Dave Barnes

David Mckee Barnes (born June 20, 1978 ) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee. He has released eight studio albums, including two Christmas albums. His most recent full-length album, Featherbrained Wealth Motel, was released in 2023.

Early life The eldest of three children, Barnes was born in South Carolina in 1978, the son of a pastor who relocated his family to Kosciusko, Mississippi when Barnes was six years old. The Barnes family then moved to Knoxville, Tennessee the summer during his junior year of high school, where he graduated from Farragut High School in 1996. Barnes went to college at Middle Tennessee State University and graduated with a degree in Recording Industry Management. While there, he began playing guitar and writing songs for fun. After graduating from Middle Tennessee State University, he began touring and in 2002 released his five-song EP Three, Then Four, as purely a guitar-and-vocals release. With this release and the touring performed around it, Barnes' fan following expanded, with the assistance of internet promotion. Barnes toured heavily for over a year after that. During this period, Barnes met Ed Cash, a record producer who had worked with Bebo Norman, who Barnes had previously met in 1998 at Windy Gap, a Young Life camp in North Carolina. Also through its release, Barnes gained notability among singers Amy Grant (who later performed on Barnes' wedding song "I Have and I Always Will"), In 2005, Barnes co-produced the five-song EP Today & Tomorrow for his friend Matt Wertz. Barnes also contributed his songwriting to one of its songs.

In 2006, Barnes released his second full band studio album Chasing Mississippi.

In June 2007, Barnes re-entered the studio to record his third album. In April 2008, having signed to the record label Razor and Tie, he released his major-label debut, Me and You and the World. In promotion of the album, the song "Until You", which was previously on Brother, Bring the Sun, was re-recorded and released as a single on February 19, 2008.

In late 2008, Barnes was one of the opening acts for the shows from Orlando through Chicago on Hanson's "The Walk Around the World Tour".

In April 2010, Barnes released his fourth full band studio album What We Want, What We Get Barnes appeared on the U.S. soap opera All My Children as himself and performed the song on June 10, 2010.

Blake Shelton released Barnes' song "God Gave Me You" as his second single on his album Red River Blue in fall of 2011. In 2012, Dave Barnes was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Country Song for writing the song "God Gave Me You". In an interview with American Songwriter, Dave stated that "I honestly didn't know I could write songs that could be that universal. Songs that could be that successful. I think one of the things about that song, as I have looked back on it and sort of examined under the hood, is that the sentiment is pretty universal... The beauty of "God Gave Me You" was that I finally saw what I had done and it opened this really cool door to me being more conscious about writing songs that appeal to more people, and this new record Stories to Tell really showcases that." Stories to Tell, Dave's fifth full studio album, was released on March 13, 2012.

Dave Barnes' second Christmas collection, A December to Remember, was released on October 29, 2013. It is the follow-up to his successful 2010 holiday project Very Merry Christmas. Barnes co-produced A December to Remember, which features six originals, four written and two co-written, such as "So, Santa" and "Better Than Christmas Day". The 11-song line-up also includes five Christmas classics, from "White Christmas" to "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year".

On January 28, 2014, he released Golden Days with the album's first single, "Good".

Barnes released a second Valentine's Day EP on February 10, 2015, consisting of six acoustic songs and titled Hymns for Her.

He released his seventh full-length album, Carry On, San Vincente, in 2016.

Songwriting As a songwriter, Barnes has both written and co-written songs with Joey Humke for Carrie Underwood, Thomas Rhett and Maren Morris, Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton,

Written and co-written songs

Year Artist Album Song Co-written with 2004 Bethany Dillon Bethany Dillon "All I Need" Bethany Dillon, Ed Cash Marc Broussard Carencro "Lonely Night in Georgia" Marc Broussard, Martin Sexton "Gavin's Song" Marc Broussard 2005 Bethany Dillon Imagination "All That I Can Do" Bethany Dillon, Ed Cash 2006 Bebo Norman Between the Dreaming and the Coming True "The Way We Mend" Bebo Norman 2010 Billy Currington Enjoy Yourself "Until You" 2011 Blake Shelton Red River Blue "God Gave Me You" Francesca Battistelli Hundred More Years "Emily (It's Love)" (featuring Dave Barnes) Francesca Battistelli Matt Wertz Weights & Wings "Someone Like You" Matt Wertz 2013 Danielle Bradbery Danielle Bradbery "Daughter of a Workin' Man" Nicolle Galyon, Clint Lagerberg Andrew Ripp Won't Let Go "Someone to Love You" Andrew Ripp 2015 Hunter Hayes The 21 Project "Young and in Love" Hunter Hayes 2017 Thomas Rhett Life Changes "Craving You" (featuring Maren Morris) Julian Bunetta "Kiss Me Like a Stranger" Thomas Rhett, Jordan Reynolds 2018 Carrie Underwood Cry Pretty "Kingdom" Carrie Underwood, Chris DeStefano 2019 Lady A Ocean "Be Patient with My Love" Charles Kelley, Ben West "On a Night Like This" 2020 Maddie & Tae The Way It Feels "My Man" Taylor Dye, Maddie Marlow, Jordan Reynolds "Ain’t There Yet" Taylor Dye, Maddie Marlow, Ben West "Lay Here with Me" (featuring Dierks Bentley) Taylor Dye, Maddie Marlow, Josh Kerr 2021 Lady A What a Song Can Do "Like a Lady" Hillary Scott, Michelle Buzz, Martin Johnson, Brandon Paddock Ingrid Michaelson Songs for the Season "Christmas Valentine" (featuring Jason Mraz) Ingrid Michaelson, Jason Mraz "Merry Christmas, Happy New Year" (featuring Zooey Deschanel) Ingrid Michaelson, Zooey Deschanel

