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A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.

During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less commercial appeal on a single ten-inch 78 RPM shellac record. After the launch of the long-playing microgroove record in 1948 and the arrival of the 45rpm single the following year, singles continued to appear separately from albums into the 1960s. For instance, the early rock and roll market of the 1950s and early 1960s was very much focused on singles rather than albums. Songs such as "Heartbreak Hotel", "Johnny B. Goode", and "Tutti Frutti" only appeared later on album compilations of singles. Even through the 1960s, leading rock artists such as The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, and The Rolling Stones issued songs such as "Strawberry Fields Forever", "Penny Lane," "Good Vibrations", "Positively 4th Street", and "Honky Tonk Women" as singles apart from any contemporary albums.

This changed in the 1970s as the popular music industry shifted to the album as its main profit center. Singles became advertisements for an album, the lead single conceptually defined as a foretaste of the album to come. On average a lead single will appear approximately one month before the album's release date. "Go Your Own Way" from Rumours, "Miss You" from Some Girls, and "The Girl Is Mine" from Thriller all roughly follow this pattern. This has become a common practice through the twenty-first century for album-oriented recording artists.

Lead singles are often a deciding factor for consumers debating purchase of a still unissued album, and the choosing of which track from an album to be issued as the lead single can be crucial to the album's commercial success. The standard rejoinder for record company executives, when presented with an album of dubious commercial potential, is "I don't hear the single."

In the 2000s, a common trend developed to release a lead single months in advance of the album release date. It has equally become common for a second lead single to be also released before the release of the album. Usher issued the lead single "Love in this Club" four months prior to the May 29 release of Here I Stand. The second single "Love in This Club, Pt. II" was released one month before the album release date. This has precedents in the past, however: "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" by Elton John appeared three months ahead of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Rock bands tend to release a lead single one month prior to the release of an album.

Currently, in the US as well as many other countries, artists will choose songs that are more up-tempo as lead singles. Such songs are often catchier and attract attention, although the subsequent lead single might be slower in tempo to demonstrate the range of the album. Female vocalists like Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera often maintain a formula of an up-tempo first lead single with a slow ballad follow-up. This was a successful practice of 1980s heavy metal bands. However, not all artists decide to choose their lead single with the up-tempo criteria. Artists may release a lead single that has a message they want to convey to listeners over a song with more commercial potential, such as Fall Out Boy's choice to release "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" over the radio friendly "Thnks fr th Mmrs".

Japanese artists such as Ayumi Hamasaki, Namie Amuro and B'z release may release four to eight singles prior to their albums in order to achieve record-breaking debut-week sales. The lead singles in Japan are very heavily advertised and promoted, in some cases even more than the album itself. With album sales declining year after year, record labels are taking advantage of a booming singles market, online retail stores iTunes and others encouraging record labels to release singles in advance as they are available to consumers in the United States for the small investment of only 99 cents. This trend has become increasingly popular in many markets.

Brad Paisley
Brad Paisley performing on August 19, 2007
Background information
Birth name	Brad Douglas Paisley
Born	(1972-10-28) October 28, 1972 (age 39)
Origin	Glen Dale, West Virginia, United States
Genres	Country, Country Rock
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, musician
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, mandolin
Years active	1997–present
Labels	Arista Nashville
Associated acts	Alison Krauss, Dolly Parton, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Martina McBride, Chely Wright, Scotty McCreery
Website	BradPaisley.com

Brad Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. His style crosses between traditional country music and Southern rock, and his songs are frequently laced with humor and pop culture references.

Paisley was the 2008 CMA and ACM Male Vocalist of the Year winner. Starting with the release of his 1999 album Who Needs Pictures, Paisley has recorded seven studio albums and a Christmas compilation on the Arista Nashville label, with all of his albums certified gold or higher by the RIAA.^[1] In addition, he has charted 25 singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, 16 of which have reached #1 with a record 10 consecutive singles reaching the top spot on the chart.^[2] On November 10, 2010, Paisley won the Entertainer of the Year award at the 44th annual CMA Awards.^[3]

Biography[link]

Paisley was born on October 28, 1972 in Glen Dale, West Virginia to Douglas Edward "Doug" Paisley, who worked for the West Virginia Department of Transportation, and Sandra Jean "Sandy" (née Jarvis) Paisley, a teacher.^[4] He was raised in Glen Dale, West Virginia. He has stated that his love of country music stems from his maternal grandfather, Warren Jarvis, who gave Paisley his first guitar, a Sears Danelectro Silvertone^[5] at 8-years-old and taught him how to play. At age 10, he performed for the first time in public by singing in his church. He later recalled that, "Pretty soon, I was performing at every Christmas party and Mother's Day event. The neat thing about a small town is that when you want to be an artist, by golly, they'll make you one".^[5] At age 12, Paisley wrote his first song, entitled, "Born on Christmas Day".^[5] He had been taking lessons with local guitarist Clarence "Hank" Goddard.^[5] By age 13, Goddard and Paisley formed a band called "Brad Paisley and the C-Notes", with the addition of two of Paisley's adult friends.^[5]

