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Louie TheSinger Unplugged: The Rise to Country Music
62 Plays1 month ago
In this entertaining episode of the Kick Your Boots Up podcast, we welcome Universal Music Group Nashville recording artist Louie TheSinger. From Fort Worth, TX, Louie shares his incredible journey from breakdancing to rapping, R&B, soul, and country music. Louie keeps it real about his first viral moment in 2018, the heartbreak that followed later, and how he's emerged stronger than ever. He also reveals his favorites in Fort Worth, life on tour, and the unforgettable places he's performed. Plus, get an inside look at his unique songwriting process and what fuels him as an artist and one of the brightest new voices in country music. Louie is ready to take country music by storm. Don’t miss this episode packed with untold stories and inspiration.
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Transcript
Louie's Musical Journey: Rediscovering Passion
00:00:00
Speaker
the whole truth behind this is it was never even really about that and i had to remember it when i fell back in love with the music i started finding myself more like dog you did want all this you just didn't know it came with you just wanted to do music like i literally walked in a place like this and like Hey everybody. And thanks for listening to another episode of the kick your boots up podcast. This episode is coming to you special this week. We have two releases in one week. I know it's amazing. We're so excited to cheer on this next guest as he has an upcoming show that we're going to get to dive into. But before we do, I've got to give you a little bit of backstory and tell you about our, one of our newest and favorite and Dorsey's here at Justin.
Louie's Beginnings and Influences
00:00:37
Speaker
He is from head to toe at Justin and Dorsey. We love everything he does.
00:00:41
Speaker
Universal Music Group, Nashville recording artist, so big label back in him. No big deal. You guys, this is Louie, the singer. Louie, thanks for... Yeah, thank you for being on the podcast. and Thank you for having me, man. This is cool. You're amazing. Truly, like... so genuine and down to earth and so i'm so excited to dive into this i know everyone out there is as well and um so i guess to get us started we were kind of talking a little bit off camera about a photo that you had when you were a little kid which is on our website actually i think we've we've used it for your story um where you were in a diaper and boots oh yeah there's so much to unpack with the beginning but tell me about like your your humble beginnings where you grew up things like that
00:01:18
Speaker
right here in Fort Worth, Texas. And it's cool that, you know, the justice situation happened, but I'm from Northside area. If you're a local, it's called Diamond Hills, so I'm born and raised out here, and my family is originally from, like my mom's side is from Texas, but originally everything comes from Mexico, you know? But where is Texas and it gets, you know? Like, I mean, yeah. um where did Where did you grow up going to eat?
00:01:41
Speaker
Growing to eat was Northside everywhere. I mean, even the stockyards, I would go to Spaghetti Warehouse with my mom a lot back when it was open. Best in peace, yes. We would eat in the trolley and stuff like that. I mean, the Northside area, we had chewies. You had anything you could think of from tacos all the way down. We even had Swinford's Pool Hall. I never got to go, but my friends were always there. You've heard the stories, right? Oh, man. My alarm was drunk, and my mom didn't let me go. But we were kids just trying to go play pool and stuff like that. But yeah, my dad was from the east side, so we definitely had ties over there to go eat over there and stuff like that. La Hacienda and the pool guys and stuff like that. And it's so cool that you got that perspective, too, of Fort Worth to then grow up and experience everything that you've gone through. But one of my favorite stories that I just heard recently about you was whenever on Saturdays when you would clean with your family and listen to Sabina. I always get scared when everybody always says about a story. I heard a story about you.
00:02:30
Speaker
um No, yeah, so c Selena was real big, um so that's why it's real surreal that I'm playing with Chris, but growing up, yeah, I mean, the Ashlone Show was something my mom kept on repeat, ah her whole, her whole albums, you know, and this was back when he had CDs, so, you know, she was playing a CD for the whole day, and we're cleaning, and the house was no bigger than this, but just imagine, like, walls, and for whatever reason, it took six hours to clean, it just never made sense, but it goes from, like, oh, here it goes again to, like,
00:02:58
Speaker
Okay, we're cleaning, and then it's like, I know.
Rebellion and Self-Discovery
00:03:00
Speaker
She walk in the room, and I'm like five, I want to get it, like, yeah, yeah, it's like, it made no sense, but yeah, that's what that's how it was, you know, and you didn't really realize, but that's where the musical stuff started coming in.
00:03:11
Speaker
And I feel like that was like a pivotal moment for you whenever you looked up one day and were like, whoa, I'm actually pretty good at this. Well, honestly, it wasn't even that. i I wanted to do a whole bunch of other things. Like I remember. What did you want to do? At one point, I wanted to be a DJ. I wanted to be a stuntman. I wanted because I was always jumping off things like jackass. Remember when I came out?
00:03:29
Speaker
Yeah, everybody had a video camera. Like, I mean, we didn't have that. We had a Kodak camera. And what we would do is do some throat. And in the middle of it, we'd get the picture. So there's pictures of us jumping off of our shed with like, you know, the top of our sandbox was a turtle shell. So we just sit and slide on top of this metal stuff. And then I wanted to be a stuntman. And it was like, no, like, I don't know. And then the horses came around, you know, because of my aunt, my grandma's sister. And so.
00:03:55
Speaker
we We got into that. And then you know just like every other team, every other kid, it wasn't cool no more. Right. you know And then I got into rap, hip hop, the B-born. Me and my dad didn't have a big relationship. like We did, but like we were always fighting because we're so alike, right? Yeah. So my teen years was rebelling. And trust me. That's so relatable, by the way. I'm kidding, my karma. Trust me.
00:04:20
Speaker
Yeah, I got a 15-year-old, you know? Oh, man. So what's crazy, though, is me and my dad connected on basketball, other stuff like that. I was already kind of... trying not to, but steering the rock, running around with the wrong crowds. But that's where I grew up. That's all I had. These are my homies. That's what you knew. all what That's what we all kind of had to make the decision together. Like, you know, what are we doing? We're going, you know, it like, you know, are we that's just what it was. So me and my dad could not connect for whatever reason, because he's trying, you know, they had me young. My dad, I think he was like 16 when my mom was pregnant, oh you know, so.
00:04:54
Speaker
I just remember one day being like, yo, my dad knows how to break dance. And this is kind of what the kids are starting. And he taught me how to do a windmill in the living room. I remember, and that's. Your dad did. Yeah, my dad was a B-boy in the 80s. So like, oh yeah, like La Gran Plaza Mall, which is ah was known as Town Center back in the day. okay They used to not even have a roof. It was more like an outdoor mall in the 80s, yeah. So you're talking about radio personalities like Domino that were around in the early 2000s. Some of his first interviews were with little break dancers, and one of them was my dad. And they gave him a little nickname called Spindle Top. Yeah, spindle type. He was like the one he was the youngest five brothers and all my uncle's dance, too So me and my dad got into that to the point where I started running with that real heavy Like I loved breakdance and I love b-boy and it was in the neighborhood. Like yeah, we went to go do that That's what we did like we ran around and we just would go break dance break shit fight. That's just what it was run around it wasn't until
00:05:46
Speaker
17 is when things started getting a little like, holy shit, what's going on? Sketchy. So Nemo was one of my first friends that I lost like that was really close to me. um Unfortunately, what's crazy about it is his dad and my dad grew up together. And then me and him grew up around each other and they got closer in our teens. We actually didn't like each other when we met became and then after that became the closest friends like brothers. Is this Big Might's son?
00:06:08
Speaker
No, this is actually, Big Mike was one of the guys in the group. So Big Mike, it's crazy, you know that. So Big Mike is actually one of my dad's best friends. He used to call him Rope Man. He'd be like, man, what up, Rope Man? And I used to tell my dad, well, he called Big Mike Rope Man. He said, because, man, Rope Man used to be tall, skinny. I said, Mike was skinny? He said, yeah, it don't make sense no more. It's big ass rope.
00:06:29
Speaker
I said damn. you know My dad was always just like clowning. That's just how he was, but he, ah but yeah. No, you're good. But Victor, Big Vic and Little Victor, which was Nemo, were close. um It wasn't until around 17 when things started getting out of hand like we were at.
00:06:44
Speaker
Sonic right here on Main Street Northside 28 my favorite Sonic Right there in the stock edges in the back. Yeah, we used to break dance there You're talking about over 150 kids with a big old diesel truck with the doors open in the middle Northside Like this and this this is right here down the street I was born and raised in Ponce in the terminal right here in Diamond Hill, right? wow It wasn't until the night when it hit me like this is getting bad Victor was shot at running all the way to 7-eleven. He lived Wow, he lived Couple months later, things caught up and he was eventually, you know, unalived and it was, ah it was just like a real turning point because a month and 13 days before that, Greg, one of our young buddies, Kirby, committed, you know, took his own. And it was like,
00:07:32
Speaker
Man, this is getting really bad out here. Like, what am I doing? you know Then heavy people are going to prison from high school. I'm like, dang. I went to 12 high schools, and that's a real fact. I moved around a lot. I was in and out of juvenile since 14 years old. The first time I ever went to jail, jail was 17.
