Singer/songwriter Brei Carter has spent the past decade building a brand with her style of country-soul music, and seems to be headed upward in her quest for new fans of her musical message. Over the past few years in Nashville, Carter has worked with such writers and producers as Corey Lee Barker (Vince Gill, Tracy Lawrence), Jason Wyatt (Lost Trailers, Lucas Hoge), Curt Ryle (Justin Moore, Sarah Buxton) and others. Right now she’s making noise with her country line dance collaboration with producer and DJ Elektrohorse, “Boots Get To Talking,” as well as with two new singles, “Sun Still Shinin” and “Cake and Eat It Too,” from her forthcoming EP, A Brei of Fresh Air.
Carter is originally from Monroe, Louisiana, but has lived all over the country, exposing her to various regional styles of music growing up. “Music was on my mind from when I was a little girl,” she said, “but I didn’t have the courage to do it until 2014 when my biological father passed away and it was like, Hey, you know, life is just so precious, and if there’s something you want to do in life, go for it. I said it was time to really do it, live life where there’s no regrets, and at least you got the opportunity to try something you want to do.”
“With my mother,” she continued, “and growing up in the church choir, I was surrounded by singers everywhere I turned. So I think it was inevitable that I ended up in music. Music was always around. People like Aretha Franklin, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Deniece Williams, Tammy Wynette, Alabama, Rod Stewart. There were just so many. I love all music, all types of music, all genres, but I always loved country music. Country really spoke to me.” Carter is also a fan of the late Charley Pride, who broke new ground as a Black country singer in the 1960s, and she recorded her own version of his hit “Kiss An Angel Good Mornin’.”
Like so many in Nashville, Carter has been releasing her material independently on the digital platforms while looking for some kind of interest from Music Row, though maybe not as earnestly as a lot of artists once did. “I did take a meeting with one label,” she said, “but at the moment it’s really just about growing as an independent. I believe anything is possible and country music is what I focus on, and I’m just trying to get my message out there, hoping that people will fall in love with the music. But I do believe I have what it takes, and that by the grace of God it’s just a matter of time. Until then, I just hit as many stages as I can, big or small, it doesn’t matter to me. Whether it’s a crowd of 10 or a crowd of 10,000, I’m about trying to get on as many stages as possible and see where that leads me. It’s a day by day thing, every day I make sure I give it my all.”
Carter recently returned from a tour of California, and is currently scheduled for dates in Nashville, Georgia and Illinois. You can follow her at breicarter.com.
Photo Credit: Jason W. Ashcraft
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