A few years back I had the pleasure of visiting with Country artist James Dupré and knew then he had a good future in the industry. His voice is unique and his smile is infectious. So I was very excited when I first heard of his Opry debut. On September 14th, it became a reality.
James made his Grand Ole Opry debut last night during Opry Country Classics and performed alongside Julia Cole, The Gatlin Brothers, The Oak Ridge Boys and Scotty McCreery. He received a warm introduction from his friend Randy Travis and his wife, Mary. He graced the stage with a captivating solo-acoustic performance of "Promises" before being joined by the Opry band for his rendition of "Deeper Than the Holler," both timeless classics by Randy Travis.
"The Opry has and will always be a national treasure to me and playing in the Circle has been something I have wanted to do for a long time. I’m still processing the magnitude of it and it was so much more meaningful than I could’ve imagined. I can’t think of a bigger honor than having Randy and Mary Travis introduce me," Dupré said.
James and Randy's relationship is a special one as Randy and Mary Travis personally selected James to serve as the lead vocalist for The Music of Randy Travis Tour, which has since been rebranded as the More Life Tour. Teaming up with Randy's original band, James delivers electrifying performances of all of Randy's chart-topping classics.
The one-time aspiring meteorologist turned paramedic became a YouTube sensation in 2007 which ultimately led to an invitation to perform on Ellen. Shortly after, he released his debut album, 'It’s All Happening' in 2010, which charted on Billboard. After signing a record deal with Warner Music Nashville in 2011, James began performing and touring full-time. In 2015, he appeared on The Voice (Season 9) with a four chair turn landing him a spot on Adam Levine’s team. Following his departure from The Voice, he released his sophomore album 'Stoned to Death' with two singles charting on the Billboard Indicator chart, “Hurt Good” and “Stoned to Death”. The father of five, made his acting debut in the film, 'The Price', playing the son of a country singer portrayed by Randy Travis.
In the fall of 2019, James was handpicked by Randy and Mary Travis as vocalist for “The Music of Randy Travis” tour (now known as the “More Life” tour). Along with Randy’s original band, he performs all of Randy’s biggest hits. In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, James recorded and released his third studio album, 'Home and Away' in 2020 with three singles: “Home and Away”, “Another Love Song”, and “Painfully Pretty.”
I will tell you this, James may not be a big main stream artist, but he is definitely a talent that needs to be explored. And with the backing of country icon, Randy Travis it's a win/win. For more information on James Dupré and upcoming tour dates, follow him on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/jamesdupremusic/), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/jamesdupre/), and Twitter (https://twitter.com/JamesDupre).
Comments