Kix Brooks

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Kix Brooks
Background information
Birth name	Leon Eric Brooks, III
Born	May 12, 1955 (1955-05-12) (age 54) Shreveport, Louisiana, USA
Genres	Country
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Years active	1983-present
Labels	Capitol, Arista Nashville
Associated acts	Ronnie Dunn
Website	www.brooks-dunn.com/

Kix Brooks (born Leon Eric Brooks, III May 12, 1955 in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA), is an American country music singer-songwriter. He is currently one half of the multi-award winning, American, country music duo Brooks & Dunn. Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn live down the street from each other in Brentwood, Tennessee, an upscale suburb of Nashville.

Early life

Brooks grew up in Shreveport, Louisiana. He has one sister, one half-sister, one half-brother and his father adopted one son of his third wife. He attended Riverside Elementary for grades K-5. After graduating from the former Sewanee Military Academy, an Episcopalian institution in Sewanee, Tennessee, Brooks attended Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, where he was a theatre arts major. He moved to Alaska to work for his father on an oil pipeline for one summer and then returned to Louisiana Tech to finish his education. He then moved to Maine and wrote advertising for a company owned by his sister and brother-in-law. Brooks married Barbara Brooks in 1981, and had two children, daughter Molly and son Eric.

Musical career

His father urged him to pursue his desire to become a musician, and Brooks moved to Nashville in the early 1980s. His then girlfriend (now wife Barbara, with whom he has a son and daughter) followed shortly thereafter. He began working for Tree Publishing as a staff songwriter. He recorded his first solo single, Baby, When Your Heart Breaks Down, for Avion in 1983 but returned to songwriting after its failure. He also released an album, Kix Brooks, in 1989 on Capitol Records. This album also featured the song "Sacred Ground", which became a #2 country hit for McBride & the Ride in 1992.

He is currently one half of country music duo Brooks & Dunn. Brooks usually provides backing vocals on their songs and singles. Only one single featuring Brooks on lead vocals, "You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone", has gone to Number One, and he has not sung lead on any of the duo's singles since 1999's "South of Santa Fe".

On August 10th, 2009, Brooks & Dunn announced to their fans, via their website that they intended to disband after 20 years of touring. According to the short statement released on their web site, Brooks & Dunn intend to release a greatest hits album, tour throughout the rest of 2009, and have a farewell tour in 2010.

Awards

Brooks and Dunn have won more Country Music Association awards and Academy of Country Music awards than any act in the history of country music. They have won the Country Music Association Vocal Duo Of The Year award every year since they debuted in 1991 except in 2000 when the honor went to Montgomery Gentry, and in 2007 when it was awarded to Sugarland. They have sold over 30 million records and continue to be one of the most consistently successful touring acts on the concert circuit.

Other achievements

Since January 2006, Brooks has hosted American Country Countdown, a syndicated radio countdown show based on Mediabase country charts. Brooks succeeded the show's former host, Bob Kingsley. Brooks is also co-owner of Arrington Vineyards with winemaker Kip Summers, and businessmen Fred Mindermann and John Russell. Arrington Vineyard is a winery located outside of Nashville.^[1]

Discography

Albums

Singles

Guest singles

References