Biography
John Paul White logged considerable time in Nashville working quietly as both a solo performer and a staff songwriter before teaming with Joy Williams to create the Americana duo the Civil Wars, whose 2012 debut Barton Hollow brought widespread recognition. Following four Grammy Awards and the 2014 dissolution of that partnership, White resumed his solo career from a stronger position, issuing the 2016 album Beulah on his own Single Lock imprint while also producing projects for Lindi Ortega, Donnie Fritts, Penny & Sparrow, and Dylan LeBlanc. He issued his second solo album, The Hurting Kind, in 2019.
A Muscle Shoals, Alabama native, White spent several years behind the scenes as a professional songwriter in Nashville before releasing his first solo album, The Long Goodbye, in 2008. Cut at the city’s historic FAME Studios and put out independently, the record revealed his warm, lonesome style rooted in the country, rock, folk, and Southern idioms of his home state. That same year he crossed paths with California singer/songwriter Joy Williams during a Nashville songwriting workshop where the two were randomly matched; their rich vocal blend and complementary approaches clicked at once, prompting them to launch the Civil Wars soon afterward. The duo’s critically and commercially successful run ultimately yielded four Grammy Awards and a loyal international following. Despite their onstage rapport, White and Williams’s offstage dynamic grew increasingly strained across their five years together, leading to a split in 2014.
In the two years that followed, White put out several solo recordings, placed a track on the 2015 season of HBO’s True Detective, and joined Emmylou Harris for the duet “Kyrie.” Alongside Alabama Shakes member Ben Tanner he founded Single Lock Records and took on production work for other artists. His second solo album, Beulah, appeared in August 2016. After contributing vocals to Rodney Crowell’s 2017 release Close Ties alongside Rosanne Cash, White returned to writing original material and surfaced in October 2018 with the melancholic waltz “My Dreams Have All Come True.” Co-produced once again with Ben Tanner, his next solo album The Hurting Kind arrived in April 2019 and included appearances by Lee Ann Womack, Erin Rae, and the Secret Sisters. In addition to his own songs, White co-wrote two tracks with Nashville legends “Whisperin’” Bill Anderson and Bobby Braddock.
A Muscle Shoals, Alabama native, White spent several years behind the scenes as a professional songwriter in Nashville before releasing his first solo album, The Long Goodbye, in 2008. Cut at the city’s historic FAME Studios and put out independently, the record revealed his warm, lonesome style rooted in the country, rock, folk, and Southern idioms of his home state. That same year he crossed paths with California singer/songwriter Joy Williams during a Nashville songwriting workshop where the two were randomly matched; their rich vocal blend and complementary approaches clicked at once, prompting them to launch the Civil Wars soon afterward. The duo’s critically and commercially successful run ultimately yielded four Grammy Awards and a loyal international following. Despite their onstage rapport, White and Williams’s offstage dynamic grew increasingly strained across their five years together, leading to a split in 2014.
In the two years that followed, White put out several solo recordings, placed a track on the 2015 season of HBO’s True Detective, and joined Emmylou Harris for the duet “Kyrie.” Alongside Alabama Shakes member Ben Tanner he founded Single Lock Records and took on production work for other artists. His second solo album, Beulah, appeared in August 2016. After contributing vocals to Rodney Crowell’s 2017 release Close Ties alongside Rosanne Cash, White returned to writing original material and surfaced in October 2018 with the melancholic waltz “My Dreams Have All Come True.” Co-produced once again with Ben Tanner, his next solo album The Hurting Kind arrived in April 2019 and included appearances by Lee Ann Womack, Erin Rae, and the Secret Sisters. In addition to his own songs, White co-wrote two tracks with Nashville legends “Whisperin’” Bill Anderson and Bobby Braddock.
Albums
Singles
