Darryl Wade Worley (born October 31, 1964) is an American
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
singer and songwriter. Signed to
DreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label operated until 200 ...
Nashville in 1999, Worley released four albums for the label: ''
Hard Rain Don't Last'' (2000), ''
I Miss My Friend
''I Miss My Friend'' is the second studio album by American country music singer Darryl Worley released on July 16, 2002. The album produced Worley's first number one single on the Hot Country Songs charts in its title track; "Family Tree" was ...
'' (2002), ''
Have You Forgotten?'' (2003), and ''
Darryl Worley
Darryl Wade Worley (born October 31, 1964) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to DreamWorks Records Nashville in 1999, Worley released four albums for the label: ''Hard Rain Don't Last'' (2000), '' I Miss My Friend'' (20 ...
'' in 2004. After the label closed in 2005, he moved to 903 Music, an independent label owned by
Neal McCoy
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on ...
, releasing ''
Here and Now'' in 2006, shortly before that label's closure. His most recent studio release is 2009's ''
Sounds Like Life
''Sounds Like Life'' is American country music singer Darryl Worley's fifth studio album. It was released on June 9, 2009 by the Stroudavarious label. The first single "Tequila on Ice" peaked at #44 in 2008, and the second single "Sounds Like Life ...
'' via
Stroudavarious Records
R&J Records is an American independent record label specializing in country music. It was founded in May 2011 by James Stroud and Rick Carter. Stroud is a record producer and former president of Giant Records and DreamWorks Records. In 2008, Stro ...
, owned by
James Stroud
James Stroud is an American musician and record producer who works in pop, rock, R&B, soul, disco, and country music. He played with the Malaco Rhythm Section for Malaco Records. In the 1990s, he was the president of Giant Records (a subsidiar ...
.
Worley's six albums have produced 18 singles on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
charts, including three number ones: "
I Miss My Friend
''I Miss My Friend'' is the second studio album by American country music singer Darryl Worley released on July 16, 2002. The album produced Worley's first number one single on the Hot Country Songs charts in its title track; "Family Tree" was ...
", "
Have You Forgotten?", and "
Awful, Beautiful Life
"Awful, Beautiful Life" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Darryl Worley. It was co-written with Harley Allen. It was released in June 2004 as the lead single from Worley's self-titled album. The song became his ...
", from 2002, 2003 and 2004–2005, respectively. "Have You Forgotten?" spent seven weeks at number one. Nine other singles have reached the top 40.
Biography
Darryl Wade Worley was born October 31, 1964, in
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
, to Tommy and Bonnie Worley. His family moved to
Pyburn, Tennessee, when he was young and he was raised there. His father was a Methodist preacher and his mother sang in the church choir.
Worley attended the
University of North Alabama
The University of North Alabama (UNA) is a public university in Florence, Alabama. It is the state's oldest public university. Occupying a campus in a residential section of Florence, UNA is located within a four-city area that also includes ...
and earned a degree in biology and chemistry. He worked in the chemical industry prior to pursuing country music, and wrote for
FAME Studios in
Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Muscle Shoals is the largest city in Colbert County, Alabama, Colbert County, Alabama, United States. It is located along the Tennessee River in the northern part of the state and, as of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the populati ...
. One of his first cuts as a songwriter was a track on
Archer/Park's 1994 debut album.
Musical career
Hard Rain Don't Last (1999-2001)
Worley was signed to
DreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label operated until 200 ...
in 1999. His debut single "
When You Need My Love" followed in March 2000, the first of four single releases from his debut album ''
Hard Rain Don't Last''. Following this song were "
A Good Day to Run", "Second Wind" and "Sideways". Respectively, these singles peaked at No. 15, No. 12, No. 20 and No. 41 on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' country charts. Production duties on the album were split between
Frank Rogers and
James Stroud
James Stroud is an American musician and record producer who works in pop, rock, R&B, soul, disco, and country music. He played with the Malaco Rhythm Section for Malaco Records. In the 1990s, he was the president of Giant Records (a subsidiar ...
. Also in 2000,
George Jones
George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for his long list of hit records, including his best-known song "He Stopped Loving Her Today", ...
charted with the single "Sinners & Saints", which Worley co-wrote.
I Miss My Friend (2002)
His second album, ''
I Miss My Friend
''I Miss My Friend'' is the second studio album by American country music singer Darryl Worley released on July 16, 2002. The album produced Worley's first number one single on the Hot Country Songs charts in its title track; "Family Tree" was ...
'' became his first Number One hit on the country charts that year, and was followed by the top 30 "Family Tree", written by
Darrell & Scott. This album was also his first Number One album on
Top Country Albums
Top Country Albums is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The 50-position chart lists the most popular country music albums in the country, calculated weekly by Broadcast Data Systems based on physical sales a ...
.
Have You Forgotten? (2003)
Worley had his biggest hit in 2003 with the
9/11
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...
tribute ballad "
Have You Forgotten?", the first release from his 2003 compilation album of the
same name. It reached Number One in its fifth week on the charts, and held its position for seven weeks. The album included only four new tracks counting "Have You Forgotten?", as well as six each from his first and second albums. "Tennessee River Run", one of the carryovers from ''I Miss My Friend'', was issued as a single in 2003, peaking at No. 31. After it came his lowest-peaking single, "I Will Hold My Ground" at No. 57. ''Have You Forgotten?'' is also certified
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
by the
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
.