While in junior high, his principal heard him perform "Born On Christmas Day" and invited him to play at the local Rotary Club meeting. In attendance was Tom Miller, the program director of a radio station in Wheeling, West Virginia. Miller asked him if he would like to be a guest on Jamboree USA. After his first performance, he was asked to become a member of the show's weekly lineup. For the next eight years, he opened for country singers such as The Judds, Ricky Skaggs and George Jones. He would become the youngest person inducted into the Jamboree USA Hall of Fame. He also performed at the Jamboree in the Hills.^[6]

Paisley graduated from John Marshall High School in Glen Dale, West Virginia in 1991,^[7] studied for 2 years at West Liberty University (WV) and later was awarded a full-paid ASCAP scholarship to Belmont University, in Nashville, Tennessee (from 1993 to 1995). He interned at ASCAP, Atlantic Records, and the Fitzgerald-Hartley management firm. While in college, he met Frank Rogers, a fellow student who went on to serve as his producer. Paisley also met Kelley Lovelace, who became his songwriting partner. He also met Chris DuBois in college, and he too would write songs for him.^[6]

After graduating from Belmont with a Bachelor's degree in music business, within a week Paisley signed a songwriting contract with EMI Music Publishing;^[6] and, he wrote David Kersh's "Top 5" hit, "Another You", as well as David Ball's 1999 single, "Watching My Baby Not Come Back." The latter song was also co-written by Ball.^[8]

[edit] 1999–2001: Who Needs Pictures

His debut as a singer was with the label Arista Nashville, with the song "Who Needs Pictures" (released February 22, 1999). In May of that same year, he made his first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry.^[1] Seven months later he had his first #1 hit with "He Didn't Have to Be," which detailed the story of Paisley's frequent co-writer Kelley Lovelace and Lovelace's stepson, McCain Merren.^[9] We Danced also was a hit for Paisley off the debut album, reaching #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. By February 2001, the album was certified platinum.^[10]

In 2000, Paisley's mainstream notoriety received a huge boost when he was exposed to his first national non-country music oriented audience on the TLC special, "Route 66: Main Street America." Producer, Todd Baker, tapped the young musician to appear on this show when he was a relative unknown outside the world of country music. It featured Paisley and band doing rare live and acoustic versions of Route 66. The international and home video versions of this program end with a full, un-cut acoustic rendition of the piece, which was performed live on Rainbow Bridge in Riverton, KS.^[11] The show accurately predicted that Paisley would become a legendary musician, and also featured blues artist, Buddy Guy.^[12]

Later in 2000, Paisley won the Country Music Association's (CMA) Horizon Award and the Academy of Country Music's best new male vocalist trophy. He received his first Grammy Award nomination a year later for Best New Artist. On February 17, 2001, Paisley was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry^[1] He was 28 when he accepted the invitation, and was the youngest member ever to join. PBS did a 75th anniversary concert special, which saw Paisley pair up with Chely Wright and sing a song called Hard to Be a Husband, Hard to Be a Wife, and would be included on the album Backstage at the Opry, It would get a CMA nomination for Vocal Event of the Year.^[13]

[edit] 2001–2003: Part II

In 2002, he won the CMA Music Video of the Year for "I'm Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin' Song)." Several celebrities made notable guest appearances in the video, including Little Jimmy Dickens, Kimberly Williams, Dan Patrick, and Jerry Springer. His three other singles off the Part II album, "I Wish You'd Stay", "Wrapped Around", and "Two People Fell in Love", all charted in the top 10. The album stayed in the charts for more than 70 weeks and was certified platinum in August 2002. To support his album, he toured the country as the opening act for Lonestar.^[14]

[edit] 2003–2005: Mud on the Tires

Paisley released his third album, Mud on the Tires (2003), following Who Needs Pictures and Part II. The album features the hit song "Celebrity", the video of which parodies reality shows such as Fear Factor, American Idol, The Bachelorette and According to Jim, and included such celebrities as Jason Alexander, James Belushi, Little Jimmy Dickens, Trista Rehn and William Shatner. (Paisley later contributed to Shatner's album Has Been.) The album's title track, "Mud on the Tires", reached Billboard #1 in 2004.^[15]

In addition, the ninth track from Mud on the Tires, "Whiskey Lullaby", a duet with Alison Krauss reached #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts, and #41 on the Billboard Hot 100. The music video for Whiskey Lullaby also won several awards and was rated #2 on the 100 Greatest Music Videos by CMT in 2008. The album would be certified double platinum.^[14]

[edit] 2005–2007: Time Well Wasted

In 2005, after touring with Reba McEntire and Terri Clark on the "Two Hats and a Redhead Tour," he released Time Well Wasted, containing 15 tracks. This album includes "Alcohol," two duets — "When I Get Where I'm Going" with Dolly Parton and "Out in the Parking Lot" with Alan Jackson — and a bonus track, "Cornography." On November 6, 2006, the album "Time Well Wasted" won the Country Music Association CMA Award for Best Album. "Time Well Wasted" also won album of the year at the 2006 ACM Awards.

