Tell us about yourself and your music
Robert Eskridge
Country Music Singer/ Songwriter (1968 -)
Early Life
Country singer/songwriter Robert Eskridge was born on November 10, 1968, in Wilmington, Delaware. As a kid, he bounced back and forth between California, Delaware and Eastern Kentucky, where he graduated from Morehead State University as a three (3) time National Champion Cheerleader. An interesting family tree that ties back to Devil Anse Hatfield of the Hatfield and McCoy Feud – where he spent a lot of time with his grandmother in McCarr, Ky.
Eskridge started playing in the local bars and honky-tonks at the age of 16, and throughout college and early adult years, in various bands in the Lexington, Ky area.
At one point, working with a few record labels in the early ’90s in Nashville, he garnered the stage at the Grand Ole Opry, had a Saturday night at the Ernest Tubb Record Shop, as well as the old Stock Yard and Bull Pen Lounge – where he played frequently with the George Jones Band.
As music was just starting to take off, kids, career and a need to be at home, he focused on a career that was out of the music path, but still played locally for the next 25 years with his band Southern Daze in the tri-state area.
Recent Times
Robert and Juli were attending a pancreatic cancer event, the Seena Magowitz Foundation, in the summer of 2019 and the question asked of the attendees was: “What would you do if you only had 6 months left to live”? A profound question. After mapping out their top three items on their bucket lists, Roberts was to do a Nashville album of his original music.
Teaming up with Country Q records and Mike Bonagura as the producer, he released two EP’s: My Destiny and Simple Things. The album Simple Things was a combination of those two and has done very well on several country charts.
– Buck Wild and Whiskey Crazy was an Indie World Country #1 and New Music Weekly Top 10
– Simple Things, the title track, is currently a Top 10 New Music Weekly and #4 Indie World Country, but just topped the charts on the Euro Academy of Country Music at #1.
Southern Daze is known for their southern rock style, guitars and harmonies, they’re a favorite in the Central Kentucky area. With seasoned musicians that have the same passion for music, they have a great time on stage and enjoy putting on shows for their fans. The band consists of Sam Pollock – Georgetown, Ky, Kevin Rawlings – Lexington, Ky, Kerry Elliott – Paris, Ky, Chris Gordon – North Middletown, Ky and Frank Conrad of Lexington, Ky.
People love the energy and the rich tone of his vocals and compare him to an older style country with a new/modern sound.
Personal Life
Outside of his professional and music career, Eskridge has several interests, including classic cars, motorcycles, the great outdoors and skiing. He and his wife Juli have four children, Jessi Eskridge, Jerad Eskridge, Malina Gaworski and Iza Gaworski.
The Eskridge’s are proud supporters of Morehead State University and the Seena Magowitz Pancreatic Cancer Foundation.
Talk to us more about your latest release
You’re My Destiny is our upcoming single – to be released around April 24th.
It’s a declaration of love for my wife – Juli. She saved me from myself in a time when I wasn’t looking to be saved. She’s supportive, loving and an amazing human being… I’m a better person because of her and our kids are fortunate to have her in their lives.
What inspired you to write this release?
We’ve released two singles from our album Simple Things:
- Buck Wild and Whiskey Crazy – went to #4 on New Music Weekly Country, was an Indie World #1, but never cracked the top 100 on Music Row / Billboard
- Simple Things – our current radio single is at #3 on New Music Weekly Country, was an Indie World #1, was #1 in Europe for a few weeks (1/20/2020) on the Euro Academy of Country Music, and is sitting at 116 on Music Row / Billboard – hoping it will catch a second wind and move on up…
The ability to use a company like ArtistPR is to try to reach those folks in the industry that we’re not getting to yet. Indie Artists have a much better path to fans given social media and digital/streaming online stations, but it’s tough to get the main station’s attention.
Describe the writing and recording process
We cut this album in Nashville at Country Q records – super cool studio where George Strait did Pure Country, Randy Travis, Rascall Flatts, etc… the list is endless.
The song itself came to me after a walk with my wife, Juli. We were just discussing life in general, kids, family, work and as we were walking I saw that the angle of the sun, cast my shadow over hers – she was completely lost in my shadow, yet walking along the side of my step by step… so there’s the hook that got my writing going – “Like a shadow, you walk so silently, always there to ease my pain”.
Any plans to release a video?
Any plans to hit the road?
Given the current state of the COVID-19 virus, all things are on hold…
We like to play larger festivals, vineyards, and outdoor events through the summer, so we’re hopeful several of our shows will go on – at a minimum be rescheduled, but we are a little bummed as we had planned on a Country Music Tour through Europe in July – Germany, Italy, Spain, France, and the UK…. we’ll have to reschedule that leg for another time.
You can check our site out on performance dates that are still valid – we’ve been removing those that have been canceled, but excited about getting back out when things are all clear.
We will be doing some acoustic sets on Facebook Live to keep things fresh and will be donating our proceeds to the Seena Magowitz Pancreatic Cancer Foundation.
As an indie artist, how do you brand yourself and your music to stand out from the rest of the artists out there?
As an Indie, you have to stand out… the music we write is a twist of an older country with a modern sound. Lyrics are important and overall production. I like all music, but when I’m writing I fall back to the older feels – early 90’s, Merle, George (both Strait and Jones), Willie, Cash – the things I grew up listening as a kid and played out for years.
We also put on a great live performance – very interactive and fun. Not only do you need to sound good, but you also have to provide entertainment value as well. Our band has some of the very best musicians I’ve ever heard or played with.
Who have you been listening to lately?
I listen to a ton of music.
My go to’s may surprise you! There are the country artists: Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Luke Combs, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Garth, Merle, Johnny, Willie, George Jones… but I love the blues and some 8o’s rock as well – we mix up a lot of our shows with our version of Prince, Lionel Richie, Billy Joel, Poison, etc…
Who are your biggest influences?
Biggest influences – I’d say that would have been Merle Haggard, Garth Brooks, and Dwight Yoakam.
Tell us about your passions
Man – I love country music. I love playing live – either acoustic by myself or with the band. I just can’t get enough.
All about my family – we have a great relationship across all 6 of us. We enjoy hiking, hanging out watching movies, the lake… just being around each other.
What else is happening next in your world?
Well in our world, we’re just hoping this Virus stops impacting people. That we can do what we can with what you have and we get back to watching out for each other.
I have had some extra time to start writing again for our next project – a great song has come out of this craziness: When Life Happens maybe the title track for our next album – definitely will be on our live show list, along with a super cool track about empowered females – My Girl Kicks It COUNTRY!
Thanks for an awesome interview, Robert Eskridge & Southern Daze
Connect with Robert Eskridge & Southern Daze
Website: https://www.roberteskridgecountry.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/southerndazeky/Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/you/tracksReverbnation: https://www.reverbnation.com/southerndaze/songs
