Leon Eric Brooks III, better known by his stage name Kix Brooks (born May 12, 1955), is an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist, actor, and

film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

best known for being one half of the duo

Brooks & Dunn Brooks & Dunn are an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1990 through the suggestion of Tim DuBois. Before their formation, both members were so ...

and host of radio's ''

American Country Countdown ''American Country Countdown'', also known as ''ACC'', is a weekly internationally syndicated radio program which counts down the top 40 country songs of the previous week, from No. 40 to No. 1, according to the ''Billboard'' Country Airplay ch ...

''. Prior to the duo's foundation, he was a singer and songwriter, charting twice on

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sa ...

and releasing an album for

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of not ...

. Brooks and Ronnie Dunn comprised Brooks & Dunn for twenty years, then both members began solo careers. Brooks's solo career after Brooks & Dunn includes the album '' New to This Town''. In 2019, Brooks & Dunn were inducted into the

Country Music Hall of Fame The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has ama ...

Early life

Brooks grew up in

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population of 393,406 in 2020, is ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...

. He has a sister, a half-sister, and a half-brother; his father also adopted a son of his third wife. After graduating from the former

Sewanee Military Academy St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School is a private, coeducational, Episcopal, boarding and day college preparatory school serving 216 students in grades six through twelve. It is located in Sewanee, Tennessee on the Cumberland Plateau between Nashville ...

, an Episcopal school in Sewanee,

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

, Brooks attended

Louisiana Tech University Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research act ...

in Ruston as a theatre arts major. He moved to

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U ...

to work with his father on an oil pipeline for one summer, then returned to Louisiana Tech to finish his education. After graduating, he moved to

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nor ...

to write advertising for a company owned by his sister and brother-in-law.

Musical career

Brooks' father urged him to pursue his desire to become a musician, and he moved to

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

, Tennessee, in the early 1980s. His then-girlfriend (now wife Barbara, with whom he has a son and daughter) followed shortly thereafter. He worked for Tree Publishing as a staff songwriter. He recorded his first solo single, "Baby, When Your Heart Breaks Down", for Avion in 1983, but returned to songwriting after it only reached number 73 on the

chart. Brooks and Dan Tyler co-wrote "

Modern Day Romance "Modern Day Romance" is a song written by Kix Brooks and Dan Tyler and recorded by American country music group Nitty Gritty Dirt Band The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country rock band formed in 1966. The group has existed in vario ...

", released by

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country rock band formed in 1966. The group has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California. Between 1976 and 1981, the band performed and recorded as the Dirt Band. Constan ...

in June 1985; it became the band's second No. 1 hit on the country chart. Brooks released an album, '' Kix Brooks'', in 1989 on Capitol Records. This album also featured the song " Sacred Ground" which became a No. 2 country hit for McBride & the Ride in 1992. He was one half of country music duo

. Their 1991 debut album, ''

Brand New Man ''Brand New Man'' is the debut studio album by American country music duo Brooks & Dunn. It was released on August 13, 1991, by Arista Records. Produced by Don Cook and Scott Hendricks, the album produced four consecutive Number One singles on ...

'', generated four number-one hit singles on the country charts. Brooks usually provided backing vocals on their songs and singles. The singles featuring Brooks on lead vocals include, "

You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone "You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music duo Brooks & Dunn. It was released in June 1995 as the fourth single from their third album '' Waitin' on Sundown''. The song reached the top of ...

", rising to No. 1, "Lost and Found", " Rock My World (Little Country Girl)", "Mama Don't Get Dressed Up for Nothing", "South of Santa Fe", and "Why Would I Say Goodbye". On August 10, 2009, Brooks & Dunn announced to their fans, via their website they intended to disband after twenty years of touring. According to the short statement released on their web site, Brooks & Dunn intended to release a greatest hits album, tour during the rest of 2009, and have a farewell tour in 2010. Brooks resumed his solo career in 2012, releasing a new 12-track album on September 11, 2012. '' New to This Town'' features nine songs co-written by Brooks, including the album's first single, the title track.''Kix Brooks to Release Debut Album September 11''
Taste of Country. Retrieved 2012-07-05 He followed his second album with the soundtrack to the western film ''Ambush at Dark Canyon'' in 2014. Brooks composed the majority of the musical score as well as starring in the film. On December 3, 2014, Brooks & Dunn reunited, and along with

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music singer and actress. Dubbed " the Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Since the 1970s, McEntire has placed over 100 single ...

, performed a series of concerts in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

, throughout the summer and fall of 2015. Brooks performed at the 2019 Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum Concert and Induction Ceremony.

Awards

In 2005, Brooks, along with timber industrialist Roy O. Martin Jr., and the

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 n ...

sports legends Paul Dietzel, and Sue Gunter were among those named a "Louisiana Legend" by Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

Other achievements

Since January 2006, Brooks has hosted ''

'', a syndicated radio countdown show based on

Mediabase Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytic ...

(originally was BILLBOARD, from 2006 to August 2009), country charts. Brooks succeeded the show's former host, Bob Kingsley. Brooks is also co-owner of Arrington Vineyards, a Nashville

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, ...

with winemaker Kip Summers and businessmen John Russell."1995". ''Clemson World''. Spring 2008. p. 36. In 2013, Kix launched the film company Team Two Entertainment along with Eric Brooks. The company makes independent films Kix produces, and Kix occasionally appears as an actor. In 2015, Brooks contracted with

Cooking Channel Cooking Channel is an American basic cable channel owned by Food Network, a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (69%) and Nexstar Media Group (31%). The channel is a spin-off of Food Network, broadcasting ...

to host ''Steak Out with Kix Brooks'', in which he travels around America in search of the best

steakhouse A steakhouse, steak house, or chophouse refers to a restaurant that specializes in steaks and chops, found mainly in North America. Modern steakhouses may also carry other cuts of meat including poultry, roast prime rib, and veal, as well as ...

Discography

Albums

Singles

As a featured artist

Music videos

Filmography

Film

Television

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Kix Louisiana Tech University alumni American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters American radio personalities Grammy Award winners American mandolinists Louisiana Republicans Tennessee Republicans Musicians from Shreveport, Louisiana 1955 births Living people Brooks & Dunn members Country musicians from Louisiana Capitol Records artists Arista Nashville artists Actors from Shreveport, Louisiana Singer-songwriters from Louisiana