Born in Arlington, Texas, Mickey Guyton moved around the Lone Star state as her father’s engineering job took them to Waco, Tyler, Dallas and Fort Worth. Music was a constant in her nomadic life. She began singing gospel in church when she was only five and grew up listening to a variety of artists, including Dolly Parton, LeAnn Rimes, Whitney Houston and gospel innovators BeBe and CeCe Winans. “Those were huge influences,” she says, recalling a particularly pivotal moment. “I was at a Texas Rangers baseball game and LeAnn Rimes was singing the National Anthem. This was right when she came out with ‘Blue’. I was completely mesmerized.”
Mickey knew instantly what she wanted to do with her life, and although she possesses the kind of strong, evocative voice that could succeed in any genre, Country music is her passion. “Of all the music out there, Country is the most honest, the most genuine and speaks to my heart” she says.
Mickey moved to Los Angeles after high school to attend Santa Monica College. She worked long hours at two jobs, struggling to make ends meet, but held on to her dream of becoming a Country singer. A chance encounter turned everything around. A friend introduced her to producer Julian Raymond (Glen Campbell, the Wallflowers) who was immediately impressed with Mickey. He connected her to Gary Borman and his partner Steve Moir, the company that built the careers of Faith Hill, Keith Urban and Lady Antebellum from day one. Mickey moved to Nashville in 2011 to pursue her dream and has embedded herself in the town’s songwriter community the last three years.
Also in 2011, Mickey signed to Capitol Records Nashville and made her
first appearance on stage at the White House during an all-star concert that included James Taylor, Dierks Bentley, Kris Kristofferson, The Band Perry, Darius Rucker and Lyle Lovett. The show was captured by PBS and broadcast as part of their "In Performance at the White House" series. Mickey's riveting rendition of Patsy Cline's classic "Crazy" was one of the highlights of the night.
“When I sang for Gary and Steve, they saw potential in me,” explains Mickey. “Now I have a record deal with Capitol Records, I've sung at the White House and I’m making an album. It’s very, very humbling because if you would have asked me a few years ago if I would have pictured myself being at this point, I probably would of laughed and said, ‘Yeah right!’ I’m very appreciative of it because I understand how hard it is for artists to get to this point. I feel extremely blessed.”
Mickey Guyton will release her self-titled debut EP on May 26. Mickey co-wrote two of the four tracks featured on the EP including her Top 30 and climbing single, “Better Than You Left Me,” and collaborated with award-winning producers Nathan Chapman (Taylor Swift), Dann Huff (Keith Urban) and Luke Laird (Kacey Musgraves).
Mickey’s debut single is the powerful “Better Than You Left Me” which she co-wrote with Jennifer Hanson, Jenn Schott and Nathan Chapman. The single broke Country Aircheck history for the most one–week adds for a debut act’s first single.
On January 10, Mickey made her Grand Ole Opry debut at the historic Ryman Auditorium. Her emotional and powerful performance brought the audience to a spontaneous standing ovation.
Mickey has appeared on many Who To Watch for in 2015 lists including NPR, Billboard, Rolling Stone Country, Spotify, Yahoo! Music, Huffington Post, Mashable, Taste of Country and Nashville Lifestyles. On March 16, Mickey made her national TV debut on ABC’s Good Morning America with a performance of “Better Than You Left Me.” She has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today’s Song Of The Week and Access Hollywood’s Access Breakthrough week. Rolling Stone named Mickey Best First Impression on their 50 Best Things at SXSW list.
