What’s in a reputation? For Muscadine Bloodline, a title rebrand could have been the spark that elevated the nation duo from everlasting school city cowl band to now taking part in in entrance of sold-out audiences at professional soccer stadiums.
It’s now 9 years since Gary Stanton and Charlie Muncaster selected ditching not solely their house state of Alabama but in addition their nondescript stage title—Gary and Charlie—and head to Nashville in pursuit of nation music stardom. Not solely did Muscodine Bloodline sound extra like an actual band, the change helped forge a each a friendship and now devoted partnership with a sole aim of launching their distinctive model of nation music worldwide.
“We all the time joked that every one band names sucked except it labored out,” Muncaster says. “We’re nonetheless chugging alongside. So hopefully it’s understanding simply advantageous.”
The self funding has paid off greater than the 2 might have envisioned. Since shifting to the Music Metropolis, the indie nation artists have constructed an enormous cult following—and their success is now blowing up on a nationwide platform. They’ve acquired a brand new album, The Coastal Plain, which has been critically acclaimed. And along with their very own U.S. tour in assist of their work, they’re additionally presently opening the for rap-country crossover celebrity Publish Malone.
“We have been simply operating round as Gary and Charlie, as a result of we didn’t know that we have been actually going to work collectively in an official capability,” Muncaster says. “As soon as we lastly constructed a number of chemistry, and determined we have been going to do that factor collectively, we determined we have to have a band title. We needed one thing that rhymed and one thing that sounded inherently southern, and we landed on Muscadine.”
Their careers are reliant on one another’s full consideration. This has required Stanton and Muncaster to grow to be almost inseparable—and never simply onstage or the recording studio.
“There’s the facet of placing your life into Charlie’s palms and his into yours,” Stanton says. “We each signify one another—and we’ve been just about married for 9 years. We’ve seen one another loads—generally greater than our spouses.”
The 2 have now developed a teammate-like camaraderie within the weightroom as properly. Muncaster, now six years sober, has needed to depend on Stanton—a lifelong health buff—to assist him regain his well being. At this time, Muncaster is down is greater than 50 kilos in his bodily pursuit of changing into a greater conditioned nation performer.
And whereas weightlifting and conditioning have allowed each of them to point out off a little bit of their nation muscle, higher efficiency onstage is permitting Muscadine Bloodline to showcase their high-energy stage exhibits on a nationwide stage.
“We wish to sound good, and have you ever depart our present saying that was an incredible stay band,” Muncaster says. “We’re assured that if we will get you to a present, you’ll purchase one other ticket as a result of it was a adequate efficiency to warrant one other purchase.”
Staying Sober and Staying Devoted to Health
Muncaster started taking part in guitar at age 14, however admits to essentially having no preliminary want to pursue music till school. This was in regards to the time when voice started to develop in addition to his instrument abilities. His onstage profession started taking part in nightly gigs alongside the Auburn bar scene. As he performed for principally mates early on, he began incomes some money—as properly with free meals and booze.
“The second for me was once I was like, ‘Oh, I can drink free beer and get 300 or 400 bucks?” he recollects. “That was my jumpstart second into music.”
Quickly after he paired up with Stanton, who had completed up school at Southern Miss with a level in music administration. After listening to constructive opinions among the many native crowed, the 2 quickly determined that it was the correct time to go to Nashville. “Inside like six months, we began to essentially see some traction,” Stanton recollects. “We’re like, dang let’s maintain at it.”
On the street to music success, nonetheless, the late-night efficiency got here at a well being value for Muncaster—he ballooned to over 270 kilos. Thankfully, he discovered the willpower to drop alcohol chilly turkey. Since then he hasn’t had a drink in over six years.
“I began realizing that no good choice I’ve ever made has come from being hammered,” he admits. “So for me it was so simple as saying to myself, it’s simpler for a man like me to be sober.”
However what Muncaster didn’t have was a plan to drop the 50-plus kilos of additional weight he’d steadily gained. The additional poundage started affecting his efficiency onstage. Thankfully, Stanton was the weightroom function mannequin Muncaster wanted. The 2 started understanding collectively, with the assistance of non-public coach Matt Clean. Clean was a pal of Stanton’s throughout school on the College of Southern Mississippi.
Stanton by no means wanted to make use of a tricky love strategy to get Muncaster to hitch him within the health club, however as a substitute provided a lead by instance formulation—consistency. That’s all Muncaster wanted.
“I might inform Charlie that I’ve been going to the health club, and ultimately Charlie determined to tag alongside,” Stanton says. “From there we’ve gone via spurts of understanding every single day collectively. Some days, if Charlie needs to go play a spherical of golf, he’ll go try this. Or if we’re not going to work out on a day, we’ll provide you with a plan for issues we have to steer clear of.
Coaching turned a sample forming staple in Muncaster’s day after day world. He started catching on to sure life-style changes—meal prepping being one. And the wholesome habits started to snowball, with Muncaster asking questions and Stanton all the time there to reply.
“He was actually, like the primary particular person in my life at age 23, who confirmed me how you can depend energy,” Muncaster mentioned. “And it blew my thoughts.”
Now, Muncaster sports activities a 220 pound body, because of a gradual and constant exercise and eating regimen routine. “I’d actually try what he was doing at first,” Muncaster says. “Then I’d be like, alright, I’m gonna cook dinner some grilled hen and rice and name it a day. The extra I realized the simpler it turned.”
