By Judy Shields

Hollywood, California (The Hollywood Times) 10/02/2023

Country singer James Dupré, who made his Grand Ole Opry debut last week during Opry Country Classics and performed alongside Julia Cole, The Gatlin Brothers, The Oak Ridge Boys and Scotty McCreery talks with The Hollywood Times about this moment and all things James Dupré.

James received a warm introduction from his friend Randy Travis and his wife, Mary. He graced the stage with a captivating solo-acoustic performance of “Promises” before being joined by the Opry band for his rendition of “Deeper Than the Holler,” both timeless classics by Randy Travis.

“The Opry has and will always be a national treasure to me and playing in the Circle has been something I have wanted to do for a long time. I’m still processing the magnitude of it and it was so much more meaningful than I could’ve imagined. I can’t think of a bigger honor than having Randy and Mary Travis introduce me,” Dupré said.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by AFF-USA/Shutterstock (12337072am)
Randy Travis and James Dupre
Volunteer Jam: A Musical Salute To Charlie Daniels, Nashville, Tennessee, USA – 18 Aug 2021

James and Randy’s relationship is a special one as Randy and Mary Travis personally selected James to serve as the lead vocalist for The Music of Randy Travis Tour, which has since been rebranded as the More Life Tour. Teaming up with Randy’s original band, James delivers electrifying performances of all of Randy’s chart-topping classics. In addition to touring, James released his third studio album, titled Home and Away in 2020. The album includes three singles: “Home and Away,” “Another Love Song,” and “Painfully Pretty.”

Enjoy our conversation:

About James Dupré:

James Dupré (Photo NBC)

James Dupré was born and raised in Bayou Chicot, LA and named one of Rolling Stone Magazine’s, “Country Artists You Need to Know”, has a pitch-perfect baritone voice and has spent a lot of time sharing his voice with his fans garnering millions of views across social media platforms and at venues and festivals across the United States, Canada, and Europe. The one-time aspiring meteorologist turned paramedic became a YouTube sensation in 2007 which ultimately led to an invitation to perform on Ellen. Shortly after, he released his debut album, “It’s All Happening” in 2010, which charted on Billboard. After signing a record deal with Warner Music Nashville in 2011, Dupré began performing and touring full-time. In 2015, Dupré appeared on The Voice (Season 9) with a four chair turn landing him a spot on Adam Levine’s team. Following his departure from The Voice, James released his sophomore album “Stoned to Death” with two singles charting on the Billboard Indicator chart, “Hurt Good” and “Stoned to Death”. The father of five, made his acting debut in the film, The Price, playing the son of a country singer portrayed by Randy Travis. In the fall of 2019, James was handpicked by Randy and Mary Travis as vocalist for “The Music of Randy Travis” tour (now known as the “More Life” tour). Along with Randy’s original band, James performs all of Randy’s biggest hits. In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, James recorded and released his third studio album, “Home and Away” in 2020 with three singles: “Home and Away”, “Another Love Song”, and “Painfully Pretty.” For more information on James Dupré and upcoming tour dates, follow him on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/jamesdupremusic/),  Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/jamesdupre/), and Twitter (https://twitter.com/JamesDupre).