Paisley also contributed two original songs to the Disney film Cars. These can be found on the film's soundtrack. This was in recognition of his contribution to the "Route 66: Main Street America" television special.

At the 2006 Grammy Awards, Paisley received four nominations: Best Country Album (for Time Well Wasted), Best Country Song (for "Alcohol"), Best Country Instrumental (for "Time Warp") and Best Country Vocal, Male (for "Alcohol").

[edit] 2007–2008: 5th Gear

Paisley's fifth studio album, 5th Gear, was released in the United States on June 19, 2007. The first four singles from the album, "Ticks", "Online", "Letter to Me", and "I'm Still a Guy", all reached number one on the country music single charts, making seven straight number one hits for Paisley."^[16] "Online" featured the Brentwood High School marching band playing toward the end of the song, a cameo by Jason Alexander, and again featured a cameo by William Shatner. Throttleneck would also reach number one, which would get Paisley his first Grammy.^[17]

The fifth single from 5th Gear actually came from a reissued version of the album – a new recording of "Waitin' on a Woman", a track cut from Time Well Wasted. The reissued version received unsolicited airplay in late 2006, and features less prominent string guitar and violin parts and a more "muted" musical tone. For the chart week of September 20, 2008, the song became Paisley's twelfth number-one single and his eighth straight number-one hit, making him the artist with the most consecutive Number One country hits since the inception of Nielsen SoundScan in 1990.^[18]

In July 2006, producer Todd Baker tapped Brad for a television appearance as an animated character in The Wonder Pets, Daddy Armadillo. The yet-to-be-broadcast episode features Brad's wife, Kimberly Williams, as Mama Armadillo.

Paisley toured April 26, 2007 through February 24, 2008 in support of 5th Gear on the Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour. The tour visited 94 cities over a 10 month period and played for over 1,000,000 fans. The tour was so successful that it was extended past its original end date to February 2008. Some of the opening acts who appeared during the tour were Taylor Swift, Kellie Pickler, Jack Ingram, Rodney Atkins and Chuck Wicks.

Paisley was nominated for three 2008 Grammy Awards related to 5th Gear: Best Country Album (for 5th Gear), Best Country Collaboration (for "Oh Love" with Carrie Underwood), and Best Country Instrumental (for "Throttleneck"). On February 10, 2008, he won his first Grammy award for Best Country Instrumental for "Throttleneck".

In March 2008, Brad Paisley announced his next tour, "The Paisley Party," a 42-date tour sponsored by Hershey's. The tour kicked off on June 11, 2008, in Albuquerque, New Mexico with Chuck Wicks, Julianne Hough and Jewel as the opening acts.^[16]

[edit] 2008–2009: Play

A sixth, largely instrumental album, titled Play, was released on November 4, 2008.^[19] Brad Paisley and Keith Urban released to country radio their first duet together on September 8, 2008, "Start a Band." It was the first and only single from Play, and it went on to become Paisley's thirteenth number one hit and his ninth in a row. The album also features collaborations with James Burton, Little Jimmy Dickens, Vince Gill, John Jorgenson, B.B. King, Albert Lee, Brent Mason, Buck Owens, Redd Volkaert and Steve Wariner. Paisley and Urban both received Entertainer of the Year nominations from the CMA on September 10, 2008. On November 12, 2008 Brad Paisley won Male Vocalist of the Year and Music Video of the Year for "Waitin' on a Woman" during the CMA's.

[edit] 2009–2010: American Saturday Night

Brad Paisley performing at the White House.

Brad Paisley announced on January 26, 2009 his new tour named "American Saturday Night." Dierks Bentley and Jimmy Wayne will be opening in the majority of the shows. Brad Paisley's newest album, American Saturday Night was released on June 30, 2009. The album's lead off single, "Then" was released in March 2009 and performed for the first time on American Idol on March 18. It went on to become Paisley's 14th number one single and his tenth in a row.

On May 6, 2009, Paisley gave an exclusive performance^[20] to a small group of members from his fan club in Studio A of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN as he and his band taped an episode of CMT Invitation Only. The show gives fans a chance to see their favorite artists in a more intimate setting up close and personal. There was a Q & A session and interaction between Paisley and his fans. The show aired on Monday, August 3 at 9:00 p.m. on CMT.

On July 21, 2009, Paisley performed at the White House in celebration of country music. "Country Music at the White House " was streamed live on the White House web-site as well as a special on Great American Country.

On November 11, 2009, Paisley co-hosted the CMA Awards for the second straight year. He also performed "Welcome to the Future", and won both Male Vocalist of the Year and Musical Event of the Year for Start a Band with Keith Urban.

