ABOUT
Chris Merrell is the premiere up and comer on the California country scene. he grew up on a 12-horse ranch in Woodcrest, California and grew up farming, catching crawdads, and riding dirt bikes through the orange groves around his childhood home in Woodcrest, CA. He snuck his dad's guitar out from a closet in the eighth grade and taught himself how to play, sing and produce. Working as a music producer for the last 12 years, Chris has learned how to make almost everything from country to hiphop to orchestral and is poised to tell the unique California country story and leave an immense mark on the country music world.
My Story
I found my passion for music in the eighth grade when I stole my dad's acoustic guitar from his closet. I taught myself how to play over the next four years as I dove headfirst into every genre I could get my hands on. In 2016 I was approached by my church to create the score for their independently produced limited series, The Wild Library. Over the course of 6 weeks, I was exposed to the joy of composing for film as I scored this episodic cinematic experience. I have been consistently involved with this organization since, where I still work. During this time I have cut more than 80 songs and 20 bumper intros scored in different musical styles, and put together a team of volunteer and staff songwriters and music producers.
I've had a wide variety of musical influences over the years. I grew up on late 90's/early 00' country music which has a special place in my heart. In high school, I fell in love with 80's metal and thrash, and eventually made my way into 90's grunge (I wanted to be Eddie Vedder so bad!)
When I was a freshman in high school I heard Skrillex's remix of Cinema by Gary Go and it opened my eyes to a world of music production–I was hooked and needed to find a way to create the otherworldly sounds of dubstep. Over time my tastes grew and I began to listen to hip hop and pop and rediscover my deeply rooted love for the heartfelt songwriting of country music. I'm obsessed with music and always looking ahead to create the next trend before it happens.
My current musical inspirations include Travis Tritt, Sturgill Simpson, Post Malone, Brooks & Dunn, Luke Combs, Garth Brooks, and Toby Keith.
