Nashville, TN (Equity
Music Group) - Equity
Music Group President Mike
Kraski announced today that the label has signed North Carolina native
Blake Wise. Wise is expected to begin work on his debut release for Equity in the coming months.
'Blake Wise may be just 19 years old, but he is already a seasoned performer in my book,' Kraski said. 'The minute I heard him, I knew he had to be a part of the Equity family.'
'Signing with Equity was one of the best days of my life! It's a great label and a great team,' Wise said. 'They believe in me enough to support this dream of mine and that means so much to me - it's validation for all these years of hard work. But this is just the beginning, there's a lot more hard work ahead of me - I'm up for and looking forward to the challenge.'
To say that being on stage and entertaining country music fans is in Blake Wise's blood may be the biggest understatement of the year. At only 19, the North Carolina native has a tour resume that rivals those of seasoned professionals - he's been performing since the age of two. 'I grew up following in my father's footsteps, which meant not only singing Southern Gospel hymns in church and nightly impromptu jams around our house, but performing at my older brother's fraternity house when I was 13 and clubs by the time I was 15.'
The shows continued and increased in significance, including opening dates for John Conlee, Josh Turner, Johnny Paycheck and Confederate Railroad to name just a few. He's also astute enough to differentiate between his musical influences (Keith Whitley, James Taylor, Tim McGraw) and his entertainer influences (Rolling Stones, Kenny Chesney). Wise studied the guitar, piano, fiddle and mandolin - all of which he incorporates into his high-energy stage show.
His good looks, approachable demeanor and ability to wow a crowd have already captured the attention of Wrangler Jeans. The company tapped Blake for their '20X' advertising campaign, which includes print ads in Country Weekly (back cover, Sept. 23 issue), NHSRA Times, ProRodeo Sports News, Spin To Win and Quarter Horse Journal, among many others.
Wise is managed by Hallmark Direction Company.