On March 1, 2010, Paisley was the first musical performance with "American Saturday Night" for the second tenure of the Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

On Friday March 5, 2010, Paisley slipped and fell performing his last song of the set, "Alcohol," at a concert at the North Charleston Coliseum in Charleston, South Carolina, on the final date of the American Saturday Night Tour. Fearing a broken rib, he was held overnight at an area hospital, but was released when a CT scan was negative.^[21]

On July 31, 2010 Brad performed alongside Carrie Underwood at the inaugural Greenbrier Classic PGA Tour Event in Lewisburg, W.Va. An estimated 60,000 people attended the outdoor event to watch Carrie and Brad perform in the pouring rain.

On August 4, 2010, it was announced on his official website that Paisley would release his first official greatest hits package, entitled Hits Alive. Released on November 2, 2010, Hits Alive is a double-disc collection, with one disc containing studio versions of Paisley's hit singles, while the companion disc features previously unreleased live versions of his songs.^[22]

Brad Paisley cohosted the 44th Annual CMA Awards on November 10, 2010, where he was also awarded the CMA's top award, Entertainer of the Year.^[23] During his acceptance speech, Paisley emotionally honored his grandfather, who inspired him to play the guitar.

In 2012, MSN.com listed American Saturday Night as one of the 21 Essential 21st-Century Albums.^[24]

[edit] 2011-present: This Is Country Music

In December 2010, Paisley released "This Is Country Music" as the title track to his eighth studio album, released May 23, 2011. The album's second single, "Old Alabama" (with Alabama), released to country radio on March 14, 2011 and became Paisley's nineteenth number one hit. "Remind Me," with Carrie Underwood, was released May 23, 2011 to radio.

On March 22, 2011, Paisley's website announced a new beta game titled "Brad Paisley World." The game is modeled after other Facebook games such as Farmville or Mafia Wars and features original animation. The game provides a new way for fans to interact with each other and view exclusive material that would otherwise be unavailable.

On May 12, 2011, Paisley's website announced that he would release two songs on the soundtrack for the film Cars 2. One of them would be a collaboration with British pop singer Robbie Williams.

On October 19, 2011, Paisley made a voice cameo as various background characters in the South Park episode "Bass to Mouth". ^[25]

On January 14, 2012, Paisley was a guest on Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion, during which he did a rendition of "Life's Railway to Heaven" by Charles Davis Tillman.^[26]

Brad also tweeted that he has started recording his upcoming album.

On April 25, 2012, Paisley was featured on the South Park episode "Cartman Finds Love", in which he voiced himself,^[27] sang "The National Anthem", and helped Cartman sing the 90's hit song "I Swear", which was popularized in 1994 by the country musician John Michael Montgomery and the pop group All-4-One. ^[28]

Paisley extended his "Virtual Realty" tour throughout the summer of 2012. He will be touring the country and making pit stops at local country music festivals. The goal of these outdoor concerts is to give the audience the full experience of Brad Paisley's music, as many of his songs contain outdoor elements. ^[29]

Tours[link]

• Brooks & Dunn's Neon Circus & Wild West Show 2003
• Mud & Suds Tour 2004 (w/ Sara Evans, Andy Griggs)
• Two Hats & A Redhead Tour 2005 (w/ Reba McEntire, Terri Clark)
• Time Well Wasted Tour 2006 (w/ Sara Evans, Sugarland, Carrie Underwood, Jake Owen, Josh Turner, Billy Currington)
• Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour 2007–2008 (w/ Taylor Swift, Jack Ingram, Kellie Pickler, Rodney Atkins, Chuck Wicks)
• The Paisley Party Tour 2008 (w/ Chuck Wicks, Julianne Hough, Jewel)
• The Paisley Party Tour 2009 (w/ Dierks Bentley, Darius Rucker, Crystal Shawanda)
• American Saturday Night Tour 2009 (w/ Dierks Bentley, Jimmy Wayne)
• American Saturday Night Tour 2010 (w/ Miranda Lambert, Justin Moore)
• The H2O Tour 2010 (w/ Darius Rucker, Justin Moore, Easton Corbin, Steel Magnolia, Josh Thompson)
• The H2O Frozen Over Tour 2011 (w/ Darius Rucker, Jerrod Niemann)
• H2O II: Wetter and Wilder World Tour (w/ Darius Rucker, Blake Shelton, Jerrod Niemann, Sunny Sweeney, The JaneDear Girls, Brent Anderson, Edens Edge)
• Virtual Reality Tour 2012 (w/ The Band Perry, Scotty McCreery)

Band[link]

Paisley records his studio albums, in most part, with the backing of his live band, The Drama Kings. Their first gig together was May 7, 1999. The only changes have been Randel Currie's addition on the steel guitar in 2000 and Jimmy Heffernan's departure in 2001. Also, Jody Harris worked as Paisley's guitar tech until officially becoming a bandmember for the American Saturday Night Tour. As of 2010, the lineup is:

• Brad Paisley – lead vocals, lead guitar
• Gary Hooker – rhythm guitar
• Randle Currie – steel guitar
• Kendal Marcy – keyboards, banjo, mandolin
• Justin Williamson – fiddle, mandolin
• Kenny Lewis – bass guitar
• Ben Sesar – drums

Personal life[link]

Paisley performing in 2006.

