Deric J. Ruttan (born January 27, 1972) is a Canadian
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
singer, songwriter and record producer from
Bracebridge, Ontario
Bracebridge is a town and the seat of the District Municipality of Muskoka in Ontario, Canada.
The town was built around a waterfall on the Muskoka River in the centre of town and is known for its other nearby waterfalls (Wilson's Falls, High Fal ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. A
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
resident, he has released four studio albums and has written or co-written more than 60 songs that have been recorded by other recording artists.
Breakthrough
Deric moved to
Nashville
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
in 1994 to pursue his music career, spending his days writing songs and his nights scouring the city getting ideas and learning from local singer-songwriters. He got his break in 1999 when producer Steve Bogard heard one of Deric's tapes and liked it. Steve signed Deric to a songwriting deal and immediately began recording his first demos. After Doug Howard at
Lyric Street Records
Lyric Street Records was the Disney Music Group's country music record label, founded in 1997 by Randy Goodman. The label had its first successes in 1998 with singles by Lari White and Aaron Tippin, both formerly of RCA Records. Other artists w ...
heard his demo and Deric played five songs live for Randy Goodman, Deric entered a record deal with the label. In 2003, he released his debut album, ''Deric Ruttan''.
Songwriting
In 2003, just as his first single "When You Come Around," was released, he celebrated his first No. 1 as a songwriter when friend and collaborator
Dierks Bentley
Frederick Dierks Bentley (; born November 20, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Bentley moved to Nashville in the late 90s to pursue a career in music, leading up to his releasing the self-funded and independent album Do ...
took the Ruttan/Bentley/Brett Beavers co-write "
What Was I Thinkin'
"What Was I Thinkin'" is the debut single by American country music artist Dierks Bentley, released in April 2003 from his Dierks Bentley (album), self-titled debut album. The song became his first number one hit on the U.S. ''Billboard (magazine) ...
" to the top of the charts in the US. The song helped set Bentley on the path to country stardom. (To date, Bentley has recorded six Ruttan co-writes, including the 2005 chart-topper Lot of Leavin' Left To Do.) In 2004 Ruttan's "My Way", recorded by
Aaron Pritchett
Aaron Pritchett (born August 2, 1970) is a Canadian country music singer. He had a #1 hit on the ''Billboard'' Canada Country chart with " Better When I Do", and has landed gold-certified hits with " Hold My Beer", " Dirt Road in 'Em", " When a ...
, was the most-played Canadian country song of that year. Capitol Nashville's
Eric Church
Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released seven studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's '' Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billb ...
had an American Billboard hit with his and Ruttan's "
Guys Like Me" in 2007, and cuts on other acts followed, on artists like
Gary Allan
Gary Allan Herzberg (born December 5, 1967) is an American country music singer. Signed to Decca Records in 1996, he made his country music debut with the release of his single "Her Man (song), Her Man", the lead-off to his gold album, gold-cer ...
,
Paul Brandt
Paul Rennée Belobersycky (born July 21, 1972), known professionally as Paul Brandt, is a Canadian country music artist. Growing up in Calgary, he was a pediatric nurse at the time of his big break. In 1996, he made his mark on the country music ...
,
Doc Walker,
Jason Blaine
Jason Blaine McEwen (born April 19, 1980) is a Canadian country music singer/songwriter from Pembroke, Ontario. Blaine is a multiple Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA), SOCAN & Country Music Association of Ontario Award winner with over 20 ...
, and
The Higgins.
[work=]
In September 2007, Ruttan was awarded his first
Canadian Country Music Award (CCMA) for Songwriter of the Year (along with co-writers
Aaron Pritchett
Aaron Pritchett (born August 2, 1970) is a Canadian country music singer. He had a #1 hit on the ''Billboard'' Canada Country chart with " Better When I Do", and has landed gold-certified hits with " Hold My Beer", " Dirt Road in 'Em", " When a ...
and
Mitch Merrett
Mitch Merrett is a record producer, music manager, and country musician from Langley, British Columbia, Canada. He plays a Gibson Robot Guitar. He studied music at Selkirk College in Nelson, graduating from the Contemporary Music and Technol ...
), for "Hold My Beer", recorded by Pritchett.
He won the CCMA for songwriter of the year once again in 2014 for "
Mine Would Be You
"Mine Would Be You" is a song written by Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, and Deric Ruttan and recorded by American country music artist Blake Shelton. It was released in July 2013 as the third single from Shelton's 2013 album ''Based on a Tru ...
," recorded by
Blake Shelton
Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music, country singer, songwriter and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single "Austin (Blake Shelton song), Austin" from his Blake Shelton (album), self ...
