Rhett Akins

With his Top Five single "That Ain't My Truck," Rhett Akins became a sensation, however briefly, in the summer of 1995. Like many new country singers, he wasn't able to follow the record up with an equally successful second record, but he managed to cultivate a following of dedicated fans.

Aikins grew up in Valdosta, GA, learning to play guitar and forming his first band with his two younger brothers by the time he was 11. In 1992, he moved to Nashville, where he began singing on demos, as well as securing a publishing deal of his own. Eventually, Decca Records secured a demo of one of Akins' songs and the label offered him a contract.

A Thousand Memories, Akins' debut album, was released in 1994. After his first two singles -- "What They're Talkin' About" and "I Brake for Brunettes" -- cracked the Top 40, "That Ain't My Truck" became his breakthrough hit, rocketing to number three in the summer of 1995. "That Ain't My Truck" became his signature song and helped the album become a hit. For most of 1995, he toured as Reba McEntire's opening act, performing a few dates as a headliner as well.

In the summer of 1996, Akins released his second album, Somebody New. Although the record sold well initially, it quickly fell out of the Top 40. He returned in January 1998 with his third album, What Livin's All About. He signed with Audiom Records for 2002's Friday Night in Dixie and later with BNA Records for 2006's People Like Me.

from Wikipedia:

Thomas Rhett Akins Sr. (born October 13, 1969) is an American country singer and songwriter. Signed to Decca Records between 1994 and 1997, he released two albums for the label (1995's A Thousand Memories and 1996's Somebody New), followed by 1998's What Livin's All About on MCA Nashville. Friday Night in Dixie was released in 2002 on Audium Entertainment. Overall, Akins's albums have accounted for fourteen singles on the Billboard country singles charts, including the Number One "Don't Get Me Started" from 1996.

Although he has not charted a single since 2006, Akins has written singles for other country music singers, including five Number One songs, "Gimmie That Girl" by Joe Nichols, "All About Tonight" and "Honey Bee" by Blake Shelton, "All Over Me" by Josh Turner and "Take a Back Road" by Rodney Atkins. He has also written singles recorded by Brooks & Dunn, Jack Ingram, and country-rap artist Colt Ford.

Biography

Rhett Akins was born on October 13, 1969, in Valdosta, Georgia. By age eleven, he and his two younger brothers had formed a band. Rhett attended University of Georgia and studied business but gave up his studies after a year. He then worked for his father’s oil and gas distribution company. In 1992, after performing in the theme park show "Music Country Music" at Fiesta Texas in San Antonio, Texas, Akins moved to Nashville, Tennessee, first working as a demo singer before Decca Records signed him to a recording contract.

Akins's first single was "What They're Talkin' About", a #35 on the Billboard country charts in late 1994, followed by the #36 "I Brake for Brunettes". After these first two singles came his signature song, "That Ain't My Truck". This was his breakthrough hit, peaking at #3 on the country charts in mid-1995. All three of these songs were included on his 1995 debut album A Thousand Memories, which also produced the #17 "She Said Yes". Also in 1995 and 1996, Akins toured with Reba McEntire.

Akins' second album, Somebody New, produced his only Number One hit in "Don't Get Me Started", which peaked in August 1996. The other three singles from Somebody New were less successful, with "Love You Back" (the second single) becoming his last Top 40 hit at #38.

After Decca's Nashville division was merged into MCA Nashville in 1997, Akins was transferred to MCA Nashville for the release of his third album, 1998's What Livin's All About. This album was even less successful, however, with its lead-off single "More Than Everything" falling one space short of Top 40 in the U.S., although it was a #25 hit on the RPM country charts in Canada. Also in 1998, Akins charted with a cover of Eddie Rabbitt's 1980 Number One hit "Drivin' My Life Away", which Akins covered on the soundtrack to the 1998 film Black Dog.

In 2000, he voiced the character of Tom Sawyer in MGM's animated remake of Tom Sawyer alongside fellow country singer Mark Wills, who voiced Huckleberry Finn, as well as Lee Ann Womack, who voiced Becky's singing voice.

A fourth album, Friday Night in Dixie, was released in 2002 on Koch Records. This album's only two singles, "Highway Sunrise" and "In Your Love", peaked at #55 and #57, respectively. Akins did not release another single until his signing with BNA Records in 2006, when he released the #57-peaking "Kiss My Country Ass", which was later recorded by Blake Shelton for his 2010 extended play Hillbilly Bone. It was included on his album People Like Me, which was originally to have been released via BNA on June 14, 2006, but was ultimately self-released in June 2007. "If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away" was the second single from People Like Me, which failed to chart for Akins, but was later recorded by Justin Moore for his upcoming 2011 album. Down South followed in 2008, as did its only single, the title track, which again failed to chart.

In 2009, Akins released the single "Hung Up", which did not chart. It was later included on the 2010 album Michael Waddell's Bone Collector: The Brotherhood Album, a collaboration with fellow country music singer-songwriter Dallas Davidson, released through Reprise Records Nashville.

Songwriting career

In the late 2000s, Akins began writing songs for other artists, primarily with Ben Hayslip and Dallas Davidson; the collaborative is known as The Peach Pickers. Among the singles that Akins has co-written are "Put a Girl in It" by Brooks & Dunn, "Barefoot and Crazy" by Jack Ingram, "Gimmie That Girl" and "The Shape I'm In" by Joe Nichols, "All About Tonight" and "Honey Bee" by Blake Shelton, "All Over Me" by Josh Turner, and "Farmer's Daughter" and "Take a Back Road" by Rodney Atkins.

Personal life

Akins married Paige Braswell in 1989, and they have since divorced. They have a son, Thomas Rhett Akins (born 1990) and a daughter, Kasey Lee Akins (born 1993). Akins' son, who is also a songwriter, co-wrote "I Ain't Ready to Quit" from Jason Aldean's 2010 album, My Kinda Party; in 2011 he signed as a recording artist with Big Machine Records' Valory imprint, under the name Thomas Rhett.