There’s something lonely about the open, flat land of the Texas Panhandle that ignites a desire to create, something about seclusion that forgets the boundaries of genres and takes pride in independence. Growing up in farming communities in Castro County, situated between Amarillo and Lubbock, the two leaders of Shotgun Rider have developed a signature sound tinged with that eerie loneliness reminiscent of their homeland.
In their short time as a country duo, lead singer Logan Samford and main songwriter Anthony Enriquez have driven their sound from the Panhandle through the avenues of the regional Texas music scene. Honing their craft at happy hours and dive bars on week nights, SR brings their band to the Lone Star State’s venues on the weekends. Managed by industry veteran and Floydada native Alex Torrez (former Dir. A&R Sony Music Nashville, Lawrence Music Group, Artist Relations Gibson NY), the two have great direction in the industry. Torrez began his own Torrez Music Group in early 2015 and signed Shotgun Rider as his first act. Together, their music has pushed their total streams in the millions on Spotify, been featured on ABC’s ‘Nashville’, allowed them to tour relentlessly through the Texas/Oklahoma circuit, and catapulted their sales to the charts, with three Top 20 Records on iTunes Country and one Top 10 Record on Billboard South Central Heatseekers.
The name Shotgun Rider is now an homage to advice given in a late night conversation with one of the guy’s fathers. A metaphor for ‘Enjoying the journey’, Shotgun Rider is a submissive realization of knowing faith in God will always be in the ‘driver’s seat’, and all you can ultimately do in life is work hard and ‘ride along’.
Their following comes from what the two believe is a sound that embraces the world of commercial melody, focusing on Logan’s wide ranged vocal, and painting pictures of young adulthood, bar room drama, and heartbreak . They describe their sound as a merging of their two largest influences –as different as they may seem– George Straight and Kings of Leon. An ambient, hook driven rock sound blended with smooth, hook driven country.
The two are currently touring the Texas/Oklahoma Country circuit and beyond to promote their fourth release, Sunlight EP.