The weekend of October 26th-27th was pretty good for Austin Bohannon.
Actually, it was damn good.
A day before he stood on the Grand Ole Opry stage and received a Josie Music Award for Country Male Vocalist of the Year, Bohannon proposed to his girlfriend, Rachel Barker, on a sailboat in the middle of Nashville’s Percy Priest Lake, in front of family members on both sides. And just like the Chad Brock song, ‘She Said Yes.’
“Her family is from Tennessee and my family was coming up for the awards show, so it was the perfect storm of getting everyone in place and she had no idea what was happening. She dressed up thinking we were going to a pre-show party,” Bohannon said. “I had a pretty good idea she’d say yes. I’ve been getting hints for a while now.”
The engagement comes approximately 2 1/2 years after the couple began dating. They met at Buffalo Wild Wings when she waited on Bohannon’s table. But they didn’t cross paths again until months later, when Bohannon had a show at Rising Crust Pizza and he saw their new server, Rachel. He didn’t risk squandering a second opportunity.
Bohannon was nominated for five awards at the Josies, which recognize outstanding achievement in the independent music industry. After his name wasn’t called for the first four nominations, Bohannon almost gave up on the final award presented—Country Male Vocalist of the Year, before hearing his name.
Barker was also nominated for Best Actress Performance in a Music Video for her starring role in the video for Bohannon’s song ‘Hotter Than Sin.’
So that magical weekend began with a successful proposal, and ended with Bohannon standing on the Grand Ole Opry receiving his Josie Award. And it was just days after the release of his new single and video release for ‘Can’t Change Me.’
Not a bad month for the 27-year-old Russellville High School alumnus.
Every song Bohannon releases is one he’s written or co-written, except for one he cut two weeks ago with Luke Combs’ band. You make exceptions when you have the chance to collaborate with Luke Combs’ band.
“The biggest thing for me is I’m happy doing what I love. It’s a hard thing to learn to market yourself, but you have to do that as an independent artist,” Bohannon said. “And I’m learning every day ways to do that. Will I ever get to where I want to be? Probably not, but every day I’m getting better at it. And I’m doing it myself. I don’t have the luxury of millions of dollars to promote me.”
His new single is gaining traction. It reached the top 20 on Amazon Country’s New Releases Chart, and top 100 on iTunes’ Country Album Chart.
Earlier this month, Bohannon opened for Trace Adkins at a show in Selmer, Tn. , adding to the list of stars he’s opened for, including Shenandoah, Colt Ford, American Idol alum Colin Stough and LOCASH.
He recently signed with a production company, the Orchard. A subsidiary of Sony Music, Orchard is a distribution and services company that partners with independent labels and artists like Bohannon.
“They have the ability to reach out and they have some clout. They’ll take my music and deliver it to all streaming platforms,” Bohannon said. “And that’s the goal. If your career is like a hurricane, you start in the eye, in the middle, and you kind of wind your way around at first. I got the eye started, playing in the Shoals area and Northwest Alabama, and the next step is to take it from a F1 to F2 level.”
You’ll find Bohannon’s music on all streaming platforms, and his social media pages on Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok. You can visit www.bohannonmusic.com to see show dates, hear his latest releases and purchase swag from his ‘Bo’ line of merchandise.
Bohannon recently reflected on the blessing of having stood in Grand Ole Opry’s iconic Circle of Wood. Not many artists can say they’ve stood where so many legends stood previously.
It’s another first in a rapidly moving music career full of firsts.
On November 22nd, Bohannon will have another first—his first Songwriter’s Showcase organized by him.
It’s called ‘A Songwriter’s Round for Special Needs’ and it will take place at the Vivian Theatre in Florence. Proceeds will benefit Muscle Shoals Mighty League Baseball, and will feature Gary Nichols, Gary Baker, Mark Naramore and Rob Williford. Pre-show and dinner begins at 6:30 p.m., with entertainment from Trey Nichols. The writer round begins at 8 p.m.
“I just want to sit down and not have to play and listen to some people I respect and like and hear their songs and watch them win over the crowd,” Bohannon said. “It’s for a great cause and I’m really looking forward to it.”