Stanton sees the progress, and is proud to be part of his accomplice’s transformation.
“To Charlie’s credit score, he’s performed it wholesome,” he says. “It’s not like a crash eating regimen to achieve a aim, then give up and three months later he’s again to the place he was. I really feel like Charlie’s acquired, like, a fairly good grasp on what he wants.’
Muscodine Bloodline Are Companions on the Stage and the Weightroom
Earlier than selecting Muscadine Bloodline because the official title, Stanton and Muncaster toyed round with different choices. One was Dry County Riot.
“It sounded an excessive amount of like a southern steel band,” Stanton says. They settled on combining “Muscadine”—a regionally grown grape—with “Bloodline,” a easy time period representing their southern heritage. And the phrases type of rhymed too. “We got here alongside Muscadine Bloodline, and it was like, We don’t hate that. In order that’s the place we landed,” Stanton says.
Even with a elaborate new title a repeatedly increasing worldwide fanbase, the 2 admit separating themselves from their Alabama and southern traditions won’t ever be an choice. “You cant conceal these rednecks,” Muncaster says.
The closest “non-southern” exercise can be Muncaster’s penchant for golf, which he does as typically as time permits. Stanton, in the meantime stays an avid hunter who purposely stays away from the hyperlinks. “I’ve addictive character,” he says. “I simply don’t have room for another [hobby]. If I do, I’ll attempt to be taking part in on the tour if I begin.”
The 2, nonetheless have developed a wholesome sample for getting in a exercise regardless of the town they roll into. Having an Anytime Health membership helps. “Twenty bucks a month get you into any health club in America,” Muncaster says. “That’s fairly wholesome.”
Stanton has been heavy into weightlifting since highschool soccer and baseball days. “It’s been part of my life eternally,” he says. “I form of realized the ropes throughout highschool exercises for soccer and baseball.”
Whereas the 5’6”, 165-pound former athlete is a seasoned veteran within the health club, Muncaster is shortly changing into a dependable pec-building protegé. He’s always gobbling up fast coaching suggestions Stanton throws at him whereas on the identical time burning energy all through this weight-loss journey.
They’ll additionally depend on a exercise program created by coach Matt Clean. Stanton and Clean have recognized one another since their school days at Southern Miss. “We’ll open it up and do the exercises particularly made for me and Charlie,” Stanton says. “Over the past two years, he’s helped us keep a technique, particularly on the street.”
Stanton says usually they’ll do a two-on (higher physique, decrease physique), one-off break up, with Sundays put aside for R&R. On the street nonetheless, they often are likely to deal with full-body exercises when soundcheck, media appearances and different commitments depart them with little time.
“Gary has set a great instance, and I’m beginning to catch on,” Muncaster says. “I’ve been like, I ponder what that’s prefer to be wholesome. When you begin catching on to that, you additionally begin eager to be higher in sure different areas. And that’s form of the trickle down impact it had.”
A Duo Made for the Lengthy and Regular Run to Success
On the street, when the temptations of post-concert pizzas, Oreos, or a chilly beer hover backstage, Stanton tries to come back ready with more healthy alternate options. He’ll oftentimes fill the tour bus fridge with deer meat or turkey breast ready following one in every of his latest searching journeys.
However whereas they each proceed to maintain their waistlines down with higher meal choices, the Muscadine Bloodline duo understands that their actual meal tickets are their voices. So protecting them wholesome night time in and night time out is as necessary as counting macros.
“We’re not Greek gods like Riley Inexperienced or Parker McCollum,” Stanton says laughing. “So we’ve got to exit and sound good each night time.”
Earlier than and after each live performance, Stanton and Muncaster go over a number of vocal workout routines and breath work so as their voices keep on level for every 90 minute present and to additionally stop fatigue the vocal chords. Consuming tea helps as properly, the duo says.
“I’ll do respiratory workout routines earlier than I am going on stage,” Muncaster says, “as a result of I gotta maintain these massive breaths to sing. I really feel like if we don’t do our warmups, we’ll actually get worn out. Then you definately’re apprehensive in regards to the subsequent night time.”
Whereas their songwriting for The Coastal Plain—with southern melodic ballads equivalent to 90-10 has been labeled “sneaky good, generally overtly stellar,” the pair needs to current to their latest followers that their stay performances are much more dazzling because the opinions.
“You’ll simply have to come back out and see one and determine,” Stanton says. We’re very detailed in how we construct a movement of songs. We don’t simply stand up there and simply play. We attempt to take your 90-minute journey of what we’re engaged on in the mean time. Our aim is you simply sound is healthier than we did on the data.”
Within the minds of Muscodine Bloodline, the rise to nation music as unbiased artists has been a sluggish and regular climb—they usually’re OK with that—whereas seeing others skyrocket to success. In 2020, they teamed with present nation music phenom Lainey Wilson on “Items.” Whereas her rise to worldwide stardom seems to some to have come at meteoric speeds, Stanton and Muncaster nonetheless take the sluggish and regular grind strategy to proceed shifting ahead.
“In case you’re your profession and saying, ‘Why aren’t we right here?’ I feel that’s an enormous lesson that we’ve realized to keep away from alongside the way in which,” Muncaster says. “It doesn’t matter what anybody else is doing— I’m completely happy for them. What we’re doing is is what we’re doing. We will’t and don’t examine to everyone else. We prefer to say, ‘Be the place your ft are.’”
