As far back as he can recall, his memory is filled with treasured visits with his grandfather. His Granddad played the guitar and the fiddle, a sound that crept into Jarrod’s very existence. That musical influence has always managed to stay close to his heart. As a young adult he began to try his hand at song writing, but never really felt any degree of accomplishment. He shifted gears a bit, and spent several years attempting to earn a living riding bulls on the professional rodeo circuit. While he has since left the dirt of the arena floor behind, that time served him well. It was his chance to experience a few hardships, injuries, and an opportunity to see parts of this wonderful nation that many others never get to see. While on “injured reserve” he picked up songwriting again. This time, with a little more maturity and a vast stock of experiences to put on paper, the writing came easy. It came from the heart and soul of Jarrod Birmingham, filtered by real life. Another thing to come out of that era was a desire to perform. What started out as a group of friends doing “barn pickings” became a bonafide band. Desire pushed harder, and the Jarrod Birmingham Band competed against thousands of contestants to take first place in the “Rising Stars Over Texas” talent search. The road would be long…but the door was open. He has been compared to Waylon, and has been told he looks like Dwight, but he is all Jarrod. Backed by a five piece band, he has honed his live show playing gigs across the southern states, often opening for a long list of Texas/Americana artists and a few products of Nashville. Many react with amazement as he walks onto the stage and changes from the artist to the entertainer. He comfortably takes the heartfelt songs of the artist and tells the listener an intense, believable story as the entertainer. Grammy nominated Producer Eric Paul says, "Jarrod Birmingham is what I consider to be the first real singer of the 21st century." Paul produced Birmingham’s freshman effort “A Waitin’ and A Wishin.’” Hailing from the Texas Gulf Coast, he is every bit a product of the Lone Star State. But that lone star state of mind means he is just about as independent as they come. While his Texas roots run deep, make no mistake, there is no “Anti-Nashville” syndrome here. Indeed Birmingham has stood on Music Row, inhaling the Nashville traditions into his lungs. But he has as well stood on mountain tops in the Rockies, and on the plateaus of the Great Plains. There is no “pre-destination” in his mind about his music. His music is about as diverse as it can be and still be called country, a point he answers well on his current album, Stages released in September of 2003. Jarrod Birmingham’s songs are steeped in realism, real songs, every man songs, songs about people you know, places you’ve been, good times you’ve had and loves you’ve known. Whether a hard driving "rebel" country-rock tune, or the solitary crooning that seems to make the words hang in the air, focusing the listener's attention as they await the next word, it's like catching "lightning in a bottle." Jarrod Birmingham renders ideas into the music that creates happy, satisfied fans. He admits, with a bit of a twinkle in his eye, that he "sometimes" misses the rodeo arena. "I never really quit riding bulls," he says, "the music just sort of took over."