John Rich (born January 7, 1974) 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-songwriter. From 1992 to 1998, he was a member of the country music band
Lonestar
Lonestar (formerly known as Texassee) is an American country music group from Nashville, Tennessee. The group consists of Drew Womack (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), Michael Britt (lead guitar, background vocals), Dean Sams (keyboards, acousti ...
, in which he played bass guitar and alternated with
Richie McDonald
Richard Vance McDonald (born February 6, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. From 1998 until his departure in 2007, he was the lead singer of the group Lonestar, which recorded seven studio albums on BNA Records during his t ...
as lead vocalist. After departing from the band in 1998, he embarked on a solo career on
BNA Records
BNA Records, formerly known as BNA Entertainment, was a label group that shared ties with Arista Nashville and RCA Nashville from parent company Sony Music Nashville, which itself is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment. Based in Nashville, ...
in the late 1990s, releasing two singles for the label and recording ''
Underneath the Same Moon
''Underneath the Same Moon'' is the second solo studio album recorded by John Rich. The album was recorded in 1999, after Rich departed from the country group Lonestar and before he joined Big Kenny in the duo Big & Rich. However, like Big Kenn ...
'', which was not released until 2006. In 2001, he self-released ''Rescue Me'', an album he was inspired to record by a cancer patient named Katie Darnell. By 2003, he joined
Big Kenny
William Kenneth Alphin (born November 1, 1963), best known by his stage name Big Kenny, is an American country music singer. He and John Rich comprise the duo Big & Rich, who recorded four studio albums and charted fifteen singles on the '' Bill ...
to form the duo
Big & Rich
Big & Rich is an American country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich, both of whom are songwriters, vocalists, and guitarists. Before the duo's foundation, Rich was bass guitarist in the country band Lonestar, while Kenny was a solo ...
, who released three albums on
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
as well as ten singles, including the Number One "
Lost in This Moment
"Lost in This Moment" is a song written by John Rich, Keith Anderson and Rodney Clawson, and recorded by American country music duo Big & Rich. It was released in February 2007 as the first single from their album ''Between Raising Hell and Amazi ...
". After Big & Rich went on hiatus in 2007, Rich began work on a third solo album, ''
Son of a Preacher Man
"Son of a Preacher Man" is a song written and composed by American songwriters John Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins and recorded by British singer Dusty Springfield in September 1968 for the album ''Dusty in Memphis.''
Springfield's version was produc ...
'', which has produced two more chart singles. In 2011, Rich released two
extended play
An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record. s, ''
Rich Rocks
''Rich Rocks'' is the first extended play (or "Six Pak," as referred to on the album cover) by American country music artist John Rich, one half of the duo Big & Rich. Rich co-wrote all of the songs on the EP with the exception of "Let Somebody ...
'' and ''
For the Kids'', before re-establishing Big & Rich in 2012.
Music career
Lonestar
John Rich was born in Amarillo, Texas; the son of Jim, a Baptist preacher, and Judy Overton Rich. John graduated from Dickson County Senior High in
Dickson, Tennessee
Dickson is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Located in Dickson County. it is part of the Nashville metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, Dickson's population was 16,058.
History
Dickson was named for Congressman William Dickson, as wa ...
and after graduation moved to
Nashville
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
where he worked as a singer at
Opryland USA
Opryland USA (later called Opryland Themepark and colloquially "Opryland") was a theme park in suburban Nashville, Tennessee. It operated seasonally (generally March to October) from 1972 to 1997, and for a special Christmas-themed engagement eve ...
. He wanted to be a professional team roper. Not long after, he met up with the group Texasee, which eventually changed its name to
Lonestar
Lonestar (formerly known as Texassee) is an American country music group from Nashville, Tennessee. The group consists of Drew Womack (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), Michael Britt (lead guitar, background vocals), Dean Sams (keyboards, acousti ...
. While in Lonestar, Rich was the bass guitarist and, on some occasions, the lead singer (one of the band's singles, "Heartbroke Every Day," featured his lead vocals). Rich also co-wrote two of the band's singles: "
Come Cryin' to Me" and "
Say When", the former being a number-one single for the group. In January 1998, Rich departed from Lonestar.
Afterward, Rich became a solo artist with
BNA Records
BNA Records, formerly known as BNA Entertainment, was a label group that shared ties with Arista Nashville and RCA Nashville from parent company Sony Music Nashville, which itself is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment. Based in Nashville, ...
, the same label to which Lonestar was signed. He charted two singles for the label and recorded an album which did not see release until 2006. In 2001, he recorded and self-released ''Rescue Me'', an album he was inspired to record after meeting cancer patient Katie Darnell.