00:07:47
Speaker
And they kind of just it felt like you were passed around, maybe. Like you just rejected from all these high schools. But that's really just how it was with
Songwriting Process and Emotional Connection
00:07:53
Speaker
all my other friends. i Man, where you at now, on board? Man, I'm over here on this side. Man, my mom put me over here. I could kick that over here. And eventually, I mean, it's not too abnormal. And then ah you would think that I would finish making it over my senior year. Dropped out.
00:08:08
Speaker
And I was just running around in my cousin Tank who grew up a block away from me. That's where that came in. and His family took me in because I was sleeping at Echo Lake. That's where we would break that. That's where we would break that song.
00:08:19
Speaker
First of all, I want to make light of this because a cousin named Tank, I think everyone out there can relate to this one. There's always that cousin, right? I love that. So it's Daniel. It's funny. It's like, it's like, hey, whoa, Tank, Tank, what's your name? Daniel. You know, it's like self-appointed. But now, like, so me and Daniel grew up a block away from each other. Wow. And he had another cousin on the other side of the block named Rodolfo, and we all grew up together. So that's right there in Diamond Hill.
00:08:44
Speaker
Tank got into real dancing too, but like he was like pop, all this stuff, whatever. And one time he just found out that I was sleeping up there and he got mad. He was like, what are you doing? And so he took me home and his mom was like, yeah, she would give us five bucks every night. We were bummy kids and she fully supported it. It was horrible. But, you know man mom you know, Mexican moms, it's just like, hey, they let them go do what they do, you know? Just as long as they ain't doing the bad shit. And that's what it was, because Tank liked to race cars and we just wanted to go dancing. We would go to car meets and run from cops and that was it. It wasn't bad, you know?
00:09:14
Speaker
But ah Taco Bell burritos were 69 cents at the time. All we needed was one each. And then we had two bucks for gas back then in like oh six oh five and a Honda that hatchback. That went to Dallas and back for sure. Yeah. Maybe one race. You know, I don't know. But ah yeah. So the dance was always there for me. And it was like, you know, I really literally I remember at one point I had let the butt dance like. Wow.
00:09:38
Speaker
When I tell you people would leave, yeah I never really got caught sleeping there because I was still dancing for a couple hours. I wanted to get better. I wanted to just dance. I wanted to just let go. and Anybody knows me, I have so much energy. yeah And it's crazy that I'll be honest, I have to smoke sometimes. And if I don't, I'm i'm like, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. It gets crazy. Yeah.
00:09:57
Speaker
Like even now the coffee hit me and I'm like, oh no. Or it's like anxiety, you know, but I'm a real jumpy dude and like I needed something and dance at the time was that because I was losing my friends.
00:10:11
Speaker
oh You obviously lost your whole life. Yeah, I mean and you know my my parents were divorced since I was nine. My dad always kind of was doing his own thing and you know my mom wasn't her fault fully you know I kind of forced her hand and she admits that she should have never let me go because she let another man tell her to kick me out of the house which wasn't her like a boyfriend thing it was a probation my probation officer. And they ironically went to high school together. So there was like a weird, you know, where they could talk past professionalism and like, Christina, you got to kick them out. You're never going to learn them. My mom kicked me out of the house and I had nowhere to go. If I could, she said, you're going to school. I said, am I going? I don't want to go to school because it was different kind of problems that she didn't understand and talk about. So I just didn't go and they kicked me out. but
00:10:53
Speaker
and honestly you might have felt alone and and even looking back you probably think but so many kids even to this day go through that so I think it's so cool the the mission that you have that you're just like yourself and you're open and you're there to help everyone you know yeah I mean maybe and yeah I think that's what it is I always tell people all the time like I always wonder like why wasn't there a hand that for real they could have just put which there were though the tanks of the world, you know, my grandma, you know, rest, like, when she's not, I was gonna say rest or so, but like, pour her. And that's what, bus car yeah because man, but man, I swear to you, my grandma, I'll tell you, my uncle Henry, her brother, didn't let me in the house one day with a shotgun. and She stood in front of him. I said, I'd rather my son come in at three in the morning and then call me at four saying I need to identify a body. He's coming in. And then that's when I remember just being like, man,
00:11:42
Speaker
I'm not even being funny like I was even more hurt because I knew that my life was never gonna not be that so I would distance myself because I didn't want to keep bringing people down and this is what it was and then it's like when they helped me I fucked up again and then I'm just it's like I it was repeat repeat repeat and I know we're jumping ahead, but I have thought to say, I appreciate so much in your writing and your songs that you you've actually been able, in a beautiful way, to share your hurt, but then also share your good, too, like your happiness, your healthiness, and um your story's so unique, but I think something that I held onto to most was your writing process, because um you had just, one interview I saw recently, you had just gone through a breakup, and you went into the studio to write, and please explain in your writing process, because everyone else in Nashville probably goes in, they have some coffee, they're gonna take some notes. and you're like, listen here, I'm gonna come in, push record, I'm gonna smoke some cigarettes, and we're gonna get going. You pretty much got it right, except cigarettes. okay It ain't cigarettes. cryptolinicryp No, I'm kidding. So, it's actually funny you say that because there has been situations where, even just outside of Nashville, people have actually come in just to watch me, right? Because they've heard certain things. and
00:12:58
Speaker
I don't know how to explain it. The only way I can tell you is I actually grew up doing like battle rap and R&B stuff, right? Oh my gosh. That's how it started. wow Poetry, then battle rap. I was funny though. So my boys would be like, they're from New York. You just got to put those son and make them rhyme and just do it on the beat. And I'm like, on the beat. They're like, yeah, just kind of give them. I'm like, you know, even I'm 14. I don't know. You're like, I can dance? I asked you not. I'm hearing it for the first time. And all these guys, they're playing a a boombox. And this is actually in Boswell High School in Saginaw. Yes. So these fools moved here from from um New York. And I had just moved from down here. I got kicked out, so I had to go over there. My mom used somebody's ass dress. I am so sorry.
00:13:36
Speaker
I don't know. Can we get in trouble with this far? anyway No, but so so I you know, I'm out there and I'm like, man ain't nobody gonna relate to me that and I meet these guys. Hyson, he went by Cino figs and Chris, but there it goes by Chris Law. They were rappers from Brooklyn, but I'm i'm still friends with Chris Law till this day and ah Chris. um He's like, yo, yeah, no. I said, yo, when's the raccoon? He goes, no, it's instrumental. So, you know, you don't want to act like you don't know. I'm like, oh, OK, yeah, for sure. I went home. I'm like, mom, what's instrumental? She goes, I don't know. And I remember looking at the back of a CD, and I think it was like Brandy or something like that. The Boy Is Mine, and it had the song. It had the beat, which said, instrumental, and acapella. I said, OK, it's just a beat. Got it. So next day, I'm like, boom. And so they taught me that eventually. So fast forward. When you have to learn how to do that on the spot for so many years,
00:14:22
Speaker
When you go to the studio, yeah, to be honest with you, when I go to the studio, like especially if I'm going through something, just get out the way. I told the guys on the road, I'm like, hey guys, I'm gonna knock something out if y'all can't go to the roof or something like that. you know And they'll go to like to the Airbnbs and just all chill to themselves. yeah I'll write and record a song in 45 minutes. But it's like literally like the the song I got wow um with Scatter Brains, who's a dope producer who's worked with Jelly like on a lot of great things. I actually put Chris Betis and Bobbo on the record as well. wow It's called if I die tomorrow. Well, I'm at CMA fest and I'll give you the example because that works I'm at CMA fest having the worst anxiety in my life, you know, and I'm working through it now Like I mean I have to ease into who you know this new lifestyle like I come from there's a reason I rolled away I roll I'm just I come from something different, you know, so it's like it's hard to walk in a room and I'll be honest. It's just kind of hard You know, I don't know where I'm at, you know
00:15:15
Speaker
like At the time I'm trying yeah um the time i'm trying to like work through it and I think the drinking had a lot to do with helping clear the anxiety so I stopped it. and i um The night before was the night that made me do it so I don't want you to think I was sober in this process. yeah no I get to the CMA Fest and I do an interview with Ekis. I believe it's Ekis and I don't want to mess it up but it got put out in the Rolling Stone and it's like they talk about the top five Latinos in country music. I swear to you and exactly now I'm like this I'm like.
