John Rich to Release Big Solo Album

Posted: Feb 08, 2008

John Rich, who along with Big Kenny Alphin makes up genre-bending duo Big & Rich, will release a solo album later this year on Warner Bros.

There's no official word on a release date for the album, which Rich will produce. The first single is tentatively scheduled for summer release.

"If anyone knows me, they know I'm always writing music," Rich said in a statement. "When we decided to take this year off so Kenny could focus on rehabilitation for a pre-existing injury, I asked Kenny if he was cool with me recording a solo project. I would only do this with Kenny's blessing. So, this year you can expect a solo record from me, but Big & Rich will be back in 2009!"

As previously reported, Alphin is still feeling the effects of a car accident involving a drunk driver a few years ago, which resulted in a vertebrae being removed from his spinal cord during surgery.

In July, Big & Rich scored their first No. 1 airplay single, "Lost in This Moment." Their third album, "Between Raising Hell and Amazing Grace," was released in June and debuted at No. 1 on Top Country Albums. It has sold 480,000 units to date, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Rich recently hit the small screen with the debut of "Gone Country," a CMT reality show featuring Bobby Brown, Maureen McCormack, Dee Snider and Sisqo, among others. Rich leads the rag-tag band through songwriting sessions, a live performance of the song each one of them wrote and an introduction to the music business Nashville-style.