Will Wesley, who is from Louisiana, said his long for music started with his father and he started playing in bars at a very young age. For a while, he thought his place in music would be as a guitarist or a session player. Over the years, he has also show his talents as a singer and songwriter.
He said he was inspired by artists in the outlaw movement, such as Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash, because their songs were honest and straight to the point. “I Wesley’s opinion, Hank Williams was the original country outlaw.because hiis story goes along with his song.
Wesley feels like he has grown as a songwriter over the years. He said his first album was recorded on tape.
The song he says he is the most proud of is “12 O’Clock in Texas,” which was written about a week following his brother’s death from an overdose. He adds that the topic of song is something many people have gone through “It keeps my brother alive in song,” he said.
Wesley said he wasn’t in a good frame of mind when started writing the song. He said his produced had challenged him to talk about what is around him and what he was feeling. He said he wrote the some from the perspective of reflection.
Wesley said writing the song was therapeutic. “When I completed the song, it was a good feeling,” he said. He also created a music video for the song and Wesley saidh the video was far harder to create than writing the song. While the song subtly tells the story, he re-created actual things that happened as part of the video. He also used his step-children to re-enact his and his brother’s relationship.
Westley said the hard part of the video was filming the hotel scene where he walked in and find that his brother had overdosed. He wondered if he wanted to be that graphic in the music video, but believed the best way to tell the story is to tell it honestly.
He said the song is difficult to play in the live show. “When I first performed the song, it was hard for me not to choke up, he said.
Late last year, Wesley released a cover of “Go Tell It On The Mountain.” “I believe the world can use a little more Christianity,” adding he was excited to bring a gospel element
“It’s important to remember Christmas is about the birth of our Lord,” he said.
Wesley released a new song called “The Search” near the end of last month.
More about Will Wesley can be found on his website, www.willwesleymusic.com. He can also be found on Facebook and Instagram, as well as his YouTube page.