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BBC Radio 2 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced Light Programme.

BBC Radio 2

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The Country Show with Bob Harris

Music: Country

The very best in Country music, celebrating the new alongside the defining legendary names

The very best in Country music, celebrating the new alongside the defining legendary names.

Bob Harris Country

The Country Show with Bob Harris: Aaron Watson in Session

Music: Folk

16/06/2016

Aaron Watson in Session

BBC Radio 2 - The Country Show with Bob Harris, Aaron Watson in Session

Bob hosts a session from Aaron Watson, a totally independent artist with his own label.

Aaron Watson in session

"I'd rather be an old fencepost in Texas than the king of Tennessee," Aaron Watson sings on "Fencepost," echoing the words of one of his favourite fellow Texans, Sam Houston. It's a song about a rising Texas country songwriter who gets the door slammed in his face by big-time Nashville record executives who underestimate him. Instead of giving up on his dreams, though, he rolls up his sleeves, proves them all wrong through sheer determination, and soon finds them knocking on his own door. If it sounds familiar, that's because, as Watson sings, it's "a true story," and the reason he's titled his 12th record 'The Underdog.'

"I've always liked the idea of the underdog," says Watson. "I've always liked the idea that the guy who's not supposed to win could still beat all the odds through hard work and perseverance. A lot of people are always telling us that what we're achieving in the music business is just next to impossible. I don't really consider it that way. We're just out there working hard."

Working hard is a serious understatement for Watson, who performs hundreds of shows every year, has collaborated with special guests like Willie Nelson, Dale Watson, Jack Ingram, and Bill Joe Shaver, cracked the Top 10 on the Billboard 200, and sold hundreds of thousands of tickets, all as a totally independent artist with his own label. 

"If your dreams aren't handed to you on a sliver platter, that's ok," says Watson. "You go out there and you chase them. You may have to work hard for them, but don't let anyone discourage you.".

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