6 minute read
ANTHONY NIX
the fire in the music
Anthony Nix
By Leah Sobon
Country music brings people together. Songs about real-life troubles and bigtime celebrations, all peppered with a bit of satire and some catchy, addictive melodies – country music plays in the ears and the hearts of millions.
With new talent coming on stage at a breakneck pace, a musician has to stand out from the crowd. Anthony Nix’s musical successes have put him beside the talented musicians and artists who work with top country stars including Kane Brown, Vince Gill and Thomas Rhett. He’s a writer and a performer, playing in bars, on local parade floats and at huge concerts. Nix balances his time between Tennessee and Wisconsin and says all audiences are important to him, regardless of their size or location.
Raised in Wisconsin, Anthony Nix knows a thing or two about living the life of a country song. “Today, I have this little dream house, a fixer-upper in the woods. It sounds like a fairy tale, but I have a river in my backyard and a bridge that I built with my son. I don’t think I could find this place twice in one lifetime.”
Nix’s story is one of survival, perseverance, pain, and hope. Lots of country singers might touch on these topics, but he draws from his own deep pool of life experiences to tell stories that resonate with his audience. “I didn’t have a normal upbringing. I was adopted, expelled from high school, survived cancer, and am now a single dad.” Like many young Americans, Nix felt called to join the military after 9/11. He was planning to join the fire service after completing his hitch, but just after he turned 21, life dealt him a blow that would change many of his goals and aspirations. Diagnosed with nonHodgkins lymphoma (a type of blood cancer), Nix had to leave the military to come home for treatment and then surgery to remove a section of his left lung. Nix understands survival, having lived a story that would bring chills to anyone’s spine. It’s no surprise that he values helping people in his community.
It took Nix a long time to get comfortable with his post-cancer recovery. He loved to sing but didn’t know if he would be able to do it the same way he had previously. Nix is extremely thankful to his doctor, whom he describes as “amazing,” who went above and beyond when it came to rehabilitation and post-surgical recovery.
“I became a cardio junkie. I slowly got back into it and learned what I could and couldn’t do. I will never be as strong as I was, but I run and work out quite a bit. If I don’t maintain my fitness, I could fade out.” “But after the surgery, I wasn’t physically able to do what I wanted and needed to do as a firefighter, so I went into sales for 15 years. I hated it – it wasn’t me, not who I am. Suddenly, my music career started to take off, I became a little better known and I was able to leave that sales job. I bought my house and got to know the people in town and the fire chief. He wasn’t trying to recruit me, but told me he was having a hard time finding firefighters. I’d never thought the opportunity would come back around.”
Humble and always surprised by the attention and feedback he receives from his fans, Nix prides himself on dividing his time between country music, his role as a parent and – as if his plate isn’t full enough – his dedication to volunteer firefighting.
Working for his local volunteer fire service has, in a powerful way, taught Nix a lot about his community and the value of serving others. He’s one of almost a million American volunteer firefighters who represent their towns with pride. Nix loves the way his fire service gets involved in town functions and acknowledges how important it is for the community to rally behind their volunteer firefighters. Whether it’s raising money for new equipment or serving ribs at a town function, Nix makes it a priority to be a part of every facet of the fire service. This is a field he never sees himself leaving, despite his increasing popularity on the country music scene.
“Making music was always the way I decompressed. I love it, and it’s a passion, but it’s also work – a lot of work. Now, when I come home after working a shift with the fire department, I’m more relaxed. I’m not doing the paperwork and contracts and hand-shaking and all the crazy meetings with record companies. I guess firefighting is now almost my decompression from life.” With multiple singles on the air waves and available across all major streaming services, Nix has an army of fans. His most recent single, “The Story,” bridges the gap between he said/she said, acknowledging the importance between hearing both sides of the story. His casual and comedic approach to music has people humming and singing along almost instantly.
“ ‘The Story’ is not what people think it is. I’m a single dad and I have been through breakups but this song is actually about how, in my experience, every time I met somebody, she’d talk about how someone had been mean to her. There was always a story. ‘The Story’ isn’t my story – it’s the line I always got when I met someone.” Nix’s music and lyrics come from a well of personal experience. During the pandemic, in the absence of normal shows and concerts, he has spent a lot of time writing music.
“I write all my own music and I write for other artists, as well. That’s how I got my foot in the door. I work with Kane Brown’s band, and with Thomas Rhett and Vince Gill. I write stories about my life – and they’re true. It’s a weird story, but you can either be a statistic or you can overcome it. I didn’t want to be a stat, so I kept going.”
With new singles, big shows, and a fully loaded year on the docket, Anthony Nix is proving to be unstoppable, despite every obstacle that life has thrown his way. Perseverance and passion continue to fuel both his journey in country music and his role as a volunteer firefighter. His small town in Wisconsin has become his home and he says he would do anything to help his local station and build support for volunteer firefighters.
“I’M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO USE MY MUSIC TO HELP RAISE MONEY AND AWARENESS OF FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND VOLUNTEER FIRE FIGHTERS.
They’re farmers and construction workers. They’re not in sales, or marketing. I want to help all the small local towns raise awareness and recruit people. I think people just don’t know they can be a volunteer firefighter.”
With the town and fire department at his back, Nix knows that his family extends far beyond those he lives with. Being a country singer puts him in a position to do something special for his own fire department, so he’s donating royalties from his song “Around Here.”
No matter how famous he becomes in the world of country music, being part of the firefighting family in his local volunteer fire department is what’s most important. For Anthony Nix, it’s the fire that burns within.