00:15:47
Speaker
Everybody already hates me. Why would y'all do this to me? And then they posted and my face is the picture of it. And I was like, I'm going home. Come on, somebody. Well, I'm like, I want to go home. This is so much like, yeah, 100 percent because it's like, man, I hate the. not i don't hate I dislike the titles because that in that for one, that discourages other artists that I'm no better than. You know what I'm saying? I was you a year and a half ago. like I was still fighting trying not to sell drugs two and a half years ago. just took not you know And $80 I would make on TikTok Live that took me six hours was everything to me. That's all you had. It was everything to me. And sadly, I'd go buy two more Budlights and go even longer.
00:16:28
Speaker
That was how I did it. Just so I wouldn't sell drugs. So why are we giving titles to this stuff? Man, if anything, just be like our favorite picks or ask if we want, you know, I don't know. I was asked if, I was like, yeah, I love it. You got to remember, I'm new to this. I don't know what I'm signing up for. My manager thought it was a good idea. I was there. And it was a good idea. even did a Zoom meeting and I thought that was it. Man, I show up to the CMA Fest and I do this. I have the worst anxiety attack in my life. Not to make, like anyway.
00:16:57
Speaker
I go back to Airbnb and one of the people from my team wo that I'm real close with, you know, Chelsea, she comes by and she's like, hey, dude, are you all right? And I'm like, yeah, she goes, what's going on? Not being funny, like straight up. yeah the world should like Tell me. They thought I was lying. And I don't blame them because when they met me, I was this fun, open guy that was ready for this. I didn't know what this was. So I had to adjust. And in the in the middle of that, they threw a lot of things at me, which I'm not mad at. That's yeah that's what makes superstars. That's what makes.
00:17:24
Speaker
you and his business. You didn't make it or break it. And if you ain't ready for it, you just get out. Somebody is. I spent almost 20 years, you're not gonna tell me that. I will drag myself dead. I will drag myself dead on the road before I quit. I told her, I said, I don't know what's going on with me. I said, I got personal things with my son, I got personal things with everybody. Everything right now. It's all gonna go. So when I got home, I got seven people in front of me to begin with, from my kids to my baby mamas. I got three baby mamas and four boys. And we're all,
00:17:53
Speaker
it's It's never, you know. rocky Then I got guys on payroll. That that takes care of itself if you work. That's stress enough. Bam. So you got to remember too, I don't go perform and I don't go out. We don't make money. yeah The whole truth behind this is it was never even really about that and I had to remember it. When I fell back in love with the music, I started finding myself more like,
00:18:18
Speaker
Dog, you did want all this, you just didn't know what came with it. You you just wanted to do music. like I literally walk in a place like this and like there's no stress. like ah It's literally like, dude, this is my job. This is what I get paid to do. this is yeah you know And I couldn't tell her everything on the spot. And eventually, you know it all came out. And I said, I just gotta let this go. She left.
00:18:42
Speaker
I told the guys to go to the roof for a little bit. I went down there. I put on this beat that I literally got from Scatter Brains when I landed in Nashville three days before, not knowing. And I wrote and recorded that song, sent it to them. Just was like, I just had to let it. I'm crying most of the time when I record songs like that. I went to bed and we got up to the CMA Fest. I'm performing at Sky Deck on 5th and Broadway in Nashville. It was a big deal. Everyone's people showed up. I didn't even out of the woodworks. I'm so sorry, guys. I just don't know how this works. I didn't promote it. I didn't know how to work. They were like, you can post. I was supposed to post. It's in my face. I thought everybody's just like, no, there's 50 stages. I'm like, I don't know that. I'm like, bro, y'all talking about the Mexican kid from Fort Worth, Texas. I don't really come so much. Okay, but I've just got to say, if that was you not promoting it, I was there personally and saw so many people. Right, I was like, what? They came for you. Yeah, that was a blessing. I just didn't know. And it was kind of cool, because so I'm there. And right before the show, that was the day I stopped. I was like, I'm going to stop drinking. And I saw I didn't drink before there. that night and Oh my gosh. I wake up and I'm you know I'm back there I'm in the dressing room and I'm doing my push-ups and I hear Chelsea come in and she's so nice to everybody hey what's up what's up and they see me she's like
00:19:53
Speaker
And I'm like, what? And then they're just like, this, are you okay? And I'm like, oh, that, but that's how that happens. Like I just go in there and like, whatever, literally, whatever I feel, I'm just gonna, they'll put the track on about five times and I'll just sing in freestyle about five different songs, pick the best ones. I liked that many, they're cool. What did I say? Wow, that was cool. So I swear to you, I've said things where they're like, what'd you say? And I'm like, I don't know. What did I say? Man, I just close my eyes and I'll just sing and they'll put on beats for days and I'll just sit there and drink, sing. But that's how it happens.
Prison and Personal Transformation
00:20:21
Speaker
And when it's real, it's just, it's quicker.
00:20:23
Speaker
And honestly, you can tell that. Like, listening to your songs, I feel what you're feeling. And I don't even know the half of it. You know, like, you're just now telling things that you've never gotten to tell before. And I think that's what makes you you. That makes you relatable. And um something that I held on to was, like, a lot of people in your lifetime have looked up to you. Like, a story that you specifically told once you were in prison, they wanted you to start singing at the church services. And you're like, okay, maybe I should read the Bible. Tell that story. Because, like, that, to me, that hit me. What's crazy is when I went to prison, I had laryngitis, so my voice was barely moving. I talked like this. i like It was so bad. It was crazy. Wow. Stress, everything. My dad just died like right before we went and go. I'm in the church service one day, and they're all like dancing to like Christian rap. i mean you know like At one point, I'm kind of like the M.A. is good. It's in the gym too, so I went down there. and I still got a little something, so I went and I did head spins.
00:21:16
Speaker
yeah And then one of the dudes tells, and I forget his name, and I know him, ah he was from Lubbock. He was the drummer, and he told him, he was like, hey man, they said you can sing, sing something, was but it'd be godly. And I remember being like, damn. And he asked me, and I'm like, never would've made it. It was gospel music. Yes. Everybody goes.
00:21:39
Speaker
I'm in prison. I ain't been here a week. I'm like, oh, man, what did I do? This was a test we failed. I'm in prison. what I'm singing. Like, oh, man, these fools feeling the start winking at me. I ain't with it, too, nah. But it not being funny inside of that, they're like, oh, man. And then it was even funnier because I was Mexican. They were like.
00:21:59
Speaker
That's for insight. Yeah, that's nice thing. Is that what they called you? ah What a bad sight, yeah. Most of the times, but were like with Mother Meek, I'm, you know, we're just in each other a certain way. But yeah, um I start going in there and then I meet ah Brian Lowry in in in prison and he's the band director at the time. He's playing guitar and stuff and he's being honest. He's like, man, I ain't gonna lie, man. It's pretty lame. We need some spice.
00:22:26
Speaker
You got spots. I'm like, man, what do you want me to do? I don't know. He was like, man, I don't know. You want to rewrite some songs with me? So we took ah Johnny Be Good and Made It Jesus Be Good or Born To Be A Simple Kind Of Man. We changed simple man to simple man. So all kinds of stuff like that. Then I started writing my own.
00:22:43
Speaker
Yeah. Then I started reaching. I you used to do Chris Stapleton's there. The broken halos. Yeah. So all of those, I would like, boom. and then But you're talking about. dannna got it at it donenna new all But we would like, I mean, you're talking about church music. You know, we're going to church now. We're going to Galilee. So everybody, man, you got people.
00:23:03
Speaker
and me shut down I'm talking to Jesus right now, don't bother me. My hands are up. That makes me sing, boy. And then I would break out the piano, and I would talk about my story, and then talk about, you know, I'd be honest with you, you know, what it turned into, and then my mom would tell you, turned into preaching. And that's where something I found something that I want to do, you know, further on, and I'd get to that, but I would start singing, and I'd be like, man, you know, you know i it started with the faith, hope, and love thing, and and you know. I'd sing, and then I'd jump into a couple of Marvin Sapp records. Eventually,
00:23:35
Speaker
egos and stuff like that. I realized there was a lot of weird stuff going on in the church. A lot of those guys had different kind of charges. And I was like, man, I just can't be a part of, be around this. You know, I got kids and and I'm good on that. So it was one of those things. Oh, Victor. um It was one of those things where it was like, ah all right I had backed out, but I found, don't get me wrong, in the beginning, I only did it because I was like, man, I really gotta sing something, I gotta do something. Get it out. Man, my mom told everybody, one day he's gonna sing in church, I'm like.
