almost like its haunted, in a good way. You think about all the people who stood in that same exact spot. It’s overwhelming. I had almost a sick feeling. Wow, I was thinking, “Do I even deserve to be here?” But I stood there, and I stood proud and I felt like I did it justice.

UCB: Do you know when you’ll be back?

CC: We don’t have any dates on the books; but I’ll go back as often as they’ll have me.

UCB: You mentioned if it all ended tomorrow, you’ve done what you dreamed of doing. Are you the type of person who sets goals for yourself or are you just going to take the journey for as long as the journey takes you?

CC: Well, I have goals. There’s no doubt about it. You have to have something to strive for. But at the same time, I sing and I play because I love it. Like you said, I’m gonna ride it and enjoy it for as long as I can and for as long as country music will have me and I can make a living and provide for my family. That’s all I want to do.

UCB: The title of your current EP, ‘The 5 Spot EP,’ is that a reference to a bar in East Nashville?

CC: No. When we were deciding what to name the EP we didn’t want to name it The Craig Campbell EP and we didn’t want to put a title of one of the songs. There were 5 songs and Blake Shelton had ‘The Six Pack’ and I just thought of it. Where I’m from, if somebody wanted to borrow $5.00 from you, they’d say, “Can you spot me 5?” So, we just used that.

UCB: We are looking f
orward to your upcoming album. Although we know you don’t have a definite date for release yet, what will it be titled?

CC: It’ll be self-titled.

UCB: Listening to the songs on your ‘5 Spot EP,’ in the song ‘My Little Cowboy’ you sing about a father giving advice to his young song. So far, is there any piece of life wisdom that you can see yourself telling your little girls someday?

CC: You know, I moved to town in 2002 and I had a dream and I chased it down. Some people may think it was a silly gamble, and it was, and it still is – but if it is in your heart and you can’t shake it, you just got to go after it … and get it!

UCB: Is it true you came to Nashville with only 5 rolls of quarters and 2 rolls of dimes?

CC: Something like that. I don’t remember the exact number. But I do know that when I came to Nashville I filled up my truck with rolled coins and I coasted in. It just so happened I had a buddy of mine that lived here and I moved in with him. So for the first month and a half, the job I had, they hold back your first check for a while, and I was here for 45 days without a paycheck. He took care of me, put gas in my truck and fed me and all that kind of stuff.

UCB: Are you still friends with him now?

CC: Oh yea, best friends. We grew up together. He moved here before I did. He’s a songwriter but he doesn’t live here any more. But at the time, he lived here and he asked me if I wanted to be his roommate if I moved to Nashville. So I came.

UCB: What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?

CC: I’m pretty good friends with Luke Bryan. I played piano for him on a few gigs. We were eating in Sonny’s BBQ one day and he just said, “There is no formula, there is no right and wrong way of doing it, but I will say what helped me out a lot was writing.” He said,”I would write every day, even if it is by yourself, write – if you can get a writing appointment, book them. You just got to keep writing.” He was right. It opened up so many doors and there’s a possibility I could trace every bit of my success back to that conversation.

UCB: Your writing process – are you the type of person who keeps a notepad around and just jots down things as they come to you or do you tend to write by appointment.

CC: We do. We set appointments. There are all kinds of ways with technology these days. I have a note pad on my iPhone so when I think of an idea, I’ll type it in. Then I’ll set a writing appointment then we’ll all sit down and say, ” Hey, what kind of idea do you have today? That’s great, let’s work on that.” It’s just how you feel that day.

UCB: Does the music generally come 2nd for you?

CC: It’s all together at the same time. There are people who are more musical than others and they’ll come up with a cool little riff or a lick. And then I’ll want to write something to it. It’s all organic.

UCB: Is having a young family something that inspires you when you write?

CC: Oh yea. ‘Family Man’ and ‘My Little Cowboy’ were written really close together, when I found out my wife was pregnant with Preslee. So I started thinking about life totally different and with ‘My Little Cowboy’ I thought I was going to have a boy; that’s the reason I wrote it. Then came ‘Family Man.’ My wife and I had several conversations leading up to me signing my deals and it was “alright, it’s either make it happen or I’m going to have to go out and get a job with benefits, because it isn’t just me any more.”

UCB: When do you plan to tour?

CC: Most of the tours are pretty much locked up for the rest of the year and everything starts to slow down for the holidays. After the first of the year, we’ll try to get out on a big ol’ tour, and get out and promote the record and try to recruit some new fans and make a big splash.

UCB: As your career takes off, what things in your life, besides your wife and children, will help you to remain grounded?

CC: I think, just the way I was raised. I was raised that when you shake a man’s hand, you shake it hard and look him in the eye and you do what you say you are gonna do and if you’re not going to do it, you don’t say it. I hear stories all the time, “Man he was such a cool dude back in the day but now he doesn’t even know who we are.” That just really upsets me. So, I’m going to make the best effort to not be that person. This town and this business is too small to be that type of person. So, that’s not going to be me at all.

UCB: As you look down the road, and all your future goals and are met and you’ve accomplished all you’ve wanted to do … have you thought about any type of legacy you’d like to leave behind, either professionally or personally?

CC: Yea. I’d love for when I’m done for someone to say the things about me that I think about now about Alan Jackson’s first record. I want to make a record like his first record. In 20 years, I want people to say he was a really good singer and he knew how to pick really great songs, whether he wrote them or not. And I want my family to be proud of me – that’s all I want.

UCB: I have to ask … Are you going trick or treating for Halloween this weekend?

CC: Oh you know it! My 21/2 year old, (Preslee) is itching and ready to go! She is going to be a witch.

UCB: A quick question about Preslee … was she named after Elvis?

CC: No, we have a friend who has a girl with the same name, but we wanted to spell it differently. My wife’s dad’s middle name is Lee so we spelled it after him. And Kenny was my dad’s name, but we spelled her name more feminine. (Kinni).

UCB: It was great to talk to you, Craig. We’re glad you could take time out of your day to chat with us. Congratulations on the career and family!

CC: Thank you!

To keep up with Craig’s music, videos and tour dates, check out his sites on Twitter, Facebook and his official website. If you’ve been to a Craig Campbell show or have plans to attend one soon, we’d love to hear your feedback!

• About
• Latest Posts

Liv Carter

Liv is a career coach for creatives, and the people who work with them.
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.

Latest posts by Liv Carter (see all)

• Well yes, racism, but it’s more complicated - February 13, 2017
• Black River Entertainment had a great reason to party! - October 25, 2016
• Keith Urban returns to the States for US arena leg of his “ripCORD WORLD TOUR 2016” - October 10, 2016