Michael Ray Roach (born April 29, 1988) 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 is signed to
Warner Music
Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and t ...
Nashville. He has released two albums for the label: ''
Michael Ray'' and ''
Amos
Amos or AMOS may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Amos Records, an independent record label established in Los Angeles, California, in 1968
* Amos (band), an American Christian rock band
* ''Amos'' (album), an album by Michael Ray
* ''Amos' ...
''.
Biography
Ray was born in
Eustis, Florida
Eustis is a city in Lake County, Florida, United States. The population was 23,189 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. Eustis High School is the town's local public high sc ...
. He was inspired by his grandfather Amos "Wilson" Roach, who played music for him and taught him how to play guitar, in addition to having him perform at assisted living centers. Ray chose to form a band in southern Florida after graduating high school, and a disc jockey at
WPCV
WPCV (97.5 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station, licensed to Winter Haven and serving Central Florida. It has a country music radio format and is owned and operated by Hall Communications. The radio studios and offices are in Lakeland.
Whi ...
began playing his music. He independently released an album in 2010, which was discovered by manager Tony Conway.
Ray was mentored by
John Rich of
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 ...
on the singing competition ''
The Next: Fame Is at Your Doorstep'', which he won. He and Rich co-wrote Big & Rich's 2015 single, "
Run Away with You".
After winning the competition, Ray was signed to
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 ...
Nashville. His first EP, ''Tour Bootleg'', was released in 2014. Two of the EP's tracks, "
Kiss You in the Morning" (which went to number one on the
Country Airplay
Country Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since January 20, 1990.
This chart lists the 60 most-listened-to records played on 150 mainstream country radio stations across the country as monitored ...
charts in 2015) and "
Think a Little Less
"Think a Little Less" is a song recorded by American country music artist Michael Ray. It was released on April 25, 2016 as the third single from Ray's major-label debut album. This song was written by Barry Dean, Jon Nite, Jimmy Robbins, and ...
," would later appear on his
self-titled second album, released in 2015, becoming Ray's first and third singles, respectively. The track "
Real Men Love Jesus" was named as Ray's second single. Ray supported the album with a tour.
On June 16, 2017, Ray released the single "
Get to You" ahead of his third studio album, ''
Amos
Amos or AMOS may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Amos Records, an independent record label established in Los Angeles, California, in 1968
* Amos (band), an American Christian rock band
* ''Amos'' (album), an album by Michael Ray
* ''Amos' ...
''. Upon the album's release in 2018, it would produce two more singles: "
One That Got Away" and "Her World or Mine." Both of his albums were produced by
Scott Hendricks
Scott Hendricks (born July 26, 1956) is an American record producer who has produced over 30 country music artists. His productions have garnered 121 Top 10s, and 78 Number One hits. Between 1995 and 1997, he was President and Chief Executive Off ...
.
In September 2020, Ray released the single "
Whiskey and Rain" ahead of his fourth studio album, originally set to be released in 2021.
Personal life
Michael Ray has one sister and two half sisters.
On July 19, 2018, Ray confirmed that he had begun dating country singer
Carly Pearce. They became engaged on December 19, 2018. The two were married on October 6, 2019 near Nashville, Tennessee.
In June 2020, Pearce filed for divorce from Ray after eight months of marriage.
Discography
Studio albums
Extended plays
Singles
Notes
Other charted songs
Music videos
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
Michael Rayat
Warner Music Nashville
Warner Music Group's labels include the following.
Flagship labels
* Atlantic Records
* Elektra Records
*Parlophone Records
*Warner Records
Atlantic Records Group
* 1st & 15th Entertainment
* All Money In
* Artist Partners Group
* Asylum Re ...
Michael Ray in Heartlandia- on CarbonTV
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ray, Michael
American country singer-songwriters
American male singer-songwriters
Living people
People from Eustis, Florida
Singing talent show winners
Warner Records artists
Singer-songwriters from Florida
1988 births
21st-century American singers
Country musicians from Florida
21st-century American male singers