Rusty Tinder

Imagine if Billy Joel started a band with Zac Brown and Gram Parsons. That’s Rusty Tinder.

The singer-songwriter began taking piano lessons when he was six years old, and like most boys decided that sports and girls were more important when he was going into high school. When he told his mom he was quitting piano, she made him take choir. Though 14-year-old Rusty was completely devastated, he now reflects on that choice with gratefulness. Choir galvanized his love for music and made him realize he wanted to share his gift with the world.

After high school, Rusty took his newfound love for singing to new levels by studying Opera in college, though it didn’t last long. In school, Rusty came to the conclusion that he preferred writing his own music and playing in bands. He ended up getting the most general music degree Washington State University had to offer and moved to the Midwest, where he started several jazz rock bands. It was moving back to the West Coast that made the young musician fall in love with country music — a genre he used to make fun of.

Fate took Rusty on tour with his friend Doug Cameron’s alt-country band Stranger Neighbor for six months, where he realized this sound’s melodic nature was perfect to play on the piano and also fit the way he was feeling. After a move to L.A., Rusty played piano in the country rock outfit Von Cotton for eight years, covering the likes of Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson and George Straight. He was officially hooked on country.