00:24:10
Speaker
Good luck getting me there. God locked me up and put me straight in there. and was like it was like a It was like putting a rat in a little box and saying, here's the cheese. He said he never eat bought a cheese in the box. He ain't got no choice. So I ended up doing that. I was on that unit for like 13 months. And then you know this is in West Texas. You're talking about 112, 113 degrees in them dorms. So all we had was music sometimes.
00:24:29
Speaker
Oh my gosh. Then I got shot down in South Texas. I was in three different units down there. um and And in 2020, I walked out of the walls unit um in Huntsville. I've actually went there, took pictures and stuff outside of it. Have you? Yeah, because it was real big like for me. like When I was on transit, I didn't talk to my family for like two months. And so when I got down there, it was just like the pain was in the wind. you know I started writing my mom and then you know I'm like, hey, is my release date still good? They're moving me around like crazy. you know What's going on? Yeah.
00:24:57
Speaker
I got out of prison and you know, you're you're in a group of people and slowly but surely that everybody starts finding, I don't get emotional, everybody starts finding their families and I got to the end. and I was by myself and I remember being like, dang, did nobody come to get me?
00:25:13
Speaker
and turned around I'm like did I miss something and there my mom is little and I guess I missed her and she was like no makeup on and she had a gun down on but she hadn't seen me so my beard was all the way out and I I right now I'm about 175 but I'm on the bad side but a time I was about 190 something just stuck And I'm not a tall dude, so I'm walking around like this, and I i got a chain bag. I look over, and she just broke. She was like, oh my god. I was like, man, what's up? And she almost didn't even recognize me. And I was like, but it was kind of a good thing because I wasn't fully there, but I left a boy, and I came back a man. And i it wasn't because of why i the way I looked or moved. It was the way I thought. And I just realized, like, damn, I just put my whole family through this shit. I can't do it again. And to be honest, there was so many scares since then.
00:26:02
Speaker
That's why I have to be careful on how I move now, because there's a lot riding on this. There's a lot. People don't realize pressure. They think they do. Or sacrifice. Sacrifice isn't, hey, I'm going to take two days off the week and plan for this. Sacrifice is, hey, I got to be here for three days, but I'm not going because I'm going to go do this. Right. Just say no sometimes. All the time. That's sacrifice. And that's the worst part of it, because I've realized that in this position,
00:26:28
Speaker
Only way I'm gonna get there is by pissing everybody off. Nobody has ever joined a Lucas setter on his face, but the other day, I realized it was real success comes hate. There's no way around it. Everybody wants something that you don't. Nobody wants to go through the show.
Cultural Identity and Music
00:26:41
Speaker
It's crazy to me. Here we are.
00:26:43
Speaker
And I remember something stood out to me. You said, my mom barely recognized me with a beard and stuff. I think the song, Just Be Me, you might have that in the lyric. Is that what it says? Let my mom. Even my mom can stand the side of my face. That was actually, she's cool with it. You know, we talked. I'm like, are you open with it? Because even like with certain songs where I'm putting our private things out there, I've asked her, you know, like, is it okay? And she's like. I'm being too real. You know, we talked about the abuse.
00:27:09
Speaker
that happened in the song, Put It Down, and that song was about suicide. And I asked her before I put that song out, I said, I wanna show you something. And if you say no, I won't put it out. She said, no, this is your story. I'm gonna let you tell it. And I said, all right. So, would just be me.
00:27:28
Speaker
Oh, shit. Oh, no. This is the funny part. So that wasn't a good thing. So me and my mom had got into it like maybe like six, four, three, four months before that. And I didn't talk to her for like three, four months. And it was bad. And I said, man, you just hate me because I look like my dad. She says, no, I can't stand the side of your face because you look like your Uncle Freddie. I said,
00:27:47
Speaker
What? Block twist? I'm like, what the fuck? Hold the record stop. Yeah. I'm like, yo, hold up. The whole time, she goes, I could the smirk you, dude. The way you laugh, the way you die. And I remember looking at my own mom like, are you? What the hell? Like, my own mother is like literally disgusted, and I could see it in the movement of her mouth.
00:28:08
Speaker
and I remember at the time, I'm going through a breakup too, and I remember just being like, man, nobody understands me. well i I love my Uncle Fred, but I am definitely not my Uncle Freddie. right Just trust me. Love you, Uncle Fred, but damn, he's a wild one. 25 years master gunny sergeant. He actually escorted Donald Trump before. it like He's actually well-acculated. But I'm not my uncle, so it hit me. like Man, I wanna really just go somewhere and just be me. I don't wanna be no nobody else. I wanna smoke, I wanna drink, I wanna turn my music up. Everything that they tell me that I shouldn't be doing, that's who I am. why's that so long That's how it happened. Wow. I literally, I can't help it that I'm different. It was about the country music too because I was doing, cause everybody was talking shit about me. I'm like, what is going on right now? So I went to the music and I wrote that song. I can't help it that I'm different. I can't help, I'm not the same.
00:29:02
Speaker
They say love accepts everyone, but I see that's not the case. And then that's when I talked about moving on. Even my momma can't stand the side of my face, but I'll be alright and I'll be okay. That one went pretty viral too, didn't it? Yeah, I got like nine million views overnight. Okay. It was like 76,000 shares on Facebook. It was crazy. This was like 20, what, 2020?
00:29:18
Speaker
2022. Yeah and I used to go to this smoke shop for diamond swishers and at the time you know I only had money to kind of just buy a pack. Right. I get two diamond swishers right the day or whatever and I walked in and they would open up two diamonds they'd come with two diamond swishers that's what they would call me and then eventually I walk in they're like hey two diamonds on my wood and they'd hold the phone.
00:29:37
Speaker
I'm like, yeah, what's up? And they're like, you'll be saying, oh, yeah. And they're like, man, that's cool, man. And slowly but surely I started realizing I couldn't really go nowhere. But it was cool because it was like, it was just a viral thing. And then eventually, like all the other songs about me, like sending me back was about me going back to prison. like all those things started going viral. Well, because my family, and this wasn't planned, my family was there with a banda, and my wellita was sitting there under a tent by my grandfather and my dad's grave site while they're sitting there playing like on some real Mexican shit, that's what we do. And my wellita, my Tia's are all drinking, I think they had a class size little bottle, like I mean, they're lit, my Tia fell in ants, and she's hitting the, dry oh, it was crazy. But we pulled up to shoot there, and so eventually that started going viral, people were like, yo, he's Mexican.
00:30:23
Speaker
Like, my grandma does that. And I'm like... That's so relatable, yeah. Like, well, I'm Mexican-American, so like, that's, you know, like, but, I mean, anybody you ask me like, oh, I'm Mexican, you know? Are you Mexican-American? Clearly. Yes, you know what I'm saying? I have a twang. Yeah, I mean, I'm not even that. Like, I'm keeping it real with everybody. I'm not fluent in Spanish, you know? I grew up on the block. I grew up doing the wrong shit, you know? So, it is what it is, you know? So, but I do understand most of it, you know what I'm saying? You know, they say play dumb, I play smart, you know what I'm saying? Oh, yeah, you do.
00:30:52
Speaker
it was It was just different, but yeah. Yeah. Well, I've loved getting to know you. You've kept it so real. We're going to take a quick break. But when we come back, we have big things in store. We're going to get to see where Louie ends up in the future and what he's got going on now. So stay tuned.
00:31:09
Speaker
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00:31:38
Speaker
go back and watch it. If you are just tuning in right now, you're about to be amazed at everything Louis has going. If you've already listened through and you have so many more questions, feel free to comment below or DM them, whatever. We love to answer questions here on the
Signing with UMG Nashville
00:31:52
Speaker
podcast. So I guarantee you if there's enough questions, there might be a chance that he's back up and we'll have to get some questions answered. But I'm going to jump right into it and this is going to kind of... Sorry. No, no, do you need... to Yeah, I'm good. This is kind of kind of like how you were talking about earlier with like the Rolling Stones magazine and stuff like titles and things. This might throw you off a little bit, but because you don't toot your own horn enough, I want to toot your horn for you. So I'm going to read a quote um that I found once you signed your deal with UMG Nashville from the CEO of UMG Nashville, Sydney Mabe,
00:32:23
Speaker
And um it says, I'm so inspired by Louie's energy, purpose, and intention to expand the sound of country music through his own personal story and his songs. I'm so proud to bring Louie into Universal Music Group in Nashville. And for hearing that quote, obviously it's been months now, almost a year now, um since that happened. What does that feel like to you to now be with such a big label, doing your thing, living your dream, having people like her say things about you? Well, first off, thank you. Love you, Cindy. Cindy is ah amazing. When I tell you like... You're good. take cold Take your break, Will. I smoke, it's not COVID. Not worried. ah Thank you. Now, so Cindy's amazing, man. like um Cindy's big thing with me was always to make sure that I...
