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Canadian country singer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cory Gerald Joseph Marquardt (born October 11, 1989[1]) is a Canadian country rock singer-songwriter better known by his stage name Cory Marks. He is signed to Better Noise Music.[2] He has released two albums, This Man in 2015 under Big Star Recordings, and most recently Who I Am in 2020 under Better Noise. Since the release, the album has accumulated over 260 million global streams with his debut single "Outlaws & Outsiders" being certified Platinum in Canada, Gold in the US and reaching top 10 at US rock radio and #3 in Germany, making Marks the first to ever do so as a Canadian country act.
Cory Marks | |
|---|---|
Marks performing in 2023 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Lion Man, Sunshine |
| Born | October 11, 1989 North Bay, Ontario, Canada |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, drums |
| Years active | 2011–present |
| Labels |
|
| Website | corymarks |
Marks was raised in North Bay, Ontario, the younger brother of professional hockey player Matt Marquardt, and learned how to skate at three years old.[3] He cites Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, Bryan Adams, Ozzy Osbourne, and Rush as early musical influences.[4] Marks played university hockey at the Royal Military College of Canada where he also pursued dreams of becoming a fighter pilot.[5][6] He had never performed music publicly until his friends encouraged him to do so while at a bar in college.[7] He has performed using the name "Cory Marks" since the release of his debut album.[1] Marks achieved his private pilot license in 2021.[8]
In July 2014, he released his first single to Canadian country radio, "Smartphone".[9] His second single, "21", was released in April 2015.[10] His first album, This Man was released on May 26, 2015 through Big Star Recordings.[11][12] The album included his first two singles, as well as two further singles, "This Man",[13] and "Nowhere With You".[14]
In 2016, Marks signed a deal to work with award-winning producer Kevin Churko, known for work with Ozzy Osbourne, Shania Twain, and Five Finger Death Punch.[15] In 2018, he signed a record deal with Eleven Seven Music (later rebranded as Better Noise Music) as their flagship country artist.[1][16]
In November 2019, Marks released his first single on Better Noise, "Outlaws & Outsiders", featuring Ivan Moody, Travis Tritt, and Mick Mars,[17] which debuted at #1 on iTunes in Canada as well as #1 on the Billboard Rock Digital Songs and Hard Rock Digital Songs charts and #7 on the Country Digital Songs charts.[18][19] The song would later peak inside the top 10 on US Mainstream Rock radio, top 5 on German rock radio, and peaked at #12 on Canada Rock radio.[20][21] It was also certified Gold by Music Canada.[22]
In June 2020, Marks released "Drive",[23][24][25] and announced it as the second single to country radio off his second album, Who I Am, which was released on August 7, 2020 through Better Noise.[26][27][28] In October 2020, "Blame It on the Double" was released as the second single to rock radio in Germany and the United Kingdom.[29] Marks also released his first Christmas single "Jingle My Bells", a cover of a song by The Tractors, that month.[30][31][32] In April 2021, Marks released a new version of "Blame It on the Double" featuring Tyler Connolly of Theory of a Deadman and Jason Hook.[33][34]
On June 18, 2021, Marks released the extended play Nashville Mornings. It included a cover of Blaze Foley's "If I Could Only Fly", as well as a "Country Mix" of "Blame It on the Double" featuring Tyler Connolly, which was sent to Canadian country radio.[35] He followed that up with the extended play Nashville Nights on August 20, 2021, which included a new track "In Me I Trust",[36] the solo version of "Outlaws & Outsiders", and live versions of "Drive" and "Blame It on the Double".[37][38]
In November 2022, Marks released the extended play I Rise, which included the singles "Burn It Up" and "Flying".[39][40] He supported Five Finger Death Punch on their headlining tour in the United States in the fall and winter of 2022 alongside Brantley Gilbert.[41]
In June 2024, Marks released two songs, "Guilty”, which featured Bad Wolves's lead singer DL, and "Drunk When I'm High", which was serviced to Australian country radio.[42][43][44] On December 6, 2024, Marks will release his third studio album Sorry for Nothing.[45][46] He released the song "(Make My) Country Rock" featuring Sully Erna, Travis Tritt, and Mick Mars, concurrently with the announcement of the forthcoming album.[47]
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS Country [48] |
CAN [49] |
SWI [50] |
UK Country [51] |
US Heat [52] |
US Album Sales [53] | ||
| This Man[12] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — |
| Who I Am[26] |
|
16 | 12 | 98 | 6 | 17 | 74 |
| Sorry for Nothing[46] |
|
— | — | — | — | — | — |
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Outlaws & Outsiders |
|
| Nashville Mornings |
|
| Nashville Nights |
|
| I Rise |
|
| Year | Single | Peak positions |
Certifications | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS Country [58] |
CAN Rock [21] |
US Country Digital [59] |
US Hard Rock [60] |
US Hard Rock Digi.[60] |
US Main Rock [61] |
US Rock [62] | ||||
| 2020 | "Outlaws & Outsiders"[19] (featuring Ivan Moody, Travis Tritt and Mick Mars) |
41 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 10 | 14 |
|
Who I Am |
| "Drive"[23] | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Blame It on the Double"[29] (solo or featuring Tyler Connolly and Jason Hook) |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 2022 | "Burn It Up"[55] | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | I Rise | |
| 2023 | "Snowbirds" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |
| 2024 | "A Different Kind of Year" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Drunk When I'm High" | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Sorry for Nothing | ||
| "(Make My) Country Rock" (featuring Sully Erna, Mick Mars and Travis Tritt) | — | — | — | 14 | 3 | 32 | — | |||
| "Fast as I Can" | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | ||||||||||
| Song | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Main. [64] | |||
| "Unstoppable" (with Eva Under Fire) |
2023 | 20 | Non-album single |
| "Livin' My Life Like a Country Song" (with Theory of a Deadman) |
2024 | — |
| Year | Single | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | "Jingle My Bells"[30] | Christmas With Better Noise Music |
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | "Smartphone"[65] | Manee Osman |
| 2015 | "21"[66] | Blake McWilliam |
| 2016 | "Nowhere with You"[14] | |
| "Don't Count Saturday Night"[67] | Ed Regan | |
| 2019 | "Outlaws & Outsiders"[68] (featuring Ivan Moody, Travis Tritt and Mick Mars) |
|
| "Better Off"[69] | Blake Judd | |
| 2020 | "Blame It on the Double"[70] | |
| "Outlaws & Outsiders"[71] (solo) |
Jaclyn Cataldi | |
| "Drive"[24] | Ed Regan | |
| "Out In the Rain"[72] (featuring Lzzy Hale) | ||
| 2021 | "Blame It on the Double"[73] (featuring Tyler Connolly and Jason Hook) |
|
| "Blame It on the Double" - Country Mix[74] (featuring Tyler Connolly) |
Ed Regan | |
| "In Me I Trust" | Travis Nesbitt | |
| 2022 | "Burn It Up" | Michael Lombardi |
| "Flying"[75] | ||
| 2023 | "I Rise"[76] | |
| 2024 | "(Make My) Country Rock" | |
| Year | Association | Category | Nominated Work | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Canadian Country Music Association | Alternative Country Album of the Year | Who I Am | Nominated | [77][78] |
| 2022 | Country Music Association of Ontario | Fans' Choice | — | Nominated | [79][80] |
| Songwriter(s) of the Year | "Blame It on the Double" (with Kevin Churko and Kane Churko) | Nominated |
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