London, On - Josh Ross, Country artist and former Western Mustangs football player, is on the road and coming to Western to perform. The sold out concert is happening today, Tuesday, September 17, organized by the University Student's Council (USC) and presented by Spotify.
"Josh Ross' story depicts the versatility of our varsity athletes at Western." said Emilie Kalaydjian, University Students' Council (USC) President. "From football to country music, Ross is an example to current students that their options post-grad are without bounds. I know at the USC we appreciate him returning home to Western, giving back to the community and bringing us together."
It's all happening right now for Ross, a life that most young music artists only dream about. He's signed with the mighty Universal Music Group. He lives in Nashville and works with top-flight musicians. He's got shows in fan-packed venues. He's even played the venerable Grand Ole Opry. He's got big hits like "Ain't Doin' Jack" and he's opened for Nickelback on a 52-city tour. In February, he was nominated for a Juno Fan Choice award. And in late March, he released an eight-song EP, Complicated.
He's worked hard to get here. But it was a football injury as a Western Mustang that kick-started his music career.
Ross, 27, grew up in Burlington, Ont., the son of Al and Julie, the youngest of three kids. His football talents caught the attention of the Mustangs and landed him a spot on the 2013–14 team.
But in 2016, he injured his ankle in a game and needed surgery. It had happened once before in high school.
"That's when I started to think, 'How many times can I go through this?'"
Ross, BA'17, had always been a writer, but in private, jotting down life experiences and stories in notebooks he kept hidden away. Now, with more time on his hands, he turned his writing chops to song lyrics, and got serious about the guitar. Influenced by his parents, who loved rock that ran the gamut from Springsteen to U2 to Metallica, he found himself taking some new steps.
He paired with former Mustangs quarterback Will Finch, BA'16. They got gigs at The Spoke on campus. Ross leaned to country music, with Steve Earle as his idol. He entered an emerging artists showcase, began learning how to build a band, and played Boots and Hearts, Canada's largest country music festival. He met Canadian singer Aaron Goodvin, who'd moved to Nashville and encouraged Ross to do the same.
A visit in 2017 hooked him. He graduated from Western and got a job in construction through a family friend. But he was back and forth to Nashville. Frustrated with his frequent absences, his boss did him a tough-love favour.
"I told him I wanted to go to Nashville again. He said, 'As a friend, I think you should go, but as your boss, you're fired.' So I went, came back to no job, and that's what forced me to say, 'I need to move there.'"
In 2019, he did.
He realized he was old to be entering the music business and, this being Nashville, could see there was a ton of competition. So he got to work, learning from the pros he was meeting.
If you believe this is what you're meant to do, you're going to figure it out.
Now, Ross is having magical moments—like joining Nickelback on stage to perform Earle's "Copperhead Road," the song that grabbed Ross as a kid. And he loves connecting with his fans. "When you get messages from people, even if it's not the most popular song, but it touches somebody in such a special way, that's what makes it all worth it."
His song "Trouble" rose to #1 in Canada, leading Ross to a CCMA Breakthrough Artist of the Year win, and earned RIAA Gold certification in the U.S. He has tallied more than 626 million career streams and been hailed as an Artist to Watch by Spotify, Amazon Music, Pandora, MusicRow, the Grand Ole Opry and more. Ross also released his new EP Complicated on March 29, co-writing seven of the project's eight tracks.
His support is growing, and Ross can count Mustangs Football Head Coach Greg Marshall as one of his biggest fans. "I am so proud of what Josh has accomplished, and am really looking forward to seeing him in concert tonight along with a number of students, coaches and alumni from our team. I also want to say a big congratulations to him on all the Canadian Country Music awards he won last weekend."
Ross was the big winner at the 2024 Canadian Country Music Association Awards (CCMAs), where he took home all five honours for which he was nominated – Entertainer, Male Artist, Top Selling Canadian Album (for Complicated), Single, and Top Selling Single (both for "Trouble") of the Year.
Earlier this year he had a headlining tour of six Canadian cities. He will next join a bigger tour, opening for hot American singer-songwriter Bailey Zimmerman with a slew of U.S. and U.K. dates throughout 2024.
Western Director of Sports & Recreation Christine Stapleton is also looking forward to attending the concert on Tuesday to support Ross, and talked about how sport and music share a lot of similarities.
"Both sport and music require hard work and drive, both require a unique set of skills that are used for the entertainment of others, and both require an individual to channel their passion and their emotions to achieve success. The relationships and skills that our student athletes acquire during their time as a part of the Western Mustangs help prepare them for the world after graduating in numerous ways, and it is always so exciting for me to see the different paths taken by our Mustangs alumni." Stapleton said. "The Mustangs are so purple and proud that Josh, talented country singer/song writer and former Mustangs varsity athlete with the football team, is coming to Western this week for a sold-out concert presented by the USC."
Ross's advice for others who are looking to make a big turn in their careers? "If you believe this is what you're meant to do, you're going to figure it out. I was in Nashville from 2019 until post-Covid and didn't have much going on. It was a lot of years that were very tough. But if you want it bad enough, you figure it out. You probably won't even realize you're doing that, but you are."
Ross's stop in London, Ontario is a triumphant story of a Western alumni returning to his roots. The USC is hosting the Josh Ross concert on Tuesday, September 17 in Mustang Lounge at 9pm. Presented by Spotify. Tickets are sold out.
Original article published by: Western Alumni Magazine
Edited and adapted by: Western Mustangs