00:33:15
Speaker
that she changed my view on labels. Because I've been doing this a while, and not only that, like I'm not, and no disrespect to anybody, but I'm not a dumb person. So I knew that going into things, there was gonna be a lot of things we're gonna have to work out first. She was okay with that. She was okay with the creative control. She was okay with me doing what I wanted, how, i hey man, you know, he's go he's gonna might ruffle some feathers, and his his team might be like, yo, what's going on? But hey.
00:33:39
Speaker
Yeah, I wanted the real deal. Here he is. She told me. She goes, I've been looking for you for seven years. Where you been? I sat in jail. She goes, I figured that. She told me that. She goes, I've been looking for you for seven years. She told me in front of my mother. She goes, I'm going to tell you right now, Louie.
00:33:50
Speaker
All those nos you told me about from Nashville, from the radio stations and everybody, she goes, I am telling you personally, Louie, I'm going to put you on my back and I'm walking through every door in Nashville and saying he's with me. If you give me the chance, I do not want to be a CEO to just do music and country. I want to change it.
00:34:10
Speaker
You're my guy. And I remember being like, Holy, shit there's a lot on this woman. Yeah. Well, I remember just sitting there and this is in the, this is in the dressing room at trees and deep Ellen at a sold out show. And this is, this is a Mexican Vapa from Fort Worth, Texas. It is not signed on major label. They just put 800 people in a room in Dallas.
Fort Worth and Cultural Representation
00:34:30
Speaker
I'm from Fort Worth. People that know that we don't doubt. Yeah. And.
00:34:36
Speaker
Hometown's always hardest. Man, I went up there, my mom, I see my mom, I see everybody, and I rocked, you know? And Cindy has been, and Chelsea have been, you know, just so...
00:34:50
Speaker
ah Such a blessing like to have those people and you know To be honest, too. It's also overwhelming because she has ah an amazing lineup. She has the war in treaty I don't know if you've ever heard oh heck yes, those people sound so those people that so okay, there's people that sound um Those people that sound like they do in real life. It's a thing for whatever reason They sound 10 times better in person, and it is very intimidating. I don't think that they know that, but there you go. You're officially saying it. There's that. there's there's um I mean, even like with the newer ones coming, to Colt Graves is dope. and He just had a little Timbaland in Universal. He's a good friend of mine. so it's like
00:35:29
Speaker
To be a part of that is crazy, but big shout out to Cindy. And like I always say, man, thank you for taking you know a chance on the Mexican, you know what I'm saying? So, I mean, like I always tell her, has like I'm the guy for the job. you know i'm I'm always gonna do a job. I might not talk. That's not my thing, but I'm gonna get it done.
00:35:45
Speaker
Oh, heck yes, and you are and it's proving it and there's two directions. I want to go So I'm gonna bounce back and forth for a second. You mentioned your hometown I can't help but think of Billy Bob's and your show there talk about that That was probably you probably had to take a moment at some point and like take it all 100% Oh man the whole time and this was before my anxiety got bad because I it wasn't even like I would just get nervous before you know and um But nothing big, and I remember that show, because it was hometown, people don't realize the history we have in Fort Worth, like where you're really from here. My mom has crazy stories where she's hanging on to a mirror, and my dad's on top of the truck banging it, and they're dragging them through the stockyards, and they're trying to get their ATM card, their debit card back. Oh my gosh. She said my dad's on top of the truck. That's my baby's money. They threw the debit card, or cash in the debit card out or something like that, the window, and they jumped off, my mom said her heels were going,
00:36:35
Speaker
because she's sitting there hanging on. I've been banned from almost every bar you could think of in the stockyards, but we're not going to talk about it because no I want to come back. Anyway, but no, what's crazy is, you know, like there's history there with us, like real history. My grandma used to go to ISIS theater back in the days as a little girl to watch movies, you know? And now it's open again.
00:36:51
Speaker
you know i Mark my words, when I walked my grandmother in on a red carpet in the ISIS theater for her to see her grandson on the screen, is gonna be the that's gonna be the world to me. You heard it here first, yeah. here first so well There's a lot of things I wanna do here and everybody's like, man, well, you know.
00:37:06
Speaker
Do you sure you wanna do that? I'm like, any other artists that came in here to do that, y'all will be culture vulturing us straight up. Because Fort Worth, we have a lot of rich history. Nah, don't run to Dallas now. Oh, no, don't don't come back from Dallas now talking about, oh, did I love Dallas, 100%. You need Dallas, yeah. Yeah, I love Dallas. But just like Dallas would, you represent where you're from. I'm from Fort Worth, Texas. You know what I'm saying? and Anytime I step out, I tell people I'm from Fort Worth. Anytime I'm further, I tell people I'm from Dallas, Fort Worth. I represent, you know what I'm saying? Yeah. but i am from the north side area for work
00:37:37
Speaker
my mom struggled to pay the bills here i lost my father in the city i lost homies on these blocks i almost lost my life on these blocks i became a father in this city yeah'a'm not gonna take none of that from a man if you want it um mistake I I think there's a song about that too. Yeah, it's called Come and Take It. Like, I had a good talk with one of my friends in Nashville and he was like, you know, what do you think changed with the Mexican owners and country music am for you? I said, you want me to tell you the from truth? We always had the representation. We always had that. But the truth was, it was never really handed to us. We need to kick down the doors and none of y'all had the boots for it, honey. Y'all just weren't.
00:38:09
Speaker
I respectfully, I would have loved to grow up on a ranch like y'all or grow up with you know the right things around me. It wasn't me. And unfortunately, unfortunately, that's what made me. So that with that being said, I'm the one to kick down this door. I want to come do it. I'm not here to talk about it and be like, hey, I'm this, I'm this, I'm that. No, man, I'm coming in here to let people know like, hey, it's enough.
00:38:29
Speaker
We're here. If there's a problem, no problem. But other than that, let's make some freaking awesome music and just put a stamp in music. you know Freddie Fender and them, let's pick up not after this pick up where they left off. you know like Pushing the culture out. you know It's not about... taking it and dividing it. It's about taking it and giving it out. It was country music should have never belonged to, it never belonged to a people or a person. It belonged to the people of country. You can't tell a man he ain't country because you he don't ride a horse every day like you. You can't tell a man you ain't country because he don't farm like you. Come on. There's different kinds of cowboys. Yeah. Boots might be different. Yours might be still told. Mine might be the ride.
00:39:09
Speaker
I think you might be writing a song in your ear. I actually have one called All Called Cowboy, and it's about that. It talks about pipe liners, oil tankers, 64s,
Industry Recognition and Personal Life
00:39:18
Speaker
and church pews. It's all, at the end of the day, we're all called cowboy. We all really are. It's a thing out here. People don't realize I'm beautiful forward. What about cowboy? I never thought about that until I get out of town and I do it around. Or howdy, howdy, howdy, how y'all doing? Y'all really say that? And I'm like, oh, God.
00:39:33
Speaker
It's like we are far from home, you know, so. they are Yeah, we are not in the south anymore. Yeah, no, that's where it's at. Well, I love that. And I love your passion for Fort Worth, too. And then, um oh, goodness, my my side question to that was, um you mentioned, well, with UMG comes a lot of opportunities and things like that. And we were talking after off camera earlier about the People's Choice Awards. Yeah. You got an invite. Yeah. Talk about that. I mean, how cool.
00:39:59
Speaker
man I just remember getting, my manager, I don't remember where I was at. I think I was in Nashville and he's like, hey, the People's Choice Award, country award People's Choice Award takes you up and they want you to walk the red carpet. I'm like, am I getting invited? Or am I walking the red carpet? And they were like, well, let me clarify. somethinglare They were like, no, we want him to walk the carpet. So when I got there and the publicist from Universal was there, and et cetera, et cetera, I'm like, whoa, this is the real deal.
00:40:25
Speaker
i don't Have you ever been to Red Carpet Event? No. I've only been to like one, and it was um when they gave Cindy um a lifetime achievement award. That's where I met Big Boy, LL Cool J, Becky. I've known Becky since we were younger. That's a whole different story, but like ah yeah, that's crazy. We had to say yeah managers when we were little. Oh my gosh. um I end up seeing, you know, what it was kind of like. Yeah. But as I i like, some of like are yeah, I mean, well, I was still in the red carpet with sending them taking pictures with just with the label when Universal got there. OK, they had her come out and it was kind of cool. She's like, my guys, I need them. And it was like me, Brad Paisley and like the war tree. And I'm like just standing there like. Holy crap, you know what I mean? Yeah, we made it, fool. Yeah, I had to just start drinking, and I was like, oh, this is going to be a problem. So me and Chris Pettis, they were doing an acoustic version to come and take it. and But my this one was different, because so with red carpets, when people get there, I don't know if you ever see kind of like the phones. You hear everybody say their name. That happens? Yeah, oh, 100%. Like when Shaboosie came in, everybody's like, oh, Shaboosie, Shaboosie. That's something, thing you know? So I remember being like, that's Louis.
