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We might be a bunch of two jump chumps here at Holler, but we’re suckers for a good rodeo song. And when the artist singing it just happens to be a real-life saddle bronc cowboy? Well, all the better for it.
Chancey Williams isn’t cosplaying a cowboy when he puts on that hat. As one of only two artists to both compete in the rodeo and perform on the main stage at Cheyenne Frontier Days, like Chris Ledoux before him, Williams is the next truly authentic cowboy of country music.
From Cody Johnson to Chris Ledoux, here's Holler's best country rodeo songs playlist.
He’s gone from competing at rodeos to being one of the hottest neo-traditionalist country artists around, and his new single, ‘Only the Good Ones’, is a further reminder to everyone that you’re never going to amount to anything hanging in the D’s. Life’s about taking the bull by the horns and letting it pound you into the ground every now and then.
“Only the good ones drive a man to drink alone / the better they are the closer they cut to the bone”, he sings on the driving rodeo anthem, mixing the warmth and charm of George Strait with the grizzle and grit of Cody Johnson.
“It’s a rodeo cowboy song I wrote with Trent Willmon and Bobby Pinson,” explains Williams. “This cowboy gets bucked off a great horse and maybe it's his last one and it hurts, ya know? At the same time, he has a girl he really cares about and she leaves him. Things in life come and go, and a person has ups and downs, but only the good ones really hurt when the opportunity is missed or they're gone."
‘Only The Good Ones’ is premiering exclusively at Holler below.
Williams grew up on a ranch in Moorcroft, a town in the North Eastern corner of Wyoming that’s so small it doesn’t need stoplights. Rodeo, wrestling and academic talents took him first to Casper College and then to the University of Wyoming - where he earned several degrees, including a Master’s in Public Administration - but it was music and the camaraderie of the road that continues to take him all over the United States.
Chancey finished out last year with a tour sponsored by CINCH, a series of dates with Toby Keith, a sold-out show with Cody Johnson at the Ryman Auditorium and an especially memorable concert as direct support for one of his idols, Alan Jackson. The National Finals Rodeo returned to Las Vegas and Chancey headlined the main showroom at South Point, “ground zero” at the most important rodeo event in the world.
Chancey’s current tour includes multiple dates with Parker McCollum and an appearance at Cheyenne Frontier Days with Dierks Bentley.
The latest single follows on from ‘Hideaway’, ‘Look Good Leavin’, ‘On The Tear Tonight’, ‘The Saint’, ‘If I Die Before You Wake’ and ‘Blame It On The Rain’, which along with six other new songs make up his forthcoming album, One Of These Days.
“This is the first full album we've put out in almost three years, so we're really excited about it,” Williams says. “Trent Willmon, my producer, also made his mark on a ton of this album, co-writing eight of the tracks with me. Bobby Pinson, who everybody in town knows, of course, wrote a couple of songs with Trent and I, including 'Only the Good Ones.' I think this album probably says the most about who I am and the kinds of songs I am writing today.”
One of These Days is released on Younger Brothers Records on 24th March.
