Growing up n Phoenix, country singer Dierks Bentley got his country music education on his own. A love of the music inspired a move to Nashville at 19. He landed a job at TNN television doing research on classic country music. By night, he worked on his demos. Capitol Records heard the artist, signed him and released his self-titled debut in 2003. Bringing his love of Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings to the forefront, Modern Day Drifter followed two years later and became a Top Ten hit. In 2006, he returned with Long Trip Alone. Greatest Hits: Every Mile a Memory 2003-2008 arrived in 2008. A new album, Feel That Fire, was released in early 2009, followed by Up on the Ridge, a bluegrass flavored collection. Bentley’s 2011 tour featured Josh Thompson as the opening act. A sixth album, Home, followed in February 2012, as did a seventh one, Riser, in 2014. Black dropped in 2016. Bentley’s studio albums have accounted for eighteen singles on the country singles chart, of which twelve have reached No. 1. Dierks Bentley continues to top the charts and perform live everywhere there’s a stage.