Kristian Bush

At 54 years old, Kristian Bush has this physical status:

Kristian Merrill Bush (born March 14, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer.

Bush is a former member of the folk rock duo Billy Pilgrim with Andrew Hyra, and he is one half of the country music duo Sugarland with Jennifer Nettles.

In addition to his participation in these two bands, Bush has released Southern Gravity, his first solo album on Streamsound Records in 2015.

Early life

Kristian Bush was born in Knoxville, Tennessee. He is A.J.'s great grandson. Bush Brothers and Company's founder, Robert Bush, sold their stakes in the business when Bush was a child, but Kristian's cousin, Jay Bush, continues as the company's spokesperson. Bush was born outside of Knoxville, Tennessee, a small town at the base of the Smoky Mountains that was also the hometown of Dolly Parton. He was introduced to instruments from an early age and began playing his first violin at the age of four years. During his early years, Bush, along with younger brother Brandon, made his musical debut at the local Bush Beans Jamboree, opening Parton's Opening Act.

Throughout childhood, Bush was enrolled in violin lessons and classically trained under the Suzuki method at the University of Tennessee. The family eventually moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, where Bush, at the age of 11, promised to play one season in the Knoxville Youth Symphony before gaining permission to lay the violin down for good and begin to play the guitar. Bush became a teen and began to write original music. He wasn't long before he was writing his own songs and recording homemade albums.

Bush attended Avon Old Farms Boarding School in Avon, Connecticut, graduating in 1988. He later attended Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where he obtained a degree in Creative Writing. During college, Bush began to engage with Atlanta's burgeoning music scene, often begging his way into clubs; and finally seeing firsthand performances from bands like R.E.M. The Indigo Girls, (fellow Emory students) and (fellow Emory students).

Personal life

Bush has a son and a daughter from his marriage, which ended in 2011.

Brandon Bush is a founding member of Train, as well as tours with Sugarland and Kristian's solo project as a keyboardist.

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Musical career

Bush, the lead singer and guitarist in the rock band Storyteller, was joined by Emory students Chris "Tex" Nolter (bass, guitar) and Jon Slatkin (drums). Storyteller, Rod Stewart's "I Can't Wait," Rod Stewart's "Mirror in the Bathroom," and Jane's Addiction's "Jane Says"), among other things, and several bars, campus functions, and dances in Atlanta, and others.

Billy Pilgrim and Andrew Hyra formed a youth rock band in the early 1990s, and he and him began performing together. After Hyra and his sister Annie left Tennessee to pursue music together as a brother-sister pair, the Hyras, Bush and Hyra met in Knoxville. When he was in college, Bush had developed a number of studio acquaintances, and he and the Hyras began performing together. Annie contributed to Bush's Politics and Pocketchange album, while Bush played guitar on the Hyras' Big Back Porch Songs. When Annie left for a Florida job, Bush was recruited to fill up a string of Hyra's shows.

As a new pair, Bush and Hyra soon relocated to Atlanta and gained a following, as well as a position in the acoustic scene and songwriting community. They appeared on Emory's campus occasionally under their names before deciding on a moniker for the pair. Bush and Hyra settled on Billy Pilgrim (borrowed from Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five) and released two albums for Atlantic Records (their 1994 self-titled debut and 1995's Bloom), as well as a worldwide tour supporting Melissa Etheridge in 1995.

Bush co-founded Sugarland in 2002, when the country's first female singer, Tim Walker, joined Mercury Records Nashville in 2004. They have surpassed sales of over 22 million albums worldwide, with five of them ranking No. 1 on the charts. One singles and won many trophies, including trophies from the Grammy, American Music Awards, Academy of Country Music Awards, CMT Music Awards, and CMA Awards, among other things.

Sugarland's debut single "Baby Girl," the first single from their multi-platinum debut album Twice the Speed of Life, was released in 2004. The trio formed a partnership in 2006 when they also released their second album, Enjoy the Ride. The first two No. 2s on the album were the first two. In the United States, "Want To" and "Settlin'"), with 1 singles (in the United States), and the duo's "Stay" received a Grammy Award, and the pair shared the prestigious duo. They released Love on the Inside, their third album, in 2008. There were three more No. 1s on the album. "All I Want to Do," "Already Gone" and "It Happens" are just a few of the songs on "It Happens." The Incredible Machine's fourth album, The Incredible Machine, was released in both a standard and deluxe version on October 19, 2010. Sugarland has recorded sales in excess of 14 million units since being named platinum on the Incredible Machine. All of the band's songs are written by Nettles and Bush. They were inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in October of 2012.

