On November 19, 1973, country singer-songwriter Billy Currington was born in Rincon, Georgia, a small town located outside of Savannah. Currington was raised as one of seven children in Rincon, where his musical abilities were discovered at an early age.
Currington moved to Nashville after high school, where he first found success as a songwriter. Among his cuts as a songwriter are songs by George Strait and Tracy Byrd.
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In 2003, Currington released his self-titled debut album on Mercury Nashville. The record includes Currington’s first Top 10 single, “Walk A Little Straighter”.
His sophomore Doin’ Somethin’ Right came out two years later. That record includes “Must Be Doin’ Somethin’ Right” and “Good Directions“, both multi-platinum hits for Currington. He also had a Top 15 hit with “Why, Why, Why”, a song Currington wrote with Mark Nesler and Tony Martin.
To date, Currington has had 11 No. 1 singles, including “People Are Crazy” and “We Are Tonight”, among others. He has also released eight albums. His latest, King Of The World, was released in October. Currington also served as a duet partner for Shania Twain’s “Party for Two” track, which was recorded for Twain’s 2004 Greatest Hits album.
Billy Currington Explains Why He Doesn’t Write All of His Songs
Currington writes some, but not all of his songs. For Currington, the best song will always win, even if it’s one he did not write.
“Ever since I first got my deal, I’ve been recording songs that I’ve written, and had some really good success that way,” Currington tells Songwriter Universe. “I’ve also had lots of success recording other people’s songs. I would just like to continue the same pattern for the rest of my recording career. There are so many great songwriters in Nashville, L.A., New York…all over the world. I couldn’t imagine not recording their songs. There are some beautiful melodies out there.”
Currington likes to start songs by himself. But he also likes to write with other people, and the ability to bounce ideas off of each other.
“I definitely love writing with other people, because it seems that’s where I’ve been the most successful at completing a song,” Currington acknowledges. “You’re part of a team, and you want to see it through. When you’re writing by yourself, it’s easy to do something else after a couple of hours, put it to the side, and maybe never come back to it. I do love doing both. Writing with other people and sharing all that is special.
“It’s boring to be at a No. 1 party by yourself,” he adds with a laugh. I” love sharing music with others.”
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