Big & Rich
Rich joined
Big Kenny
William Kenneth Alphin (born November 1, 1963), best known by his stage name Big Kenny, is an American country music singer. He and John Rich comprise the duo Big & Rich, who recorded four studio albums and charted fifteen singles on the '' Bill ...
in 2002 to form the duo
Big & Rich
Big & Rich is an American country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich, both of whom are songwriters, vocalists, and guitarists. Before the duo's foundation, Rich was bass guitarist in the country band Lonestar, while Kenny was a solo ...
. The duo recorded three studio albums for
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
: ''
Horse of a Different Color'', ''
Comin' to Your City
''Comin' to Your City'' is the second studio album by American country music duo Big & Rich, released in 2005. It features the hit singles " Comin' to Your City", "Never Mind Me", and " 8th of November", which peaked at number 21, number 34, and ...
'' and ''
Between Raising Hell and Amazing Grace
''Between Raising Hell and Amazing Grace'' is the third studio album by American country music duo Big & Rich. It was released on June 5, 2007, by Warner Bros. Nashville. The album's lead-off single "Lost In This Moment," became the duo's first Nu ...
'', in 2004, 2005 and 2007 respectively. These albums accounted for ten singles on the country charts, including the Number One "
Lost in This Moment
"Lost in This Moment" is a song written by John Rich, Keith Anderson and Rodney Clawson, and recorded by American country music duo Big & Rich. It was released in February 2007 as the first single from their album ''Between Raising Hell and Amazi ...
". Rich also co-wrote all of the duo's singles, primarily with Big Kenny. In the wake of Big & Rich's success, his 1999 solo album ''
Underneath the Same Moon
''Underneath the Same Moon'' is the second solo studio album recorded by John Rich. The album was recorded in 1999, after Rich departed from the country group Lonestar and before he joined Big Kenny in the duo Big & Rich. However, like Big Kenn ...
'' was issued via BNA, coinciding with the release of Big Kenny's previously-unreleased solo album ''
Live a Little''. A fourth Big & Rich studio album was released in the summer of 2012, with the inspiring "That's Why I Pray" reaching No. 15 on the country charts.
Work for other artists
During Big & Rich's success, Rich also worked as a songwriter and producer for other artists. His work included production for
Gretchen Wilson
Gretchen Frances Wilson (born June 26, 1973) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She made her debut in March 2004 with the Grammy Awards, Grammy Award-winning single "Redneck Woman", a number-one hit on the ''Billboard (magazine) ...
,
Keith Anderson
Keith Anderson (born January 12, 1968) is an American country music artist. Before signing to a record deal, Anderson was one of several co-writers on "Beer Run (B Double E Double R-U-N)", a duet by Garth Brooks and George Jones, released in la ...
,
Jewel and
John Anderson John Anderson may refer to:
Business
*John Anderson (Scottish businessman) (1747–1820), Scottish merchant and founder of Fermoy, Ireland
* John Byers Anderson (1817–1897), American educator, military officer and railroad executive, mentor of ...
. In the same time span, he co-wrote multiple singles for other artists, including the Number One hits "
Redneck Woman
"Redneck Woman" is the debut single of American country music artist Gretchen Wilson, released on March 15, 2004, from her debut studio album, '' Here for the Party'' (2004). Wilson co-wrote the song with John Rich. It is Wilson's only number-one ...
" for Wilson, "
Mississippi Girl
"Mississippi Girl" is a song recorded by American country music singer Faith Hill. It was released in May 2005 as the lead single from her sixth studio album ''Fireflies''. A number one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts in late ...
" for
Faith Hill
Audrey Faith McGraw (; born September 21, 1967), known professionally as Faith Hill, is an American singer and actress. She is one of the most successful country music artists of all time, having sold more than 40 million albums worldwide.
Hill' ...
and "
Why
Why may refer to:
* Causality, a consequential relationship between two events
* Reason (argument), a premise in support of an argument, for what reason or purpose
* Grounding (metaphysics), a topic in metaphysics regarding how things exist in v ...
" for
Jason Aldean
Jason Aldean (born Jason Aldine Williams; February 28, 1977) is an American country music singer. Since 2005, he has been signed to BBR Music Group, Broken Bow Records, a record label for which he has released ten albums and 40 singles. His 2010 ...
.
He also has a co-write on
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...
's 2008 album, ''
Fearless
Fearless or The Fearless may refer to:
Psychology
* Lack of fear
* Courage or bravery
Film, television and audio Film
* ''Fearless'' (1978 film), an Italian film directed by Stelvio Massi
* ''Fearless'' (1993 film), an American drama directed ...
'', titled "The Way I Loved You".
In 2011, Rich recorded a song with
heavy metal band
Black Label Society
Black Label Society is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1998 by guitarist/singer Zakk Wylde. To date, the band has released eleven studio albums, two live albums, two compilation albums, one EP, and three vid ...
