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TikTok puts Missouri welder's song on country music charts

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Profile medium photo of heavyset man with long curly hair held back by a white and blue mesh ballcap holding a microphone. He is wearing a navy colored T-shirt under an unbuttoned blue Royals short-sleeved shirt. He has an acoustic guitar with the guitar strap over his right shoulder.
Bryan Andrews Music Facebook
Country musician Bryan Adams in concert in Norborne, Missouri on September 6, 2021.

Bryan Andrews went from welding pots and pans to seeing his song hit number six on the iTunes country chart.

Of "Liquor & Pills" Bryan Andrews says, "every time I sing that song I just think back to how grateful I am for how far we've come."

The lyrics are personal to Andrews who admits "that song is basically all about what I was going through at that point in my life." His hope that those facing similar problems will "hear it and maybe think, 'I'm not alone.'"

When the pandemic hit, the Carrollton, Missouri musician had only been on TikTok for a couple of weeks but realized that everyone was watching it. He decided to post a small clip of the song and, "It got, like, a million views so I was like 'man, I need to finish this.'"

Andrews recorded a studio version of "Liquor & Pills" that was released in December of 2020. At the same time he made the decision stop working as a welder and devote a year to his music.

"Then everything just took off and I was like, 'man, if I can just make it through a year then I believe I can do it.' Here we are coming up on a year."

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When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.
As an assistant producer on Up To Date, my goal is to amplify voices of people who serve as pioneers in their respective fields while shedding light on issues that affect underserved communities. I produce daily conversations to uplift and inspire the people of the Kansas City area to make the world a better place. You can reach me at reginalddavid@kcur.org.
Connor Stewart is an intern for KCUR's Up To Date.
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