Blending classic country values with the modern country sound, country artist Donice Morace is proving authenticity and hard work can take you far. With his latest album This Life I Love and its multiple hit singles, Donice has further solidified his standing in Nashville after years of working the Texas country scene. A Texas native, Donice has performed at countless clubs throughout the state and beyond opening for the likes of Kenny Chesney, Merle Haggard and Cody Johnson. In 2022, he took home the Texas Country Music Award’s Emerging Artist of the Year trophy and has lived up the the title with the release of great new music and exceptional content like his trilogy of music videos. With a jam-packed schedule of shows including one tonight at 8pm in his hometown of Beamount, TX at The Roxy, Donice’s knack for entertaining is on full display. We chatted with him about performing, his album and the exciting new music coming very soon. Check out our chat below and be sure to follow along with him on Facebook, Instagram and his official website.
Q&A:
Hey Donice! Thank you for taking the time to chat with us! How has the last year been treating you? You know, it’s been pretty amazing. I got to celebrate my first #1 on the Indie Chart with “Goin’, Goin'” and “Wait Til I’m Gone” has performed really well since it’s been out. Life is good.
You released your latest album This Life I Love last summer. How did you go about choosing the eight songs that made the album and why? I really wanted to go into the studio with our live show in mind. We just brought the honkytonk to the studio…keeping it traditional, but with a little flare.
“Goin’ Goin’,” One Drink In” and “Wait Til I’m Gone” create a great ongoing story, where did the idea come from to release a trilogy of songs? My team came up with the idea as we were shooting the first video “One Drink In”. We thought all 3 songs lent themselves well to that idea of an ongoing story, so we just went with it.
You also released amazing music videos for those singles. Do you have any memories or behind-the-scenes secrets you could share from the shoots? If you had to, could you pick a favorite video of the three? With the 3 videos all being linked together, we obviously used the same main cast in all 3 videos. Lara Perkins and Shawn Kraft did an amazing job and have become dear friends. So you can imagine the pranks were bound to ensue…most of which, I could never tell in public. lol Picking a favorite video is really hard, but I’d have to go with “One Drink In”. That house we filmed in was just absolutely amazing and we were all in awe of it.
You perform quite often, especially in your home state of Texas. Do you remember your first-ever public performance and could you tell us about it? Oh I’ll never forget it…middle school talent show. I had been playing guitar since the 1st grade, but not many people knew it. So yeah, I played guitar and sang a Paul McCartney song. I was super nervous until I heard cat calls from my teachers, which made me giggle. Now that I think about it, I should’ve been laughing at the mullet I was sporting at the time.
As a performer, what do you do to stay performance-ready each day? I literally sing constantly, sometimes without even noticing that I am. There’s a daily concert in my truck, so if you pull up at a stop light and see someone singing their heart out in the vehicle next to you…there’s a good chance that’s me. lol
Do you have a specific warmup routine or ritual? Oddly enough, I don’t sing right before I go on stage. I usually listen to some of my musical heroes on my phone to get inspired. There’s a good chance I’m listening to some Chesnutt or Jones.
What has been your favorite venue to perform at and do you have a dream venue you wish to perform at someday? Mo’s Place in Katy, Tx will always be family to me. It’s where I’m comfortable to try new things and see if they work. As far as a dream venue, I have the Grand Ole Opry at #1 on my bucket list.
Outside of music, what do you enjoy doing? Well I enjoy working out at the gym a lot. I’m a huge sports fan, so I find myself watching a lot of baseball and football, which is my favorite time of year.
What can fans be looking forward to next? We are headed back to the studio in the next month to record, so you guys will have some brand new music coming your way soon.
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