, entitled "Darkest Days", featured on their compilation album, ''
The Song Remains Not the Same
''The Song Remains Not the Same'' is a compilation album by American heavy metal band Black Label Society, released on May 10, 2011. It features new cover songs, acoustic versions of songs originally released on ''Order of the Black'', and compil ...
''.
In 2016, Rich added his voice to a duet with
Marie Osmond
Olive Marie Osmond (born October 13, 1959) is an American singer, actress, television host, and a member of the show business family the Osmonds. Although she was never part of her family's singing group, she gained success as a country and pop ...
on her album ''
Music Is Medicine
''Music Is Medicine'' is the tenth studio solo album by American country music singer Marie Osmond, released on April 15, 2016, on OliveMe Records. It is her first studio album released on her private label ''OliveMe, LLC''. It was released on bo ...
'' with the song titled "Love This Tough".
''Son of a Preacher Man''
In January 2009, Rich released his third solo single on Warner Bros. Records. The song, "Another You", is the lead-off single to Rich's second studio album, ''
Son of a Preacher Man
"Son of a Preacher Man" is a song written and composed by American songwriters John Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins and recorded by British singer Dusty Springfield in September 1968 for the album ''Dusty in Memphis.''
Springfield's version was produc ...
'', which was released on March 24, 2009. He followed this song up with another single, "
Shuttin' Detroit Down", recorded only one week before its release in January 2009. Rich promoted the song, which addresses the
Chrysler
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...
and
General Motors
The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
bailouts, at Michigan radio stations. The song debuted at No. 34 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 ...
chart for the chart week of February 14, 2009, becoming his first solo Top 40 hit and peaking at No. 12 in April. A third single, "The Good Lord and the Man", debuted at No. 59 on the country chart and peaked at No. 56 in July 2009.
''Rich Rocks'' and ''For the Kids''
Both ''
Rich Rocks
''Rich Rocks'' is the first extended play (or "Six Pak," as referred to on the album cover) by American country music artist John Rich, one half of the duo Big & Rich. Rich co-wrote all of the songs on the EP with the exception of "Let Somebody ...
'' and ''
For the Kids'' have only produced one single between them. ''Country Done Come to Town'' was released as a single from ''Rich Rocks'' in mid-2010 and was a minor chart success.
Television work
In 2007, Rich hosted the first season of a reality show on
Country Music Television
Country Music Television (CMT) is an American pay TV network owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched on March 5, 1983, as Country Music Television, CMT was the first nationally available channel devoted to coun ...
called ''
Gone Country'', which featured celebrities such as
Brady Bunch
''The Brady Bunch'' is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired from September 26, 1969, to March 8, 1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family with six children. The show aired for five seasons and, afte ...
actress
Maureen McCormick
Maureen Denise McCormick (born August 5, 1956) is an American actress. She portrayed Marcia Brady on the ABC television sitcom ''The Brady Bunch'', which ran from 1969 to 1974, and reprised the role in several of the numerous ''Brady Bunch'' ...
, singers
Bobby Brown
Robert Barisford Brown (born February 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and dancer. Brown, alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, is noted as one of the pioneers of new jack swing: a fusion of hip hop and R&B. Brown started h ...
,
Sisqo,
Julio Iglesias Jr.
Julio José Iglesias Preysler (born 25 February 1973) is a Spanish singer. In 2008, he was declared the winner of the CMT competition '' Gone Country''.
Early life
He was born Julio José Iglesias-Preysler (before a later name change) in Madri ...
,
Dee Snider
Daniel "Dee" Snider (born March 15, 1955)Tayler, LettaTwisted Sister's Dee Snider remembers his challenging Long Island upbringing "Newsday", March 15, 2016Archived here/ref> is an American singer, songwriter, radio personality, and actor. He w ...
,
Carnie Wilson
Carnie Wilson (born April 29, 1968) is an American singer and television personality. She is the daughter of Brian Wilson and in 1989 co-founded the pop music trio Wilson Phillips with her younger sister Wendy. From 1995 onwards, she has also b ...
and
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
runner-up
Diana DeGarmo
Diana Nicole DeGarmo (born June 16, 1987) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She rose to fame in 2004 as the runner-up of the third season of ''American Idol'', releasing her debut studio album, '' Blue Skies'', later that year. The ...
as they try to become songwriters with the help of
Nashville
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
songwriters as the celebrities are paired together with the songwriters. The show was filmed at the former home of
Barbara Mandrell
Barbara Ann Mandrell (born December 25, 1948) is an American country music singer and musician. She is also credited as an actress and author. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, she was considered among country's most successful music artist ...
