Chris Cavanaugh picked up the guitar when he was 12 years old and hasn't set it down since. Not long after he started playing, with just a few chords and a song, Chris performed in the talent show at his middle school. When the song was over, everybody rose to their feet, and from that point on Chris knew what he wanted to do for the rest of his life...
Cavanaugh grew up listening to Garth Brooks, George Strait, and Brooks & Dunn. This influence and his love for music had Cavanaugh making the trip from his hometown of Springfield, Missouri to Tennessee just a few months after graduating high school. After spending a few years hanging out with writers and publishers he had no doubt that he wanted to make Tennessee his home. Shortly after graduating from Middle Tennessee State University Chris signed his first songwriting deal. Over the next few years Chris spent his time on music row honing his craft as a writer. During this time however, he says, "I always knew that deep down my ultimate passion was playing and performing, so I eventually had to get out and do something about it...I had to get on the road." And so he did...
As of recently you can find Chris playing with his band throughout Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. And the road map is widening every day as far as touring. In the last year alone Chris has opened shows for Josh Thompson, Chris Young, Jake Owen, The Randy Rogers Band, and Justin Moore.
When asked about his career so far, and the path he has taken to get to where he is, Chris says, "I think everything happens for a reason and I believe the time I spent in Nashville digging in and learning how to write songs has built a platform for me and a body of work that I've been able to draw from when I go out on the road to play. I think if it'd happened any other way I wouldn't have these songs..."
Chris is making music about the land he's from, writing about the people he knew and playing for the people he knows. Chris did not wait for a record label to tell him what they think of his music or what the midwest will think. He's taking that straight to the beer drinkers, farmers, housewives, college kids and the Sunday Morning "church goers" and letting THEM decide. People are connecting and believing. Nashville gave Cavanaugh the ability to make his message clearer and more focused but the Midwest gave him the stories to sing about.
