We’re pleased to be working with country singer Joe Hilton, who’s hosting a Call for Collaboration with us. You could contribute to Joe’s upcoming album by mastering, mixing, or writing his next big hit. Joe currently lives in Nashville and plans to release his album this spring.

“I like to take a little bit of everything I feel that made the greats the greats,” he said, citing Garth Brooks, Waylon Jennings, Alan Jackson, Clint Black, George Jones, Willie Nelson, and George Strait as his main influences.

Hilton’s life changed when he sang a Garth Brooks song and won Ed McMahon’s Next Big StarSearch in the country male category. In this way, he commented,

That said, his love of country music dates back to his childhood, when he grew up singing along to his favorite country songs on the radio. Joining his high school choir and earning scholarships encouraged him to study music in college. Following his winning turn on StarSearch, he moved to Nashville.

“When I moved to Nashville all I could really do is sing. I quickly found that it’s hard to get an audience just being a dude that sings. I started picking up the guitar and writing my own songs. This has allowed me to really discover who I am as an artist and the ability to share my music with the world.”

“I love the thought that my music allows people to escape reality for a few minutes and gives some the words they can’t say,” he said when expressing his hope to reach a broad audience by making music everyone can relate to.

When writing, he likes to come up with a melody in his head before picking up the guitar and developing a way to play it. He writes lyrics on loose sheets of paper, napkins, and “anything else I can make a few notes on. I have a box full of lyrics.”

A top ten hit on country radio and a slot as an opening act for a major touring artist are on Hilton’s wishlist for 2012. He sees a lot of touring in his future (“I plan on living on a bus”) and looks forward to becoming a better writer while working on additional recordings.