Michael Ray (singer)

Michael Ray Roach (born April 29, 1988) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He is signed to Warner Music Nashville. He has released two albums for the label: Michael Ray and Amos.

Michael Ray
Birth name	Michael Ray Roach
Born	(1988-04-29) April 29, 1988 (age 36) Eustis, Florida, U.S.[1]
Genres	Country
Occupations	Singer songwriter
Instrument	Vocals
Years active	2010–present
Labels	Warner Bros. Nashville Atlantic Nashville
Spouse	Carly Pearce ​ ​ (m. 2019; div. 2020)​
Website	michaelraymusic.com

Biography

Ray was born in Eustis, Florida. He was inspired by his grandfather Amos "Wilson" Roach, who played music for him and taught him how to play guitar, in addition to having him perform at assisted living centers. Ray chose to form a band in southern Florida after graduating high school, and a disc jockey at WPCV began playing his music. He released an album independently in 2010, which was discovered by manager Tony Conway.^[1]

Ray was mentored by John Rich of Big & Rich on the singing competition The Next: Fame Is at Your Doorstep, which he won. He and Rich co-wrote Big & Rich's 2015 single, "Run Away with You".^[2] After winning the competition, Ray was signed to Warner Bros. Records Nashville. His first EP, Tour Bootleg, was released in 2014. Two of the EP's tracks, "Kiss You in the Morning" (which went to number one on the Country Airplay charts in 2015) and "Think a Little Less," appeared later on his self-titled second album, released in 2015, becoming his first and third singles, respectively. The track "Real Men Love Jesus" was named as Ray's second single. Ray supported the album with a tour.^[1]

On June 16, 2017, Ray released the single "Get to You" ahead of his third studio album, Amos.^[3] After the album's release in 2018, it produced two more singles: "One That Got Away" and "Her World or Mine." It was produced by Scott Hendricks.^[1] In September 2020, Ray released the single "Whiskey and Rain" ahead of his fourth studio album, originally set to be released in 2021.^[4]

Personal life

Michael Ray has one sister and two half sisters.

On July 19, 2018, Ray confirmed that he had started dating country singer Carly Pearce.^[5] They were engaged on December 19, 2018.^[6] and married on October 6, 2019 on a farm in Goodlettsville, Tennessee northeast of Nashville.^[7] In June 2020, Pearce filed for divorce from Ray after eight months of marriage.

Discography

Michael Ray discography
Studio albums	3
EPs	3
Singles	8
Music videos	10
Other charted songs	1
No. 1 singles	2

Studio albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions			Sales
		US Country [8]	US [9]	AUS [10]
Michael Ray[11]	Release date: January 29, 2010 Label: Self-released Formats: CD, digital download	—	—	—
Michael Ray	Release date: August 7, 2015 Label: Atlantic Nashville Formats: CD, digital download	4	21	60	US: 51,000[12]
Amos	Release date: June 1, 2018 Label: Atlantic Nashville Formats: CD, digital download	5	53	—	US: 16,600[13]
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Extended plays

Title	EP details	Peak chart positions
		US Country [8]	US Heat [14]
Tour Bootleg	Release date: November 2014 Label: Warner Bros. Nashville Formats: Digital download	—	—
Kiss You in the Morning	Release date: April 28, 2015 Label: Warner Bros. Nashville Formats: CD, digital download	37	15
Higher Education	Release date: August 27, 2021 Label: Warner Bros. Nashville Formats: CD, digital download	—	—
Dive Bars & Broken Hearts	Release date: June 23, 2023[15] Label: Warner Bros. Nashville Formats: CD, digital download	—	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions					Sales	Certifications	Album
		US Country [16]	US Country Airplay [17]	US [18]	CAN Country [19]	CAN [20]
2015	"Kiss You in the Morning"	10	1	55	13	73	US: 308,000[21]	RIAA: Gold[22] MC: Gold[23]	Michael Ray
	"Real Men Love Jesus"	28	17	—	44	—	US: 66,000[24]
2016	"Think a Little Less"	3	2	54	23	—	US: 278,000[25]	RIAA: Platinum[22]
2017	"Get to You"	17	15	—[A]	43	—	US: 121,000[27]	RIAA: Gold[22]	Amos
2018	"One That Got Away"	10	3	67	7	—	US: 37,000[28]	RIAA: Gold[22]
2019	"Her World or Mine"	31	22	—[B]	39	—		RIAA: Gold[22]
2020	"Whiskey and Rain"	6	1	37	—	—		RIAA: Platinum[22]	Higher Education
2022	"Holy Water"	—	32	—	—	—
2023	"Spirits and Demons"[29] (with Meghan Patrick)	—	35	—	—	—			Dive Bars & Broken Hearts
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Notes

1. "Get to You" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number two on Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, which acts as a 25-song quasi-extension of the Hot 100.^[26]
2. "Her World or Mine" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 12 on Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, which acts as a 25-song quasi-extension of the Hot 100.^[26]

Other charted songs

Year	Song	Peak positions	Album
		US Country [16]
2015	"Another Girl"	50	Michael Ray

Music videos

Year	Video	Director
2015	"Kiss You in the Morning"[30]	Edgar Esteves
	"Real Men Love Jesus"[31]	Sam Siske
2016	"Think a Little Less"[32]	Cody Kern
2017	"Think a Little Less"[33]	Jack Guy
2018	"Get to You"[34]	Unlisted
	"Fan Girl"[35]
	"Her World or Mine"[36]
	"Summer Water"[37]
2019	"One That Got Away"	Sean Hagwell[38]
	"Her World or Mine"	Daniel Carberry and Keenan O'Reilly[39]
2020	"Whiskey and Rain"	Unlisted
2021	"Picture"
	"Just the Way I Am"
	"Higher Education" (featuring Kid Rock, Lee Brice, Billy Gibbons, and Tim Montana)
2022	"Holy Water"

Awards and nominations

Year	Award show	Category	Result
2016	American Country Countdown Awards	Breakthrough Male of the Year	Nominated