. He has hosted two more seasons since then.
Rich also served as a judge on the 2008 version of ''
Nashville Star
''Nashville Star'' is an American reality television singing competition program that aired for six seasons, from 2003 to 2008. Its first five seasons aired on USA Network, while the last season aired on NBC. Its five seasons on USA made it the l ...
'' on NBC along with
Jewel, singer-songwriter
Jeffrey Steele
Jeffrey LeVasseur (born August 27, 1961), known as Jeffrey Steele, is an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with recording his own material, Steele has become a prolific Nashville songwriter, having co-written more than 60 hit ...
, and host
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 ...
.
Rich was a candidate in the 2011 season of ''
The Celebrity Apprentice
''The Celebrity Apprentice'' is an American television reality competition series. It was a variation of ''The Apprentice'' series, hosted by then real estate developer (later 45th president of the United States) Donald Trump from 2008 to 2015, an ...
'', which premiered on March 6. In episode 5, he lost as Project Manager for the men's team, Backbone. Despite the first loss, he later won 2 more tasks as Project Manager, raising $1,266,908 for
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Rich competed with
Marlee Matlin
Marlee Beth Matlin (born August 24, 1965) is an American actress, author, and activist. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for a ...
in the live season finale, where he was declared the season winner, and received an additional $250,000 for his charity.
Rich served as a mentor in the 2012 reality/competition series ''
The Next: Fame Is at Your Doorstep''.
Personal life
John Rich and his wife, Joan, married on December 6, 2008.
Political activism
In the 2008 U.S. presidential race, Rich originally supported
Fred Thompson. He later released a campaign song on his website in support of presidential candidate
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
in August 2008 called "Raisin' McCain". He performed in the closing ceremony of the
Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...
on September 3, 2008. He endorsed the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
candidate
Doug Hoffman
Douglas L. Hoffman (born 1953) is an American businessman, accountant and former congressional candidate. He was the Conservative Party candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2009 special election for New York's 23rd congressional ...
in the
special congressional election in Northern New York in 2009. In 2010 he endorsed
Zach Wamp
Zachary Paul Wamp (born October 28, 1957) is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for from 1995 to 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district is based in Chattanooga and includes large parts of East Tennessee, ...
for Governor of Tennessee and hosted parties at his Nashville home in support of Wamp's campaign.
On April 7, 2015, Rich's song "Shuttin' Detroit Down" was featured in Senator
Rand Paul
Randal Howard Paul (born January 7, 1963) is an American physician and politician serving as the junior U.S. senator from Kentucky since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he is a son of former three-time presidential candidate and 12 ...
's
2016 presidential campaign announcement. He later declared his support for presumptive nominee
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
following Paul's exit from the race. Big & Rich would later perform at a pre-inaugural ceremony on January 19, 2017, after Trump's victory in the
general election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
. On May 30, 2019, he released "Shut Up About Politics" featuring presenters of the
Fox News Channel
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...
programme
The Five.
In 2020, Rich made headlines when he accused the
Lipscomb Academy
Lipscomb Academy is a private, college preparatory, Christian school serving students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade, located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States.
History
The Nashville Bible School was founded in 1891 by David ...
Dean of Intercultural Development Brittany Paschall of racist "indoctrination". Students at the school were assigned to read the essay "Whose Story Is It?" which mentions
white privilege
White privilege, or white skin privilege, is the societal privilege that benefits white people over non-white people in some societies, particularly if they are otherwise under the same social, political, or economic circumstances. With roots ...
. This essay was written by
Laurie Halse Anderson
Laurie Halse Anderson is an American writer, known for children's and young adult novels. She received the Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 2010 for her contribution to young adult literature.
She was first re ...
, a white woman. Rich claimed the essay could harm white children and claimed "racism does not exist at this school based on my experience there". Lipscomb Academy's adjacent
university
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
had previously faced allegations of racist events happening on campus. Although she did not distribute the essay to the children, Brittany Paschall, the school's dean of intercultural development, was dismissed from her position in 2020 following this incident.
Discography
Studio albums
Extended plays
Singles
*
A "I Pray for You" also peaked at number 63 on the Canadian ''RPM'' Country Tracks chart.
Featured singles
Videography
Music videos
Guest appearances
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rich, John
1974 births
American country bass guitarists
American country singer-songwriters
Big & Rich members
Living people
Musicians from Amarillo, Texas
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Warner Records artists
Lonestar members
BNA Records artists
Texas Republicans
Reprise Records artists
American country record producers
Guitarists from Texas
American male bass guitarists
People from Dickson, Tennessee
21st-century American male singers
21st-century American singers
Country musicians from Texas
Country musicians from Tennessee
Record producers from Texas
21st-century American bass guitarists
Participants in American reality television series