JACKSON, Wyo. — Recently signed to Atlantic Records and featured in the finale for Yellowstone TV series on season four, Tanner Usrey quit his job as a skip tracer in 2019 to pursue his blend of storytelling country and rock. He’s been at it for over a decade, growing up on ‘90s country like Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson, yet having an affinity for British rock and early Red Dirt bands like Cross Canadian Ragweed and Wade Bowen. The Texas native will take stage with his band on Sunday in the Virginian Saloon.
“I let the songs be what they’re going to be, and I pride myself on that,” Usrey said. “Musically, it ranges from southern rock to country to Americana. When it comes to songwriting, I want to focus on what’s real…I don’t shy away from saying the hard things.”
Growing up in the small town of Prosper, TX, he gravitated towards music as a little kid. By five-years-old, he constantly belted out Alan Jackson songs around the house much to his family’s chagrin. “Everyone used to tell me to shut up,” he laughs. “I was the kid who sang all the time.”
Tanner Usrey, 8 p.m. Sunday at the Virginian Saloon. $25/advance, $35 day-of-show. VirginianSaloon.com.