Brad Paisley has been married to actress Kimberly Williams since 2003. Paisley had first seen Kimberley Williams in Father of the Bride with a former girlfriend. Brad and his former girlfriend broke up prior to the release of Father of the Bride Part II, which Brad went to see alone.^[30] Brad has stated that he watched Kimberly Williams' performance and thought "She seems like a great girl — smart and funny and all those things that are so hard to find."^[30]

Paisley and Williams began dating in 2001. In 2002, Williams appeared in a video for the song "I'm Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin' Song)," the last release from his Part II album. The two married on March 15, 2003, at Stauffer Chapel on the campus of Pepperdine University after a nine month engagement. They live in Franklin, Tennessee, and have another home in Malibu.

Paisley and Williams first son, William Huckleberry, or "Huck", was born on February 22, 2007, in Nashville, Tennessee.^[31] Their second son, Jasper Warren (named after his grandfather who bought Brad his first guitar), was born on April 17, 2009.^[32]

In the last months of 2000, Paisley had a relationship with fellow country music singer Chely Wright,^[33][34][35] even though Wright and her female lover had moved together into a new home earlier in the year. Wright was touring together with Paisley, with whom she had co-written one song the previous year, and he had been enamored of her ever since. Although she felt no sexual attraction to Paisley, as to all men,^[36][37] she recounts why Paisley was the man she decided to have a relationship with, "he’s wickedly smart, which is one of the reasons why I made the decision to spend time with him. I loved Brad. I never had the capacity to fall in love with him, but I figured if I’m gonna live a less than satisfied life, this is the guy I could live my life with. If I’m gonna be with a boy, this is the boy."^[38] Her actions were further fueled by the fact that she held him in high esteem and great affection in every way other than sexual attraction.^[36][39] In her autobiography she expresses remorse for how she treated him.^[40]

Paisley is a member of the Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry,^[41] and a Noble of the AAONMS,^[42] also known as Shriners. He was accompanied by his father, Doug Paisley (32º), for the ceremony on October 28, 2006.^[41]

He is also a lifelong fan of the Cleveland Browns. Paisley sang the national anthem before a game during the 1999 season, and stated in an interview, with ESPN his dream job would be to play football for them.^[43] He also invited former Browns Quarterback Brady Quinn to a concert at the Blossom Music Center, in 2008.^[44]

Paisley is also a fan of West Virginia University athletics and the Boston Red Sox.^[45]

In late 2009, it was announced in Variety that Paisley would enter the world of scripted television as an executive producer of a new hour-long drama series for The CW network called, appropriately, Nashville.^[46] The plot was written and created by Neal Dodson and actor Matt Bomer. The creator of the series One Tree Hill, Mark Schwahn will direct the pilot and oversee the series. Actor Zachary Quinto is also an executive producer on the series, along with Dodson, Bomer, and Corey Moosa.^[47] The pilot was not picked up for a series when The CW's fall schedule was announced in May 2010.

Gear[link]

Paisley's first guitar, a gift from his grandfather, was a Silvertone Danelectro 1451, which came with a "amp-in-case".^[48] His next guitar, which he got at the age of 10 or 11, also from his grandfather, was a Sekova copy of a Gibson ES-335, with a Fender Deluxe Reverb. The instrument most often associated with him is a 1968 Pink Paisley Fender Telecaster.^[48]

Like many Nashville-based musicians, he lost a lot of instruments and other gear in the 2010 flood in Nashville, including a 1970s Gibson Les Paul and the prototype for a Z Wreck, one of the signature Paisley Dr. Z amplifiers. The insurance money, however, allowed him to buy (from George Gruhn's store) an exclusive 1937 herringbone Martin D-28.^[48]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Studio Albums

• 1999: Who Needs Pictures
• 2001: Part II
• 2003: Mud on the Tires
• 2005: Time Well Wasted
• 2006: Brad Paisley Christmas
• 2007: 5th Gear
• 2008: Play
• 2009: American Saturday Night
• 2011: This Is Country Music

Compilations

• 2010: Hits Alive

Awards[link]

Paisley in April 2010

Brad Paisley has won the following awards:^[49]

