Sam Watkins - Austin, Texas

CEO/Featured Artist/Radio Host

Sam Watkins Country

Austin, Texas

Advertising & Media, Entertainment, Marketing, Media, Other, Products, Services

Performing on stage, playing for the crowd, writing songs, playing other peoples music on my show "In The Neon Spotlight", creating quality ads for other businesses, but most of all my family! Nothing is worth more than that anywhere in the Universe!!

Apr 18, 2009

From the age of 10, music has been a powerful force in my life. My father, Robert Earnest Watkins, Jr., left me when I was very young. Still, certain parts of his legacy were among the little things that gave me a taste for music. My grandparents, my mother and my own exploration into self paved the way for it all. I cut my teeth on the music of Elvis Presley when I was 10, as well as Waylon and Willie and Randy Travis. I learned the guitar and began writing at age 11. My first performance guitar was a Fender acoustic I got when I was 15. My best friend in high school, James Burke, played a Stratocaster and was real big on Garth Brooks and Chris Ledoux. I was into George Straits music and together we entered a talent show. We got second place. But I didnt give up.

My thirst for the stage began in 1992, my first performance on a stage. It was the year Pure Country came out and I had already learned most of George Straits songs. It was my dream to play Honky Tonk and Western Swing, much like him. I sang I Cross My Heart on that same stage a year later and, seeing the reaction of the crowd, I knew in my heart that this was where I belonged. Unfortunately, the type of scenario I had for it never played out very well and I was discouraged. I put up the guitar for several years afterward, but then one day, late summer 2006, everything changed. It was a major turning point in my life. At age 29, when I had almost given up on music, and even life itself, I met and partnered with Tina Reza in Austin, Texas.

I had just moved to Austin in July of 2006 and was playing my guitar at a coffee house when a man sat down to speak with me. He told me he was about to propose to his girlfriend and asked if I could write a song for them if she said yes. I immediately began to write a short, but sweet little song for them and sang it as he got down on one knee. Tina saw what I did, heard the song and approached me about working together. I was skeptical, but didnt have much else happening for me so I gave it a shot. Its the best decision Ive ever made. I played solo gigs for a year or two and in 2008 began to create my band. It took awhile, but the band came together and I couldnt be happier.

My first CD, Has Anybody Seen Me?, was created in late 2007. The 9th song on the CD, Baby Girl, sparked a huge response from mothers all over the U.S. and in other countries as well. It is the theme for our Missing Children endeavor. It is used by many MySpace folks as their profile song and is becoming a symbol of hope for families who have lost a child or are currently searching for their lost loved ones. Its something Tina and I are extremely passionate about and we feel needs awareness. Tina has had a personal experience with this and has helped families in the past. For me its a spiritual mission, but has become more personal as Ive been more and more involved. Other popular songs are the title track which will be featured on the full band CD, due out very soon. Also popular, and appearing on the new album, are Dusty Old Town, Fate Train, After All These Beers and several others. Now I have a MySpace which is constantly growing (over 2 million plays so far!!). My acoustic CD of 12 songs written by me is still selling (and has been since 2007). My band Fate Train and I will be recording our first CD together, A New Way To Fly, very soon. The title track has several meanings to it; the main theme of which was inspired by Tina, the love of my life. I know you will enjoy it.

Along with making great music and supporting other great musicians like Rick Trevino, Phillip Thomas and many others, Sam Watkins Country also supports local businesses by selling quality advertising on our website with 10,000+ hits daily and our Sam Watkins Country Newsletter with 50,000+ distributions, increasing by thousands weekly! Check out our \"Advertise With Us\" link at SamWatkinsCountry.com and \'Let Us Work For You\'!! Supporting our brothers and sisters in Business and Music since 2007!!!

Thanks and God Bless!
Sam Watkins

Check out my other sites:
http://www.samwatkinscountry.com/
http://www.myspace.com/samwatkinsrcoks
http://www.facebook.com/SamWatkinsRocks
http://www.facebook.com/tinawatkinsrocks
http://eventful.com/performers/sam-watkins-and-fate-train-/P0-001-000205841-7
http://www.sonicbids.com/epk/epk.aspx?epk_id=180863
http://www.youtube.com/samwatkinsrocks
Sam Watkins Photographed by: Lori Scott from LA Scott Photography of Lakeway, Texas