Brandon Kinney   -  Biography

Brandon Kinney grew up in Lamesa, Texas, a community of less than 10,000 people. He was heavily influenced by Roger Miller, John Anderson, Don Williams and John Conlee, particularly drawn to songs with lighter themes or blue-collar subject matter. He made his singing debut in a Baptist church, where he often sang "specials" on Sunday nights. By the time he'd graduated from Lamesa High School, Kinney had begun playing on occasion with older country bands. He went on to Jacksonville Junior College, then transferred to Nashville's Belmont University. After graduation, he started a family (son Tate and daughter Nix) and pushed through a series of odd jobs until he landed a songwriting contract with a Nashville publisher. But even as he turned out more traditional songs for other artists, such as Willie Nelson, Lonestar and Randy Travis, he continued writing funny songs. A publishing executive heard them, and introduced Kinney to producer Mike Clute. Together, they recorded Kinney's first comedy album, Smells Like Texas.