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Biography Wikipedia
Wikipedia:
Justin Townes Earle (born January 4, 1982 in Nashville, Tennessee) is an American musician. Earle is signed to Bloodshot Records and has five released albums from 2007–2012. He resides in New York City's East Village.
Early life
Justin Townes Earle grew up in South Nashville, Tennessee, with his mother, Carol Ann Hunter Earle. His father is musician Steve Earle. Justin Townes Earle says he was "hooked on drugs" when he was barely 12 years old, and developed a serious addiction by the late 1990s. In his teens he began playing and singing with two different Nashville bands, a rock band called the Distributors and a bluegrass-influenced acoustic combo, the Swindlers. Earle spent some time as guitarist and keyboardist for his father's touring band the Dukes, but was fired after a dangerous appetite for drugs began interfering with his performances. Once he came off hard drugs, he began putting a new focus on his music and songwriting.
Musical career
Earle presently tours heavily and played Newport Folk Festival, 2011, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival (2008, 2011), Grand Ole Opry (March 2008), Historical WSM, South By Southwest (2008–2010, 2012), the historic Beacon Theater (May 2009), Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion (September, 2009), Bonnaroo (2009) Bumbershoot (2010), the East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival (Byron Bay, Australia), 2012 and the Bowery Ballroom (March 2010) with Chicago-based singer/songwriter Joe Pug. In the summer of 2009, Earle co-billed The Big Surprise Tour with Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Old Crow Medicine Show, and The Felice Brothers. In May 2010, he appeared alongside his father in an episode of the HBO television series Treme.
Earle returned to rehab after he was arrested for battery, public drunkenness, and resisting arrest on September 16, 2010 following a dispute with a concert venue about his pay. He resumed touring on Nov. 26, 2010 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Earle contributed a cover of "Maybe Baby" to the June 2011 tribute album Rave On Buddy Holly.
He plays a Loar LO-16-BK (performed with on his 3.28.12 Late Show with David Letterman appearance), Guild F-20 Small body and a 1964 Epiphone Texan rerelease (the same kind of guitar the Beatles song "Yesterday" was recorded on).
Awards
In September 2009, Justin Townes Earle received an Americana Music Award for Emerging Artist of the Year. He also received 2009 nominations for album of the year (Midnight at the Movies) and for artist of the year. He had been previously nominated for Emerging Artist of the Year in 2008. In 2011, he received the Americana Music Award in the Song of the Year category for his "Harlem River Blues," from the album of the same name.
