AJ Sure

AJ Sure is a Texas singer and songwriter. Born Alfredo Segura Jr in the small Texas town of Cotulla, AJ had a love a music from a young age. His first gig was in elementary school, when a Catholic nun gave him an acoustic guitar and told him he was going to play and sing for the church services.

As he grew, AJ expanded his music knowledge to include mastering the baritone, tenor, and alto saxophones, the guitarrón and the electric guitar. In college he studied classical guitar, piano and music theory and joined the University’s worship team.

This experience led him to forming the band, Along for the Ride. As lead vocals and rhythm guitar of the band, he performed in the late 1990s and early 2000s in dancehalls, venues, and festivals across South Texas to include the Artisan River Theatre, San Antonio Riverwalk, Cotulla Wild Hog Cookoff, Floore’s

Country Store and Dancehall, Freer Rattlesnake Roundup, Great Country River Festival, San Antonio Fiesta, and the San Antonio Livestock Show and Rodeo. The band also performed for several private events hosted by the Greater San Antonio Builders’ Association, Brighten Horse Refuge, Don Strange Ranch, Helicopter Air Lift Operations, Hill Country Trailriders Association, International Association of Business Communicators, and USAA. The band was recognized as finalists in San Antonio’s Battle of the Bands and in Don Reed Productions’ Starborn competitionbeforegoingtheirseparateways.

Itwasduringthistime,thatAJwroteIfYou’reNotEven Here, Time Flies, Head Over Heels and Rescue Me. AJ hasperformed,IfYou’reNotEvenHereonthestageat Nashville’sGrandOleOpryHouse.

AJ has served as a worship leader in several Methodist churches and shared his talents with smalltown churches during special services or communityevents.In2010,K-LoveFMChristianradio recognized him with a Worship Leader Appreciation Awardforhisservicetoministrythroughmusic.

Today,AJliveswithhiswifeandtwosonsintheTexas hill country. He is back in the studio remastering his original music to release on digital platforms and writingnewsongs.

AJ mostly plays Country and Christian Music with original music that can be found in all social media outlets such as, iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, and iHeart Radio.

The main message that I’d like to say is that a song inspires the emotions and vice versa. Meaning, that sometimes a song comes out of an experience and helps solidify a memory or emotion – e.g. a song that shares a first kiss, lost love or favorite pastime. And other times, a song can be linked to an experience in a way that creates a memory or emotion – e.g. the first song you hear after the birth of a child or on a vacation.

A Catholic nun inspired me to learn how to play guitar for our church, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Cotulla, TX starting at 5th grade. My love for music grew and I was further inspired by my music teacher in high school, Francisco Javier Sosa. Mr. Sosa gave me the opportunity to play in band, stage band and mariachi band. In college, Leslie Lyon, my classical guitar professor, gave me the tools to be more confident to play guitar. It was then that I branched out to find my own style.

My musical influences in these genera are, George Strait, Garth Brooks, Gordan Lightfoot, Emilio Navaira, Ramiro “Ram” Herrera, Chris Tomlin, Paul Baloche, and MattRedman.

In the late 90s I had a band called Along for the Ride. We played for about 7 years before branching out on my own. I was the worship leader at Spring Creek United Methodist for 15 years and provided live music to churches who didn’t have bands, as well as outside ministries such as Kairos and Emmaus. Today, I concentrate on song writing. If I play for a live audience, I am selective to the venues. I prefer to play forfestivalsand/orsongwritinggatherings.

My dream collaborations would be to write a Christian song with Chris Tomlin. I would also like to collaborate onrecordingasongwithaTejanolegendlike“Ram”.

I believe music is food for the soul. If my music can help you feel something or get through something, I’ve donemyjob.

Email:ajsure@gvtc.com

SocialMediaLinks:

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/AJSureMusic

Twitter:@AjsureSure