00:41:30
Speaker
who got paid to mess with my brain right now. I'm like, this is crazy. I got a jacket made by Rob the Original, shout out to the homie, super dope and very, very, very popular viral artist from California made my jacket. He drew Freddie Fender on the back. Freddie Fender pulled my grandma on stage back in the 70s at the rocket in the North side, right? So I let her pick the picture. Oh, it's like a whole thing. yeah We're from here, I want to tell you. So she does that. And the rocket was cool. If you didn't know this back in the day, there was just dances. It wasn't like clubs. It was like, we're going to the dance. We're going to the rally. It's like where they ran out of hall, a band plays, they charge you at the door. Dance. Yes. And wow the rocket was dope because the ceiling would slide open. So you could dance under the stars. I have a song called Dance With Me. And it was actually like I pictured myself in that era with my grandma because my grandma used to was the only person I ever knew growing up that
00:42:18
Speaker
drank Jack and Coke. She never drank. She drank maybe three times my whole life, and she only drank Jack and Coke. So my song starts off with a Jack and Coke, good old smoke, a country girl, somebody like that, but it talks about, I could see the stars in her eyes, because the cinnamon, but that's that's where it came from. So um we end up doing the red carpet here, and I'm walking out, and I got the Freddie Fenner jacket on, and I hear people singing. you're bad like you're looking in the part I mean I'm really I'm just man I'm me I'm like yeah I'm wearing a white cowboy and I'm walking out and black denim jacket you know and I've got some jewelry on so yeah I walk in I don't know what to expect and it's crazy when people like hey keep it up keep it up even people that I know online that I made keep it up man what's up hey Louie right and I'm like yeah what's up man and it's just so it was just very surreal but like
00:43:00
Speaker
Did anyone tell you anything or ask, what was the weirdest memory from that night? What was like? Man, I'll tell you. Did somebody ask for your socks or anything weird? like No, I mean, it was more just industry people. get got it So everybody's kind of cool, you know? Good. But I would say the craziest thing I was about, I went blank because I did have somebody like, yeah, no, there's definitely a crazy moments where they ask you weird questions. or yeah They try to put you on the spot sometimes sometimes, and I'm like, man, I'll say some throat shit, get us all cancer. How about throat? You know, I'm just kidding. yeah yeah So the the red carpet was definitely different. It was cool. It was just it was surreal, for real.
00:43:38
Speaker
Oh my goodness and it's you go from a high like that was just a few weeks ago last week something like that you go from that high to now it's football season we're gonna go into basketball season baseball season you get to be dad as well talk about that yeah that's like a really high transition high so my kids are like age-wise are so separate it's cool though because I tell me my brothers but I was one of four brothers I have four boys how that worked out I don't know my oldest you said karma right and that's the beautiful carma that yeah yeah bad karma is when they start acting like me but My oldest man, I love him to death. He can sing as well. um He's 15, but he's more, he reminds me a lot of myself. It's mad at the world.
00:44:22
Speaker
And everything in between it because everything that it did to you, you know, and I get it. So there's times where I distance is myself because I know what I want to say. But with the babies, it's opposite. It's like I can yell all day and they sit there and they'll still do it. But there's many kids who spoil. They got bounce water, bounce houses, regular bounce houses in the backyard.
00:44:42
Speaker
got We have a barn with a pool table and a basketball ah basketball arcade. What else is back there? A bunch of stuff that we didn't have. you know i mean My brother, we look at it all the time, and he's like, imagine having this as kids. i go It wouldn't last in three days. No. Because we did dumb shit. you know but you know um And my nine-year-old, he is my music guy for sure, though. The kids aren't even recording himself. He has a piano, guitar, um ah drums, and a band. and recording software on a bass in his bedroom. Like he, you know, hit we'll talk sometimes and it kind of hurts our fans when he's, I haven't had time for the music, but when he's on it, I'm like there with him and then I'll tell him like, hey, what what do you think about maybe changing this word? Cause he has recordings and he he's just like, he's like, yeah, I get what you're saying, but it's just, it's not going to go how I want it to end. Just just just wait till I'm done first. So I'm like,
00:45:29
Speaker
That's very funny though. Oh yeah, but it's creepy. I was like, now I know what people deal with with me. like But when you know, you know. So just let them like, you know. Man, I might dad all over again with my kids. Like, we're more outside, you know? Like, yeah we're we're running around. Like, it's hard to run around, to be honest with you, out nowadays because You know, I do get recognized, and you know, the guys have gone with me, you know, in different places, but I mean, it's like, man, to be honest, like, I come from different, like, man, I don't want my kids to be like that all the time. When I went out of town to go for my kids for their first day of school, I went by myself. Nobody even knew, like, the guys knew and stuff like that, but like, my manager didn't even know I went by myself, and in the morning I came back, he was like, what are you doing? I was like, heading back, I went to the kids' first day of school, and I drove by the time, he goes, oh, hey, who's driving? And he's like, me.
00:46:13
Speaker
You're by yourself? I said, yeah. He goes, it's food. So that just shows you where it's at for me. And sometimes I op have to realize like when my own manager is realizing like, why are you by yourself? You don't need to be by yourself. I get approached all the time at bars. if People will tell you it's all on Facebook. Man, just ran into Louis the singer, cool as fuck the way I never drank and talked to him for 30 minutes. I'll chop up with you. You know what I'm saying? You're like, that was cool, but also that was 30 minutes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. i mean i'm Yeah, I'm cool. I'm really cool. It's just, you know, going out with my kids now, like parks and stuff like that, like we do get filmed and stuff like that. And it gets, it's cool. It's just like hard for the babies to understand. I was in Vegas for myself. So my last day of tour was in Vegas. I played the House of Blues at the Motherly Bay. A dream. That was crazy. Wow.
00:46:59
Speaker
My son, that was his birthday. I'm like, dang. I flew him and his mom out for, and you know, he's watching me at the top and stuff like that. But before that, I said, we'll go shopping. You know, don't bring clothes. We'll go shopping while we're there. Happy birthday.
00:47:12
Speaker
Oh, I remember taking pictures with fans and looking over in here just to stare like, when did I get my time? I'm like, damn, him and his mom are already going at it in my defense. So I kind of just like this, like, damn, you know what? I got to do this right. So I just stayed with the move, walked around. did it And then at one point, it was just me, him, and his mom, I believe. and then ah But yeah, I tried my hardest to to do to make it as normal now because I don't know anything else but it. But no, I'm like,
00:47:42
Speaker
When I'm with my kids, they know, a lot of people know, don't even bother me. Yeah, and that's good. Yeah, and it makes me be okay whenever I get back on the road because when I'm far from them for too long or we're just not in like but agreements, you know, and the schedules don't line up, it hurts, you know, and it bothers me because I do all this to give them life I didn't have and ah I have my phone on the way, don't get me wrong, you know, like I love my job. So if you ever see me out smiling, having some drinks while I'm working, I mean,
00:48:11
Speaker
I think if anybody's mad at that, they just mad that it's not their job because I would have been too. But I mean, I get it. you know so But there are times where i I, trust me, my guys know if I wanted to, I'd take off for two weeks. Won't talk to nobody as long as I got my mic and everything to record my music. yeah music much I'm good, ain't gonna hurt the bank. But the truth is, is I'm not that guy, it's not. If I go, I'm working. You're always working. Oh man, 100%. And they'll tell you, i there's days I wake up dealing with the craziest stuff with my children, and you would never even know it. Interview the interview afterwards, just till I get back, and they'll tell you straight up, I'll throw everything off, I'm pissed. I woke up, and I've tore up a whole Airbnb before, took off in my own RV, left, everybody without everybody, just left, my own manager called me,
00:48:57
Speaker
I'm like, I'm going, he's like, you're by yourself? Yup. He was like, you're driving the RV? I said, I own it. Oh, I've lost my whole brain on tour. Namely, just staying away from the kids and knowing all this shit's going on. And imagine what tour just started. That's like, man, you know, I had a lot going on with my oldest son this year. and
00:49:18
Speaker
full circle stuff, you know, so it's like, in a way, I'm kind of happy in a bad way. that i'm In a bad way, I'm mad that I know what what to expect because I was there, you know, and it definitely trick trickles into my work, you know, and me wanting to be out and my anxiety and stuff like that, but I wouldn't trade none of it because it's the only thing that keeps me sane, being a dad.
