With grit and soul, Dave Kennedy is redefining country music’s heart and future
By Terry Adams | Photography By Nathan Sparks.
Appeared in Cityview Magazine, Vol. 41, Issue 6 (Nov/Dec 2025)
Dave Kennedy is the truth. He is all that was great about the country music we grew up on and all that could be great about the future of the genre. Rarely does one find the ability to write lyrics and melody at the highest level coupled with one of the best voices on the planet. His songs are shockingly intelligent, erudite, and often heartbreaking. Fifty years ago, Jon Landau wrote, “I saw rock and roll’s future, and its name is Bruce Springsteen”. Well, I can say I have seen the future of country music, and his name is Dave Kennedy.
I grew up in Nashville, born and raised. Some of my earliest recolections are of my Mother sharing her love of music and songwriting, it’s been a part of my life as long as I can remember. So, when someone told me that I had to hear this guy Dave Kennedy in Knoxville, I really didn’t think much of it. After all, go into the honky-tonk hangs in Nashville and you are bound to see extraordinary singers, pickers, and writers, some who have record deals, some who lost them, and some who will become big stars. With that as the backdrop, I was not prepared for what I was about to hear when I went to meet Dave at Toddy’s, on a picnic table, next to guys playing horseshoes.
No, he was not playing a gig. Our mutual friend just told him to bring his guitar over and play a few songs. The first song was called “Union Wine.” To this day, it is still one of the best songs I have ever heard but that wasn’t all.
This guy could sing, I mean really sing. He was soulful but he was country, like Bob Segar and Merle Haggard in one angelic voice. The more he played, the more I wanted to hear.
A month later we met up again. I asked him if he’d written any new songs since I had seen him last. He said, “Yes, about 20”. Twenty in 30 days? Let’s hear um. Every song better than the last. Talent and work ethic, this guy was born to do this. When he told me later that he was leaving his master’s program at the University of Tennessee and was going to figure out how to get to Nashville, I honestly thought that was where he belonged. Both of Dave’s parents are educators in Chattanooga, so I am not sure they agreed but they could see just how gifted he was.
Like many artists before him, Kennedy’s move to Nashville was both a dream and a struggle. “I went from working all the time and having gigs coming out of my ears to being one of thousands just trying to get by,” he admits. But while the hustle of Music City was difficult, it wasn’t without its rewards.
In the years since we first met, Dave Kennedy has become one of the most respected singer/songwriters in Nashville. He has written and performed with the likes of Travis Tritt, Riley Green, Whiskey Myers, Drake White, Channing Wilson, Ella Langley, and Larry Fleet. His co-write with Larry Fleet, “Working Man,” has nearly 35 million streams on Spotify alone.
Kennedy’s career hit a high point with his national tour as direct support for Drake White. But perhaps the most surreal moment came when Kennedy found himself performing on national television as part of Travis Tritt’s team on the competition show Real Country. “That was cool as hell,” Kennedy reflects. “Being on TV with one of my heroes—there’s nothing like that.”
What stands out more, though, is the impact Kennedy has had on the next generation of songwriters. “I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know some of them and to have written and performed with them as well,” Kennedy says, noting that every now and then, one of these younger artists will mention how they used to watch him perform at places like Revival or Whiskey Jam, inspired by his work. “It’s humbling to hear that you might have influenced someone.”
The day Merle Haggard died Dave penned an ode to the Okie from Muskogee. The first line goes, “It’s a hard life getting by on melodies and rhymes”. Well, that it is, but Dave is doing and keeps doing it. Scorching stages from Nashville to Key West to Hawaii, every single live performance is a master class in singing and songwriting.
Kennedy’s focus has now shifted toward his next big project—his upcoming record. For the first time in his career, he feels confident not only in what he wants to say, but in how he wants to say it. “I’ve spent so much time thinking about this, and now I finally have a catalog of songs that I feel deserve to be heard,” he says. With longtime friend and producer Rob Snyder at the helm, Kennedy is eager to bring these songs to life in the studio. “Rob and I are having so much fun putting it all together,” he says, reflecting on the energy and excitement building around the project
For Kennedy, it’s not just about releasing music; it’s about making an album that is true to him. “I’ve got a team that believes in me, and I’m finally able to focus on these songs in a way I haven’t before.” Everyone who has laid ears on his music is anxiously waiting to hear what a master at his craft has in store for us in the studio.
find more Dave Kennedy at
Comments are closed.