Paul Cauthen

Suffice it to say that the singer, songwriter, and proud son of Tyler, Texas — steward of a rich, resonant, bass-leaning tenor dubbed “Big Velvet” — covers a lot of ground and embodies a lot of characters. He was a Texas outsider, cutting his teeth in the early 2010s with Sons of Fathers before launching his solo career with My Gospel, an acclaimed debut that showcased his idiosyncratic take on traditional country. Cauthen broadened his scope on Room 41, the sophomore set that contained “Cocaine Country Dancing,” a disco-fied single that expanded his audience and set him on a path to the satirical “Country as F*,” the lead song from Country Coming Down.

“I’m having fun,” Cauthen says. “I’ve finally figured it out. I’m more settled and comfortable. I know I’m good at making records and great at entertaining. That’s my gift more than anything, to be able to get up there and deliver these songs to people.”

That gift is part of Cauthen’s DNA, of course, from a family deeply steeped in music. Texan on both sides, his paternal grandfather went to school with Hank Williams while his maternal grandpa, who worked with Buddy Holly and the Crickets during his youth, introduced Cauthen to singing. His grandmother taught him to play piano, while his grandfather and great-uncle were the song leader and preacher, respectively, of the local Christian Church of Christ.

“Yeah, I had no choice, really,” Cauthen says now. “(Music) is what I call my birddog trait; You don’t have to tell a birddog to jump in the river and grab the duck and bring it back to you. And you don’t have to tell me to get up on stage and perform. That’s what I’m supposed to do. My family enjoyed watching me perform when I was a kid; I would get up in front of everybody at Christmas with my guitar and play ‘Jackson’ with my grandmother. I learned my trade, y’know?”