Paste Studio “On the Road” bounced around Nashville during AMERICANAFEST 2025, catching up with Alabama-born singer-songwriter Kashus Culpepper in the natural light and exposed brick of The Red Building on Music Row on our last day in town. Culpepper shared three songs from his forthcoming debut album Act I, out January 23.
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The idea that Act I is Culpepper’s debut album is challenging for me to get my head around, since he seems like one of those inevitable artists who has always been here. His ragged-edged baritone growl could’ve transformed the Delta blues with Howlin’ Wolf in the ’50s, or smoked a brisket with Tom Waits in the ’70s, just as naturally as it fits with Marcus King’s slide guitar and Sierra Ferrell’s vocals featured on next year’s Act I.
If any two of the guest artists and co-writers featured on this record were booked on a festival lineup, I would buy tickets to that festival. The first song in this Paste Session, “Believe,” shares a writing credit with Irish singer-songwriter Foy Vance—finest damn moustache in the game—whose own voice shares a distantly-related, smoky, raspy quality with Culpepper’s. Anderson East, Brent Cobb, Natalie Hemby, and Brian Elmquist (of The Lone Bellow) also boast writing credits on Act I, Elmquist serving double duty as the producer of the record.
Culpepper also shared “Alabama Beauty Queen,” and “Man of His Word” during our time together on this beautiful Nashville afternoon.
At some point in the middle of this session, my dad died. I wasn’t checking my devices during the recording, so I didn’t see my brother’s message. When my brother couldn’t reach me, he texted my audio engineer partner Juan, asking me to call asap. My dad was in hospice at my brother’s house, so Juan knew exactly what the text meant. Juan sat quietly with that knowledge for the rest of this session, and I am grateful that he did. I kept operating the cameras and hosting the session, relatively clear-eyed, enjoying Kashus’ music and concentrating on the work. As soon as we wrapped, Juan told me that I needed to call my brother. There was no mistaking his tone, I knew dad was gone. My brother confirmed that dad had passed, I went outside for a cigarette and cried.
When I came back inside the studio, the outpouring of love and support from Juan, Kashus, Joey from AEA and Mayer from Twangville was overwhelming, and there was no stopping the waterworks. I unloaded on Kash about my mom and my dad dying three weeks apart from each other after 61 years of marriage, and he was there for it, plus a big bear hug. This video was tough to edit through the tears, and these words are tough to write for the same reason. It’s not a good feeling or a bad feeling, I just miss my dad.
This experience reminded me why I’ve chosen to dedicate so much of my professional life to creating these session videos. Juan and I get to spend our days with interesting artists following their passions, all of us fully focused on making the very best cultural artifact we can make. Those experiences create bonds of mutual respect, sometimes affection, sometimes even friendship. I will remember this afternoon for the rest of my life, and I thank everybody who was there rolling with the punches as they came, love you guys.