Personal life Barnes and his wife, Annie, have three children - Ben, Suzanna, and Sam.

Discography

Studio albums

Title Details Peak chart positions US US Christ US Rock little fist big hurt Release date: ~2000 Label: independent release Formats: CD — — — Brother, Bring the Sun Release date: September 21, 2004 Label: No Gang Music Formats: CD, music download — — — Chasing Mississippi Release date: March 21, 2006 Label: No Gang Music Formats: CD, music download — — — Me and You and the World Release date: April 1, 2008 Label: Razor & Tie Formats: CD, music download 94 — — What We Want, What We Get Release date: April 6, 2010 Label: Razor & Tie Formats: CD, music download 59 3 17 Stories to Tell Release date: March 13, 2012 Label: Razor & Tie Formats: CD, music download 59 3 — Golden Days Release date: January 28, 2014 Label: 50 Year Plan Records Formats: CD, music download 169 9 — Carry On, San Vicente Release date: March 18, 2016 Label: 50 Year Plan Records Formats: CD, music download, LP — — – Who Knew It Would Be So Hard To Be Myself Release date: February 9, 2018 Label: 50 Year Plan Records Formats: CD, music download, LP — — — Dreaming in Electric Blue Release date: April 3, 2020 Label: 50 Year Plan Records Formats: CD, music download, LP — — — Notes from Paris Release date: September 10, 2021 Label: 50 Year Plan Records Formats: Music download — — — Featherbrained Wealth Motel Release date: October 20, 2023 Label: 50 Year Plan Records Formats: Music download, LP — — — "—" denotes releases that did not chart

Extended plays

Title Details Peak chart positions US US Rock US Christ 2004 "Crazyboutya" — — Brother, Bring the Sun "Grace's Amazing Hands" — — 2006 "Miles to Go" — — Chasing Mississippi "Everybody But You" — — 2008 "Until You" — — Me and You and the World "Brothers & Sisters" — — "Good World Gone Bad" — — 2009 "Nothing Else" — — "Since You Said I Do" — — "Loving You, Loving Me" — — You, the Night & Candlelight 2010 "God Gave Me You" 21 13 What We Want, What We Get "Little Lies" — — "Look So Easy" — — "Family Tree" — 25 Very Merry Christmas "I Pray on Christmas" — 37 "Christmas Tonight" (featuring Hillary Scott) 9 — 2011 "The Christmas Song" — 45 "What I Need" (featuring Jonny Lang) — 40 What We Want, What We Get 2012 "Hey Now" — — non-album single "White Flag" — — Stories To Tell "Love Will Be Enough For Us" — — 2013 "Good" — 50 Golden Days 2014 "Somehow Saving You" — — non-album single 2020 "Dreaming in Electric Blue" — — Dreaming in Electric Blue "Sorry's So Hard To Say (Remix)" (featuring The Shadowboxers) — — Dreaming in Electric Blue (Reimagined) "Love Somebody (Josh Kerr Remix)" — — "Sing Me Home" — — Notes from Paris "We're Gonna Miss These Days" — — "You to Me" — — I Wish It Would Snow "Go Tell it on the Mountain" — — 2021 "My Love Will Follow You" — — Notes from Paris "Only Good Will Come of This" — — "Everytime She Falls in Love" — — "The Lord Ain't Let Me Down Lately" — — "June" (featuring Suzy Jones) — — "Christmas Back Home" — — I Wish It Would Snow 2023 "Sunshine" — — Featherbrained Wealth Motel "Hayley With a Heart" — — "Yearslong" — — 2024 "Better Woman" — — Featherbrained Wealth Motel (Deluxe) 2025 "Some People's Kids" — — non-album single "Symphony" — — "—" denotes releases that did not chart

Awards and nominations CMA Awards 2012 "God Gave Me You" Song of the Year 2018 "Washed By the Water" Southern Gospel Recorded Song of the Year 2012 "God Gave Me You" Best Country Song