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High Desert local Ryan Bodine is up for an impressive Josie Music Award and will represent his community at Nashville’s famed Grand Ole Opry for the award ceremony.
The Josie Music Awards is the largest independent music awards show in the world and is especially career-boosting for early-career artists.
“Just being nominated is a huge honor in itself,” Bodine told the Daily Press.
His hometown is his songwriting muse.
Bodine, 45, is the fourth generation of his family born and raised in Newberry Springs. Great-grandpa Bodine owned a turkey/buffalo ranch that locals favored for its weekly square-dancing nights. Grandpa Bodine helped build the Newberry Springs Community Center, and a big portion of the surrounding community, Bodine told the Daily Press.
Bodine’s biggest song right now, “Ghost Town Roads,” was inspired by Calico Ghost Town, which was only 20 miles from his Newberry home growing up. “Best little town I swear/ Further out than the middle of nowhere,” the song pays homage to the High Desert.
The Newberry Springs local has three country singles out on music streaming services as of May 2025, with a full album already completed but not yet released. Bodine’s “Ghost Town Roads” album will come out in stages, with a new song dropping every few months.
He is nominated for “Best Music Video” for song “The Keys,” written by Nashville producer Kurt Ryle, who helped elevate Bodine’s career.
A social media discovery that changed this local’s life
Bodine works in the finance industry by day.
He picked up a guitar 20 years ago to cope with the loss of his father to multiple sclerosis, learning the classic Tom Petty and Eagles songs that reminded him of his “pops” before landing on country songs that would craft his tune today.
A self-proclaimed introvert, Bodine didn’t play music in front of anyone outside his family until two years ago.
His music career hit the ground running, like it was impatiently waiting in storage ticking days off the walls until Bodine lifted the garage door to his career.
A video of Bodine’s song “Barstow to HB” was discovered by Ryle on Facebook only half a year after he went public with his music.
Bodine wrote an entire 11-song album in less than one month and was flown to Nashville to record a debut album with backing Nashville legends like Dolly Parton’s piano player, Kenny Chesney’s studio drummer, and Luke Bryan’s steel guitar player, Bodine says.
A hometown tour
It’s an “amazing feeling” seeing fans belt out the lyrics to “Ghost Town Roads,” Bodine told the Daily Press.
He plays all over the desert and particularly loves playing at The Barn in Newberry Springs. A recent show at the Barstow Veterans Home was one for the books, he said, and is his favorite show he’s played thus far.
When performing live, Bodine plays crowd favorites like the tribute to Calico Ghost Town, as well as unreleased original songs and favorite country covers from Jimmy Buffett to Alan Jackson and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
His songs are played “all around the world.” When we spoke to Bodine, “Ghost Town Roads” was played that morning on a radio station in Ireland. Other radio stations in Spain and other far-reaching countries have also played the High Desert local’s country songs.
Josie Music Awards
Bodine may be up for other Josie Music Award nominations as well, he says, which will be released to the public later this month.
He is also hoping to be nominated for “Fan Choice,” “Song of the Year,” and “Rising Star” awards.
The competition is “pretty stiff,” but Bodine and his family are just happy to be along for the ride. He will be attending the award ceremony in person with his wife and manager, Natalie, and two sons, Dylan, 11, and Logan, 7, who are both drummers.
Bodine is most excited for his song “Barstow to HB” to drop. He is sure this will be the hit song of the album and a sure crowd favorite.
For more information on Bodine’s journey and upcoming shows, check out his Facebook page at Facebook.com/natalie.bodine.5.
McKenna is a reporter for the Daily Press. She can be reached at mmobley@gannett.com.
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