Cory Gerald Joseph Marquardt (born October 11, 1989
) is a Canadian
country rock
Country rock is a genre of music which fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal ...
singer-songwriter, drummer, actor and former
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two o ...
player better known by his
stage name
A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...
Cory Marks. He is signed to
Better Noise Music
Better Noise Music is the rebranded and re-organized record label founded in 2006 by Allen Kovac, CEO of 10th Street Entertainment. The label was previously known as Eleven Seven Label Group with Eleven Seven, Five Seven and Better Noise Records ...
.
He has released two albums, ''
This Man
This Man, according to a website created in 2008 by Italian marketer Andrea Natella named ''Ever Dream This Man?'', refers to a person who was claimed to have been repeatedly seen in dreams worldwide since 2006, but was never found in the real w ...
'' in 2015 under Big Star Recordings and most recently ''
Who I Am'' in 2020 under Better Noise. Since the release the album has accumulated over 100 million streams globally with his debut single "
Outlaws & Outsiders
"Outlaws & Outsiders" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country rock singer Cory Marks. Ivan Moody of Five Finger Death Punch, Travis Tritt, and Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe are featured on the track. The song was released in November 2 ...
" being certified gold in Canada and reaching top 10 at US rock radio, making Marks the first to ever do so as a Canadian country act.
Early life
Marks was raised in
North Bay, Ontario, the younger brother of professional hockey player
Matt Marquardt
Matt Marquardt (born July 19, 1987) is a retired Canadian ice hockey left winger. He most recently played for the Jacksonville Icemen of the ECHL. Marquardt was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 7th Round (194th Overall) of the 200 ...
, and learned how to skate at three years old. He cites
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled ...
,
Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music.
Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
,
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
, and
Rush as early musical influences. Marks played university hockey at the
Royal Military College of Canada where he also pursued dreams of becoming a fighter pilot. He had never performed music publicly until his friends encouraged him to do so while at a bar in college. He has performed using the name "Cory Marks" since the release of his debut album.
Marks achieved his private pilot license in 2021.
Career
2014-2015: ''This Man''
In July 2014, he released his first single to Canadian country radio, "Smartphone".
His second single, "21", was released in April 2015.
His first album, ''
This Man
This Man, according to a website created in 2008 by Italian marketer Andrea Natella named ''Ever Dream This Man?'', refers to a person who was claimed to have been repeatedly seen in dreams worldwide since 2006, but was never found in the real w ...
'' was released on May 26, 2015 through Big Star Recordings.
The album included his first two singles, as well as two further singles, "This Man",
and "Nowhere With You".
2016-present: ''Who I Am'' and extended plays
In 2016, Marks signed a deal to work with award-winning producer
Kevin Churko, known for work with
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
,
Shania Twain
Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...
, and
Five Finger Death Punch
Five Finger Death Punch, also abbreviated as 5FDP or FFDP, is an American heavy metal band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2005. The band originally consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Ivan Moody, rhythm guitarist Zoltan Bathory, lead g ...
. In 2018, he signed a record deal with
Eleven Seven Music (later rebranded as
Better Noise Music
Better Noise Music is the rebranded and re-organized record label founded in 2006 by Allen Kovac, CEO of 10th Street Entertainment. The label was previously known as Eleven Seven Label Group with Eleven Seven, Five Seven and Better Noise Records ...
) as their flagship country artist.
In November 2019, Marks released his first single on Better Noise, "
Outlaws & Outsiders
"Outlaws & Outsiders" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country rock singer Cory Marks. Ivan Moody of Five Finger Death Punch, Travis Tritt, and Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe are featured on the track. The song was released in November 2 ...
", featuring
Ivan Moody,
Travis Tritt
James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 20 ...
, and
Mick Mars
Robert Alan Deal (born May 4, 1951), known professionally as Mick Mars, is an American musician and the retired lead guitarist and co-founder of the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. He is known for his aggressive, melodic solos and bluesy rif ...
, which debuted at #1 on
iTunes in Canada as well as #1 on the
Billboard Rock Digital Songs and
Hard Rock Digital Songs charts and #7 on the
Country Digital Songs charts.
The song would later peak inside the top 10 on US
Mainstream Rock
Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.
Format background
Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active rock ...
radio, top 5 on German rock radio, and peaked at #12 on
Canada Rock
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ...
radio.
It was also certified Gold by
Music Canada
Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It ...
.
In June 2020, Marks released "
Drive",
and announced it as the second single to country radio off his second album, ''
Who I Am'', which was released on August 7, 2020 through Better Noise.
In October 2020, "
Blame It on the Double
"Blame It on the Double" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country rock artist Cory Marks. It was a promotional single from Marks' studio album '' Who I Am'', and later became a single at German and British rock radio. The track was c ...
" was released as the second single to rock radio in Germany and the United Kingdom.
Marks also released his first Christmas single "Jingle My Bells", a cover of a song by
The Tractors, that month.
In April 2021, Marks released a new version of "Blame It on the Double" featuring Tyler Connolly of
Theory of a Deadman and
Jason Hook.
On June 18, 2021, Marks released the extended play ''Nashville Mornings''. It included a cover of
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled ...
's "If I Could Only Fly", as well as a "Country Mix" of "
Blame It on the Double
"Blame It on the Double" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country rock artist Cory Marks. It was a promotional single from Marks' studio album '' Who I Am'', and later became a single at German and British rock radio. The track was c ...
" featuring Tyler Connolly, which was sent to Canadian country radio.
He followed that up with the extended play ''Nashville Nights'' on August 20, 2021, which included a new track "In Me I Trust", the solo version of "
Outlaws & Outsiders
"Outlaws & Outsiders" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian country rock singer Cory Marks. Ivan Moody of Five Finger Death Punch, Travis Tritt, and Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe are featured on the track. The song was released in November 2 ...
", and live versions of "
Drive" and "Blame It on the Double".
In November 2022, Marks released the extended play ''I Rise'', which included the singles "Burn It Up" and "Flying". He is supporting
Five Finger Death Punch
Five Finger Death Punch, also abbreviated as 5FDP or FFDP, is an American heavy metal band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2005. The band originally consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Ivan Moody, rhythm guitarist Zoltan Bathory, lead g ...
on their headlining tour in the United States in the fall and winter of 2022 alongside
Brantley Gilbert.
Discography
Albums
Extended plays
Singles
2010s
2020s
Christmas singles
Music videos
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marks, Cory
1989 births
Living people
Canadian country singer-songwriters
Canadian ice hockey left wingers
Canadian male singer-songwriters
21st-century Canadian male actors
Canadian rock singers
Country rock singers
Musicians from Ontario
People from North Bay, Ontario
21st-century Canadian male singers