Courtney Cole

With a fresh face, bubbly personality and a sound that is equal parts contagious and sassy, Courtney Cole has spent many years crafting her music and creating positive messages in her lyrics that inspire others in their lives.

At an early age, you could not ignore that Courtney Cole was destined to become a singer, with an infectious charm and upbeat optimism that leaves you feeling better about yourself when you walk away. More than that, Courtney showed all the signs of respecting tradition in all types of music even as she found her own unique way as a song stylist. Some of that comes down to an accident of geography in that she happened to grow up just outside one of America's greatest musical cities.

She was 5 years old when she took her first bow onstage, at a talent show in her church; she and her father lip-synced "I Got You, Babe" together, with Dad dressed as Sonny and Courtney wearing a Cher wig. By age 10, Courtney had begun doing musical theater. She even attended NOCCA (New Orleans Center for Creative Arts), where she continued to appear in productions of Broadway shows, including The Music Man, The Wizard of Oz, several productions of Annie, five productions of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and her favorite, Little Shop of Horrors.

But country music remained in her veins. Courtney's love for country drew her to Nashville, where she enrolled in Belmont University. As a commercial voice major, she studied multiple styles of singing, including jazz, classical and of course country. Although singing was her main focus at Belmont, Courtney also devoted a good amount of time there to writing songs.

That changed when she found an internship at Black River Entertainment. The publishing company hired Courtney after her graduation. As she rose from publishing assistant to executive assistant and radio coordinator during her five-year run, Courtney learned by listening to the staff writers come up with songs in a studio next to her office.

Along with that confidence, came an audition for a TV show. The world got its first look at Courtney in 2011 on CMT: The Next Superstar. The series documented her talent and followed her pursuit of a country music career while she shared a house with other up-and-comers. A growing fan base began following her through social media. And just as important, after the last episode aired, Courtney was offered a full-time publishing deal.

Courtney’s acoustic EP #NoFilter is exclusively available at Spotify. Her single, “Drunk”, which she wrote with Catt Gravitt, Gerald O'Brien and Shirazi is available at iTunes. With her clever lyrics, catchy tune, high production quality and playful charisma seamlessly threaded together, the music video along with the single, hit No.1 on Taste of Country's Top 10 Countdown and debuted at No.8 on CMT Pure 12-Pack Countdown.

Cole released her self-titled EP on September 22, 2015, which was produced by Will Weatherly. It features the fan favorite track “Ladylike”, which was co-written by music city heavyweight songsmiths Shane McAnally and Jimmy Robbins.

It's all happening fast and Courtney, empowered by her desire to make music that inspires, is taking it all in and thoroughly enjoying the journey. Her biggest joy besides creating music and getting to perform is making new friends, as she calls her fans.