- Waylon Payne
Waylon Payne (born
April 5 ,1972 ) is an American countrysinger ,songwriter ,musician andactor .He was born in
Nashville, Tennessee , the son ofguitarist Jody Payne andGrammy Award -winning country singerSammi Smith . His father became a longtime picker forWillie Nelson ; his mother toured withWaylon Jennings . Payne is named for Jennings, who is his godfather. Due to the ending marriage of his parents and their heavy touring schedules, when he was about four months old Payne's mother placed him with her brother and sister-in-law, Bob and Yvonne Smith, in Dallas. Although he spent summers out on the road with his mother, he lived with his uncle and aunt, who were strictChristian s, until he was about age 18.After high school, Payne enrolled in a
seminary to become a minister. During his first year atOklahoma Baptist University , however, he struggled with an internal battle regardingsex and sexuality. His carnal desires, along with the fact that his first partner was aCatholic monk , dashed the prospective clergyman's future. Payne had also acquired a taste forbeer , marijuana, andpopular music , which made his sinful downfall complete in the eyes of his uncle and aunt. "I haven't seen them since," he has said. "I was branded a sinner and basically disowned." cite web |title=Pilgrim and a Preacher and a Problem when He’s Stoned |first=Jeff |last=Prince |work=Fort Worth Weekly |url=http://www.fwweekly.com/content.asp?article=4508 |date=2007-01-03 |accessdate=2007-08-05]Payne's
music industry career began to take shape in the clubs of Los Angeles. He was part of the popular "Eastbound and Down" country night at the King King Club in Hollywood, which featured musicians playing pure, uncompromising roots-music and appealed to such artists asLucinda Williams andDwight Yoakam . Prohibited was the playing of anything but traditional classics byHank Williams ,George Jones and other performers of true country.While in L.A., Payne wrote and recorded some songs with the help of his group of musical friends, which included producer
Keith Gattis . With the record completed, but no deal to market it, Payne was playing New York with Willie Nelson andPat Green when Green suggested he play the album for his label, Republic/Universal. Payne was signed with the label and his début album, "The Drifter," was releasedJune 22 , 2004.As for acting, he was featured in the role as
Jerry Lee Lewis , "The Killer," in the hit20th Century Fox movie "Walk the Line " (2005), which starsJoaquin Phoenix asJohnny Cash andReese Witherspoon as June Carter, and did all his own singing. Payne then starred asHank Garland in an independent feature about the legendary guitarist's life titled "Crazy" (2006).Waylon Payne has also made guest appearances on television, including the series "".
References
External links
* [http://www.waylonpayne.com/main.html Official Waylon Payne Website]
* [http://www.myspace.com/iamwaylonpayne Waylon Payne's MySpace Site]
*imdb name|id=1679203|name=Waylon Payne
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Opu230tjIWA YouTube - Waylon Payne performing his mother's #1 country hit, "Help Me Make It Through The Night"]
* [http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/payne_waylon/bio.jhtml CMT Waylon Payne Bio]
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