Briston Lee Maroney is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Knoxville, Tennessee who is signed to Canvasback Music and Atlantic Records. He has released two EPs through the labels, including his most recent collection, "Sunflower” which was partially released and the full album was released April 9, 2021.

Briston Maroney
Briston Maroney in July 2022.
Background information
Born (1998-01-24) January 24, 1998 (age 26)
Jacksonville, Florida
OriginKnoxville, Tennessee
GenresFolk, rock
Years active2013–present
Labels
Websitewww.bristonmaroney.com

Early life

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Briston Maroney largely grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee.[1] In August 2013, at age 15, Maroney tried out for the 13th season of American Idol at one of its audition bus stops in Knoxville.[2] He was then selected to audition in front of the American Idol judges in Salt Lake City. There, he sang a version of The Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want" on an episode that aired in January 2014.[3] The judges voted to advance him to Hollywood,[4] where he became one of 30 semi-finalists.[5] Maroney did not advance beyond that point.[6]

Maroney sang and played guitar in the bluegrass band Subtle Clutch from 2013 to 2015.[7] The band began busking on the street corners of Knoxville, and played venues such as Dollywood, The Square Room, and the WDVX Blue Plate Special, as well as music festivals such as Knoxville's Rhythm N' Blooms.[8]

Maroney attended Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he studied music.[9]

Career

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In 2015, he independently released his first EP, Reason to Shake.[10]

In 2017, Maroney independently released an EP called Big Shot.[11] In 2018, he began releasing new tracks, including "Under My Skin",[12] "I've Been Waiting",[13] and "Freakin' Out on the Interstate". Those songs all appeared on his first EP with Canvasback Music and Atlantic Records called Carnival, released in November 2018.[14] "Freakin' Out on the Interstate" ended up being certified Gold by RIAA in 2021.[15] In March 2019, Maroney made his first appearance at South by Southwest.[16] He also opened for Liz Cooper & The Stampede[17] and Wallows on their respective tours that year.[18]

In May 2019, he released his second major label EP, Indiana, a collection of songs focusing on the change that came from his time spent living between Knoxville, California, and Florida, and ultimately his move to Nashville.[19] Indiana featured the lead single "Caroline".[20] Later that month, another song from the collection, "Fool's Gold", was featured on Taylor Swift's Apple Music "Playlist by ME!".[21] A music video for that song was released the following month.[22]

He performed at Austin City Limits Music Festival in October 2019.[23]

Maroney cites John Prine, Bob Dylan, and Neil Young as some early influences. He has also expressed his appreciation for indie rock bands like Wallows, The Districts, and Illiterate Light, as well as current Americana acts such as Dogwood Tales, Jason Isbell, and Kacey Musgraves.[24][25]

Personal life

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Maroney stated that, within the span of about a month in 2018, he dropped out of college, ended a relationship, and, thus, had to find a permanent place to stay and a stable job to work at. Despite being underage at that time, he went to rehab for about two months. He kept figuring out what to do with his life as he moved from Knoxville to California, from there to Florida, and from Florida back to Nashville, during which time he decided to keep pursuing a career in music.[26] As of 2023, he has been dating artist Samia for two years.[27]

Discography

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Studio albums

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List of Studio albums with year released and selected album details
Title Album details
Sunflower
Ultrapure
List of EPs with year released and selected album details
Title Album details
Reason to Shake
Big Shot
  • Released: December 8, 2017
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: Digital download
Carnival
  • Released: November 16, 2018
  • Label: Canvasback/Atlantic
  • Format: Digital download
Indiana
  • Released: May 17, 2019
  • Label: Canvasback/Atlantic
  • Format: Digital download

Singles

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List of singles with selected details
Title Year Album
"Under My Skin" 2018 Carnival
"Freakin' Out on the Interstate"
"Rose" 2019
"Caroline" Indiana
"St. Augustine"
"Small Talk"
"Fool's Gold"
"Deep Sea Diver" 2020 Sunflower
"Freeway"
"It's Still Cool If You Don't" 2021
"Sinkin'"
"Bottle Rocket"
"Why"
"Rollercoaster"
"Cinnamon"
"The Kids"

References

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  1. ^ Wildsmith, Steve (November 20, 2013). "Youthful enthusiasm for Old Time music powers the band Subtle Clutch". The Daily Times. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  2. ^ Pickle, Betsy (August 23, 2013). "Making an 'Idol'". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  3. ^ Mansfield, Brian (January 29, 2014). "'American Idol' in Utah: It's another Tiquila sunrise". USA Today. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  4. ^ Harris, Chris (February 8, 2014). "American Idol hopeful has local connection". Commonwealth Journal. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  5. ^ Bricker, Tierney (February 13, 2014). "American Idol: Meet the Top 30 Semi-Finalists of Season 13!". E! News. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  6. ^ "Briston Maroney does not advance on 'Idol'". WBIR. February 19, 2014. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  7. ^ "Railroad - Single, by Subtle Clutch". Subtle Clutch. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  8. ^ "Subtle Clutch". www.facebook.com. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  9. ^ "Lipscomb alum Briston Maroney plays Live on the Green 615 Stage". Lumination Network. August 31, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  10. ^ "Briston Maroney - Reason To Shake — Knoxville Music Warehouse - The Blog for new music, info on live shows, and a full live music calendar". Knoxville Music Warehouse - The Blog for new music, info on live shows, and a full live music calendar. Archived from the original on December 11, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  11. ^ Stahlke, Kristin (September 5, 2018). "PREMIERE: Briston Maroney Channels Jack White in "Under My Skin" Video". Ones to Watch. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  12. ^ Tomer, William (September 4, 2018). "Briston Maroney proves rock and roll is alive and well on 'Under My Skin'". The 405. Archived from the original on July 18, 2019. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  13. ^ Warren, Bruce (October 27, 2018). "Heavy Rotation: 10 Songs Public Radio Can't Stop Playing". NPR. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  14. ^ "Premiere: Briston Maroney's Hard To Tell". Anti-Music. November 11, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  15. ^ "American certifications – Briston Maroney". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
  16. ^ Rascoe, Rachel (February 7, 2019). "SXSW Music Reveals Surpass Halfway Mark". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  17. ^ Varga, George (May 6, 2019). "Liz Cooper & The Stampede trotting into San Diego for Casbah show". Pacific San Diego. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  18. ^ Meyer-Horn, Maxim (June 15, 2019). "Wallows @ Zappa: Meer dan 13 goede redenen". Dansende Beren (in Dutch). Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  19. ^ "Interview: Briston Maroney Is Our New Indie Rock Darling". Enfnts Terribles. August 5, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  20. ^ Schatz, Lake (April 16, 2019). "Briston Maroney announces Indiana EP, details Origins of new song "Caroline": Stream". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  21. ^ Wetmore, Brendan (May 24, 2019). "Taylor Swift's Apple Music Playlist Is Really Good". Paper Magazine. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  22. ^ Wetmore, Brendan (June 18, 2019). "Nashville's Next Big Star Premieres 'Fool's Gold' Video". Paper Magazine. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  23. ^ "Briston Maroney". ACL Music Festival. Archived from the original on April 30, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  24. ^ "Interview: Briston Maroney Is Our New Indie Rock Darling". Enfnts Terribles. August 5, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  25. ^ Dogwood Tales - Another Harvest Moon (Music Video), July 28, 2016, retrieved December 11, 2019
  26. ^ "Capturing a Moment: Talking with Briston Maroney about His New EP". Red Canyon Records. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  27. ^ Motycka, Eli (January 24, 2023). "Samia Turns the Page With 'Honey'". Nashville Scene. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
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