Cheley Tackett

It only takes hearing Cheley Tackett once to understand why she is one of Nashville's most celebrated emerging artists. Cheley's blend of lyrical intensity and melodic craftsmanship have earned her recognition and respect in a town where being a stand-out is a rare achievement - - and yet this is exactly what Cheley Tackett has become, not only in Nashville, but on the Country & Americana scenes nationwide.
Tackett's long list of awards as a songwriter and performer have certainly helped to put her comfortably in the spotlight, but they haven't slowed her down one bit. In 2001 she released her debut album, When We Knew It All as an independent project. Less than a year later, she was named a winner in the country category of the long-running Chris Austin Songwriting Contest at Merlefest with Penny Wishes, a song from that debut record. This same song, a bittersweet ballad of coming of age, was named the Just Plain Folks Country Song of the Year later in 02. From there, the recognition just kept coming. Cheley won a New Folk award for two more songs from her first album at the prestigious Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas. In 2005, she was named a semi-finalist in the International Songwriting Contest in the Rock category. Most recently, Cheley won the Just Plain Folks' Country Album of the Year award for "Here" and took home the most coveted award from that organization, Song of the Year for "Play the One I Like."



When Cheley isn't touring, she is performing in Nashville with the Girls With Guitars, one of Nashville's hottest nights of live music comprised of a band of rowdy, eclectic women who share the stage at intervals. These gals are exactly the type of artists Tackett values most - - they are the "writer's writers" of Nashville. Also a much sought-after demo singer on Music Row and beyond, Cheley's sultry voice and velvety moments are uniquely her own.
It isn't fair to say that Cheley Tackett's appeal is limited to simply one genre - - she is gifted with cross-over potential that has hugely widened her audience. She has shared the stage with Americana powerhouses like Mindy Smith, Mary Gauthier, and Kathy Mattea. She has opened for mainstream acts like country artist Doug Stone, and for rockers like the band America, famous for rock radio staples like A Horse With No Name and Ventura Highway.
Cheley's 2nd album release, Here, is the perfect blend of this ability to defy categorization. She delivers creepy, crashing rockers like The Sky Is Falling that will raise the hair on the back of the neck, and then she coaxes us along into the swampy funk of Fried Chicken. But perhaps the most staggering moments come from her ballads on this record. Up Here offers an eerie, almost ethereal message of love from the other side, while the sparse, acoustic production of Good For Me gently invites listeners to feel the painful regret of a once beautiful relationship. The album is a triumph for Cheley and a great addition to her already remarkable catalog.