Kevin Grant Sharp (December 10, 1970 – April 19, 2014) was 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, author, and motivational speaker. Sharp came on the country music scene in 1996 with his first single: a cover of

Tony Rich Antonio Jeffries (born November 19, 1971), better known as Tony Rich and The Tony Rich Project, is an American Grammy-award-winning Contemporary singer-songwriter best known for his hit single " Nobody Knows". Early career Rich was born in De ...

's " Nobody Knows", which topped 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 chart for four weeks. The same year, Sharp released his first album, ''Measure of a Man''. Having survived a form of bone cancer in his teenage years, Sharp became actively involved in the

Make-A-Wish Foundation The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in the United States that helps fulfill the wishes of children with a critical illness between the ages of and 18 years old. Make-A-Wish was founded in 1980 and headqua ...

. He wrote an inspirational book about his life and his fight with cancer, and occasionally toured the United States as a motivational speaker. Sharp died from complications of stomach surgery in April 2014.

Biography

Early years

Kevin Grant Sharp was born December 10, 1970, in

Redding, California Redding is the economic and cultural capital of the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California and the county seat of Shasta County. Redding lies along the Sacramento River, north of Sacramento, and south of California's northern border wi ...

.Kevin Sharp biography
''allmusic.com''. Accessed April 27, 2014. When he was seven years old, his family moved to

Weiser, Idaho Weiser ( ) is a city in the rural western part of the U.S. state of Idaho and the county seat of Washington County. With its mild climate, the city supports farm, orchard, and livestock endeavors in the vicinity. The city sits at the confluence o ...

, to open a restaurant. Sharp performed in local musicals in high school, and stayed active in music after his family moved to

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

, in 1985. Starting in 1989, he began to experience dizziness and fatigue. He was diagnosed with

Ewing's sarcoma Ewing sarcoma is a type of cancer that forms in bone or soft tissue. Symptoms may include swelling and pain at the site of the tumor, fever, and a bone fracture. The most common areas where it begins are the legs, pelvis, and chest wall. In about ...

, a rare form of

bone cancer A bone tumor is an abnormal growth of tissue in bone, traditionally classified as noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant). Cancerous bone tumors usually originate from a cancer in another part of the body such as from lung, breast, thyro ...

.CMT.com: Kevin Sharp: Leave It To Mr. Fix It Kevin Sharp
/ref> Kevin Sharp was given little chance of recovery. Through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants wishes to children with life-threatening illnesses, Sharp met the record producer

David Foster David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian musician, composer, arranger, record producer and music executive who chaired Verve Records from 2012 to 2016. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His music career spans mor ...

, with whom he soon became friends. After two years of

chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...

and

radiation treatment Radiation therapy or radiotherapy, often abbreviated RT, RTx, or XRT, is a therapy using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells and normally delivered by a linear accelerator. Radia ...

, when still in his early 20s, the cancer went into remission by the early 1990s, although he permanently lost all of his hair as a result of the radiation treatment. In high school Kevin played football and basketball. He was unable to play football and basketball during his senior year because of his cancer. The doctors eventually discovered that the cancer had spread to his lungs. Kevin Sharp was a member of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

. Kevin Sharp graduated from

Bella Vista High School Bella Vista High School is a public high school in Fair Oaks, California. It is a member of the San Juan Unified School District and serves eastern Fair Oaks and southern Orangevale. In 2003, the California Department of Education's School Recogn ...

Musical career

After remission, Sharp worked at Great America in

Santa Clara, California Santa Clara (; Spanish for " Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in the Bay Area. Located in the southern Bay Area, the cit ...

, while working on a demo tape, which he sent to various talent shows, and later to David Foster. Foster introduced him to A&R representatives and, by 1996, Sharp was signed to

Asylum Records Asylum Records is an American record label, founded in 1971 by David Geffen and partner Elliot Roberts. It was taken over by Warner Communications (now the Warner Music Group) in 1972, and later merged with Elektra Records to become Elektra/As ...

. His first album, ''Measure of a Man'', was released in September 1996. The album's first single, a cover version of the R&B artist

's "Nobody Knows", spent four weeks at number one on the ''

Hot Country Singles & Tracks 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.Make-A-Wish Foundation: Supporters: Wish-Granting Stars
/ref> He became a spokesperson for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and was awarded the foundation's Wish Granter of the Year award, in 1997. He was named New Touring Artist of the Year by the

Country Music Association The Country Music Association (CMA) was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre. The objectives of the organization are to guide and enha ...

and nominated for Top New Male Vocalist award by the

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...

. In 1998, Sharp collapsed backstage at the TNN Music City News Country Awards, and was rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery, due to problems with steel rods in his hip. As a result, he had to cancel several tour dates.Kevin Sharp: Sharper Than Ever
/ref> ''Measure of a Man'' produced two more top 10 country singles, " She's Sure Taking It Well" and "

If You Love Somebody "If You Love Somebody" is a song written by Chris Farren and Jeffrey Steele, and recorded by American country music artist Kevin Sharp. It was released in July 1997 as the third single from his debut album '' Measure of a Man''. The song reached ...

". The album's fourth single, "There's Only You", peaked at No. 43. His second album, ''Love Is'', released in 1998 on Asylum, failed to produce any successful singles, and Sharp was dropped from Asylum's roster.Notice of death of Kevin Sharp
cmt.com; accessed April 27, 2014. Sharp continued to perform as a musician, as well as a

motivational speaker A motivational speaker is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. Such speakers may attempt to challenge or transform their audiences. The speech itself is popularly known as a pep talk. Motivational speakers ca ...

, and was also a spokesperson for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Sharp wrote a book, ''Tragedy's Gift'', and published it in 2004. His third album, ''Make a Wish'', was released on the independent Cupit Records label in 2005, although none of its four singles charted.

Death

Sharp died on April 19, 2014, at the age of 43, of complications from stomach surgeries and digestive issues. He was survived by his mother Elaine Sharp, his ex-wife Traci Williams Sharp, and his siblings Lisa, Mary, Ron, Greg, Richard, Larry, and Genni.Kevin Sharp
/ref> Kevin was preceded in death by his father, Glen Sharp, in 2009. Sharp never re-married.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Music videos

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sharp, Kevin 1970 births 2014 deaths 20th-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American singer-songwriters American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters American motivational speakers Asylum Records artists Country musicians from California Country musicians from Idaho People from Redding, California People from Weiser, Idaho Singer-songwriters from California 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American male singers American Latter Day Saints Singer-songwriters from Idaho