Casey Chesnutt is a doting dad, a thriving musician, and a proud veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who drives his truck more than 3,000 miles each week to visit his three-year-old daughter and play gigs. His famous last name is one of country music royalty, but Casey isn't leaning on it for a leg up in the music business. He's forging his own path—first through the Texas country scene and now determined to cultivate his unique version of modern country music.
Casey, the son of "Too Cold At Home" singer Mark Chesnutt, grew up surrounded by '90s country. By the time he was a teenager, Casey started to develop his own diverse taste in music and dug into the Texas Red Dirt scene. Cross Canadian Ragweed is among his most significant influences, closely followed by Reckless Kelly, Randy Rogers, Stoney LaRue, and Wade Bowen. But Cody Canada's Cross Canadian Ragweed made the most significant impact.
"It was a little more rock and roll, and they had long hair, and they just were like rock stars," Casey said. "But it was really dirty, kind of like raw gritty sound, kind of like Lynyrd Skynyrd, but cooler. That's what I started listening to and really fell in love with."
As Casey got older, he started trying to write similar songs. But his artistic point of view confused those in his inner circle. His dad is a nationally known country artist, and Texas Red Dirt is niche with limited reach.
"Everybody was like, 'What's this?'" Casey said. "But that's what I loved and wanted my sound to be like."
After Casey finished his time in the Marine Corps, he intensely focused on his music and chasing his creative dreams. He knew his songs wouldn't work in mainstream country because people heard his last name and expected a '90s country sound. He unsuccessfully tried to write '90s country music, but one of his friends penned a song called "Even Texas Couldn't Hold Her" that he thought would resonate with '90s country fans. Casey recorded it, and the result toed the line of the music he wanted to make and what people expected to hear from him. After that song was well-received, the young singer felt more comfortable recording and promoting his own music.
He recorded an entire album in his hotel room and self-released it, still trying to steer clear of the Nashville sound. Casey released a couple of more songs, assembled a band, and started touring.
His manager, Tony Conway, connected Casey with Clearwater Records, for which he couldn't be more thankful. Casey called his manager and new record label home, a turning point in his life.
"I talked to Robert Gomes at Clearwater, and ideas started flowing," Casey said. "I was ready to rock and roll."
Casey's new record label sent him some songs he feels passionate about and believes will showcase who he is as an artist.
"I hope people will listen and hear a good song, and then hopefully, they'll look for more music from me," he said. "If they do, it will make this whole journey worthwhile. It's been a long one, and it's been a fun one. But it's been a lot of work, and I think it's about time more people hear what I'm trying to do."
Look for new music from Casey Chesnutt on Clearwater Records in 2025.