New artists dream about the kind of results Josh Turner achieved with his 2003 debut, "Long Black Train". Spurred by its haunting, gospel-inflected title track, the album sold more than a million copies and brought Turner a pair of nominations from the influential Country Music Association, plus a Top New Artist nomination from the Academy of Country Music.

That debut, however, was merely a prelude. Turner's sophomore project, "Your Man", demonstrated an increased maturity, a better-honed sense of his strengths and a more specific portrait of the singer as both an artist and a man.

"I love fighting for my music," he insists. "I'm out there trying to make a positive impact on people in any kind of way I can, and I like music that makes you think."

Born and raised in Hannah, South Carolina, Josh Turner got his first exposure to music at the Union Baptist Church. But his introduction to country music came through his father's mom, who acquainted him with Southern gospel quartets, country stars Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Roy Acuff and Ernest Tubb, and bluegrass legends The Osborne Brothers and The Stanley Brothers.

"Ralph Stanley has such a unique voice, and he's really carved a niche for himself," Turner says. "He's kept mountain music and bluegrass music alive, and introduced a lot of new fans to that kind of music, and I was one of those people from a very early age."

Josh Turner had no intention of being anything more than a fan until he reached the age of 14. At that point, his mother signed Josh and his two siblings up, for $25 each, at a church fundraiser called April Fools For Christ. Under the rules, each was required to look foolish in a public manner unless they shelled out $25. None of the kids had $25, and that lack of cash proved quite fruitful for Josh's development.

"My brother had to impersonate Steve Urkel (from "Family Matters"), my sister had to do a tap dance, and mama paid for me to do 'Diggin' Up Bones' by Randy Travis," Turner recalls. "I did not want to do it. I was just petrified. That was the first time I ever sang a country song in front of a crowd. Of course, I was singing to a track, and a lot of people that night thought that I was lip-synching to Randy's version of the song. There was a huge applause when I got through, and that was when the light went off for me. 'If that's the way this feels, this is what I want to do.'"

As Turner approached the end of his high school years, he was dating a girl who attended a different high school. She told her choir director about his interest in a country music career, and the instructor in turn suggested he attend Belmont University, a school with a music business program located just a few blocks from the hub of Nashville's entertainment industry.

After taking some preliminary classes at Francis Marion University in Florence, South Carolina, Josh Turner transferred to Belmont, where he became a vocal performance major. Through a classmate, he was introduced to music publisher Jody Williams, who signed him to a songwriting deal. Williams would, in turn, arrange a meeting at MCA, which ultimately led to a recording contract.

At Belmont, Josh Turner also met his future wife, Jennifer Ford. Josh and Jennifer married in June 2003, four months to the day before the release of "Long Black Train", and she's become a backing vocalist and piano player in his road band.

When Belmont honored him in September 2004 with its Curtain Call Award, he expressed profound joy over his collegiate memories: "I told them I got more than a degree out of Belmont. I got a record deal and a wife."

Josh Turner's voice is ultimately an instrument that communicates the deeper influences in his world.

Hit songs include --

• Your Man
• Would You Go With Me
• Firecracker
• Long Black Train
• Me And God
• Another Try
• What It Ain't

Josh Turner may be available for your next special event!

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