Calling Nashville, TN home, is 25-year old recording artist Vinny B. Discovering his love for country music in second grade while singing “Proud to be American” by Lee Green as part of the school choir, Vinny knew he wanted to pursue music. First leaning towards more of a pop route, he won a singing competition at 13 years old and was awarded an appearance in a commercial for the film High School Musical 3- in which he opened for Vanessa Hudgens. In 2007, he was selected for a singing role as Simba in the Broadway adaptation of the Lion King and the following year, he was up for Kids Bop. As he recalled, “One of the most surreal moments was being up around all those singers and actors.” (Vinny). In 2017 after graduating from Belmont University with a major in music, Vinny decided to pursue a career as a country artist. In 2018-2019, he played approximately 300 shows across 17 states and 2 countries. But that’s not all that this young artist has achieved thus far.
When his career as an artist led him to music city, Vinny made a wave with his first performance. “My first Nashville show I opened for Chris Stapleton’s dad, and Chris Stapleton was in the crowd. It was the most Nashville experience!” (Vinny). An experience that is still one of the most memorable ones in his career to date. Vinny also was cast as part of the first season of the hit Netflix reality show, “Sing On!”, which happened thanks to a talent scout that discovered Vinny’s music through a showcase at his previous job. As he remembered,
“The restaurant I worked at previously showcases our musical staff. Someone on social reached out to me via that. Saying that they had a new show that will be on TV and he couldn’t say any more info and the auditions were private. The guy running the auditions happened to stay at the hotel I had a gig at. So I hung out with him and built a relationship with him in those 3 days. I figured I’d get on. In total, it was a 3 month-long process. 2 weeks before Halloween, I received an itinerary and had to fly out to London, EN for filming.” (Vinny).
The show is now available to watch on Netflix Canada. With all the opportunities he’s had so early on, there’s no telling where Vinny will be in the next few years. Yet through it all, he has been grateful every day for the experiences and the support he’s had. As he mentioned, “I’ve been incredibly blessed in my life. I have very supportive parents and the most support I could have asked for from the people in my life and my fans. I could have lived a very comfortable life working for the family business. But music is my life and I’m giving it to it.” (Vinny).
Vinny has also released 5 singles to date. His most recent single, “Wonderland” was released earlier this year. Wonderland is a Disney-inspired, pop-country love song written about his girlfriend. It’s also the first song of its kind to be played on country radio (According to Vinny) and has been added to one of the bigger local iHeart radio stations. As for the story behind the song, Vinny explained, “I wrote this song for my girlfriend since she always wanted one. I wrote it in a day and recorded it with a buddy of mine I met on socials whose in town—he’s one of the best. I then surprised my girlfriend with it for Christmas.” (Vinny). Thus, the song has a real personal connection for the artist- which isn’t always the case according to him.
As for his future plans for Wonderland, Vinny is currently in the midst of pitching it to radio and running a grander radio promotion for the single. As he mentioned, “ I contacted a few big radio stations here in town. Ty Bentley show. He responded within two minutes and said he’d try to get it into his Apple Music radio show. Loved the song, said it was totally different than what’s out there in the country right now.” (Vinny). He also has been in touch with Radio Disney, with the hopes of it being added to their regular rotation. In addition, he hopes that the song could mean as much to him and his girlfriend for another couple. “One of my goals for this song is to be someone’s wedding song one day.” (Vinny).
Moving forward in 2021, Vinny’s goal is to be able to be a full-time artist once more. As he explained, “Music is not a cheap thing to do. I want to be able to call this a full-time job again. Music hasn’t been since Covid hit. In 2020, Nashville venues cancelled gigs and cut down budgets. Being an indie musician, you are not going to make money when you first start. You work 40h a week but aren’t always paid.” (Vinny). Evidence that being an independent artist and songwriter is not easily sustainable given the current global climate. He also plans on releasing his first full-length EP, which is currently in the works. Be sure to keep an eye out for that announcement in the upcoming months.
Listen to “Wonderland” now:
Stay up to date with Vinny B:
IG: @Vinnybmusic
TikTok: @Vinnybmusic
FB: @Vinnybmusic
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2QhrqoM
Apple Music: https://apple.co/3d78Zw2
Website: www.vinnybmusic.com
Works Cited
B, Vinny. Interview. Conducted by Kyla Pearson, Mar.8th, 2021.
Unknown. “Featured: Nashville-based country artist Vinny B”. Photo courtesy of Vinny B. Accessed Mar. 8th, 2021.
Unknown. “Official cover art for Vinny B’s latest single, “Wonderland”. Photo courtesy of Vinny B. Accessed Mar. 8th, 2021.
