2023 Guitar Pull Artist - George Birge
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00:00Well, we've got Scottie McCreary, we've got Tiger Lily Gold, and now it's time to reveal
00:05our third QYK Guitar Pole artist.
00:08We've got a guy on the phone who is an absolute stud.
00:12He actually has performed here in Tampa.
00:14Yes, he has.
00:15And is a very talented dude.
00:18His song that he has on the radio right now, he wrote actually for Jason Aldean, and then
00:23said, hey, you know what, Jason?
00:24I'm going to record it.
00:26That happened.
00:27So, he will be at our QYK Guitar Pole.
00:29So, QYK Guitar Pole artist, please reveal yourself.
00:33Tampa, what's going on?
00:35This is George Burge, and I cannot wait to get down there and hang out with you guys.
00:39I got my mind on you, and you on my mind.
00:43Got these four wheels on a two lane, and we're cutting through the night.
00:47Yeah!
00:48Come on.
00:49Nice.
00:50George Burge, Mind on You, is his single.
00:53This man is awesome.
00:55Out of Austin, Texas, was a golfer in college.
00:58He said, you know what, I'm going to do the music thing.
01:00So, turned his clubs in for a guitar, and look at him now.
01:03Listen, guys, I've been getting hit all over social media from people hearing the song on
01:08the radio, and it's got me just jonesing to get down there and play it for you guys
01:12in real life.
01:13So, I'm counting the days, and I cannot wait to come turn it up down there.
01:16Yay!
01:17He's from the South.
01:18You hear it?
01:18Yeah.
01:19Jonesing?
01:20Jonesing.
01:20Not a lot of people say that.
01:21Way to bring that back, George.
01:22Way to bring that back, buddy.
01:24That's it, man.
01:24We're keeping it alive.
01:26No, we're really one of the nicest guys, and we are pumped to have you, man, and doing
01:30an acoustic set as well.
01:32I always ask this question, what are some of the advantages of playing acoustically versus
01:37a full band?
01:39Like, what do you get out of that?
01:40Do you play songs differently?
01:42Do you play songs slower, maybe, than you would in a full show?
01:46Like, how do you approach those type of shows?
01:48Obviously, there's a rush playing a rockin' set, full band, electric guitars, and drums,
01:52but I really do like these broken-down acoustic sets, because, you know, that's how we write
01:55the songs.
01:56When I'm sitting here in a studio in Nashville working, it's not like we're playing with
01:59a full band while we're writing the song.
02:00We're writing just you, a pen and paper, and a guitar.
02:03And so, to be able to come share the stories behind the songs in a little bit more intimate
02:07fashion, and really let people see, like, the core bones of the song and how it was
02:13born, it's pretty special for me, and I feel like, for listeners, it's a lot easier for
02:18them to connect when it's broken down like that, and you see it in its raw form.
02:21So, it's something that I really enjoy sharing, and we've had a lot of success connecting
02:25with folks doing it, so I can't wait to come try it out down there.
02:29Oh, it's going to be awesome.
02:30Talking to George Burge, he's going to be at our QYK guitar pool.
02:33George, this is a song that kind of came out of COVID for you, right?
02:36Mind on You, and kind of got big on social media first?
02:39This song, it's no exaggeration to say, it completely changed my life.
02:43In 2020, I had asked out of my record deal, I was hanging up my boots, I was kind of done
02:47chasing the artist thing.
02:48I'd had a bunch of close calls and just couldn't quite make it happen, and I decided I was going
02:52to be a songwriter and just pitch my song to other folks, and I wrote this song with
02:56a buddy of mine, Colt Ford, who's also a country artist, and I knew it was special, but
03:00I didn't really have a way to put it out, and so I ended up pitching it to Jason Albin's
03:03producer.
03:04We get an email the next day, everybody's flipping out, don't play this song for anybody else,
03:08Jason's going to put it on his new record, and at the time, that was the biggest thing
03:12to ever happen to me.
