Michael Ray is a big, big fan of ’90s country. It’s an era he has embraced in his own music, including in his recent multi-week, No. 1 hit, “Whiskey and Rain,” and will embrace even more with his new The Bootlegger Sessions. The Florida native announces he will share some of his own favorite country music classics in The Bootlegger Sessions, kicking off with a cover of Tracy Lawrence‘s “Time Marches On,” released in 1996.
The Bootlegger Sessions comes only a couple of weeks after announcing the surprise release of his The Warehouse Sessions EP, an album he recorded live, released as a celebration to be back to touring, after spending so much time at home during the pandemic.
“After two years of connecting solely via our screens and dreaming of being back on the road again, there’s nothing like hearing fans sing these songs back to us live,” Ray said when announcing the project. “We’re keeping that energy going with The Warehouse Sessions.”
Ray is grateful for the country music artists who helped pave the way for him, and vows to honor them, and their legacy, as he makes his own mark in the genre.
“I just feel like it’s part of our job, to continue to shine a light when you can on the men and women who have paved the way for the rest of us, the men and women that inspired us,” Ray told MusicRow. “There are kids hearing me on the radio that maybe didn’t grow up with Alabama, Tracy Lawrence, or Joe Diffie, but if I can make that kid find ‘The Weekend’ by Steve Wariner, now, all of a sudden, he’s downloading all of [Wariner’s] stuff.”
Ray is spending the next few months serving as the opening act on Lee Brice‘s Label Me Proud Tour.
“This is the best tour to come back on,” Ray shared with Everything Nash at a press event. “When you can tour, it’s fun. But when you get to tour with your buddies, people that are your friends — I’m just super proud and pumped for Lee. I feel like this day should have come years ago, for him to have his first big headlining tour. I think he’s one of the best of the business.”
No word yet what other songs Ray will cover as part of The Bootlegger Sessions. His version of “Time Marches On” is available here.
Ray’s latest single, “Holy Water,” is quickly climbing up the charts. Find all of Ray’s music and tour dates at MichaelRayMusic.com.