Chancey Williams

Wyoming native Chancey Williams and his “Younger Brothers Band,” have relentlessly toured the Western United States, developing a rabid fan base not seen from the Cowboy State since Chris LeDoux. In fact, Chancey Williams and LeDoux are the only two people to ride in the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo (one of the most famous in the world, the touted “Daddy of ‘Em All) and play its main stage as a major entertainer. The band has shared the stage with dozens of artists, including Lady Antebellum, Old Dominion, Miranda Lambert, Eric Church, Brantley Gilbert, Gary Allan and Travis Tritt. They’ve also enjoyed many bills with Texas contemporaries Casey Donahew, Aaron Watson and Stoney LaRue. But, Williams says, nothing beats the opportunity to have occasionally been direct support for their heroes, legends like LeDoux, Alabama, Merle Haggard and Dwight Yoakam.

The newly crowned Rocky Mountain CMA Entertainer of the Year, Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band, is gearing up for their 2018 summer tour. The band’s latest album, Rodeo Cold Beer, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Mountain Heatseekers Chart, No. 5 on the Billboard West North Central Heatseakers Chart, and No. 7 on the iTunes Country Albums Chart. Rodeo Cold Beer is the commercial follow-up to the Billboard Heatseekers Charting album, Echo. The latest record was awarded Album of the Year at the 2017 Rocky Mountain Music Awards. In 2016, the lead single, “Down With That” was named the Rocky Mountain Music Awards Song of the Year.

In December, the band performed at the Opening Ceremony of the 9th round of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. Williams also performed at the opening ceremony of the WNFR in 2016. It is rare for an artist to perform two consecutive years, indicative of Chancey’s large following in the rodeo scene across America.

Chancey Williams was raised on a ranch near the small town of Moorcroft, Wyoming where his mom is a recently retired school teacher, his dad and brother ranch, and his other brother is the head coach of a notable high school wrestling dynasty. The beautiful family ranch is adjoined on one side by Keyhole Lake, a regional tourist attraction. “But we hardly knew it,” joked Williams, “we really couldn’t afford a boat and my dad had us working all the time, anyway, so we hardly ever went over there!” It was a strong family background and work ethic that Chancey Williams credits with pretty much everything he has. Chancey and his father, Dennis, were both state champion wrestlers in High School, Chancey for two years in a row. He also followed his dad as a saddle bronc rider, going to the National High School Rodeo Finals, the College National Finals and even winning a couple of rounds at Cheyenne Frontier Days. While avidly supporting his musical dream, his parents also put great emphasis on education. In fact, Chancey Williams has a total of four degrees, including a Bachelor Degree in Political Science and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Wyoming.

Always proud to represent his home state of Wyoming, Williams was recently chosen as one of five artists from around country, including Darius Rucker, to be featured in the BBC’s USA Through Music.

This past fall, the band’s latest music video for the title track, “Rodeo Cold Beer” was added to The Country Network, reaching more than 40 million households. Williams co-wrote much of the album with Nashville’s singer-songwriter, Trent Willmon. Willmon has songwriting credits with a variety of country artists, including Eric Church, Little Big Town, and Brad Paisley among others. “I love working with Chancey,” said Willmon, “he is the real deal. He knows how to entertain a crowd and has a great song sense, and he has that cowboy work ethic, respect, and good nature that is almost impossible to find these days.” The album was also produced by Grammy Award-winning and ACM nominated audio engineer, Mills Logan.

Chancey and his drummer, lifelong friend Travis DeWitt, started the Younger Brothers Band with the humble initial goal of entering a high school talent contest. The pair had no idea it would lead to small fairs (then big fairs), small bars (then large clubs) and become a full-time career. They are joined by the amazing harmonies and lead guitar of Wyatt Springsteen and the stunning fiddle of Brooke Latka. More recently, Jay Lee Downing joined the band on bass guitar. The result is Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band, a rowdy, raucous, unapologetic, memorable stage show that is on the road pretty much all the time.

“We just love to play, travel, record our music and represent the great state of Wyoming,” said Williams, “It’s just in our blood, I can’t imagine doing anything else.”