Kenny Feidler’s voice sounds exactly how a rodeo cowboy turned country music singer’s should when you envision a bronc rider at the microphone—a little gravelly, deep, and steeped in emotion. That emotion has driven Feidler from his origins in Baltimore, Md., to his home today outside of Rapid City, S.D.
The kid that never felt like he fit in the city has a place among country music artists on the road. He balances life with wife, Blayne, and children Townes, 6, and July, 4, by touring only on weekends so he can be there. It’s a life he didn’t dream of when he was young, but one he’s pursued in earnest since 2019.
“Since we made the decision to go fulltime with music, I’ve been so lucky,” says Feidler. “It’s been great, and I have a really good life balance to be home and make a good living.”
Feidler and his band, Cowboy Killers, have played everything from local shows to big venues like Stagecoach. They’ve opened for acts like Reckless Kelly at Gruene Hall in Texas and Colter Wall at the Mission Ball Room in Colorado. The dedication to his craft hasn’t wavered, and his vision to create music akin to his early influences is strong. It makes Feidler a force to be reckoned with in the music industry.
From East to West
Baltimore isn’t the first city to come to mind when one thinks of a bronc rider’s hometown, but Feidler hailed from the urban area. He pursued the Western lifestyle, despite not having a family influence, and found National High School Rodeo Association connections in Pennsylvania.
“No one in my family rodeoed, and I felt out of place, like I should be somewhere else,” Feidler recalls. “I got into high school rodeo and got into bull riding. A friend gave me a Chris Ledoux CD, the Live album—this was before streaming—and I was trying to get hold of any cowboy culture I could. After that, I wanted to become a bareback rider. I started digging into more, read his biography, and it was a road map for more to find my way. It was really pivotal for me.”
Soon, Feidler was headed to Northwestern College in Alva, Okla., to compete on the rodeo team while completing a degree in Agriculture Business.
“Rodeo was a big part of my life,” he says. “I met my wife in college, and the friends I made down there were really impactful. I started hanging around with some of the guys I rodeoed with and we played music at the house, then at parties. I would write about rodeo stuff, what I was feeling, and shelved those songs. We had a house in Alva, and I bought a computer microphone, and I would record and burn CDs. I used the school library to print labels, then put them in cases to sell at rodeos or give them out. That’s how I started in music.”
After graduating in 2010, Feidler continued both the rodeo road and pursuing music, and eventually moving to Blayne’s home state of South Dakota. They married in 2014. Feidler started a band that played locally, and his music career really began rolling.
Feeding the Machine
Aspiring musicians often work a job during the week and put their heart and soul into music on the weekend. That was a trap that Feidler wanted to stay away from.
“My friend Mike George told me not to just keep my head down, working, and let it all pass by, so I’ve tried to be real conscious of that,” says Feidler. “I have kids now, and I try to make sure nothing outweighs my time with them.
“The music business, it can be tough. Once you start feeding it, it keeps growing and you can’t take your foot off the gas. For me, longevity is the key. I’m happy making a living and staying home during the week with my wife and my boys. I used to work full time then go play music when they were infants, and I was running ragged.”
On the road, Feidler met another musician, Kellen Smith, a fulltime rancher from Gillette, Wyo., who also has a wife and kids. The two became fast friends with similar thoughts on music and lifestyle.
“I look up to him; he is growing on his sound, tuning it every day and making it his own, just like any craftsman would,” says Smith. “Kenny has a following; Kenny’s fans respect him. It’s interesting because the second I met Kenny Feidler, he took me in. He’s got a quarter-million streamers on Spotify alone, monthly, and that might not be a lot, but to me, who is lucky one person listens to my songs, Kenny brought that [exposure] to me. Every time I go on stage or in the van with those guys, it’s a friendship I can’t explain. It’s cliché, but it’s a brotherhood. I’ve always thought of Kenny as a guy that is going to make some big waves.”
The band includes bass player Jacob Johnson from Spearfish, S.D.; drummer Tom Frear from Rapid City; pedal steel Matt Cline from Glasgow, Mont.; and lead guitarist Casey Sheldon from Idaho. They play what is considered alt country, blending hard rocking sound with true blue country music lyrics. Playing rock and roll live feels good, according to Feidler.
“It’s definitely a mix of cowboy songs with rock and roll, but lyrically, it’s very much country,” he says. “We were leaning hard into heavier rock and roll for a while, but we have a balance that feels right. The sound feels like it should be for the songs we play, the fit. The band is great.”
Traditionally Tuned
Feidler is clear when he notes the early influences of Chris Ledoux, Ian Tyson and Dave Stamey, who still influence his lyrics. Musically, he singles out Lucero and Drive By Truckers as impactful. It’s his goal to remain true to an emotional sound.
“I saw my first Lucero show in 2015; I dug the emotion,” he says. “I think Kellen is one of the best cowboy songwriters going right now. Colter Wall, Corb Lund, I like them, and they are well discovered. It’s smaller up here [in the musical community] and it benefits all of us when we work together. I believe I got a lucky break. This isn’t a competition. We are all trying to make a living.”
Feidler isn’t reaching for the spotlight, but he isn’t shying away from the opportunity to share the Cowboy Killers’ sound with new audiences. His manager, Jay Nazz, is the drummer from Reckless Kelly, a band that Feidler has enjoyed since college. Nazz’s experience is helping Feidler expand from South Dakota to California to Texas.
“It sounds short-term, but it’s very much a long-term goal, to continue to make music that I’m proud of,” he says. “When I started this thing, I didn’t give it the care I should have, not because I didn’t care, but because I didn’t plan on doing this for a living.
“I always want to be critical of what I write and get better. The goal is to stick with making good songs.”
Head to Kenny’s website and Instagram to stay up-to-date on his music.
This article about Kenny Feidler appeared in the Summer 2024 issue of Western Life Today magazine. Click here to subscribe!
