Keith Brooks & Hillside Ryders

Country • Hampstead, 28443, US

Videos

About the Artist

Thank you for visiting. Keith Brooks has been performing live for 65 years, and playing guitar for 60 years. Lately Ive played more gigs than ever and I love it. I am a North Carolina native and have deep seated music roots from the mountains. I try to instill this in my songs. I started singing in public when I was 4 or 5 years old as The Brooks Family. I remember being so shy I wouldnt face the audience. My younger brother joined the family in our performances and we became a quartet playing many shows almost every weekend. We had a local radio show every Saturday either live or prerecorded during the week before the show. We also recorded an album, which led us to some major gospel shows in VA, TN and NC. As we grew older, Jeff ( my brother) and I developed an interest for music that was popular on the radio, not traditional country as our dad would have wanted, but more rock and roll. Our mother fully supported our music and taught us much about music and encouraged us to keep it going. We got together a band and scraped enough equipment up to do local shows together, such as school dances, festivals and private events. We did this until 1978. After the divorce of my parents I moved from the mountains and joined an established top 40 dance band. As my musical taste grew and developed I turned more and more to rock and roll. In 1980 I joined a heavy metal band called Rockacy. We did some local shows but I wanted more. Coincidentally my wife got offered a job transfer to Memphis, TN. I talked with the band and they all agreed to move to Memphis. We rehearsed from 7-11 AM and again from 7-11 PM 5 days a week. We got really tight. After playing for a Navy base and going over so well, we started playing many clubs and opening acts and developed a rather LARGE following. We won some battle of the band gigs, picked up some new equipment and came across an avenue to audition for a US DOD overseas tour. We got accepted and did a 49 day, 51 show tour of Germany and Azores Island. Afterwards I eventually moved back to NC and got back into music. I did live club shows in a variety of bands. My desire to write kicked in and I decided to buy some recording equipment for a solo artist, so that started a new journey for me. I became very interested in recording original music and playing all the instruments. I have been doing this for years and blending in enough live performance to pacify my hunger to play live music which brings me to today. I have developed a personal style in how I write. My lyrics come from what I try to feel from others and how I personally may react to different situations and feelings. Musically, well, what my mother taught me helps to create music with less anxiety, it is almost 2nd nature for me. More recently I found the world of Indie Artists. I have had many nominations, attended award shows and try to support others to create a circle of contemporaries in the music field. This motivated me to write and record more and more. It seems every time I turn around I have a new song, some are ok, some are not, but some catch on and people like them. I lose count of the releases I put out yearly LOL. As it stands now I have many many self recorded songs here on Reverbnation, many albums and assorted singles on Pandora, Spotify and lots of online venues. I am thankful to be a part of the Indie World. Recently I won an award from ISSA, Bronze winner of US Single of the Year 2021with Hillside Ryders "Im From The South". 2022 I was nominated for 5 categories with the ISSA Awards show in Atlanta. I won the Bronze US Band of the Year with Hillside Ryders. WOW! ! ! I was also nominated with Fair Play Country Music Red Carpet Awards Show in Holland for 2022 and I won Musician Of The Year Sept 3, 2022. At the Rampage Music Awards I won Best Vocal Duo with Donna Jo Carrell and Best Christian Album. 2023 offered me to be on the Wall of Fame with Rampage. 2024 has been successful as I have won Blues Song of the Year, "Fond Fond Memories" with Homegrown Music Awards plus a finalist a finalist in 8 categories with ISSA, 11 categories for Fair Play Country Music, and nominations for Rampage Music Awards. 2025 has been busy with live shows in the area and August 23 I won Musician Of The Year with the ISSA. A truly cherished event and award. More to come in Sept? Yes, The ISSA 2025 Awards Show was Aug 23, 2025. While the event was epic within itself I won Musician Of The Year. Indeed an HONOR!!! Again this year, 2026, I won Musician Of The Year with the ISSA. THRILLING ! ! ! More recently I am writing and recording new original songs and learning more upbeat tunes along with a new mentality for live shows and festivals. I am coroborating more with the people I know so my songs can have an outside feel. Check out my gig dates as I get them. In the meantime I continue to write and record in my small studio, and to work at collaborations with fellow indie artists. I hope people will listen to and enjoy my music. It does add some excitement and accomplishment to win awards or to submit and hear my music on the radio, and be supported by a worldwide field of musicians, DJs, promoters, agents and the like. Granted, I cannot visit EVERY station but be rest assured that I appreciated you supporting me and many other independent artists. THANK YOU for checking my music out and your interest in who I am and where I come from. Also, special thanks to Kevin, David and Bob (Hillside Ryders) for your support in helping me with some live shows. All being said, I really want to play a lot in 2026 and see what is over the horizon musically for my fans. I feel its going to be a great year for music. THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR GREAT SUPPORT. PEACE,
Keith Brooks For Bookings email: thekeithbrooksproject@yahoo.com https://www.facebook.com/keith.brooks.guitar https://open.spotify.com/artist/0h4GjZzzpdJeQvAzVy4Qds?si=IY800c7lT_yfGWJ2gELWmA https://www.amazon.com/music/player/artists/B00161GJ02/keith-brooks https://www.pandora.com/artist/keith-brooks/AR5kVVhwZV6j7cZ http://www.keithbrooksmusic.com THANK YOU ALWAYS FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND ENCOURAGEMENT.

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