Last Saturday night, Sony Nashville recording artist Chuck Wicks performed live on the oval to a crowd of over 300 screaming fans. Besides fans in the JC community, his aunt and uncle, George and Debbie Wicks, were in attendance. After growing up on a farm in Smyrna, Delaware, Chuck “is really grounded and still has good values. He’s a good old farm boy,” Debbie said. “He came back to Smyrna about a year and a half ago and did a concert for our local Boys and Girls Club. And he’s going to do another one for us in August, and all the money gets donated to the club. It shows he still cares about his hometown.”
The Patriot caught up with Wicks after the show to ask him a few questions on his career and life.
Q. Was music always a big part of your life growing up?
A. Yeah, my dad got me into country music. When I got into the truck with him, we’d listen to country music. When I got into the car with my mom, we would listen to what we now call the 80s stations. It was a mix, but it actually paid off. I had a lot of different interests growing up, but country always stayed close to home.
Q. You originally went to Florida Southern College for baseball. What made you want to pursue music?
A. I started writing songs in college. I was always a music lover, but I knew nothing of how to get into it until I went to college. The dots just started lining up, and I started connecting them and next thing you know, I’m travelling back and forth to Nashville on the weekends.
Q. Who are your influences in your music?
A. I grew up listening to Tim McGraw [and] Garth Brooks. Brian McKnight is one of my favorite singers in the world. I’ve been motivated, and I grew up listening to a lot of different kinds of music. I can go back and listen to something from the 70s and 80s and be like ‘Oh I really like that. I wasn’t even born yet, but I really like that.’ So I’ve been influenced by all kinds of people.
Q. What are your plans after this tour is over?
A. I’m going to keep on touring. The new single comes out May 18 so that hopefully is going to be high up on the chart. And I want to get out there and play the new record, because the record is gonna come out like August or September.
Q. Do you still get nervous before performing?
A. No I don’t get nervous; I get excited, like I get pumped up. Anytime I play in a really big crowd, I can’t wait to get out there and play. If I have a great sound system, I get really excited because I know it’s gonna sound great.
Q. What’s your favorite track off your album?
A. Off the new album, I love “She Gets to Me,” but I love the new single too, “Hold That Thought.”
Q. What are your plans for the future in music?
A. I want to make as many albums as my record label will make me. And if they stop letting me make albums with them, I’ll make them somewhere else. I’ll always be making music as long as people want to hear it. I just love music and I’m a huge songwriter, that’s also a big part of who I am, so I’ll always be making music even if I’m sitting on my porch singing to my dog.
Q. What’s your biggest inspiration for songwriting?
A. Just real life stuff. Songs surround us every day, you just got to think about if something might happen, you can turn it into a song. You just got to be aware of your surroundings and what’s happening to real people in real time. Songs are like movies, but they’re just three and a half minutes long.
Q. How did JC contact you to perform at the fair?
A. Well, WXCY [the radio station] just contacted me and asked if I wanted to do a show here, and I was like ’Sure,’ so we did it.
Taylor Schafer can be reached for comment at [email protected].
Mollyann Pais can be reached for comment at [email protected].
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