Sugarland's Kristian Bush on Decatur Roots, Making it Big, and Solo Album

Kristian Bush is only partially joking when he wonders if there is something in Decatur’s water that nourishes musical talent.

The Atlanta suburb is where he records his music and works with other songwriters and performers from across the country, who embrace the city’s food, ambiance and spirit.

“Whenever anybody comes (to Decatur) to write, they usually come from Los Angeles or New York or Nashville, and they come down and we write and we go grab some food … and they keep looking at me like ‘Kristian, I totally get it. I didn’t know why you didn’t live in Nashville, but now I know.’”

Bush will treat fans to selections from his upcoming solo album, Southern Gravity, when he performs Oct. 4 at The Atlanta Chili Cookoff in Conyers.

“It’s an opportunity for people to come to stuff their faces with incredible food, and stuff their ears and hearts with incredible music,” the Atlanta resident told Patch in an exclusive interview.

The Tennessee native is especially excited about Saturday’s performance because he considers Decatur a second hometown; the area laid the very foundation for turning his passion into his career.

”I was kind of taken into the music scene here and educated in how to be an artist around all these people. They have done an amazing thing for me,” the songwriter told Patch. “They’ve taught me what it means to have a good T-shirt, and try to write a better song, and what it’s like to go and record an album.”

Watching bands just starting out like The Black Crows and R.E.M. grow to national success while he was a student at Emory University, Bush began to view the dream of a successful musical career as something he might one day be able to achieve.

“The impossible was suddenly possible because [emerging artists] were walking around [Decatur] and I’d see them in bars or I’d go see them play and I would think to myself ‘Okay, while it’s probably unlikely that this could be my life, it is possible, even though it’s just a very slim chance.’ And I just started shooting for the slim chance. And I just never gave up.”

Musical Roots, Early Days

The songwriting community in Decatur would birth a number of recording artists during Bush’s time there: The Indigo Girls, Michelle Malone, Shawn Mullen, and John Mayer to name a few. Billy Pilgrim, Bush’s early group with Andrew Hyra, would secure their record deal with Atlantic Records while based in Decatur, too.

Several years after Billy Pilgrim’s last studio release, Bush joined with Jennifer Nettles to form Sugarland in 2004, and the duo was signed to a record label while writing and recording out of Decatur. The band went on to achieve national popularity with hits like “Baby Girl,” “Stay,” and “Stuck Like Glue.”

“At this point, everybody’s kinda scratching their heads, like ‘Wait is there something in the water’?” Bush says.

Bush’s talent is far from accidental. As a child he took up classical violin lessons at the University of Tennessee under the then-experimental teaching program, the Suzuki Method. As one of the program’s early alumni, Bush was taught to understand music as if it were a language. Because this technique emphasized ear training rather than learning musical notation, the famed songwriter can’t read sheet music.

“I have a really good grasp of music theory … [and] I’ve kind of learned all the inside parts of melodic relationships, though I don’t really know what I’m doing, you know? I’m kind of winging it, but it’s ingrained into me much like a Southern accent might be.”

Bush experiences a similar ease when songwriting, as the melodies behind his lyrics arise almost by instinct.

“Each lyric pulls its own melody from the air, and I just have to let it happen, [so] if you told me a line, I could tell you kind of how the melody’s supposed to go with it.”

Home Base in Decatur

Today, Bush still writes and records all his music, and writes for other artists, at his studio in Decatur. But even on his third major record deal, Bush never forgets to look back to the community that was so formative for him.

Much like the Indigo Girls or R.E.M. did for him, Bush wants to remind aspiring young musicians that becoming a recording artist “might be unlikely, but it’s totally possible. If you have a dream, go for it. What are they going to say? No? Eventually they’ll say yes. Don’t give up. I always say hard work outpaces talent every time. … My experience has been that talent will sometimes show up hungover, [while] the person who’s prepared will win every time.”

Bush has propelled his solo career with an impressive creative output. Every Monday the musician posts a song on his personal website for fans to enjoy -- a series he intends to continue while finishing Southern Gravity, working as a songwriter and producer for other artists, and still performing with Jennifer Nettles as a part of Sugarland.

How is it possible for Bush to keep up all of these simultaneously? He’s always writing, the artist says, and has accumulated roughly 300 unreleased songs, only 12 of which will be able to be included on Southern Gravity.

Bush’s success will come full-circle this weekend when one of his early music influences, Atlanta’s Michelle Malone, will play alongside him at the cook-off’s 4:30 p.m. show. It was in attending his first show after moving to Emory in 1988 that Bush saw Malone perform with her band Drag the River at The Point.

Other music events featured at the cook-off’s mainstage are a Jimmy Buffet Tribute band at 10:30 a.m. and The Steel Magnolia’s Joshua Scott Jones at 2:30 p.m.

Fans can find more information on the Atlanta artist on his website, Facebook, Twitter account, and YouTube channel. Don’t forget to catch the video of “Trailer Hitch,” the single from Southern Gravity, here.

Photo Credit: David McClister

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If You Go

Tickets for a day of music, activities, and free samples of over 150 types of chili at The Atlanta Chili Cookoff are sold on-site only for $10, and children under 12 can get in for free. Parking is $5, and gates at Georgia International Horse Park will open at 10 a.m. Cash only. All proceeds will go to Camp Twin Lakes.

For more information on Saturday’s event, including what you can and cannot bring, visit their FAQ page.

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