Kyle Davis

These days, Kyle Davis is enjoying an extended second act as a singer-songwriter. In his previous musical life, he achieved a level of success many artists strive for but never grasp. He has also experienced the vicissitudes of the music industry firsthand.

As for the origin of his creativity, Kyle says, “I was bitten by the bug early on,” and describes how his musical family influenced his growth as a musician: “My dad was in almost a Roger Miller-ish band…I have a brother that’s 11 years older—I did everything he did, and he played guitar and sang… and then I had older aunts and they all played piano…gospel music; and even my grandmother…” Kyle feels he was so immersed in music that, as a youngster, he didn’t realize the effect it was having on him.

After developing his chops throughout his teens and into his twenties, Kyle credits editor Melinda Newman, Billboard’s West Coast bureau chief at the time (1998) with helping to launch his initial productive run. “She got my record and she included it with a list of the ‘Seven Best Unsigned Acts in America’ [and] on the cover of the year-end double issue,” he remembers. “Over the next few months, my manager started getting calls from everybody…”

The rising ‘90s tide of popular singer-songwriters like David Gray lifted Kyle’s musical boat as well, and he cruised that scene as far as he could, despite record label crashes and other obstacles. When the currents changed, Kyle drew back from recording and touring to focus mainly on family, while working in real estate and maintaining an already-in-progress side career as a commercial jingle writer and singer.

“A big part of why I love doing this,” Kyle explains, “is kind of capturing the things that are going on to me and to the people around me. And a lot happened between 2010 and 2018.”

Now, in March 2025, Kyle is releasing his seventh album, Jericho. It brings things full circle, with production handled once again by Don Dixon.

Find more info here!

Listen to the full interview here!