Darryl Worley (2004-2005)
2004 saw the release of Worley's third studio album, the self-titled ''
Darryl Worley
Darryl Wade Worley (born October 31, 1964) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to DreamWorks Records Nashville in 1999, Worley released four albums for the label: ''Hard Rain Don't Last'' (2000), '' I Miss My Friend'' (20 ...
''. Its lead-off single, the
Harley Allen
Harley Lee Allen (January 23, 1956March 30, 2011) was an American bluegrass and country singer and songwriter.
Early life
Allen was born in Dayton, Ohio, the son of bluegrass performer Red Allen.
Discography
Studio albums
Singles
Musi ...
co-write "
Awful, Beautiful Life
"Awful, Beautiful Life" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Darryl Worley. It was co-written with Harley Allen. It was released in June 2004 as the lead single from Worley's self-titled album. The song became his ...
", became his third Number One hit in early 2005. Following this song was the Top Ten "If Something Should Happen", as well as "I Love Her, She Hates Me", which stopped at No. 56 due to the closure of DreamWorks Records in mid-2005.
Here and Now (2006-2007)
Later that same year, Worley signed with country singer
Neal McCoy
Hubert Neal McGaughey Jr. (born July 30, 1958), known professionally as Neal McCoy, is an American country music singer. He has released 10 studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio. Although he first charted on ...
's vanity label 903 Music. His first release for 903 was "Nothin' but a Love Thang", which peaked at No. 35. This was the first of three singles from ''
Here and Now'', his fourth studio album. Also released from it were the Top 20 "
I Just Came Back from a War
"I Just Came Back from a War" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Darryl Worley. It was released in September 2006 as the second single from his album '' Here and Now''. It peaked at number 18 on ''Billboard'' magaz ...
" and the No. 54 "Livin' in the Here and Now", the chart run of which was halted by the closure of 903 music in May 2007.
Sounds Like Life (2008-2010)
Worley signed in 2008 to his third recording contract, this time with
Stroudavarious Records
R&J Records is an American independent record label specializing in country music. It was founded in May 2011 by James Stroud and Rick Carter. Stroud is a record producer and former president of Giant Records and DreamWorks Records. In 2008, Stro ...
, a label that Stroud founded in 2008. His sixteenth chart entry, "Tequila on Ice", was issued in the middle of that year, peaking at No. 44. Following it was "Sounds Like Life to Me", which has reached the Top 20. Both songs are included on his fifth release, ''
Sounds Like Life
''Sounds Like Life'' is American country music singer Darryl Worley's fifth studio album. It was released on June 9, 2009 by the Stroudavarious label. The first single "Tequila on Ice" peaked at #44 in 2008, and the second single "Sounds Like Life ...
''. The album's third and final single was "Best of Both Worlds."
God & Country
Worley debuted the single "Keep the Change" in mid-2010. It was to be included on his sixth studio album, ''God & Country'', but the album went unreleased when his record label, Stroudavarious, ceased operation.
Worley then moved to Tenacity Records in 2012 to release "You Still Got It".
Personal life
Worley married his first wife, Beverly Irwin, on May 12, 2001; they divorced in July 2006. Worley opened a restaurant, the Worleybird Cafe, in
Savannah, TN, with his first wife. He also has two brothers, Tommy and Barry. Worley has been married since December 2007 to Kimberly Lee Perkins, with whom he has a daughter. Worley also formerly owned a boutique furniture store in
Enterprise, Alabama
Enterprise is a city in the southeastern part of Coffee County and the southwestern part of Dale County in Southeastern Alabama, United States. Its population was 28,711 at the 2020 census. Enterprise is the primary city of the Enterprise micr ...
.
In addition, Worley posed nude (non-full frontal) for the July 2007 issue of ''
Playgirl
''Playgirl'' was an American magazine that featured general interest articles, lifestyle and celebrity news, in addition to nude or semi-nude men. In the 1970s and 1980s, the magazine printed monthly and was marketed mainly to women, although i ...
'' magazine.
Charitable works
Each year, Worley hosts a Charity Foundation Event, which is called the "Tennessee River Run." Proceeds benefit the Darryl Worley Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that provides funds to
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center and the
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in the United States established to provide the means to cure cystic fibrosis (CF) and ensure that those living with CF live long and productive lives. The Foundation prov ...
.His foundation also funded and helps maintain the Darryl Worley Cancer Treatment Center in his hometown of Savannah, Tennessee and helps area families in need through a grant process.
Tennessee River Run info at TourHardinCounty.org
Discography
Studio albums
Compilations
Singles
;Notes
Music videos
References
External links
Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Worley, Darryl
1964 births
American country singer-songwriters
American male singer-songwriters
University of North Alabama alumni
People from Hardin County, Tennessee
Living people
Singer-songwriters from Tennessee
DreamWorks Records artists
R&J Records artists
People from Memphis, Tennessee
Country musicians from Tennessee