Everybody knows that Chris Stapleton has one of the most diverse voices in all of music.
Whether it’s straight up country, soul, R&B, blues… the man can do it all, and better than just about anybody. If you think his critically-acclaimed debut album Traveller is just a “country” record… think again.
So it’s no surprise his services have been requested by everybody from Adele and Taylor Swift, to Pink, Carlos Santana, Morgan Wallen, Tom Morello, Ed Sheeran… the list is endless. But I’ll be the first to admit, taking one glance at the long-haired, bearded “country boy” who grew up around the coal mines of eastern Kentucky, you would think he grew up on old school country artists like Hank Sr., Buck Owens, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, the OG country legends.
And he did… but he says he also grew up listening to rappers like Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg.
Chris sat down for a 60-Minutes interview with Sharyn Alfonsi a while back, and believe it or not, rap and hip hop had a huge influence in his life. He admitted to listening to Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg a ton growing up.
When Alfonsi told him it was hard to see him blasting Dre and Snoop Dogg as a teenager, he responded:
“Yeah, it was, you know… it was some of the realist. It was so real, that it translated even to some kid in eastern Kentucky who had no notion of the things that he was talking about, you know.
It was dangerous too, and real and dangerous are very appealing to you know, 15-16-year-old kids.”
That just shows you that any genre of music can translate and influence anybody… as long as it’s REAL.
Personally, I love the image of Chris Stapleton now, a grown man, bumping “Gin & Juice” in an old Cadillac. Just imagine Chris pulling up to the Grammys with the top down and Snoop coming out of the speakers… what a sight that would be.
