* En anglais uniquement
John Paul White had already spent many years flying under the radar in Nashville as a solo artist and industry songwriter when he and
Joy Williams formed Americana duo
the Civil Wars and struck gold with their 2012 debut,
Barton Hollow. After four Grammy Awards and the 2014 demise of
Civil Wars' rocky partnership,
White was on his own again, but a good deal more established, setting the table for his 2016 solo effort
Beulah on his Single Lock label, and spent the next few years in the producer's role with artists ranging from
Lindi Ortega and
Donnie Fritts to
Penny & Sparrow and
Dylan LeBlanc.
White dropped
The Hurting Kind in 2019, his second solo album.
A native of Muscle Shoals, Alabama,
John Paul White spent a number of years working behind the scenes as a professional songwriter in Nashville, making his solo debut,
The Long Goodbye, in 2008. Recorded at his hometown's legendary FAME Studios and released independently, the album introduced
White's warm lonesome sound, which pulled from the country, rock, folk, and Southern traditions of his home state. That same year, he met California singer/songwriter
Joy Williams at a Nashville songwriting workshop where the two solo artists were randomly paired together. Their rich harmonic blend and complementary styles immediately gelled, leading them to form
the Civil Wars shortly afterward. Their critically and commercially successful partnership would ultimately earn them four Grammy Awards and a devoted international fan base. In spite of their musical chemistry,
White and
Williams' relationship offstage became increasingly rocky during their five years together, and they disbanded in 2014. Over the next two years,
White released a handful of solo tracks, contributing a song to the 2015 season of HBO's True Detective series and duetting with
Emmylou Harris on the song "Kyrie." Along with
Alabama Shakes member
Ben Tanner, he launched his own label, Single Lock Records, and became active producing records for others. His second solo effort,
Beulah, was issued in August 2016. Following a guest spot singing with
Rodney Crowell and
Rosanne Cash on
Crowell's 2017 album,
Close Ties,
White returned to the studio to work on his own material, emerging in October 2018 with the melancholic waltz "My Dreams Have All Come True."
White's next solo effort,
The Hurting Kind, was co-produced with
Alabama Shakes'
Ben Tanner. Released in April of 2019, it featured guest spots by
Lee Ann Womack,
Erin Rae, and the
Secret Sisters. Alongside his own tunes, he co-wrote a pair with Nashville legends "Whisperin'"
Bill Anderson and
Bobby Braddock. ~ Timothy Monger