Douglas Martin Adkins (born October 3, 1963) is an

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

and

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

who grew up in

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In 2020 Adkins chose

Samu Haber Samu Aleksi Haber (born 2 April 1976) is a Finnish singer, songwriter, television music competition judge, entrepreneur, and is the lead vocalist and frontman of pop-rock band Sunrise Avenue. Haber established a band Sunrise in 1992 with his fri ...

and

Rea Garvey Raymond Michael Garvey (born 3 May 1973) is an Irish singer, songwriter and guitarist now residing in Germany. In 1998, he formed the band Reamonn. Over the 11 years that Garvey was their frontman, they saw chart-topping success in Europe, with ...

, the coaches from Team Samu Rea for the anniversary of ''The Voice of Germany'' (season 10). For the blind audition, Adkins sang the classic country hit "

Achy Breaky Heart Achy may refer to: * Suffering from pain * Stéphane Achy (born 1988), Gabonese footballer * Achy Obejas Achy Obejas (born June 28, 1956) is a Cuban-American writer and translator focused on personal and national identity issues, living in Benic ...

" by

Billy Ray Cyrus Billy Ray Cyrus (born August 25, 1961) is an American country singer and actor. He has released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, and is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart and ...

. Coach Mark Forster also turned around for Adkins, but in the end Adkins chose Haber and Garvey due to the country music elements they have in their

songwriting A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

. In the Battles, Adkins sang against newcomer Claudia Pahl from

Tirol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

, Austria. Together they performed the

Billie Eilish Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell ( ; born December 18, 2001) is an American singer-songwriter. She first gained public attention in 2015 with her debut single " Ocean Eyes", written and produced by her brother Finneas O'Connell, with whom ...

hit " Ocean Eyes". The duet performed the song in a country music style, which garnered worldwide attention and hundreds of thousands of views on ''The Voice of Germany'' website. It received acclaim for its originality and daring approach. Between 1990 and 2020, Adkins recorded 10 original studio CDs. In 2005 he worked with Nashville producer and bass player Mike Chapman to bring about the CD ''Whiskey Salesman''. Chapman is known as one of the "G-Men" credited with recording the music on every

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the co ...

album. Also appearing on those first successful recordings were

Brent Mason Brent Mason (born July 13, 1959) is an American, Nashville, Tennessee-based recording studio guitarist and songwriter, performing primarily country music. Guitar World Magazine listed him as one of the "Top Ten Session Guitarists of All Time". ...

and

J.T. Corenflos Jerry Troy "J. T." Corenflos (November 6, 1963 – October 24, 2020), was an American session musician and country guitarist, who played on an estimated 75 Number One hit records as well as hundreds of other recordings and hits. He received 14 ...

on electric and acoustic guitars; Paul Franklin and

Bruce Bouton Bruce Bouton is an American guitarist, session musician, producer, and songwriter. His pedal steel guitar has been featured on many country music recordings, and he helped reintroduce the pedal steel guitar to the forefront of the Nashville sound ...

on steel guitar, lap steel and dobro; and

Lonnie Wilson Lonnie Wilson is an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer, known primarily for his work in country music. Born in Monroe, Louisiana, Wilson was originally the lead singer of the band Bandana, which charted ten singles on the Hot C ...

on drums. The first track released from the CD ''Whiskey Salesman'' stayed at the #1 position on the European Hotdisc Top 40 Country Charts for the weeks of 23 February and 2 March 2006. "Whiskey Salesman" was nominated for "Best Country Song of the Year" in 2008 by the Independent Music Awards. The second song released off the ''Whiskey Salesman'' CD was "Window Shoppin", which reached the #12 position on the European Hotdisc Top 40 Country Charts.

Life and career

Adkins was born in

Havre, Montana Havre ( ) is the county seat and largest city in Hill County, Montana, United States. Havre is nicknamed the crown jewel of the Hi-Line. It is said to be named after the city of Le Havre in France. As of the 2020 census the population was 9,362 ...

, the son of Marilyn and Jack Adkins. His father was an educator and basketball coach in Northeast Montana. Growing up in Montana, Doug lived in Westby, Culbertson, and Froid, and graduated high school from

Sidney, Montana Sidney is a city in and the county seat of Richland County, Montana, United States, less than west of the North Dakota border. The population was 6,346 at the 2020 census. The city lies along the Yellowstone River and is in proximity to the ...

in 1982. He grew up singing with his sisters Jaclyn, Betty Jo, Theresa and Joan. Adkins played basketball and golf in high school. He played the trombone, and for four years in a row received a #1 mark at the state level for performing solo.

Songwriter

As a songwriter, Adkins has written 250 songs and recorded ten CDs. His greatest success came when he recorded the ''Whiskey Salesman'' sessions in Nashville with producer

Mike Chapman Michael Donald Chapman (born 13 April 1947) is an Australian-American record producer and songwriter who was a major force in the British pop music industry in the 1970s. He created a string of hit singles for artists including The Sweet, Suzi ...

. With the song "Whiskey Salesman", Adkins won the 2008 Independent Country Music Award for Top Single. Also from the same recording sessions came the song "Window Shoppin'", which brought Adkins popularity across Europe and the United States, giving him respect among country songwriters. Adkins tours regularly in Europe, with occasional tours through the U.S. He has performed in the United States, Switzerland, France, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway.

Awards and recognition

* 23 February 2006 - Song "Whiskey Salesman" reached #1 on the European Country Hotdisc Charts and stayed at the #1 position for four consecutive weeks. * 22 June 2006 - Song "Window Shoppin'" reached #12 on the European Country Hotdisc Charts. * 2008 - Adkins was nominated for "Best Country Song of the Year" with his song "Whiskey Salesman" by the Independent Music Awards. * 3 October 2010 - "Song Yippee ii Yippee aa'" reached #14 on the European Country Hotdisc Top 40 Charts. * 28 November 2010- Song "Ain't Gonna Play With Your Heart" reached #14, spending 3 months from November 10, 2010 to January 30, 2011 on the European Country Hotdisc Top 40 Charts. * 3 April 2011 - Song "Loved You More'" reached #11 on the European Country Hotdisc Top 40 Charts. * 14 September 2014 - Song "Pretty Girls", recorded by Adkins and Barry P. Foley, reaches #2 on the European Country Hotdisc Top 40 Charts. * 1 August 2020 - Selected

and

from Team Samu Rea for the anniversary of ''The Voice of Germany'' (season 10). * 1 October 2020 - Adkins sang the classic country hit "

" by

. * 1 November 2020 - In the Battles for ''The Voice of Germany'' Adkins and Claudia Pahl performed the

hit " Ocean Eyes".

Discography

Albums

*1990 ''Just Livin'' *1993 ''Habits and Hearts'' *1995 ''Cowboy Comes Alive'' *1998 ''Time Keeps Movin On'' *2002 ''A Losin' Soul'' *2005 ''Whiskey Salesman'' *2007 ''One More Mile To Go'' *2010 ''Waltz Across Montana'' *2016 ''Lonesome'' *2018 ''Dirt Roads and Fence Lines'' *2022 ''A Cowboys' Life''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Adkins, Doug Living people American male musicians American country musicians American country singer-songwriters The Voice of Germany 1963 births Musicians from Montana People from Havre, Montana Country musicians from Montana American male singer-songwriters