Colby Acuff has a side project that he’s passionate about… and you should be passionate about it too.
Fresh off the release of his new album, Handmade Horsepower, the country music artist joined the Whiskey Riff Raff to talk about the viral origins of his “Dunk That Sh*t” mantra, the art of meme marketing, why he thinks social media is broken, and shared his thoughts on some of the most talented artists in the genre still not getting the recognition they deserve.
Colby also dove into his frustrations with modern country music, explained why he believes Nashville is still the place to be for aspiring artists, and shared why Handmade Horsepower is the record he wants to be remembered for. He also discussed writing every song on the album himself, the short film that accompanies the project, and the impact artists like Sturgill Simpson have had on his career.
He’s currently in the middle of everything that comes with releasing a new album (mostly touring and getting the songs out in front of people), but once some of that settles back down, Acuff would love to give some more attention to something called Fin and Feather.
If you’ve haven’t ever heard of it, I’ll let the country singer explain it in his own words:
Just as Colby Acuff is doing his best to shake up the country music industry (have you heard “LIPSTICK ON A PIG”), the Idaho native is going against the grain in the hunting and fishing media world.
And if there’s anyone that’s equipped to do it, it’s Colby. In case you didn’t know, he worked as an outdoorsman before focusing on his music career. He says his background – and his passion for conservation – is what inspired him to start Fin and Feather:
“I was a fly fishing guide before I played music, and it’s always been something on my mind. I grew up watching a lot of fishing videos and hunting videos. I always thought that would be a cool thing to go back to. Especially because I think a lot of the hunting and fishing media space tells maybe the wrong narrative.
My goal was to just essentially go hunt and fish with these guides and these outfitters and let them talk about the resource that they work every day. And I’d just be a client for a day, go fish and hunt… I don’t have to do too much. It’s huge perk, and it’s worked out really well.”
Shining a light on conversation efforts and getting to spend time in the great outdoors? Not a bad gig at all.
Fin and Feather started last year, releasing seven different episodes. If you were a fan of the series, the good news is that there’s more ready to go:
“Last year we put seven out, but we have six more in the hopper. While it is kind of a side project and maybe it isn’t getting as much attention from me personally right now – we’re also rolling out this album and all these other things – definitely expect more Fin and Feather videos to come out.”
You might be wondering what the “why” is for Colby taking on a project like this. Other than him simply being passionate about fly fishing and waterfowl hunting, the country singers senses a lack of respect for the practice itself in most other modern hunting and fishing videos:
“I think people nowadays like the sport because they have seen so many videos of people killing and stacking ducks, (saying) ‘Oh it’s just about how many ducks you can kill.’ That’s why everyone is so mad because they’re like, ‘We’re not killing that many ducks.’
A fun day is when you go in and shoot a stack of birds, but that’s not why I love duck hunting. I was sitting in a duck blind at five years old with my dad at sunrise, watching the birds work, learning how to call, working the dogs. There’s so many other factors that I care so much more about. It’s an art form.”
@whiskeyriff @Colby Acuff #whiskeyriff #whiskeyriffraff ♬ Western White Pines – Colby Acuff
In other words, Fin and Feather is conservation over just killing, and Colby Acuff – a former fly fishing guide himself – is the perfect personality to tell all of the stories there are to tell in a way that’s different than anyone else out there doing it. You can hear about all of that and more from Colby Acuff by checking out the interview on YouTube or making sure to download the podcast on Apple Podcasts by searching “Whiskey Riff Raff” or by clicking here.
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Cheers, y’all.