Sugarland reunited at the 2017 Annual Country Music Association Awards after a five-year absence and revealed that they were working on new music together. In March 2018, the band's first full-band performances were at the C2C: Country to Country festival. Bigger, their sixth studio album, was released on June 8, 2019.

Bush has received six BMI Awards for his songwriting skills, as well as the creation of Songs of the Architect in 2011. Ellis Paul, Matthew Watson, dB's Martin Johnson, Pretty Little Liars actor Lucy Hale, and up-and-coming artists including Kristina Train, Larkin Poe, Lauren Alaina, Jaida Dreyer, and Alana Springsteen are among the latest writing and songwriting partnerships.

Bush performed his solo debut at the inaugural C2C: Country to Country Festival in London, England, in March 2013. "Love or Money," his first single as a solo act on iTunes, as well as an official lyric video posted on YouTube for fans back home in the United States, debuted on Twitter in Europe. He has appeared in the Country Music Association's Songwriters Series, as well as time spent in Europe with the CMA's first-ever international initiative showcasing Nashville songwriters and their work to international audiences in bars and theaters. Bush is also a frequent panelist and speaker at National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NAS) events.

In July 2013, Bush collaborated with Big Blue Bubble, a Canadian-based computer and video game company, to become the new character and first celebrity guest in the hit online game My Singing Monsters. After being introduced to the game by his 11-year-old son, Bush became a fan of the game. He took his liking of the game to his Twitter account and was soon connected with head developer Dave Kerr. On July 29, 2013, Bush was invited to guest star and made his debut as the all-new "Shugabush" monster. For the role, Bush provides his own mandolin and vocal recordings. Shugabush Island, a new island, was also included in the game, with a song that closely resembled Bush's " Love Or Money."

Longtime Sugarland producer Byron Gallimore remixed "Love or Money" on October 10, 2013 and brought it to iTunes in the United States. Gallimore wanted to hear more of Bush's solo recordings after the match, and then joined Streamsound Records, his own label.

"Trailer Hitch," Bush's debut solo album, was released on July 28, 2014. Southern Gravity, his first solo album, was released on April 7, 2015. He produced over 300 songs for the project, which he referred to as a "mainstream country record" that is supposed to be broadcast on the radio.

Bush has signed a new publishing, manufacturing, and label contract with Broken Bow Records, where he will be releasing under their imprint Wheelhouse Records on February 5, 2016.

When the 14th season of "Yes to the Dress" premiered on March 4, 2016, writers and performed by Bush, "Forever Now (Say Yes)" became the new theme tune for the TLC reality show Say Yes to the Dress's new theme tune. Later this season, Bush will appear on the program for the first time.

On Troubadour, a romantic comedy set in 1950s Nashville (featuring original songs by Bush), was scheduled to make its debut at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia on January 28, 2017. In March 2017, he returned to the C2C: Country to Country festival, frontlining the CMA songwriters collection.

Summertime Six Pack, Bush's latest EP, was released on May 31, 2019.

Rita Wilson, Bigger Picture, and Halfway to Home have co-written with actress and singer Rita Wilson on three of her albums; Rita Wilson, Bigger Picture; and Halfway to Home. In 2019, Will Wilson will be touring the country as he returns from holiday.

In 2019, Bush formed a new band with his brother Brandon and a Benji Shank called Dark Water. "I can't wait for people to hear it," the band's leader says.

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Awards and accolades

• 2012 Named Distinguished Alumnus, Avon Old Farms School
• 2011 CMA Awards Vocal Duo of the Year - Sugarland
• 2011 CMT Music Awards Duo Video of the Year - Sugarland, "Stuck Like Glue"
• 2011 ACM Awards Top Vocal Duo - Sugarland
• 2010 CMA Awards Vocal Duo of the Year - Sugarland
• 2009 CMA Awards Vocal Duo of the Year - Sugarland
• 2009 CMT Music Awards Duo Video of the Year - Sugarland, "All I Want To Do"
• 2009 ACM Awards Top Vocal Duo - Sugarland
• 2009 Grammy Awards Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group - Sugarland, "Stay"
• 2009 Grammy Awards Best Country Song - Sugarland, "Stay"
• 2008 CMA Awards Vocal Duo of the Year - Sugarland
• 2008 CMT Music Awards Duo Video of the Year - Sugarland, "Stay"
• 2008 ACM Awards Single of the Year - Sugarland, "Stay"
• 2007 CMA Awards Vocal Duo of the Year - Sugarland
• 2007 CMT Awards Duo Video of the Year - Sugarland, "Want To"
• 2006 ACM Awards Top New Duo or Vocal Group - Sugarland
• 2005 American Music Awards Favorite Breakthrough New Artist - Sugarland