.
Ruttan has written and co-written songs for prominent country musicians including
Dierks Bentley
Frederick Dierks Bentley (; born November 20, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Bentley moved to Nashville in the late 90s to pursue a career in music, leading up to his releasing the self-funded and independent album Do ...
("
What Was I Thinkin'
"What Was I Thinkin'" is the debut single by American country music artist Dierks Bentley, released in April 2003 from his Dierks Bentley (album), self-titled debut album. The song became his first number one hit on the U.S. ''Billboard (magazine) ...
" and "
Lot of Leavin' Left to Do"),
Aaron Pritchett
Aaron Pritchett (born August 2, 1970) is a Canadian country music singer. He had a #1 hit on the ''Billboard'' Canada Country chart with " Better When I Do", and has landed gold-certified hits with " Hold My Beer", " Dirt Road in 'Em", " When a ...
("
Hold My Beer" and "My Way"),
Jason Aldean
Jason Aldine Williams (born February 28, 1977), known professionally as Jason Aldean, is an American country music singer. Since 2005, he has been signed to BBR Music Group, Broken Bow Records, a record label for which he has released eleven alb ...
("
Any Ol' Barstool"),
Eric Church
Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released seven studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's '' Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billb ...
("
Guys Like Me" and "
Hell on the Heart"),
Blake Shelton
Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music, country singer, songwriter and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single "Austin (Blake Shelton song), Austin" from his Blake Shelton (album), self ...
("
Mine Would Be You
"Mine Would Be You" is a song written by Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, and Deric Ruttan and recorded by American country music artist Blake Shelton. It was released in July 2013 as the third single from Shelton's 2013 album ''Based on a Tru ...
" and "
Came Here to Forget"), and most recently,
Maddie and Tae ("Die From a Broken Heart").
Since 2011, Deric has written for Nashville-based publishing company THiS Music. He renewed his deal with THiS Music in 2016.
As a recording artist
It took over four years for Ruttan to follow up his 2003 self-titled release. In 2008 he released his second album, aptly titled First Time in a Long Time, which yielded four hit radio singles at Canadian country radio: the title track, "Lovin' You Is Killin' Me", "California Plates" (co-written with members of Manitoba country band Doc Walker), and "Good Time", a duet with Bentley. (The video for "Good Time" reached No. 1 on CMT Canada's video countdown).
"It wasn't just that writing songs for other artists was taking time away from me writing my next record", says Ruttan. "It was that suddenly I was known as a guy who'd written radio hits for other acts – the bar had been raised for me, creatively, because of that. I felt the next record I made needed to be really, really good."
At the 2008
Canadian Country Music Awards
The Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) was founded in 1976 as the Academy of Country Music Entertainment to organize, promote and develop a Canadian country music industry. The groundwork for the association began on June 3, 1973, when a gr ...
, Ruttan earned a total of four nominations – "Male Artist", "Songwriter", "Record Producer", and "Best Album," and closed the show performing alongside The Guess Who/Bachman Turner Overdrive guitar legend Randy Bachman. By the following year, "First Time In A Long Time" had garnered so much radio airplay that it earned Ruttan and co-writer Jimmy Rankin a SOCAN Country Music Award at the 2009 SOCAN Awards in Toronto.
In January 2010, with "
Sunshine
Sunlight is the portion of the electromagnetic radiation which is emitted by the Sun (i.e. solar radiation) and received by the Earth, in particular the visible light perceptible to the human eye as well as invisible infrared (typically per ...
," Deric began releasing albums on his own independent label, Black T Records. He captured live audio on Sunshine's supporting tour to create 2011's live album, "
Up All Night – Deric Ruttan Live." He released his most recent album, "
Take the Week Off," in October 2013.
He has found success as an artist on Canadian country radio, and he continues to balance touring to support his albums with songwriting at home. "I’ve never been happier with the balance in my career," he says. "I tour about as much as I’d ever want to. Jason Blaine, Chad Brownlee and I recently did 25 shows across Canada in the Your Town Throwdown tour, and I played festivals in the summer. That lets me get my performance ya-yas out, and I’m in Nashville writing the rest of the time. Considering I haven’t lived there in 20 years, I feel really embraced by Canada."
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
Singles
2000s
2010s
Music videos
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruttan, Deric
1972 births
306 Records artists
Canadian country singer-songwriters
Canadian male singer-songwriters
Living people
People from Bracebridge, Ontario
Musicians from Nashville, Tennessee
21st-century Canadian male singers
Canadian Country Music Association Songwriter(s) of the Year winners
21st-century Canadian singer-songwriters