00:49:42
Speaker
And I love seeing the sight of you two because you are a tough guy and you've been through some stuff that's made you tough. But um this is the second time in like a month that I've sat next to a grown man that is wanting to get teary eyed about their kids.
Performances and Career Ambitions
00:49:54
Speaker
So I just got to give a huge shout out to you because that means you care. You're on it. And I bet at some points like my parents and I have talked about at times they just wanted to like.
00:50:02
Speaker
pick me up and shake me and be like, get back on the right path. What are you doing? I'm sure you can relate to that. You want to just like, come on, on ahead get it together. I want you to do this, but, um, we don't have to go there. I just, yeah I just want to say that I commend you so much for that. And, um, you mentioned to kind of change things a little bit, you mentioned, um, in Vegas playing. Yeah. Okay. So I've got to ask you, this is on my list. What has been your most favorite place to play? And then in the future, what is like your like next goal level? Okay. I thought you're going to be like, what's the crazy thing that happened? I was already looking at it.
00:50:31
Speaker
ah ah yout do that yeah um Crazy place I've played so far. I have to honestly say Billy Bob's okay because that was hometown to see almost 3,000 people in a room on a Wednesday right after Christmas for you yeah it was Wednesday right after Christmas christmas two days after It was a little like, whoa, in July, this, you know? And my I was wearing all white, and my mom's friend Stephanie, she was like, you know, not being funny, it came out, it was like frickin' Elvis, I loved it. And I'm like, chill, you know? But I was like, you know?
00:51:04
Speaker
Philly knowing that my people that were so close to me growing up felt that way, it shows me that that was a whole different energy level. I'll be honest, there's times where I stand there for at least a minute and they just don't stop screaming and I'm just sitting there. They don't even know it. like I'm trying not to either cry or just be like,
00:51:23
Speaker
What the hell is going on? you know But I'm sitting there just taking it in. And before I know it, I'm like, I haven't said nothing for a minute now. Even the guys, my buddy, I don't know if he was in Kombya Kings back in the day. He goes, dude, you got to do the freeze. I'm like, what's the freeze? He goes, they are already doing it for you. We used to go on stage, and boom.
00:51:42
Speaker
The whole band would stop. He said, he stopped for six minutes. I go, ah, hell. No, I'm like, no. I'm definitely not the Kombya King's yet, boo. I'm like, we for six minutes, they're gonna be like, he's a robot. You know, it's 2024, we can't do that. He say, I ain't mean I don't know. Stuff. So nah, like um Vegas, I mean, Billy Bobs was the dopest one, but on my bucket list,
00:52:05
Speaker
Yeah, if you could do it tomorrow, where would you perform at your dream place? I don't know because it's not really about the place. It's about who's there. You know, like, like, we're like, like.
00:52:15
Speaker
I don't know how to explain it. It's like though if it's going to be that, it's got to be like when my mom and everybody there and it's not aware though. That's true. Yeah, yeah because like my the People's Choice Awards, I had one invite and i ah my first choice was going to be my mom or my grandma, but I couldn't take both. So I was like, all right, I'm not going to take you the other one until I could take both. So I took my manager and he was like, I'm not mad if you don't want me to go. I go, no, I said, no, I want you to go. I think this is cool for both. This is my first one. but And then now, when you get invited for an award, you're nominated for something, then you can bring mom or mom. Oh, no, yeah, for sure. No, yeah. Like, even with the guys, like, you know, because only for everybody going there, man, I bought everybody else's tickets just to be in the crowd and just to hang out. Like, because we didn't even expect it, but we saw a lot of dope performers. Like, I mean, just all kinds of stuff. Like, but. Have you gotten to meet Jelly Roll? I feel like that. OK, I feel like he's so down to earth. So, man, he is so nice. He's definitely showing love even online. We got something crazy with that. But to conclude on that other thing, I mean,
00:53:10
Speaker
um I would like to headline you know something like American Airline Center one day and something big like that. you know like i just come on mean you I don't know if you saw and ah um Morgan Wallin, just 157,000 people at his hometown show. He beat the Jackson Five records. The Jackson Five, I hadn't heard that. Jackson Five was the last one to hold that record and he beat it.
00:53:32
Speaker
Do you understand what that must, like, he's probably somewhere on cloud nine, man, like that's beautiful, you know? yeah Something like that would be cool, like, honestly, like, you know, shut down all of Fort Worth and or something like that and just have, like, a big-ass show, and you know? and Louis the Singer Day, honestly. Yeah, it's like, man, like, I'm from here, you know what I'm saying? like Like, you know, bring out the the people from Fort Worth, Leon Bridges, you know, like, that but that's the homie. People don't know this, Leon was my backup singer in 2011.
00:54:01
Speaker
No way first fact his first time ever on stage was the House of Blues in Dallas with me He put it online and that kind of like sparked a lot of things and what matters is like you got to tell people I'm like why is that cuz nobody will like it's like All right, cool. But yeah, I know there's like that's crazy like with me me Becky Leon on everything like they didn't know what to be like that was all in the around the same time and I was in prison when they were having their big boom and I'm ever being like it was a real bad fuckup story, but yeah, um I would like to have a Louis the same day, that'd be cool. That'd be cool. That'd be awesome. Yeah, but one day. Yeah, one day. But we're doing Dickie Serena in like nine days. OK, so let's talk about that then. Yeah, huge. big I was actually a big Ryan Bingham fan because of Yellowstone, of course. OK, me too. That's how I found him. Yeah, he comes out of prison. you know I'm like, I kind of relate. where He's not the big dude, but you could definitely tell. Don't piss this fool off. you know it's like But he does music. i'm like
00:54:56
Speaker
I relate to Rip more than anything, but now I'm like, yo, hold on, I like this guy. When I got into the show real heavy, became a Ryan Bingham fan, of course, listened to the music. I remember listening to his songs first and being like, dude, how does your voice sound like that? It's like super old school but modern. It doesn't even, it sounds like something out of a movie. You can't explain it. Yeah, sounds like something out of a movie. And you can feel, same like you, you can feel his emotion. The grunge.
00:55:19
Speaker
The grunge, just like the rawness. So of course I was a Ryan Bingham fan and I get a call in there like, yo, you want to play? I don't remember how it happened if there was through the agency or through whatever, but I remember getting a call like, hey, do you want to dig his arena with Ryan Bingham? He wants you to open up.
00:55:36
Speaker
Yeah, what? And they told me that he was actually on a ah show recently. My mom's old boss hit her up and was like, I was listening to an interview with Ryan Bingham and he brought up Louie. It was like, I got great Texas acts. That ended up opening up for me coming up. louis I was like, what? This is cool, you know? And then, of course, Shaboozy. I remember seeing his um spark on the Internet around the same time and not being funny, he got the number one single first. Bam. So he was gone, you
Diverse Representation in Country Music
00:56:02
Speaker
know, and he's doing all that. So when I saw a full circle moment of him ending up back on um with this show with me, I was like, awesome. And of course, Shane Smith and the Saints, those who was cold with it, like really, really cold with it. Yeah. And then of course, Tanya Tucker.
00:56:14
Speaker
um Tanya just to be a part of like a lineup like that it was cool But also the only Mexican American representation on there And I don't really like to bring that up because I don't want to always want to make it this box You know, but the truth is is they're starting to recognize. Yes, you know and I get tired Don't get me wrong, but if they say go here here here it'll be a good thing We spark some every city to where there's going to be other men of color with opportunity. Definitely. I don't even mean just Mexicans. There's some Asian country singers that are cold, straight up. It's a thing. ah Maoli, right? Maoli's another one. He's actually like a islander, right?
00:56:52
Speaker
He's like a Hawaiian. He's got a great following. He does like a Hawaiian country mix. It is, oh, it's beautiful. Okay, now I'm gonna go look it up. Oh, no, it's cold. So it's like, I just, you know, I see all these other guys working, like, you know what? It's just all time to push down the wall together. There's room for everyone, period. Man, there's so much, because the truth is, let's be honest, everybody's worried about the money. And the moment you're worried about the money, that's when it don't work, genius. You're right.
00:57:21
Speaker
The truth is, there's enough money for everybody. Because the even bigger part is, and it gets to that point, what the hell are you gonna do with all this money? right I gotta go buy you some shit. Holy, day I gotta learn about tax, right I gotta learn about well my escort. like but Oh man, I don't know nothing. They took taxes out for payroll, and my assistants happen to explain that. And I'm like, you didn't tell me. you know like It's just so much. you know so I like your outlook on that, because there will be a point one time when you get to the point where you're like, I've done it all, I've seen it all, I have it all. what Well, not only that, the funny part is is there's two different people that jump into into the industry. People that want to be rich and famous and people that just want to do music. There are people that want to feed their families off of music. That's a whole different thing. yeah yeah That's the guy that goes to work that don't want to be there, but he knows why he's there. you know But at the same time, imagine when you do love your dog. That's the win-win. That's when the spice comes along. That's why I tell everybody.
