Steve Moakler

Steve Moakler approaches songwriting as a direct, roots-oriented performer who fuses heartland rock energy with melodic country forms. Recognition first arrived through his work behind the scenes as a tunesmith. The breakthrough came via the rousing track “Riser,” which Dierks Bentley carried into the Top 40 of Billboard’s Country Airplay chart in 2015. That placement drew fresh notice to Moakler’s own output, beginning with the 2016 release Steve Moakler: The EP and its featured song “Suitcase.” The plainspoken, unadorned style of that number set the course for his path, one he followed without deviation on the 2017 album Steel Town yet gently updated with understated R&B touches on 2022’s Make a Little Room.

Raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Moakler relocated to Nashville, Tennessee in 2006. Following an assortment of temporary work and repeated area gigs, he secured cuts for Dierks Bentley, Jake Owen, Ben Rector, Matt Wertz, and Kellie Pickler while issuing three self-released albums, among them the 2011 Kickstarter-supported Watching Time Run. He joined Ben Rector and Andrew Ripp for the “Three Amigos” tour, and his compositions surfaced in the film October Baby as well as programs on MTV, Fox, and ABC. His third full-length studio effort, Wide Open, reached number four on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. In 2015 he issued Steve Moakler: The Mix Tape and co-wrote Dierks Bentley’s chart single “Riser.” Steve Moakler: The EP appeared the next year, followed in 2017 by the full-length Steel Town, a tribute to his working-class Pennsylvania roots. Born Ready arrived in 2018, Blue Jeans in 2020, and Make a Little Room in 2022.