Southern Fellow has always been family based. Our family is built of lovers, artists, conservatives, liberals, foodies, music fans and so many more labels we put on people. Yet, at the end of the day, all of us come together and form one family unit. It is truly remarkable to see. Our next artist on Feed the Band is someone who can pull from many different perspectives and compose a song that feels extremely honest.

You might recognize Dave Fenley from season 15 of The Voice. He had some amazing performances. Dave was eliminated, but he used his experiences on the show as a huge stepping stone for his music. It allowed him to connect with a national audience. While spending time with Dave Fenley, I learned that connecting to people was less of a job, and more something built in his DNA. Having a conversation with Dave Fenley feels like an episode of Cheers. Almost immediately you feel at home. I think it is fair to say Dave Fenley recognizes his own faults and by doing so, he relates to those of others. This allows all parties in the conversation to forgo the awkward sizing up that normally happens when you first meet someone.

Accepting faults is a theme evenly woven throughout his music. Dave Fenley tells stories of the sum of a man. He looks at both the good and the bad and let’s you decide where the scales rest. “Come to Think About It” is a song that is a fantastic example of this theme. This song has an extremely honest undertone. That’s because “Come to Think About It” lyrics are pulled from experiences of Dave Fenley himself.

The icing on the cake that sells his relatable stories is the gravel in Dave Fenley’s voice. As with Johnny Cash and other greats, that gravel can be a big part of the storytelling. It makes the artist feel like they have the maturity to speak from experience, that they have been through it and come out the other side. Cautionary tales and songs that come across as experiences lived , need gravel.