• Academy of Country Music
  • 1999 – Top New Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2004 – Vocal Event of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")
  • 2004 – Video of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")
  • 2005 – Album of the Year ("Time Well Wasted")
  • 2005 – Vocal Event of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")
  • 2005 – Video of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")
  • 2007 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2008 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2008 – Video of the Year ("Online")
  • 2009 – Video of the Year ("Waitin' on a Woman")
  • 2009 – Vocal Event of the Year ("Start a Band")
  • 2009 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2010 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2011 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year
• Country Music Association Awards
  • 2000 – Horizon Award
  • 2001 – Vocal Event of the Year ("Too Country")
  • 2002 – Music Video of the Year ("I'm Gonna Miss Her")
  • 2004 – Musical Event of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")
  • 2004 – Music Video of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")
  • 2006 – Album of the Year (Time Well Wasted)
  • 2006 – Musical Event of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")
  • 2007 – Music Video of the Year ("Online" – director Jason Alexander)
  • 2007 – Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2008 – Music Video of the Year ("Waitin' on a Woman")
  • 2008 – Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2009 – Male Vocalist of the Year
  • 2009 – Musical Event of the Year ("Start A Band" with Keith Urban)
  • 2010 – Entertainer of the Year
• Grammy Awards
  • 2008 – Best Country Instrumental Performance ("Throttleneck")
  • 2009 – Best Country Instrumental Performance ("Cluster Pluck")
  • 2009 – Best Male Country Vocal Performance ("Letter to Me")
• Country Weekly Presents the TNN Music Awards
  • 2000 – The Discovery Award
  • 2000 – Song of the Year ("He Didn't Have to Be")
  • 2000 – CMT Music Video of the Year ("He Didn't Have to Be")
• Flameworthy Awards/CMT Music Awards
  • 2002 – Concept Video of the Year ("I'm Gonna Miss Her")
  • 2005 – Collaborative Video of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")
  • 2006 – Most Inspiring Video of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")
  • 2008 – Comedy Video of the Year ("Online")
  • 2009 – CMT Performance of the Year ("Country Boy")
  • 2009 – Collaborative Video of the Year ("Start a Band")
  • 2009 – Male Video of the Year ("Waitin' On a Woman")
• American Music Awards
  • 2008 – Favorite Country Male Artist
  • 2010 – Favorite Country Male Artist
• American Country Awards
  • 2010 – Artist of the Year - Male
  • 2011 – Artist of the Year - Male
• Orville H. Gibson Guitar Award
  • 2002 – Best Country Guitarist (Male)
• Nashville Songwriters Association International Award
  • 2002 – Songwriter/Artist of the Year
  • 2005 – Songwriter/Artist of the Year
• ASCAP Country Music Award
  • 2004 – Songwriter/Artist of the Year

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Brad Paisley

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Brad Paisley

• Official Website

Demetri Martin
Demetri Martin at Northeastern University on April 11, 2007
Born	(1973-05-25) May 25, 1973 (age 39) New York City, New York, United States
Nationality	American
Years active	Since 2002
Genres	Observational comedy, surreal humor, musical comedy, wit/wordplay, sketch comedy
Subject(s)	Everyday Life, American Culture, Random Subjects
Influences	Steven Wright, Eddie Izzard, Emo Philips, Mitch Hedberg, Socrates
Notable works and roles	· Demetri Martin. Person.  · Correspondent on The Daily Show  · Himself/Various on Important Things with Demetri Martin  · Elliot Tiber in Taking Woodstock (2009)
Website	www.demetrimartin.com

Demetri Martin (born May 25, 1973) is an American comedian, actor, artist, musician, writer and humorist. Martin is best known for his work as a stand-up comedian, contributor on The Daily Show and for his Comedy Central show Important Things with Demetri Martin.

Early life[link]

Demetri Martin was born to a Greek American family^[1] in New York City, New York, and grew up in Toms River, New Jersey. He is the son of Lillian, a nutritionist, and Dean C. Martin, now deceased, a Greek Orthodox priest.^[2] Martin graduated from Yale University in 1995. Although he was accepted into Harvard Law School, he went to New York University School of Law after he received a full scholarship.^[3]

Career[link]

In 2001, Martin caught his first big break in stand-up comedy when he appeared on Comedy Central's stand-up showcase Premium Blend. At the 2003 Edinburgh Festival Fringe he won the Perrier award with his show If I....^[4] The show was turned into a British television special in 2004. From 2003 to 2004, Martin wrote for Late Night with Conan O'Brien.^[5] In 2004, Martin had his own Comedy Central Presents stand-up special. His special was divided into three parts. In the first, he performed in traditional stand-up comedy fashion. In the second segment, he used humorous drawings as visual aids, which would serve either as the punchline or a background. During the third segment, he played a guitar and put on a pseudo-play where he would strum his guitar while alternating between playing harmonica and talking; some of his comedian friends dressed as fairies and dragons acted according to the story he was telling, detailing the magical land where his jokes came from. Martin's mother and grandmother also appeared.

Since late 2005, he has been credited as a contributor on The Daily Show, on which he has appeared as the named "Senior Youth Correspondent" and on which he hosts a segment called "Trendspotting". He has used this segment to talk about so-called hip trends among youth such as hookahs, wine, guerilla marketing and Xbox 360. A piece about social networking featured his profile on MySpace.^[6] On March 22, 2007, Demetri made another appearance on The Daily Show, talking about the Viacom lawsuit against Google and YouTube.

