Artist;Josh Gracin
Song:Nothin' to Lose
Album:Josh Gracin
After a fourth place finish on season two of American Idol (AI), Josh Gracin topped the country charts with the 2004 single Nothin' to Lose. Things didn't go so well after that especially when his record label closed. Now I guess he's the subject of "Whatever happened to" articles. That happens to many AI contestants. He was born Oct. 18, 1980 in Westland, MI which is a Detroit suburb. He listened to rock as a child. But when his radio station switched to country, he got into Garth Brooks and George Strait. Gracin performed locally as a teen and performed at a national talent show at the Grand Ole Opry. After graduating from high school, Gracin joined the US Marine Corps, got married and was assigned to Camp Pendlton in California as a supply clerk. He still had the music bug so he successfully auditioned for AI in 2003. After finishing fourth in the finals, Gracin wasn't able to go on the AI tour because of his Marines commitment. They sent him on a recruitment tour. Gracin was honorably discharged in 2004. So how did he get a record deal? When he sang the Rascal Flatts song I'm Movin' On on AI, that band was watching him on their tour bus. Rascall Flatts bassist Jay DeMarcus was so impressed that he hooked Gracin up with producer Marty Williams who had produced a couple of Rascal Flatts albums. This led to a record deal with Disney owned Lyric Street Records. Gracin's 2004 debut album Josh Gracin was certified Gold and the single Nothin' to Lose topped the Country Singles chart. A couple of other singles were top five. Nothin' to Lose was written by Marcel Chagnon and Kevin Savigar. It appeared on Chagnon's 1993 album on Mercury Records. He recorded as Marcel. When Chagnon's music career was unsuccessful, he turned to directing music videos. Savigar is a British session musician who was in Rod Stewart's band in the 80s. Gracin did not write any of the songs. For Gracin's 2008 album We Weren't Crazy, Williams brought in veteran songwriter Brett James to work with Gracin on developing songwriting skills. James wrote Carrie Underwood's Jesus, Take the Wheel. James wrote several songs on the album including a couple with Gracin. But the album didn't do as well as the first one. The criticism of both albums was Gracin was not distinctive enough to be successful long term. In other words, he sounded too much like other country singers. Then Disney closed Lyric Street in 2010. He released the 2012 album Redemption on Average Joes Entertainment. Gracin wrote all the songs and co-produced. But he didn't have the Disney machine behind him anymore. So of course the album was unsuccessful. Since than, Gracin has released a few singles on his own label and he still tours. The closing of Lyric Street really hurt him. So that's what happened to Josh Gracin. Here's the video for Nothin' to Lose by Josh Gracin. The video was shot at a Nashville high school so Anne Marie Kovacs was probably a student there. It's her only credit.
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