“Outlaw Country” Artist Bryan Martin has overcome an opiate addiction and he’s worked hard in the oil fields of Lousianna. Not he is making a name for himself as an outlaw country artist in Nashville. Here is the interview:
Sue Bonzell
If you are a fan of outlaw country. Well, I have got a treat for you today. Bryan Martin is here. Welcome, Bryan.
Bryan Martin
Hey, thank you for having me.
Sue Bonzell
I am I’m excited to have you here. Now, you truly do have the outlaw country sound. Who do people say you sound most like?
Bryan Martin
Well, that’s the thing I’ve always gotten got a little bit of array of everything. And, you know, some of the Merle Haggard and the storytelling and someone away and then and now and then, you know, as, as the modern stuff goes, you know, as a lot of people nowadays, I think that are just paving their own way and doing their own thing. And it feels good to do that, to be able to do that. And have people listen to it and not kind of be be able to get on the internet and just tell the truth. And people relate to it. It’s it’s a real good feeling.
Sue Bonzell
I think it’s that it’s that it’s that authenticity. Yeah, just isn’t.
Bryan Martin
I think a lot of people need the fact they need the reliability. Yeah, something that they know that they’re not going to want to go on through. So yeah,
Sue Bonzell
well, I mean, so you kind of have your background, which kind of, I said, I’m kind of want to call outlaw country, badass country, because it kind of is a little more accurate to me, because like, you know, I was like, Yeah, you broke the law. That’s not you. But kind of a badass because you used to work in the oil fields. Yes. So tell us about that.
Bryan Martin
Well, I worked in the oil field for 15 years. And up until about two years ago, it was one of those things where I never even thought I’d ever had the chance to take the guitar and make a move to Nashville and do it for a living. But I’ve been really blessed and the fans keep listening. And the people, the working class understand what I’m saying. And it’s been it’s been a real blessing. And I say it’s hard work. Got a lot of scars, if I got one too many, but you know, I wouldn’t trade it for nine because it makes a real good song.
Sue Bonzell
Yeah, it does. Well, like you said, it’s that kind of that work and man’s story. And it is very relatable because a lot of country music listeners are that working class. You know, they love the music, and it tells the story. Yes, ma’am. So So tell me you’re talking about, you know, some scars working in the oil fields. You’ve overcome an opiate addiction. Yes, ma’am. I know, that’s not easy for anyone, I’m sure it’s not easy to talk about. I’d love to hear your stories.
Bryan Martin
Yeah, I’ve kind of evaluated that to tell myself, you know, it’s not easy for me to talk about it, but it’s not right for me not to talk about, especially if I’m gonna be doing this and try to be what I feel like, you know, I feel like I was put into circumstances in places to where if I don’t tell that story, then I’m not doing myself justice. And I’m not doing the people around me. I’ve lost blown away from addiction and stuff I get. It’s really just kind of like, putting a BandAid on a bullet hole, if I go around trying to you know, sing a song about something I don’t know nothing about. If I sing about opioid addiction, there’s not ever going to be a time where I’m going to tell you to good experience, you know, because it’s never it never was even when I thought it was. So I’ve always been one of those kind of guys where it says I’ve done this almost saying that and tell you about it, your choose your own path and I’m appreciating you but I’m just telling you that this is this is where I’m at and this is what I’ve been through and I just hope that one person that was where I was at, you know, in those times hears it and it helps him
Sue Bonzell
it can be I mean it’s really powerful. I mean it’s powerful to have that experience and to now come to where you are here in Nashville making country music making amazing country music by the way. And you know, like you said kind of forging that path and what a great role model really, you know, I mean honestly, you know that life is hard going through stuff and if they know that you know somebody like you has gone through that and you’ve overcome it. The power in that message is crazy.
