Nashville and country music is made up of incredible talented folks across the board. You hear the quote all the time, whether it's music, sports or life in general, "hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work hard.” So many young artists get caught up in chasing motives that don't equate to longevity. Lucky for Cody Cozz, he has talent with an unlimited ceiling and has a great head on his shoulders with knowledge wise beyond his years and great perspective. In addition, he also has the most important attribute for a long and successful career: authenticity. Cozz has gained valuable experience in his first few years of music and living in Nashville. He understands the importance of patience and has an opportunity to break into the mainstream framework in the next few years. The makings of a true superstar. Cody Cozz's hot single "Friday Me" released on July 19th is buzzing as it surpasses 350,000 streams on Spotify alone. Cozz has built up to over 174,000 monthly listeners on Spotify as well. Business is BOOMING.
I sat down with Cody Cozz and talked about his single "Friday Me,” how an Italian restaurant changed his life in music, and why authenticity will always trump numbers, status, and fame. Take a look into the life and music of Cody and how the Colorado native navigates life in Nashville.
Get To Know Cody
"I grew up in a small town called Pueblo, Colorado. It's about 2 hours south of Denver. Music was always a side hobby for me.Singing was something I've done my whole life. Out here (in Colorado) we aren't influenced by music that much. We have the Wyoming music scene which is pretty decent, but is nothing like the scenes in Nashville, Texas, and Oklahoma. Initially, music was never in my vision for the future. Sports was always my main focus. I played football at CSU-Pueblo which is one of the top DII schools in the country. I enjoyed playing football.
When COVID happened and the world shut down for everybody, I had nothing but time on my hands and Colorado was one of the states that was really strict with lockdowns. We were all cooped up in our houses and I couldn't see family, and was dealing with losing a girlfriend. She had broken up with me after 4 years over a text message, and football was now gone, so I was battling an identity crisis at the time. I didn’t know anything about songwriting, but it just felt right and I started writing songs in my bedroom to express myself. I turned to God and music and was praying a lot, channeling a lot of my feelings and emotions into the songs. At the time, I had no idea anyone would hear the songs I was writing. It was therapy for me and a way to get things off my chest.
Eventually, I started posting cover songs online and I was reached out to by an Italian restaurant in my hometown, and they asked if I wanted to play in the tent they were setting up outside to serve food while still "social distancing.” He booked me on a Wednesday and the show was on a Friday. I pretended like I'd done this kind of thing before, so I had a quick turn around. I just went to Apple Music and found any song that I thought I could play on guitar and made this binder filled with like 65 songs. I played my first gig on June 5th of 2020 and 200 people showed up. When I drove by, I was already nervous, but when I saw all these people I was sweating. I just jumped in and after the gig I got invited back to play the next day, and I kept getting invited back.
7 months later I got my first opportunity that wasn't at a bar or restaurant. It was at a concert venue and they said they would love for me to open for Chancey Williams, who hails from Wyoming, and is a great guy and friend of mine at this point. That experience was life changing for me. That led to me getting the opportunity to open for Craig Campbell. After getting that chance, I asked him for advice on anything to do with being an artist and performing. We had a phone call and he shared a lot of advice about performing in regards to getting up and moving around and getting off the stool while I played, getting rid of the binder of songs I had on stage with me, what equipment to buy, and things like that, and I really appreciated it.
I've been very lucky. Colorado has really taken to me and the west coast. I've toured in 10 states over there before making the move to Nashville. And I'm fortunate enough to get some radio play out here in this region. When I moved to Nashville it was definitely a culture shock. I love Nashville and it's become home to me."
Is It Friday Yet?
White collar, blue collar it doesn't matter... Everyone is watching the clock ready for the weekend and to let loose and spend that paycheck. "Friday Me" is an energetic anthem that flows as nicely as an ice cold beer at your favorite dive bar. This track highlights Cozz's commanding vocals and his catchy melodies to bring home the relatable lyrics and will have you humming along all day every day. This track is the perfect blend of traditional country music with hints of mainstream energy. A song that resonates with many... What brings people together more than a cold drink with your buddies after a grueling work week? A must listen from rising artist Cody Cozz.
Inspiration Behind "Friday Me"
Written By: Cody Cozz, Landon Magee, Dan Marshall, Bobby McLamb
Produced By: Brent McCollough
"“FRIDAY ME” is the perfect anthem for the feeling you get when you’ve worked a hard week and the paycheck finally hits and you know you can have the time of your life with your friends. All the troubles of the world disappear and your only focus is making the most of the night. Although you wake up Saturday not feeling your best you’re gonna do it all again the next week!
