Teddy Robb at Saddlebags (Fri, July 29th)

*Teddy Robb*

Tickets: At The Door Only

This event is 21 and up.

Must show photo ID at the door.

Doors at 8pm

The entirety of the venue is general admission standing room.

Teddy Robb Bio:

Born in the farmland of rural Ohio and seasoned in the small venues of Nashville and Colorado, Teddy Robb brings his distinctive country &mid-western style to the genre. His deep cascading vocals and heart-felt lyrics are influenced not only by his Heartland upbringing, but also by country music greats, like Johnny Cash, Glen Campbell, George Strait and Brooks and Dunn, who first inspired the singer/songwriter’s journey into music.

Raised in Akron, Ohio, Teddy’s youth was spent off-roading, fishing, hunting, and basking in the glow of Friday-night lights. At 13, his first musical encounter came courtesy of an acoustic guitar. “I heard the riff from ‘Wish You Were Here’ by Pink Floyd and it stopped me in my tracks,” he says. “I picked up a guitar and learned enough to strum along to play along” But guitar playing was one thing, singing, another completely. “I fell in love with the guitar, but if someone had offered me thousands of dollars to sing, I just wouldn’t have,” he says. That, plus a focus on sports, caused the teenager to think of music as more a passion project, than a career. Excelling in football, the game took all his time.

Teddy went off to college on a football scholarship, but when he started to feel the effects of one too many hits, he made the difficult decision to leave the game he loved and soon after he turned to that guitar. “When I left football, I had this void in my life for the first time ever,” he says. “The competitiveness, the practice, the discipline...it was all still in me, but I didn’t have the game.” A chance encounter with Thomas Rhett while interning at a local radio station was the moment his path forward became clear. “I saw him sing and I realized that is what I want to do, I want to be the one with the guitar, singing the songs.”

Though he was the first in his family to pursue music professionally, Teddy counts them as a huge inspiration in following his dreams, especially his grandmother. “My grandmother was a jazz and opera singer, and an actress,” says Teddy. “She passed away when I was 5 years old, so I don’t have many memories of her, but she has always been this voice in my head, telling me to keep going.”

When Teddy moved to Nashville following graduation, he took all that love and support from his family, along with the drive, focus and competitiveness from football to the Honky Tonks on Broadway and Music Row. “I did an open mic coffee shop gig right when I moved to Nashville, and it was such a rush...the same rush that I got on a football field.” he explains. “I was so scared, which meant I was doing something right.” 

After cutting his teeth night after night on stage, fate stepped in when Teddy travelled to Vail, Colorado on a snowboarding trip. On a dare, he jumped on stage to perform at a local bar - a performance that would quickly change everything when the owner offered him a long-term residency at the bar. Teddy knew better than to question the opportunity, so he packed his bags and headed for the mountains. “I remember packing up to make this 28-hour drive scared as hell,” says Teddy. But I did it. I just ran after it. Something was telling me not to hesitate.”

For months Teddy held that residency in Vail, playing music to every person who would listen, discovering new musical heroes like John Prine, John Denver, and the Eagles, and finding his own inspiration in the natural beauty of the landscape. At that point, he had been playing other people’s music for years, on Broadway and in Colorado, and he was feeling like he may never get to share his own voice. Then, fate stepped in again when Teddy saw a group of tourists looking for a seat at a bar. With a whole table to himself, Teddy invited them to sit, making the connection that would lead him back to Nashville, a publishing deal, and ultimately, a record deal with Monument Records.

Since signing with Monument, Teddy has been honing his craft, finding his own sound, and releasing some of the genre’s most exciting music. HIs first release with the label, “Lead Me On,” put him on the map as an artist with a unique perspective, and a unique way with words. 

“Really Shouldn’t Drink Around You,” and the EP that followed, made waves across country radio, and “Heaven On Dirt” planted his stake firmly in the genre. His music has acquired over 100 million streams to date. Now working on new music with a talented team of songwriters including Pete Good (Tim McGraw), Josh Jenkins (Walker Hays, Jordan Davis), Dave Turnbull (Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton, Jake Owen), and Brandon Ratcliff, Teddy is creating his most authentic music to date for his forthcoming EP, Get Away With it. With the pandemic as his backdrop, he

explains “everything was written from a place of reflection. The whole EP came together during the pandemic, when I spent a lot of time looking back on my life. I was forced to look at my career and say, ‘do I think that music is a viable option?’ And ‘no’ was just not an acceptable answer for me.”

The theme of reflection is prevalent in the nostalgic and heart-felt track “1500,” which serves as a reminder of what he left back home, to chase his dreams in Music City. Lost love also shines through on tracks like “Whiskey Can’t,” making the case that sometimes the feelings you’re looking for can’t be found at the bottom of a glass. The personal ode, “Get Away With It,” is told from the other side of a break-up, and the heart-breaking track, “Middle of Nowhere,” centers on the feelings that linger after love is lost. This EP represents all the things that Teddy has worked through these last years - love and loss, loneliness and perseverance, joy and adventure. The guitar has always been there, and he knows it always will. “I’ve planted my flag in the ground here in Nashville, and I’m not giving up. I love what I do, and I’m going to continue to do it as long as I possibly can.”