Bryan Martin
It’s it’s you know, I’ve never even actually thought of like hey, you know, if I’m a role model you know, please don’t don’t follow my footsteps is a this list of songs and listen to stories because that’s one thing I can say for sure now is that as I get older now my kids are getting older. I’m like all these things. My dad passed down to me and all these things that I’m passing down to them. No. I want them to know that the OUR DISCORD I believed life but I probably could have lived a little less of Steel told you the same thing because I’ve been told better you know, and stock I said you said Trial by Fire thing, but I just want them to be able to be proud of what I do at the end and know that I was trying to be the best man. I could be for them. Yeah,
Sue Bonzell
absolutely. So tell me your Are you going on tour with Warren ciders,
Bryan Martin
we are going on a pretty low poisoned tour. So it’s gonna be fun. Our first time going out with dieters, and actually, I’ve been listening to his music for a little while here on Tik Tok and everywhere and so I’m excited to go out there and have a good time with these guys and see some places angsting
Sue Bonzell
that’s a that’s a perfect fit. I mean, that’s a dang good show right there. With foreign fighters Wow,
Bryan Martin
it’s gonna it’s gonna go really is. I mean, we’ve seen a lot more West Coast and Northwest. And I haven’t seen haven’t seen yet. And I’m glad to finally be able to branch out and get over there. Because a lot of people are always in the comments saying, Come, come see us. Wow, trying to do it now. So yeah, we get there.
Sue Bonzell
That’s right, get those tickets. So you’ve got a new song wolves cry, tell us about the song. And that is this. This is also a new album two are just some,
Bryan Martin
yes, this is a song, the new album coming out is going to be called poets. And also, and the song wolves cry was one of those, I guess you say just proud of where I come from that little spot in Louisiana. And I think that it was just more of a testament of I think there’s a lot of people and it’s just really proud of where it comes from. And, you know, in my part of the Louisiana’s it may not be much, but it’s a lot to me, you know, and on that riverbank, because where I grew up learning how to hunt and fish and was raised up on things, no one had to know how to survive no matter what and, and just having that thankfulness to have what I had. And I think that’s what keeps me going. Today’s journey is like every time I get a chance to do one of these or, or tell my story. I’m just thankful for that heritage, that Native American heritage that I have my grandma’s good and, and my grandma, and my uncle that passed away, you know, everything I carry with me, I carry it with me. And I tell the story with it. So oops, cry just that testament and be proud of where you’re from be proud of what you got. Don’t matter if somebody else says it ain’t as much as what they got. There’s more than enough for you.
Sue Bonzell
That’s right. Well, I mean, you’re talking about, you know, storytelling. So you’ve written over 3000 songs, said accurate?
Bryan Martin
Yes, ma’am. It was kind of like a, a way to wait to have a real bad way of like memory and stuff like that. So like, I would always write stuff down. Now I was going through and, and after, after I’d went through the opiate addiction and, you know, the failed suicide attempt after everything, I wrote my first song, and I met my wife. And so every day was just kind of like a testament of like, I made it through the day, you know, and I just write a song about it. And it seemed to turn into a deal that just never stopped. And I’m glad it didn’t, they just kept it kept me healing. It kept me learning. If I found it, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I’ve sit down I go, Okay, let’s wrap this in a cell. And we remember not to, you know, do this again, you know, what I’m saying before, it’s like a soccer journal. But I have never been good about saying things that are talking and speaking, but I can say anything you want me to say and tell you my whole story to sound around. So
Sue Bonzell
that’s the that’s the power. That’s the power of country music, isn’t it?
Bryan Martin
It is tomorrow. So one day, I’m gonna say everything I want to say to you without making a rhyme, but I’m gonna keep writing songs like beauty in the struggle and stuff. So,
Sue Bonzell
so the beauty of the struggle is speaking. I’m glad you brought that up. You went a little viral on Tiktok with that song, it’s a beautiful song. I’m talking about the Tick Tock experience with that too.
Bryan Martin
That was crazy that my son said, hey, you know, your child has tic tac toe and I’m like, I don’t know if they have if they have singers and stuff on there and he’s I said I’ve seen his lip singing and you know, and do you think I can live thing tomorrow song? I don’t know how weird that would feel the first time but I’ll do it. And I got on there and I went to try to do it and that’s it now I’m just gonna just gonna sing once I sang it first one popped off and then next thing you know, I just kept going I said I’d be something tedious. I felt crazy because it took me 10 years of of just you know fed me I ain’t doing that. How to anybody out there is still out there grinding it out. You sometimes you get in your own way with with not wanting to do the social media game, but I’m not 18 years out of what I’d already put into it and less than like a couple of weeks on Tiktok and Instagram, so it was like, it’s almost like man, I could go I live But I know that I know that I wouldn’t have the songs I have without the lap I had had to go through so it was all it was all the guys time and and and waiting on him to just say, alright you done. You don’t know to go through the first door but this ain’t your last door. Don’t get too comfortable and stay who you are not change.