It’s just a feel good song inspired by real life moments. I can remember putting in the grind and finally seeing the payoff at the end of the week and walking around as if I could do anything. I wrote this song for the blue collar people."
Q & A With Cody Cozz
Q: What was that "light bulb" moment you knew you wanted to pursue music as a career?
A: "There are two moments I vividly remember. When I got Craig's number - post getting his number, I told my brother "I feel like I don't deserve this..." We were in a utility closet in the venue. At the time, I was still battling unhealed trauma. My brother grabbed me by the shoulders and said "Cody, when God wants something to happen, he makes it happen fast.” And I've never forgotten that quote. That moment where I had a big country music artist I admired and I remember listening to his music before chasing music telling you I should pursue music, from that moment on I was just like "let's go.”
And the other moment, my parents absolutely support me and are my biggest fans, but when I told them, I sat them down and told them I wanted to do this (pursue music). Through COVID, my parents had noticed I had lost interest in school especially when it went online and I was just coasting through. I sat down with my mom and dad and they were kind of concerned, and I told them, "I really think this is what I'm supposed to do.” Like any parent, when you tell them you wanna be a rockstar, they were skeptical and thought it was a pipe dream. And that was the chip on my shoulder I needed. At this point I didn't need their permission, but it helped with my drive to show them this is what I'm meant to do."
Q: What has your transition to Nashville been like moving from Colorado? Highs and lows so far?
A: "I'm the first guy in my entire family to leave my hometown. It was a big decision. Now that I'm in Nashville, it's become my home. I've been here for about two and a half years. So far, I've experienced some highs and I've experienced some lows, but when I announced I was moving to Nashville, I had all these people from Colorado or Wyoming that had moved to Nashville were DMing me saying "you're going to regret it" and "it's not what you think it is,” "it's very cut throat,” Call it naive, but I was just bought in and my mindset "it may be that for you, but it's not going to be like that for me.” I went into it having ultimate confidence.
I was on the road with Matt Stell for a little bit and his bass player who is also named Matt told me "Nashville is going to tell you if you're good or not..." When I first moved, within the first 3 months I just remember doing absolutely nothing. I started getting crazy anxiety. I went from touring 10 states, playing with all these big acts and making a ton of money to doing nothing and it was the peak of summer.
That was the low for me, I had grinded for several years to make good money and then I was back to not making much and playing for exposure again. It was an ego shock and I didn't know how I was going to survive and felt like I was starting over from scratch."
Q: What do you want your legacy in Country Music to be?
A: "It's that I can say that I did it my way. I've battled a lot of ups and downs. You get told often that your focus has to be followers, likes and numbers... which is true. There is an importance to Tik Tok and social media. I always get told, "you have to be doing things like this guy" or "you need to chase songs like this or that," and I finally stood my ground and we don't need another Morgan Wallen - he already exists. I just want to be Cody Cozz and the right people are going to find me and appreciate it. Whether I become a popular artist or not, I want fans, people in the industry, etc. to recognize that I was the same person on and off stage. I had to remind myself several times why I started this. I started this because it makes me happy, I started music because I was at a low point in my life, and that I didn't go for money or fame. I don't think that's ever what you should chase, because then you are in it for the wrong reason. I want to make other people happy and not get lost in the statistics of this business. I thoroughly enjoy meeting my fans and one of the best parts about this job is the amount of lives you can touch by just living your dream. I believe in myself enough to be successful in this industry. It just takes time."
Q: Who are some influences that have helped mold your sound?
A: "Definitely that 90's/early 2000's country of Travis Tritt, Vince Gill, Keith Whitley and Brooks & Dunn are some of my biggest influences. More current guys... I fell in love with Luke Combs' first two records. I remember getting those and listening to those whole records top to bottom and I feel like that's more rare these days. It's way more about singles these days. I remember my brother in 2016 showing me Cody Johnson and I've been following him forever and it's amazing to see his growth over the years. And Mike Ryan who's also from the Texas scene. If there is anyone I would want to sound like it's that guy. His music, his style, his writing, everything about his music. I got to open for him and it was a bucket list moment for me."
If you are just discovering Cody Cozz follow him on Apple Music, Spotify, Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok
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