Creed Fisher has built a strong following as an outlaw country singer with songs that touch on a wide range of issues including American pride and patriotism. An Army veteran who served his country in the early 1990’s, he wanted to write a song explaining why the American flag means so much, to so many.
“I got this idea to write a song called ‘Stars and Stripes’ that explains why this fabric is so important,” he says. “It represents something much bigger that a lot of people don’t understand. This fabric that’s made up of stars and stripes is on a soldier’s casket when he comes home from war and gets handed to his mother. Those are the things I want people to understand about the flag.”
The song is one of 12 tracks on his new album This Ain’t the Hamptons. He released the music video just in time to highlight its powerful message on the day set aside to honor those who’ve served their country.
“On Veterans Day we say, ‘God bless our military’ and we talk about it all day long,” Fisher says. “But we don’t really stop and think there are mothers out there without sons, wives without husbands, and kids that don’t have their fathers. We, as Americans, think about this on Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and 4th of July, but these family members live with it every day. So, that’s where this song came from.”
Those featured throughout the music video all have a military connection.
“Having true veterans be a part of this gave it a real genuine aspect I’ll forever value,” Fisher says. “I’ll always proudly honor our great country with pride and respect, never undervaluing the sacrifices our brace servicemen and women give for our privilege to live in the land of the free.”
Fisher’s appreciation of American values began while growing up in Texas.
“I come from a little town in West Texas called Odessa. It’s out there in the oil fields. My dad was an oil field electrician, and I did the same thing for 23 years before I quit to go into music full-time.”
As a kid, Fisher remembers the thrill of watching Elvis perform and thinking how much he’d love to one day do something like that, but didn’t see music as a realistic way to make a living.
“I grew up in the middle of nowhere. We were very poor,” he recalls. “Our floor was literally dirt. So, music wasn’t something that presented itself to me early in life. It wasn’t a reality until I got a little older.”
He played football in high school, joined the army, then played minor league football after returning home. He got married, had children, and worked in the oil fields to support his family. But after going through a difficult divorce, he found himself turning to music as a form of therapy.
“I know a divorce can be hard for everyone, but for me it was a huge void and a very, very hard time that I went through, and that’s when I got into music. I had never played in a band growing up and didn’t pick up a guitar until I was 35.”
He made up for lost time, teaching himself to not only play guitar but write songs.
“It was a way to get all of that stuff out of my heart. If you look at the songs I wrote when I first started, they were all sad or just dysfunctional. I certainly wasn’t writing love songs. But it was a way to heal from what I was going through, and it gave me a mission and a purpose that I needed at the time.”
Singer/songwriter Creed Fisher
Fisher soon moved to Fort Worth determined to pursue a career in music.
“It was the first time I had to play to eat, play to pay the rent, play to have any money whatsoever. So, it pushed me out of my comfort zone. I wasn’t a very good guitar player back then and it forced me to get in front of people and do it. And I got a little better each day.”
He chose not to move to Nashville but remain in Fort Worth where he currently writes and records his music. He’s built a solid fanbase through his songs, touring, and with the help of social media.
This Ain’t the Hamptons, released in September, is his 13th studio album. It features a collection of songs reflecting his style of Southern rock and traditional country.
“I always say an album is like a rollercoaster,” he explains. “It’s got to have its ups and downs, suspense and excitement, and you’ve got to have slow songs, fast songs, and mid-tempo songs. Songs about partying, songs about lost love, and songs about patriotic things.”
He hopes his latest patriotic song encourages people to think a little more deeply about those who serve, and the sacrifices they make on behalf of their country.
“Honoring vets and taking care of veterans is a huge part of me, my career, and my music,” he says.
Creed Fisher’s patriotic single “Stars and Stripes”
