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VILLEBILLIES

ABOUT THE VILLEBILLIES

Arising from Louisville, Kentucky’s underground scene, The Villebillies have worked hard over the years to achieve recognition in the music industry and earn the admiration and respect of fans and fellow musicians alike. With their down home attitude and an eclectic, crossgenre musical style, The Villebillies display a realness and originality that is all too rare in the world of popular music.

It’s difficult to pin The Villebillies musical style to any one genre. Rap and rock elements are most prominent but the band goes far beyond with their skillful incorporation of a wide variety of sounds. The band doesn’t follow a specific songwriting formula or focus on one particular message or vibe. Instead, each song reflects a different experience within the greater context of the Villebillies’ story.

The bands signature is a well choreographed vocal style that features hard hitting rap verses, infectious melodic hooks and intricate soulful harmonies. Each of the three frontmen brings their own technique and personality to the stage with lyrics that touch on a wide variety of subjects that listeners can relate to.

The backbone of the Villebillie multigenre instrumental style is a rock band type lineup. Drums, bass, acoustic, and electric guitar form the foundation with additional accompaniment that can include anything from hiphop style samples to hillbilly banjo licks to classical strings. It’s this nolimit approach that has given The Villebillies an uncanny ability to reach across cultural boundaries in a way that few other bands can.

On stage, The Villebillies present an exciting performance that can be enjoyed by music lovers from all walks of life. The band has played hundreds of shows across the United States, sharing the stage with independent and major acts, from Hed PE to Hank Junior, to Nelly. The Villebillies’ originality and authenticity has turned the heads of even the most skeptical audiences, earning the band a large and diverse fan base.

The Villebillies are Demi Demaree, Dylan O’ Daniel, and Dustin “Tuck” Tucker on vocals. Tim Bernauer drums, Ron Ping bass guitar, Justin Reid electric guitar, and Adam Goffa coustic guitar.

 


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Biography THE VILLEBILLIES TODAY

The Villebillies are a seven man outfit hailing from Louisville, Kentucky. Half of their unique sound can be attributed to their unorthodox line-up. Three vocalists, all of which rap and sing, front the group, along with drums, bass, acoustic and electric guitar. You may say the other half of their sound is shaped by where they come from. Growing up in a mid-sized city in the south, their songs have a distinctive blend of urban and roots music. As they begin writing and recording their third album the future is looking bright..

 

BAND HISTORY

Originally, the Villebillies were a crew of MC’s who all grew up together, or ran in the same circles. Though they toyed with elements of rock and bluegrass in those days, they performed over canned beats with little live instrumentation. The original lineup was Dustin “Tuck” Tucker, Derek “Child” Monyhan, Dylan O’Daniel, David “2B” Mouser, and Demi Demaree on vocals, with production help from B.J. Young. After recording a number of tracks infusing ear-catching beats with energetic rhymes, they started performing and selling burnt CD’s at their shows. Their fresh new sound drew in listeners and they enjoyed early success in the local scene. Vocalist Demi Demaree had already been fronting a rock group called “Plan of Man”, so naturally Plan of Man and the Billies were always around each other. In those early years, the VB’s were collaborating with the Plan of Man instrumentalists : Ron Ping (bass), Tim Bernauer (drums), Justin Reid (guitar), and mutual friend Adam Goff (acoustic guitar and banjo.) After a couple of years of working along side one another and sharing the stage, it only made sense that the groups should merge. In 2003 the Villebillies took the stage for the first time as a live, ten piece band.

The VB’s quickly became one of the most popular groups in the region and began creating a buzz around the music industry. Soon the labels were beating down the door. After turning down several record deals and a reality TV show on MTV, the Billies signed with Universal/Motown in 2006. Though they had a vault of more than 200 songs, many of which had been circulating on burnt discs, it was now time to pick out a handful and record their first album.

They headed to Sound Kitchen Studios in Nashville and after nearly two months of fourteen hour sessions they had cut a record. Half of the tracks which made the final album were demo versions they had produced themselves. Also lending a hand on several songs was producer Toby Wright (Alice in Chains, Korn, Metallica) and the last track “Greatest Moment” was recorded with legendary producer Bob Ezrin (Kiss, Pink Floyd, Lou Reed.) On September 26th, 2006 the Villebillies self-titled debut album hit the shelves.

The boys hit the road, playing shows from coast to coast and opening for several major acts. During the next year and a half, the Billies amassed a large underground following and had songs featured on ESPN, and MTV programs such as “Next”. Although the public was very responsive to the Villebillies sound, the expense of touring with such a large group became a strain on Universal. Ultimately the album never got the push it needed. Eventually, label politics and file-sharing made being a new band on a major label a major disadvantage. In June of 2007 the Billies parted ways with Universal in search of a better situation. With less members and more experience, the Villebillies are more capable now then ever. In 2008, the Villebillies released their second album “From the Belly of the Beast.” They are currently writing a new album titled “Appetite for Dysfunction” set to be released in 2011.

NOTABLE ACOMPLISHMENTS

 

    • Nominated five years running for LEO “Louisville Eccentric Observer” Readers Choice Awards, winning in such categories as “best original band”, “best hip hop artist/group”, “and best roots band”.
    • Extensive local media exposure and a high volume of radio play in the Louisville market and national airplay on the syndicated Scratch ‘N Sniff radio program.
    • Released debut album on Universal Motown Records
    • Worked with Grammy winning producers, Bob Erin and Toby Wright.
  • Music licensed by MTV and ESPN for various reality shows and sporting events.

 

The Band has shared the stage with such artists as:

  • Authority Zero
  • Ben Folds
  • Busta Rhymes
  • Crossfade
  • Drowning Pool
  • Hank Williams Jr
  • Hed PE
  • Kingspade
  • Kottonmouth Kings
  • Method Man
  • Montgomery Gentry
  • Morris Day and the Time
  • Nappy Roots
  • Nelly
  • Rehab
  • Tantric
  • Uncle Kracker

 

The band has played many high profile concerts including:

  • JVC Tuner Jam Festival Daytona Beach, FL 2003
  • Midwest Music Summit Indianapolis, IN 2004
  • Warped Jr Tour Louisville, KY 2004
  • Of Louisville Awards Louisville, KY 2004
  • Sigmapalooza Festival Louisville, KY 2005
  • Rock The Water Tower Festival Louisville, KY – 2005 & 2006
  • WDJX Birthday Bash @ Six Flags – Louisville, KY 2005
  • By Southwest Austin, TX 2006
  • City Stages Festival Birmingham, AL 2006
  • Independence Day Water Front Festival Louisville, KY 2006
  • X Fest Mt Clemens, MI 2006
  • Boom Day Festival Knoxville, TN 2006
  • CMJ New York, NY 2006
  • Pollstar Convention Nashville, TN 2006
  • The Crawfish Festival Biloxi, MS 2007
  • Scratch ‘n Sniff Tour May 2nd thru June 9th 2007
  • Country Thunder USA Festival Florence, AZ 2007
  • Country Thunder USA Festival Twin Lakes, WI 2007
  • Gateway Music Festival Mt. Sterling, KY – 2008