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PRESENTED BY XAVIER BRINKMAN


Join us in Memphis, TN -- touch down in the land of the delta blues. Somewhere east of the Mississippi and west of Nashville...a proud community home to Beale street, Graceland, and barbecue sauce laid on thicker than the humidity they're oh-so-famous for. This is the south, blue collar working class, the real -- this is heartland-- middle America. I can't think of a better place to be a young art...ist...coming up, making music and being inspired. The music, the culture and the history in this town are unrivaled. Speaking of music, somewhere down in Memphis, there's something starting to brew, a duo of singer songwriters — and if you ask the locals, they'd tell you the band is next in line. Not quite Elvis, and not quite Timberlake -- introducing Memphis High, a band wise beyond their name. Let me tell you about these kids...hem...young men.

.. Meet 17 year olds Grant Vogel and Witt McKay. Their combined age still comes up WAY too young for having such impressive influences as Al Green, the Dire Straits, Elvis, and a series of old Motown records. Let me tell you exactly what I'm talking about...Old Stax and Sun Studios resonate more with these guys than any 2010 Pro Tools powerhouse. Talk about the most soulful young duo out there that your friends don't know anything about...yet. Some call them James Morrison in the body of the Jonas Brothers, but I don't know if they'd go for that one. According to Witt, the band got together through a vocal coach in Memphis who introduced them. He continues, "at the time, we were about 11 years old and the studio owner had heard that I could sing so she brought me back to the vocal room to sing with Grant and we knew right away that we had something great together." Prior to that these guys literally started from the cradle (no pun intended Clapton) — Grant comments "I think music has just been an instinctual thing for me, I started singing as soon as I could talk." Talk about harmonies that make the Gibb brothers look like high school drop-outs. Tall statement, I know. Grant continues, "I credit my family the most for supporting me in this thing that most people consider "crazy" and/or "stupid." They have never ever been the cynical parents that they so easily could have been, I am lucky."

In spring of 2010, after years of hard work to gain exposure, the band signed with power management company The Collective, and have started work on a record for release this fall. The band has spent the past few months between Los Angeles and Nashville working on new songs and preparing for their official debut to the world...the best is yet to come. "The songwriting process is always a big thrill for me, both when I'm collaborating and writing by myself," comments Witt. Grant adds, "the feeling of writing a song that you can really stand behind and say, this is what I want to say and how I want to say it, is unlike any other feeling in the world -- you also learn a ton about yourself and others when you write, it's simply awesome." While we cannot figure out if the band has spent more time on a plane or in the studio, they've already collaborated with Mike Busbee (Lady Antebellum, Rascal Flatts, Katy Perry, Timbaland), Nathan Chapman (Taylor Swift), Darrell Brown (Keith Urban), Andy Dodd (Jesse McCartney, Miley Cyrus), Bryan Todd (Miley Cyrus, Mitchel Musso), Ashley Gorley (Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley), Eman (David Archuleta, Trey Bruce (Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill), Big Time Rush, Backstreet Boys), Drew and Shannon (Jonny Lang, Robert Randolph, Marc Brousard), Richard Marx, and many others. On writing songs, Grant states "My first line of advice to anyone would be to make music you love and don't look back." Witt continues, "I finally feel like we're putting together a record that represents us, where we are at in our lives, and where we're from." "We hope to release it this fall." Manager Lucas Keller comments on the band, "I'm totally intrigued by where they come from and how it has affected the writing process. On another note, I think I've seen them order creole-style jambalaya at three separate dinners in three separate cities nowhere near Memphis..... I'm convinced..... it's in the blood!"

With a record nearly completed and a series of tour dates falling onto the books, the future looks quite bright for these two Memphis natives. While they know there is a lot of work to be done, surely success will come long before the Tennessee drinking age. Give it time boys.

http://www.facebook.com/MemphisHigh

Cindi Avnet: Producer / Talent Booker
Chris Hobbs: Cinematographer
Audio: Wes Gaither
Atara Gottschalk: Co-Producer / Talent Booker
Lauren Gardiner: Production Assistant / Photographer
Leah Hobbs: Associate Producer
Gabe Dauer: Editor
Courtney Arwin: Balcony Location