Josh Ross

Echoing the primary themes of country in his pop-rock-infused way, Josh Ross’s take on love, work, and play is often documented through his whirlwind experiences. From moving to Nashville the night of a tornado, leaving only a month later when a global pandemic arrived, to developing an ever-evolving career amidst the drawbacks of injuries, lockdowns, and conflicting relationships, Josh Ross is a country artist bound by the act of forging past and overcoming restraints.

“There is something to be said about when your heart is really in the right place to sing something… As an artist, I want the listener and me to go back to a song and remember our exact experiences around it, to encourage connection in all forms,” Josh said. The need for that musical connection began growing up in Burlington, Ontario’s suburbia. Overhearing his parents sing along to Guns N Roses and Bruce Springsteen in their kitchen while he ran around the house pretending to play guitar. Learning in those early years what music was, he found himself writing words in his notebook that, at the time, he didn’t realize were poems and lyrics. Onwards through school, he focused on sports like motocross and football, eventually encountering the injuries that came with each game.

Following several football-related injuries at Ontario’s Western University, the isolation that came from the injuries allowed Josh some time to develop his relationship with music. Taking nearly empty shuttle buses to get to school due to the cast on his leg, learning how to play guitar in his dorm, and on a few noise-complaint occasions bringing two speakers and a subwoofer into the bathroom to belt songs, Josh eventually made the shift of not just listening to music but making his own.

“I had a lot of catching up to do,” Josh said on his first few years immersing himself in the music industry. From practicing in his dorm to playing his first live show at the Boots & Hearts Emerging Artist Showcase in front of 5,000 people, Josh stated that “I used to throw up before the football games because of the anxiety, which is probably why I threw up before that show. ” While the pressure to succeed in his sports days poured over into his music career, the drive to achieve inspired him to connect with various songwriters and musicians, eventually leading him to Nashville. In conflict with choosing a stable job post-university or setting his sights on the music industry, Josh Ross’s passions, and talent, pushed him to the path of Nashville, where he further began developing his sound and artistry. From 2019 onwards, Josh Ross dove head-first into his music career as an artist with sonic elements in his music, nodding to raw country, soft rock, and hints of 80s pop-rock.

In early 2022, Josh pushed even further in his career with his major-label signing to Universal Music Canada, the country’s leading music company, and The Core Entertainment, the management company specializing in discovering and championing new talent in music. He joined the team as the second artist signed to UMC’s joint venture with The Core, a partnership designed to offer Canadian artists a collaborative and integrated approach to releasing music worldwide.

From his 2019 independent debut to now, the Nashville-based singer-songwriter quickly and impressively built a name for himself with a handful of songs that have now generated more than 179 million global streams. Often writing from personal experiences, Josh Ross has delivered versatile lyrics throughout his collection of songs. His major-label debut and now Platinum-certified track “On A Different Night” hit over 28.2 million streams, and his Platinum-certified cathartic ballad on romantic losses “First Taste of Gone” has continued to amass over 21.3 million streams since its release in early 2022 and peaked on the Top 5 Canadian Country Radio Charts. Ross captured attention across the US with placement on Spotify’s top country playlists like New Boots, Next From Nashville, Breakout Country and more. Along with his home country of Canada with the #1 country spot on Spotify Canada’s Viral 50 Chart and more, Apple Music’s Canada’s Country playlist as the cover artist and was selected as Apple Music Canada’s UP NEXT artist September 2022. Ross was also selected as the new face of Country Heat on Amazon Music which included billboards in Toronto and Nashville. Along the way, Ross also landed a spot as one of the SiriusXM Top of the Country Top 3 finalists and was nominated for Rising Star at the Canadian Country Music Awards (CCMA) in 2022. Ross is the top nominated artist at the 2023 CCMA’s including ‘Breakthrough Artist of the Year’, and ‘Single of the Year’. His recent singles, “Ain’t Doin’ Jack” is up to 5.6 million streams since it’s release in July and the radio hit “Trouble” hit #1 at Canadian Country Radio with over 70 million global streams and is certified Platinum.

Recently, Ross won ‘Breakthrough Artist of the Year’ at the 2023 Canadian Country Music Awards, where Ross also performed “Trouble” live on stage for fans in Hamilton and on TV broadcast presented by TD live on CTV / Bell Media.

Ross continues to carve out his place in Country music across the nation with chart-topping music releases and electrifying performances. Performances include opening for Parker McCollum, Bailey Zimmerman, Lee Brice, Tenille Arts, Chase Rice and his recent North American tour opening for Nickelback and Brantley Gilbert’s extensive Get Rollin’ Tour throughout Summer/Fall 2023. Full list of dates available on his website.

With management services from The Core and a recorded music agreement with Universal, watch for much more to come from Josh Ross as he anchors himself as one of 2023’s most promising Country artists.