Sue Bonzell
So you bought your guitar. And are you willing to sing waltz cry?
Unknown Speaker
Yes, ma’am I’ll do that. Okay, good.
Sue Bonzell
Well, if you want to see that performance, you can catch the link in the description. And when we come back, we’re also going to play my world famous game truth or truth. Its truth or truth. All right, it’s time for truth or truth. Are you ready to play the game? Brian?
Bryan Martin
I think so. Okay.
Sue Bonzell
All right. Everybody wins in this game!
Bryan Martin
All right. Okay, everybody. What’s the most childish thing you still do? Well, I think the most childish thing I still do is probably call my dad, every time I every time I feel like I’m doing something like, you know, I got something going on or so I say that I don’t ask you for much. But I can’t figure out what’s wrong with this. You know, you know, and you know, as far as picking only, you know, me and him is to kind of like, go at each other. Just kind of like we used to use it when I was a kid. So I think that’s probably the most dads, okay, figure it out. Figure it out. So he’s always kind of liked it. Kind of like that one person. I go. Hey, you know, I don’t ask for help very much. But he’s still like that one person. I go. So that’s
Sue Bonzell
so that’s nice. You like you respect his advice. Right. Yeah. So
Unknown Speaker
he’s, I’m just trying to get as much as I can when we can
Sue Bonzell
get. Absolutely that’s, that is good advice. Very good advice. All right. Let’s do another one. All right.
Bryan Martin
See, what’s the worst thing you’ve ever done while at work?
Sue Bonzell
I mean, maybe maybe it’s the oil bills. I don’t know. Well, it’s confession time now.
Bryan Martin
Truth, the Truth. Okay, no backside. So I guess the worst thing I did, I guess the worst thing was I overflowed our floats and mark some things in some secluded places that I can’t say, because of and because I was I would, I wasn’t paying attention. And so I made a couple mistakes at work rep. I guess probably about the biggest thing, I had a pretty big spiel that I had to stay an extra 10 hours after working 12 hours. Worst thing I’ve done at work, but
Sue Bonzell
I was gonna say like, you know, stealing, like somebody’s sandwich, like that, like out of the refrigerator.
Bryan Martin
Oh, I could have done that. Off. Oh, Jimmy, Jimmy’s sandwich. This
Sue Bonzell
was the worst thing. All right, we’ll do one more. All right.
Bryan Martin
What’s the most common misconception Batchi misconception you would have to be there are you know, I, I’m a star or something. You know, like, I don’t look at myself as anything other than that blue collar hand, you know, a lot of my friends back home and they’ll always say, What’s up superstar and like I said to be probably the most misconception is just know that I’m still me. I’m still the same person. And I don’t just say that to say at least because I don’t know how to be nobody.
Sue Bonzell
That has a fair enough answer. And I like that. So but we’re also going to say, let’s keep the superstar thing or Rockstar, whatever, because that’s just projecting that out.
Bryan Martin
Oh, no, you’re getting there. I’m trying, I like I said, I’m always gonna be the songwriter at heart. But you know, I think that’s the biggest deal is just, I like being up there on stage. And like, you know, some of my guys kind of after my shows, I had some of my friends from work show up show in Louisiana, which is back home. And when I showed up, he just felt good to know that, you know, when I saw him, I was like, Man, you still you? I was like, I hope I’m still me at the end. If I you better to me.
Sue Bonzell
I’m sure you have good enough friends that probably
Bryan Martin
my daddy will tell me first. So yeah, and I’m definitely thankful for that. I’m thankful to be able to be somebody that you know, can wear to scars and be the common person that I am and other people that can relate to that say, man, you know, you ain’t got to fit a certain bill or, or, or, you know, sugarcoat No, you can still you can still go up there and tell the truth and absolutely, and be successful at it. Yes.
Sue Bonzell
Well, thank you for playing the game. Thanks for being here. And If you guys want to see the acoustic performance of wolves cry, you can catch that in the link in the description. Thanks again for being here and make sure you follow Bryan Martin on all the socials. Yeah. Thanks for watching up in country be sure to like and subscribe and leave us a comment. We do new episodes every Tuesday and be sure to follow up in country on Instagram Tik Tok and Facebook and you can follow me to add Sue Bonzell on Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok.
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