00:58:13
Speaker
They're like, oh, well but i wanted I said, but you didn't hear what I said. That's when you love your job. I love this. People are like, why you work so much? I'm not working. I'm having fun. yeah And I can't sit still. But I don't move forward. i'm not i'm i'm that is a That is negative momentum to me. I just spent 24 hours not moving forward. Why?
00:58:34
Speaker
I have people, artists complain all the time, how do I do this, how do I do that, I need this, I do that. I said, man, I got four kids, felonies got it, went to prison and back, and lost a whole bunch of bullshit to this. Man, it sounded like excuses to me. yeah You want to go get it. Wake up and do it, yeah. My dad taught me something that I never lived by, but I applied to certain things. I did live by it, and winter it but it wasn't how you should live. He taught me, you got a problem fixing, somebody's in your way moving.
00:58:57
Speaker
That's it. And you know what? The truth is, in this industry, that's exactly what it is. I had so many no's. It's like, you know what? I will go somewhere with the yes. But I will remember those no's. And I won't shun them out. But I will say, remember. Come on now. Because it starts somewhere. It's got to start somewhere. You know, just be the bigger mouth with some of these guys, man. Because the truth is, his longevity isn't meant for everybody. A guy might not even be here next week. Guy that holds my camera, not him, but like the guy that, or anybody that could say that the guy that holds my camera next week, he's a country artist.
00:59:27
Speaker
You're right. You know, the guy that's a country artist next week, he's holding a camera. It's a thing. Don't get no ideas. Well, that reminds me of the story. I don't know if you've heard about Cole Swindell and Luke Bryan and how they... Have you seen that documentary? I haven't. Okay, well, in your all your free time that you don't have. Okay. Check it out. But that's exactly how Cole Swindell came. He was selling t-shirts for Luke Bryan. Oh, yes. I do know this story. Yeah, he was the merch guy. Yes. Yeah. The merch guy. That's how he's known. Straight up. The merch guy. That'd be funny. That's always a thing. Yes.
00:59:51
Speaker
That's always a level of thing. He used to be and now he's into my assistant moving on to a road management position. You can imagine going from getting paid just to do some shirts and then getting paid to ah do everything for me for and then I'll get a percentage of everything because you are doing that. You know the levels of men, I have been to labels where two years after I've been there, the water guy that led us in is the guy I'm having a meeting with. I swear to you. I've seen it. I've seen it. Like, weren't you the, yeah, man. So I'm, it's a long story, but what's up? Talk to me about the music. And I'm like, you were the water guy. You got me a water. You know, like, you know, like, so it's like, I mean, little things like that to me are inspiring. Cause it's like, you never know. i My manager will tell you cause he used to do music. I always wanted to be in the room. I always had nothing to do with me. I wanted to be there. Just wanted to learn and wanted to be involved, you know?
01:00:38
Speaker
That is the right attitude to have, especially, like, I grew up rodeoing, and the same thing translates. Yes, yeah, so we probably common. We kids probably have a whole other podcast about horses, but the gate guy. The gate guy was always the one you wanted to be friends with, not because it mattered to you, not because, but because he didn't have to be there. He's opening the gate, he gets no, he's probably not even gonna be paid, it's probably volunteer, or I guess gate woman, too. yeah um But you gotta treat them the same and think, and then the next thing you know, they've worked their way up there, the president of the Roundup Club, or the president of the rodeo,
01:01:07
Speaker
Same concept. You know what's weird? I'm nice to, I'm cool with everybody. Like if it's one of those situations, they know me and I'm in my mood, I'm like man, and it's really like an anxiety thing. I'm like, man, I won't talk to nobody right now. Give me a second. And it's because I don't want to make a fool of myself. But there's times where I've talked to somebody, like one of my guys made the mistake of thinking one of our, but we're cool now. We thought this artist was a camera guy for like three days straight. So
Authenticity and New Releases
01:01:32
Speaker
I'm like, cause I'm working. And you know, when I'm at the studio in Nashville with Universal, I'm,
01:01:37
Speaker
I was already told that there was going to be artists watching me work. I didn't know whatever. I feel like I have so much going on yeah there for five days. That's minor. yeah Yeah. So I'm like, cool, you know, y'all introduced me. So I swear to you, I felt bad. little He thought he was like sitting there standing the and I finally asked him, hey, man, who's this bottle man? I'm in here writing these records. Like, did he sign anything? Like what's going on? Yeah, he's recording all this. yeah daniel Daniel goes, oh, that's a camera guy's assistant. Yeah, that's cool. So I thought he wasn't a guy's assistant. I'm cool with him for three days. He was the artist, Timberland and Universal. just
01:02:09
Speaker
But that shows you, you just be cool with everybody, because the truth is you ain't better than nobody. This could be over tomorrow for me. This could be over next year, you know what I'm saying? Like, that's the truth. But I never- It won't be? No, it won't be, but because I'm not lying to nobody. This is who I am. Sometimes I'm a piece of shit and I try not to be, you know what I'm saying? But I'm trying to change like everybody else. but every single person relates to you because of that. We all have, you know, we can, you know, for real though, like even when you're doing good and you're on track, you still have a negative thought or you still, so like 100%. I don't give a damn, which is one of my records is the most yelled out song. And I always start that off with, I'm like, be honest with you, how many I gotta go to work tomorrow? How many? Yeah.
01:02:56
Speaker
How many of y'all really don't give a damn? Then it's like, ah! And that's when I'm like, you know what? yeah This is crazy. And just to give you a little plug, I do have a song called P.O.S. coming out. okay Paul took the reins on it, so Paul Wallace is going to be putting out a record called P.O.S., featuring Louis the singer and, can't tell you yet, but just trust me. And I can't tell y'all, but I will tell y'all this, the internet, I swear to you, has been asking for this for almost two years.
01:03:21
Speaker
Oh my gosh. i made it happen Well, I absolutely can't wait. I think that was like the perfect segue to end this thing yeah because we're going to be anxiously waiting for, for that to come out and honestly cheering you on Billy Bob's. I mean, sorry. Dickie's arena is happening by the time the podcast is going to be out. It's going to be this weekend. So you guys go get your tickets. You're not going to want to miss it now that you've gotten to sit here and get an experience that like really no one else gets. Um, you've gotten to hear his story where he came from, like,
01:03:48
Speaker
It's gonna make you, I'm like, right, I'm so happy. I'm like, okay, let's go. tyler Tyler's my husband. Let's go to every show from now on, you know. um So anyways, thank you for being here. so much And i I can't help, I've got to give you a plug on your social media. So everyone right now, take out your phones and go follow at Louis the singer on social media. And fun fact, it's not Louis the singer, it's Louis the singer. yeah That's kind of a running joke around here. Yeah, everybody's always like, and I, I mean, i'm I was,
01:04:13
Speaker
whatever young when I came up with the idea because I only came up with it for handles. Okay. So if you didn't follow me or you and you just saw my name, you knew what I did at least. Yeah. Oh, Louis. the so He's a singer, but he is. There you go. That's why I changed. it I used to go by something else else, but I changed it to Louis the singer because I saw social media was changing around 2011. So I changed my name for that. very smart. Yeah, very smart. So you guys go check him out. He has a website that keeps up to date with the shows. If you can't make Dickey's arena, you're not in Fort Worth area. There's one coming up on 10 19 10 26. He's going to be in Harlington, Texas, Hobbs, New Mexico, everywhere. He's got some shows in December coming up. So you just really never know where he might pop up. But
01:04:49
Speaker
Stay tuned for POS. That's going to be coming up in the future. Like it, download it, favorite it, leave it a review, whatever you got to do. um And then same here. If you have any more questions, if you want to know more, if you think I didn't maybe ask a question that you wanted answered, feel free to comment below. And then ah as always hit that bell in and the top right hand corner to subscribe to this channel, subscribe to all the podcast episodes. And we are so excited to see you in the next episode, but thank you guys for kicking your boots up with us.
01:05:16
Speaker
Thanks for joining us on Kick Your Boots Up. I'm your host, Taylor McAdams, and we can't wait to share the next story of the West. Until then, feel free to like, subscribe, and leave us a review. Follow us on social media at Justin Boots to keep up with our next episode, and we'll see you the next time you kick your boots up.