Kendell Marvel 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. He released his debut solo album, ''Lowdown & Lonesome'' in October 2017.

Early life

Kendell Marvel was born and raised in

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of the Upland South than the Mi ...

. He quickly discovered his talent as a musician when his father would take him to play Honky Tonks starting at 10 years old. He grew up between Galatia and

Thompsonville, Illinois Thompsonville is a village in Cave Township, Franklin County, Illinois, United States. The population was 543 at the 2010 census. History There was an early settlement started in the general vicinity called "Jordan's Settlement". It was founde ...

, and spent much of his youth traveling around the area playing shows. Marvel decided to relocate to

Cheatham County, Tennessee Cheatham County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 41,072. Its county seat is Ashland City. Cheatham County is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, ...

in 1998, to pursue his career as a songwriter in Nashville, Tennessee.

Career

On his first day in Nashville, Kendell wrote the song " Right Where I Need to Be" which was cut by Gary Allen and peaked at number 5 on

Billboard's ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

country music chart. This initial success really boosted Kendell's career as a writer and allowed him to work with a wide array of acts including,

Jake Owen Joshua Ryan Owen (born August 28, 1981), known professionally as Jake Owen, is an American country music singer, songwriter, and actor. Signed to RCA Nashville in 2006, he released his debut studio album, '' Startin' with Me'', that year. Thi ...

, George Strait and many more. As his career progressed he returned to his roots, feeling that a traditional sound was a more natural fit for his writing and own music style. In 2008 he wrote the title track for Jamey Johnson's Grammy nominated album,

That Lonesome Song ''That Lonesome Song'' is the second studio album by American country music singer Jamey Johnson. Initially released to digital retailers in 2007 without the promotion of a record label, the album was physically released on August 5, 2008 (see ...

, which yielded the same name as the song. Kendell has also written over 60 songs with country star, Chris Stapleton including his grammy winning track, "

Either Way A hybrid offence, dual offence, Crown option offence, dual procedure offence, offence triable either way, or wobbler is one of the special class offences in the common law jurisdictions where the case may be prosecuted either summarily or as i ...

". In 2017 Marvel started a residency at Nashville's

Exit/In Exit/In is a music venue in Nashville, Tennessee. Exit/In is located on Elliston Place near Centennial Park and Vanderbilt University, west of downtown. It opened in 1971 under the management of Owsley Manier and Brugh Reynolds. As a small ven ...

, performing monthly shows tagged as "Kendell Marvel's Honky Tonk Experience" playing original songs, and classic country hits, with a different set of special guests each month. Some of the guests that have joined him on this stage include,

Cody Jinks Meredith Cody Jinks (born August 18, 1980) is an American outlaw country music singer and songwriter. His breakout 2016 album, '' I'm Not the Devil'', reached No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' Country Albums chart, while a number of other albums such a ...

Brothers Osborne Brothers Osborne is an American country music duo consisting of brothers T.J. Osborne (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) and John Osborne (lead guitar, background vocals). Born in Deale, Maryland, the duo signed a recording contract with EMI Records ...

Alison Krauss Alison Maria Krauss (born July 23, 1971) is an American bluegrass-country singer and musician. She entered the music industry at an early age, competing in local contests by the age of 8 and recording for the first time at 14. She signed with ...

Jamey Johnson Jamey Johnson (born July 14, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to BNA Records in 2005, Johnson made his debut with his single " The Dollar", the title track to his 2006 album '' The Dollar''. He was dropped fro ...

, Chris Shiflett of the Foo Fighters,

Randy Houser Shawn Randolph Houser (born December 18, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to Universal South Records in 2008, he charted the single "Anything Goes". It was a top 20 hit on the ''Billboard'' country singles chart a ...

, Ashley McBryde and many more. In 2017, Marvel released his first solo album ''Lowdown and Lonesome'', a 10-track concept album that tells stories of heartbreak and vice, produced by

Keith Gattis Keith Gattis (born May 26, 1970) is an American country music artist, songwriter, guitarist and producer. Gattis has released two studio albums and charted one single while signed to RCA Nashville on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tra ...

, featuring songs co-written by acts such as Chris Stapleton and

. Marvel will be releasing his second studio album, ''Solid Gold Sounds'', co-produced by

Dan Auerbach Daniel Quine Auerbach (; born May 14, 1979) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer, best known as the guitarist and vocalist of The Black Keys, a blues rock band from Akron, Ohio. As a member of the group, Auerbach has ...

and

David R. Ferguson David R. "Fergie" Ferguson (born July 2, 1962, in Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee) is an American recording engineer. Career Ferguson's career began in the mid-1980s engineering country music recordings for "Cowboy" Jack Clement, at C ...

, on October 11 of 2019.

Discography

Studio albums * ''Lowdown and Lonesome'' (Big Daddy, 2017) * ''Solid Gold Sounds'' (Easy Eye Sound, 2019) * ''Come On Sunshine'' (self released, 2022)

Songwriting credits

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marvel, Kendell American country singer-songwriters American country rock singers People from Illinois Country musicians from Illinois Country musicians from Tennessee Singers from Nashville, Tennessee Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Singer-songwriters from Tennessee Singer-songwriters from Illinois