He has recorded a comedy CD/DVD titled These Are Jokes, which was released on September 26, 2006. This album also features Saturday Night Live member Will Forte and stand-up comedian Leo Allen.

Martin returned to The Daily Show on March 22, 2006, as the new Youth Correspondent, calling his segment "Professional Important News with Demetri Martin". In 2007, he starred in a Fountains of Wayne music video for "Someone to Love" as Seth Shapiro, a character in the song. He also starred in the video for the Travis single "Selfish Jean", in which he wears multiple t-shirts with lyrics written on them.

On September 2, 2007, Martin appeared on the season finale of the HBO series Flight of the Conchords. He appeared as a keytar player named Demetri.^[7]

He also had a part in the movie The Rocker (2008) starring Rainn Wilson. Martin played the part of the videographer when the band in the movie was making their first music video.

In 2009, he hosted and starred in his own television show called Important Things With Demetri Martin on Comedy Central. Later in June, it was announced his show had been renewed for a second season.^[8] The second season premiered, again on Comedy Central, on February 4, 2010. Martin has stated that Important Things will not return for a third season.

Prior to completing work on his second season, Martin starred in the comedy-drama film Taking Woodstock (2009), directed by Ang Lee, which premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. In the film Martin plays Elliot Tiber, a closeted gay artist who has given up his ambitions in the city to move upstate and help his old-world Jewish family run their Catskill Mountains motel. The film is based on the book written by Tiber.

On April 25, 2011, Martin released his first book, titled This Is a Book by Demetri Martin.

Martin was slated to portray Paul DePodesta as Oakland Athletics assistant GM to Billy Beane in the 2011 movie Moneyball, however was dropped and Jonah Hill took his place in the movie.

Plans[link]

Martin sold his movie concept Will to DreamWorks; he is expected to play a key supporting role.^[9] He will play the lead in the film Moon People, a pitch that he sold to Columbia Pictures.

Martin also signed a blind script deal with CBS in October 2010 to produce, write, and star in his own television series.^[10]

After CBS was shown the pilot for the series, they decided not to air it.^[11]

On August 11, 2011, Fox ordered a presentation of a new animated show they might air.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] If I

If I is a Perrier Comedy Award-winning comedy one-man show written and performed by Demetri Martin at the 2003 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.^[12] It was also aired on British television as a special. The show is an autobiographical examination of Martin's life, as seen through various definitions of the word "if."

The title of the special comes from a lengthy palindromic poem that Martin wrote; the words "if I" are at the center of the poem.^[13]

Comedic style[link]

Martin is known for being an unconventional stand-up comic. He uses one-liners and drawings on a "large pad", as well as accompanying his jokes with music on either guitar, harmonica, piano, keyboard, glockenspiel, toy bells, ukulele, or tambourine, sometimes all at once.^[14] He has cited comedian Steven Wright as an important influence (both use deadpan one-liners in their acts) and he is also a fan of Bill Cosby.^[15]

Personal life[link]

According to a July 2011 interview on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast, Demetri had a short-lived marriage to a girl he knew from high school. They began dating after high school and got married when he was in NYU Law School and she was attending NYU Medical School. He was aged 25 and in the end of his marriage when his stand-up career began.^[3]

He is extremely allergic to nuts and peanuts.^[16]

Martin moved to Santa Monica, California in 2009.^[17]

Filmography[link]

• Invite Them Up (2005)
• These Are Jokes (2006)
• Demetri Martin. Person. (2007)
• Important Things with Demetri Martin (2009–2010)

Filmography and television work[link]

Written works[link]

• This Is a Book, April 2011, ISBN 978-0446539708.

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (May 2012)

• Official website
• Demetri Martin on Myspace
• Demetri Martin at the Internet Movie Database
• Interview from November, 2006, in Onion AV Club
• Interview from October 2006, in The DePaulia
• Article, in The Scotsman
• Article, in Gelf Magazine
• Interview by Brian M. Palmer
• MP3 Audio Interview on The Sound of Young America public radio show and podcast
• Interview Believer Mag
• New Jersey Monthly Magazine
• Fresh Air, NPR.org

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. It relies largely or entirely upon a single source. Tagged since April 2008. It may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Tagged since November 2008. Its factual accuracy is disputed. Tagged since August 2007. It may contain original research. Tagged since April 2008.

Musiq Soulchild
Musiq Soulchild at WGCI Coca Cola Lounge
Background information
Birth name	Taalib Johnson
Also known as	Musiq Soulchild
Born	(1977-09-16) September 16, 1977 (age 34) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Genres	Contemporary R&B Neo soul
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Def Soul (2000–2005) Atlantic (2006–present)
Website	www.musiqsoulchild.com

Musiq Soulchild or Musiq ( /ˈmjuːsɪk/; born Taalib Johnson on September 16, 1977) is a American R&B/soul singer-songwriter whose style blends contemporary R&B, soul, funk, alternative, blues, jazz, some gospel influences and hip hop.