03:13Jason's fresh off of Entertainer of the Year, this would have been my biggest cut of all
03:16time, having somebody else report my song.
03:18I felt like my life had changed.
03:20Well, fast forward about six months, and my own music started taking off on social media,
03:24I had a bunch of stuff going viral, and I ended up signing a record deal, and the head
03:27of the label was like, man, you have to call and ask for that song back, it needs to be
03:30your debut single, and it's going to change your life, which, let me tell y'all how scary
03:33it is to call the Entertainer of the Year, and I was just going to say, how did that
03:37phone call go?
03:39Oh my gosh, there's a million stories in Nashville of that phone call being a complete disaster,
03:44but I cannot say enough kind words about Jason and his team, they were awesome, and they
03:47were excited for me as a new artist, for my opportunity, and they gave me my song back,
03:52and it ended up being the most added song in America at country radio, my first top
03:5740, my first top 30, my first top 20, and hopefully by the end of the year, my first
04:00number one, so I'm very glad I rolled the dives on it, yeah, it's pretty cool stuff.
04:05Yeah, it's really cool, man, and I think I saw you, and I was hanging out with you at
04:09the Dallas Bowl when it cracked the top 40, and you were like, I just remember your face
04:13just being so pumped about it, and now look at it.
04:17You know, it's something that you dream about your whole life as a kid, you know, laying
04:20in bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking about what life's going to be, but you never actually
04:24believe it'll really happen, and to have this thing taken off like it has, and all these
04:28people connecting with it, and showing up to shows, and singing it back, especially
04:32in Tampa, I can't believe the connection y'all's listeners have had with the song, it is really,
04:37really gratifying to me, so I feel very blessed and lucky to get to do this, and you know,
04:41sometimes a second chance pays off, so it's been pretty good, guys.
04:45Have you talked to Jason since?
04:48I have not, you know, he's been putting out a bunch of hits himself, so he was very kind
04:53to let me have this one.
04:55Yeah, it's good that he recovered, okay, you know, we were a little worried about him,
05:01but then he had a song that was number one in every genre, so that was pretty well.
05:06I'll figure he won't have too much trouble paying his bills.
05:08No, he's going to be fine, yeah, especially when he keeps selling pieces of that catalog
05:11for, you know, hundreds of millions of dollars, but you'll do that one day too, George, we're
05:15excited about it, man, we're excited to see you at the QYK Guitar Pool, like I said, you
05:20know, I mess with you a lot, but you are one of the nicest dudes, and I'm so excited
05:24for you, you're somebody that we root for, and Mind On You is a great song, and you said
05:29it, people in Tampa are connecting with it.
05:31Yes, they are.
05:32Cannot wait to hear it acoustically, it's going to be great, and brother, we appreciate you.
05:35Likewise, you are the best, thank y'all for all the support in Tampa, we will see you soon,
05:40and y'all do not want to miss this, I promise.
05:42By the way, George is a good follow on social media.
05:46Yes.
05:46Hey, plug that real quick, George.
05:48Y'all come find me, George Burge on social media, you know, y'all can see the train wreck
05:52that is my life, but there's some highlights along the way.
05:55There is.
05:56No, and he's a talker too, like, he like, you know how we talk songs, and we talk right
06:00up to where the song starts, right, you know, hit the post, as they call it in the biz.
06:05He does that, as he's explaining the songs, and the stories behind the songs, on his
06:10social media.
06:11I love that.
06:11Guy should be a DJ.
06:12Yep.
06:13Hey.
06:13Hey, y'all tell me you heard it on here, if y'all come find me, y'all say hi, and absolutely
06:18check it out.
06:19I'm George Burge, and would love to see y'all on there.
06:21That's George saying, I gotta go.
06:23All right, later, buddy, we'll talk to you soon.
06:25Bye, George.
06:26Bye, guys.
06:27See ya.
06:27See ya.