Current single: “Dance With Ya”

Album: Dirt On Us (June 10)

Hometown: Patoka, Ill.

Influences: Josh Turner, Chris Young, Eric Church, Michael Jackson, Earth Wind & Fire

Inside Scoop: Drew has been building his songwriting career for the past few years, but becoming an artist has always been at the forefront of his mind. In January, Drew released his debut EP, Dance With Ya, with the disco-infused title track. On June 10, Drew will drop his first full-length album, Dirt On Us, while he hits the road for a busy string of tour dates, including opening for Lee Brice, Jennifer Nettles, Cole Swindell and making his Grand Ole Opry debut on June 15.

Dance With Ya
“I love a groove—anything that’s got a good groove or feel to it that makes you want to move. I wrote ‘Dance With Ya’ because I wanted a musical moment in my show where I could set up a dance for my whole band. I told them a year ago, ‘Guys, get ready for it. We’re going to be doing all kinds of crazy stuff on the stage, just get ready.’ I knew I wanted to write something so I could do that and I didn’t want to do it with anybody else’s song, I wanted to do it with my own. So, we wrote ‘Dance With Ya,’ and it has a horn lick in it and that’s where we choreographed this dance. It’s been the biggest part of our show. The whole crowd just screams!”

A Dream Come True
“I always loved music, but when you’re a small-town kid, you don’t think you can do it. I remember watching the awards shows with my parents and thinking, ‘I can do that.’ I was going to go to college and play baseball, and on my 18th birthday, my mom surprised me with tickets to see Josh Turner, who is my favorite artist of all time. I always covered his songs. She didn’t tell me where we were going when we got in the car, but I woke up and we were in Nashville. It was my first time in Nashville and we went to the Wildhorse Saloon and Josh was playing. I remember that night with him being onstage and I thought to myself, ‘I think I can do this. I really want to try. I’m not gong to look back on it and wish that I would have.’ And that was the night I decided to move to Nashville. Last year I got to go on a mini-tour with Josh and tell that story onstage.”

Ego Check
“I picked up a guitar at 17, but I played piano from kindergarten until third grade, so I knew musically what chords went with what chords. I picked it up and really didn’t have lessons, I was just writing about my girlfriend at the time, thinking I was something. I had a little cover band in Illinois and I started throwing in some of my songs that I wrote there. Then when I got here I played Tootsie’s and Rippy’s. I sold my truck and bought a hail-damaged Cobalt, which was probably the worst ego slap in the face you could have. It was a black golf ball, but it got great gas mileage. I drove it until the wheels fell off.”

Upcoming Tour Dates

May 24 / KVOO 5 Man Jam / Tulsa, OK
May 25 / Joe’s Pub / New York, NY
May 28 / Viceroy Outdoor Amphitheater / Oak Grove, KY
May 29 / Picklehead’s Roadhouse / Sunrise Beach, MO
June 4 / South Jordan City Park / South Jordan, UT
June 7 / Big Crosby Theatre / Spokane, WA
June 10 / CMA Music Festival, Park Stage / Nashville, TN
June 11 / KSON Country Fest / San Diego, CA
June 12 / Old Port Festival / Portland, ME
June 15 / Grand Ole Opry / Nashville, TN
June 16 / Porterfield Country Fest / Marinette, WI
June 17 / Country Fest / Cadott, WI
June 18 / Fountain Stage / Cincinnati, OH
June 26 / Cotton Eyed Joe / Knoxville, TN
July 3 / Levitt Pavillon Steelstacks / Bethlehem, PA
July 4 / Asheville 4th of July Festival / Asheville, OH
July 7 / Summerfest / Milwaukee, WI
July 16 / City Limit Saloon / Raleigh, NC
July 22 / Porter County Fair / Valparaiso, IN
July 23 / Parkview Field / Fort Wayne, IN
July 28 / Gasconade County Fair / Owensville, MO
August 3 / Provident Bank Park / Pomona, NY
August 5 / Limelight Eventplex / Peoria, IL
August 11 / Gramercy Theatre / New York, NY