Biography[link]

Musiq was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is the oldest of nine children. At an early age, Musiq decided he would drop out of high school, and left home at 17. It was during that time Musiq started to sell dope in the hood and build a reputation for being musically gifted, beat boxing for MC's, free styling on the open mic circuit, scatting at a jazz club, or just performing a cappella in the streets of Philadelphia, which is where he got the name "Musiq" and later added "Soulchild", which is intended to respect and represent the legacy and traditions of past soul artists. We all know how hard it can be for an African American to get by and Muisq protected his dream with a compact 9mm. He cites as his inspiration such icons as Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Patti LaBelle, Billie Holiday, Sly & the Family Stone and Ray Charles.^[1][2]

Musiq has also earned award nominations from Moard, BET, ASCAP, BMI, and Soul Train.^[1] Musiq Soulchild has had 2 platinum albums, 2 gold albums and 7 hit singles. He has received awards from BillbMTV, American Music Awards, NAACP, and 11 Grammy nominations, including 3 for his 2007 album Luvanmusiq.

Name origin[link]

"There were people who knew of me but they didn't really know me; they just knew me as 'that music dude.' So after getting that so much, I was like 'Just call me Musiq.' It was so fresh to me because if I had to be called anything, I would have wanted to be called Music. That's how much I dug it; when you see me, I want you to automatically think of music."^[1] The nickname Soulchild came from two ideas. Musiq quotes it as, "Musiq Soulchild is technically two ideas. 'Musiq' is the front man and 'Soulchild' is the idea behind it. It's basically me as an artist in this generation, representing the traditions and the legacies of the past soul stars."^[1]

Career[link]

Musiq Soulchild released his debut album, Aijuswanaseing, in 2000. Its lead single was "Just Friends (Sunny)". Musiq's second single "Love" spent 22 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

Musiq’s second album, 2002's Juslisen, debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Charts and went platinum. The singles were "Halfcrazy" and "Dontchange".

In 2003, Musiq released his 3rd album, Soulstar. It included the singles "Forthenight" and "Whoknows".

Musiq took a four year break and changed his management to Solqi Management ; as well as his record label from Def Soul to Atlantic Records.

In March 2007, Musiq's released his fourth album Luvanmusiq. Its singles were "B.U.D.D.Y.", "Teachme", and "Makeyouhappy".

His fifth album OnMyRadio was released on December 2, 2008. The lead single "Radio" was a complete contrast to the usual smooth soul and R&B Musiq fans were accustomed to. The following singles were the duet IfULeave featuring Mary J Blige; and the ballad SoBeautiful. "SoBeautiful" marked the first collaboration between Musiq and the producer JR Hutson, after Hutson had spent "about eight months" trying to get Musiq to come by his studio.^[3] According to Hutson, the two plan to work together again.^[3]

In May 2010, he changed management to Victor Grieg.^[3]

His latest album Musiqinthemajiq was released on May 3, 2011, available on CDs and also as a digital download. The first single is Anything featuring Swizz Beatz.^[4]

Guest appearances[link]

Musiq Soulchild has featured on "Nothing at All" from Carlos Santana's album, Shaman. He has also made guest appearances on rapper Lloyd Banks's album Rotten Apple, Talib Kweli's Eardrum, The Roots's Phrenology, Black Ice's The Death of Willie Lynch. He performed "Reasons" on the tribute album Interpretations: Celebrating the Music of Earth, Wind & Fire and "Are You Experienced?" on Power of Soul: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix. Soulchild has also appeared on the soundtrack to Tyler Perry's movie Daddy's Little Girls and performed with Ice Cube on his 2008 album, Raw Footage. He also lent a song from his latest album Luvanmusiq to the soundtrack for Perry's later movie Why Did I Get Married?. He then recorded a remake of Arrested Development's song "People Everyday" with British rapper/singer Estelle for the soundtrack to Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns entitled "People Everyday (Metamorphosis Mix)".

Other interests[link]

Outside of music, he has been featured in television and print ads for McDonald's, Nike, Inc., Coca-Cola, Levi Strauss & Co. and The Gap. He made a special appearance on The CW's #1 comedy The Game on Monday, October 29, 2007, as well as the UPN sitcom All of Us.

Awards and recognition[link]

He has received awards from Billboard, BET, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, BMI, and Soul Train. Musiq has also been nominated for awards by MTV, The American Music Awards, the NAACP, and has had 11 Grammy nominations.

Personal life[link]

He dated singer Kameelah Williams (of 702) in 2009. They welcomed the birth of their son in August 2009.^[5] She is the inspiration for his song "SoBeautiful."^[6]

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Singles[link]

Featured singles[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website
• Musiq Soulchild on Myspace
• Antigua Music Festival
• Musiq Soulchild Black Planet page
• Musiq Preps Atlantic Records Debut
• Musiq at rnbkings.net
• Musiq Soulchild's AllMusic page
• Exclusive Musiq Soulchild Interview
• Luvanmusiq Album Review