The northern Michigan singer-songwriter is nominated for three Josie Music Awards being presented Sept. 20 in Nashville, including ‘Vocalist of the Year.’ Local Spins spotlights the ‘country-Americana’ artist.
Lee Fayssoux: About truth in music and being consistent. (Courtesy Photo)
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Asking a musician to define the style of their music can lead to “hyphenitis.” Pop-jazz-funk-soul, country-bluegrass-folk or the like. The lines have been blurred for decades, sometimes to the point the music is really indescribable.
Singer-songwriter Lee Fayssoux from Indian River says his music is best understood with just a single hyphen: Country-Americana.
But he then goes on: “There’s a lot of folk influence. This EP has a little rock, a little jazz, a little funk,” Fayssoux says. The EP he’s referring to is the six-track “Cotton Blossoms.” It is available on CD and was released to streaming services at the end of August.
He says those who would police the styles often miss the point. He points to one example. “There’s a discussion going on in country music right now,” he says, referencing those who make country music through a lens of rap or hip hop. Such music is often referred to by various unflattering sobriquets, including hick hop or tractor rap. “That’s not real country” goes the refrain of those who feel the need to set artificial boundaries.
He eschews such heavy-handedness. For him, it’s about the truth in the music. And Fayssoux’s most recent recording – the one with a little of this, a little of that, and a whole lot of country – has generated enough truth and enthusiasm that he’s been nominated for three Josie Music Awards, the industry’s awards for independent artists.
This is the second time he’s been nominated, following last year’s nod for Male Country Song of the year for “Carolina Man.” This year he is nominated for Male Country Vocalist of the Year, Country Song of the Year (“Be With You”) and Americana/Multi-Genre Song of the Year (“Cold”). (Scroll down for a video of a live performance of “Cold.”)
He will head to Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry for the awards on Sept. 20. “To be nominated once is a huge honor, but to receive three nominations in a single year is truly unexpected,” Fayssoux proclaimed in a press statement after the nominations were announced.
New EP: Fayssoux’s ‘Cotton Blossoms’ was released last month. (Courtesy Photo)
“It was a whirlwind last year. I hadn’t even heard of them,” he tells Local Spins. He soon learned about the Josies, and came back with an appreciation not only for the awards and the many independent artists who have been recognized by the awards, but also for his own place in the music world. “To be able to go down there quieted the doubt. You can’t forget about the joy.”
Like the Grammy Awards, the Josie Awards cover a large swath of styles. They reward artists in such traditional categories such as vocalists, performers, songwriters, songs and albums in numerous genres. Unlike the Grammy Awards, they also recognize music professionals in promotion, public relations, management and other behind-the-scenes professions.
While he’s looking forward to attending the Josies, he continues to ply his trade. His summer schedule includes various clubs, pubs and casinos. He plays Black Bear Golf Club in Vanderbilt on Sept. 10, hosts an album-release party at Northland Brewing Co. in Indian River on Sept. 11, plays Wildwood Lakes Golf Course in Wolverine on Sept. 12 and Brandy’s Harbortown in Bay Harbor on Sept. 17. He recently opened for country artist Travis Tritt at the Emmet-Charlevoix County Fair.
He typically works as a solo performer, just him, his guitar and a microphone. But he is also looking for more gigs with The Whiskey Wranglers, northern Michigan’s newest country band, for which he is the frontman. Producer Chip Stead, who also plays with him in the Whiskey Wranglers, is also a big fan of Fayssoux. “He’s an old soul in new boots,” Stead says.
The Whiskey Wranglers play Pond Hill Farm in Harbor Springs on Oct. 3 and the Cheboygan County Fairgrounds on Oct. 9.
While Fayssoux considers writing and performing music a full-time job, he also has a full-time day job working for a fabricating firm. In fact, that was the case even before they moved to northern Michigan. He and his wife were living in his native North Carolina, where she worked as a teacher while he was working as a project manager around the region.
When his wife, who’s originally from this area, expressed a desire to move home, he agreed as long as they could find work. It didn’t take long.
“When we visited, there was an opening at the local elementary,” Fayssoux says. She interviewed and got the job, and told him if he couldn’t find something in the construction field, he could pursue music fulltime. While he felt that gave him a green light to do so if necessary, he too was able to find work almost immediately. “It was the will of God.”
They soon found themselves packing up and moving north, initially moving in with his wife’s parents for two months before they found a home of their own. “I have saints for in-laws,” Fayssoux says. No wonder his music is described as being about family, faith and home.
Fayssoux came to his musical interest at an early age. He says both his mother and grandmother were musically inclined, and he was told he was singing before he could even talk. Apocryphal perhaps, but by middle school he was already writing songs. By high school he was playing in bands and stepping into a studio.
“It wasn’t cheap,” he says with a laugh, noting that he and a buddy had to cough up $1,500 for the studio time.
He immediately started figuring out a few things. One was the ins and outs of working in a studio, how to use the technology and how to get the best results in the shortest time. The other was the point of the music itself. “It’s about you and what you’re trying to express,” he says.
It all goes back to trying to express himself and doing the work. “I try to keep traction. One foot in front of the other. Keep showing up, being consistent.”
VIDEO: Lee Fayssoux, “Cold”
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