Los Angeles, CA. (Top40 Charts/ Will Gray Official Website) - Independent artist Will Gray announces "The Renegade Tour: a boys' and girls' history of the future" that will showcase material from his forthcoming album Honeysuckle Wine. Gray is currently in the studio with GRAMMY Award-winning and multi-platinum producer T Bone Burnett finishing up the record. Joining Gray on tour as his special guest will be the Boston-based, alt-folk trio, Gretel.
"The Renegade Tour" kicks off in Bolivar, MO on Feb. 19, and will make stops in 14 cities across the U.S. including Nashville, Tenn., Chicago, Ill., Grand Rapids, Mich., and St. Louis, Missouri. Gray's music is a unique blend of hip-hop, R&B, folk and rock. To capture this sound live, Gray will be backed by banjo, guitar, cello and a DJ, who will spin beats. In addition to debut performances of Gray's highly anticipated new album, Gretel will also be showcasing new material from their upcoming release, The Dregs.
Numerous songwriting collaborations between Gray and Gretel lead singer, Reva Williams, made the joint tour a natural fit. "I wanted to tour with a band I would love listening to night after night and enjoy being on the road with. Reva and Gretel fit that," says Gray. Williams will be doing double-duty, fronting her own band as well as playing banjo and singing back-up for Gray.
Gretel has been recognized as one of Boston's top artists multiple times since their inception in 2005. After only 2 years on the local music scene, Williams received a Boston Music Award nomination for "Best Local Female Vocalist." That same year Gretel was selected as a finalist in the Starbucks Music Makers competition out of 49 Boston area semi-finalists. The band's offbeat instrumentation and three-part harmony have also been a favorite at Cambridge's well-known music venue, Toad, where they have accepted four, month-long residencies.
Will Gray released his first solo effort, Introducing Will Gray, in August of 2007 after parting ways with hip hop/roots band Scratch Track, of which he was a founding member. In January of 2008, Gray met and started work with legendary producer T Bone Burnett, who has most recently produced records for John Mellencamp, B.B. King, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, and Robert Randolph and the Family Band.
In addition to production, Burnett has also developed a new high fidelity audio format called CODE that delivers a final consumer product almost identical in sonic quality to that of the master tapes. The plan is to release Gray's Honeysuckle Wine with the new CODE format. "We're eight songs in," Gray said of the record's progress. "The tour's a great chance to see how the songs will play live."
For additional information on The Renegade Tour, Will Gray, or Honeysuckle Wine, visit www.willgraymusic.com.
Will Gray is an independent Hip-Hop/Americana artist currently residing in Los Angeles, California. Gray has shared the stage with artists such as Erykah Badu, Jurassic 5, George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, Crash Test Dummies, Whild Peach (Outkast's live band), Los Lonely Boys, Jars of Clay, Jimmy Buffett, and Ruben Studdard. His original song "Don't Change," co-written with former band-mate Jason Hamlin, will be featured on the upcoming Robert Randolph and The Family Band album releasing in '09. Gray's songs have been licensed by MTV, Ford Motor Co., DMX Programming, Playstation, and Motorola, and his performance of "Don't Go" with former band, Scratch Track, was featured on CSI: New York in 2006. Gray's debut solo effort, Introducing Will Gray, is available for purchase at iTunes and www.willgraymusic.com.
THE RENEGADE TOUR:
2/19/2009 - Bolivar, MO, Southwest Baptist University
2/20/2009 - Jackson, TN, Union University - Barefoots Joe
2/21/2009 - Knoxville, TN, Preservation Pub
2/22/2009 - Nashville, TN, The Rutledge
2/23/2009 - Nashville, TN, TBA
2/24/2009 - St. Louis, MO, Fubar
2/25/2009 - Dubuque, IA, Clarke College
2/26/2009 - Chicago, IL, Cubby Bear
2/27/2009 - Grand Rapids, MI, Calvin College
2/28/2009 - Columbus, OH, Rumba Cafe
3/1/2009 - Dayton, OH, TBA
3/2/2009 - Mt. Vernon, OH, TBA
3/3/2009 - Grantham, PA, Messiah College (lecture)
3/4/2009 - Grantham, PA, Messiah College
3/5/2009 - Arlington, VA, TBA
3/6/2009 - Fredericksburg, VA, TBA
3/7/2009 - Fredericksburg, VA, TBA
*all dates subject to change.
