About Ben Rector
Benjamin Evans Rector is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer based in Nashville, Tennessee. Rector is an independent artist, and releases music under his own label OK Kid Recordings. A self-taught instrumentalist, Rector began songwriting and learning guitar at age 16, and began performing locally in high school. While attending college at the University of Arkansas he would tour within an 8 hour driving radius on the weekends. An early success saw him being the youngest grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting contest in 2006 with the song "Conversation" from his self-titled extended play . He released his first studio album Twenty Tomorrow in 2007, followed by Songs that Duke Wrote in 2008. 2010's Into the Morning would peak at No. 11 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart. The year following saw Rector debut on the Billboard 200 with Something Like This.
The Walking in Between in 2013 debuted at No. 16 on the Billboard 200, and also saw its first track "Ordinary Love" peak at No. 27 on Rock Digital Song Sales, and its third track "Beautiful" was highlighted by iTunes via their Single of the Week promotion in July 2013. In 2015 he released Brand New, which peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard 200, No. 2 on Top Rock Albums and No. 1 on the Top Folk Albums chart. Its lead single "Brand New" is RIAA-certified platinum, peaking at No. 82 on the Billboard Hot 100. His seventh studio album Magic peaked at No. 44 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Americana/Folk Albums, followed by The Joy of Music peaking at No. 186 on the Billboard 200. His eighth and most recent album, Songs From the Richest Man in the World, is set to release in early 2025.
Rector also has a dedicated touring base, frequently performing to sold-out shows across the United States with each album release. Outside of album-backed tours he conducted The Old Friends Acoustic Tour spanning 2020 to 2024. Success from Brand New saw an additional 20 tour dates on top of the two-leg Brand New Tour via The Biggest Tour I Have Done So Far Tour, totaling 73 dates. Throughout his career he has also toured in supporting slots for Dan + Shay, Needtobreathe, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, and Dave Barnes, among others. Televised credits include appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Conan, Live With Kelly and Ryan, the 2017 Stanley Cup Finals, season 19 of American Idol, and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. His songs have appeared on more than 100 television shows, ad campaigns, and movies. Rector's accolades include a GMA Dove Award for a choir production of his 2022 song "Joy" and a Daytime Emmy nomination for a performance of his 2018 song "Old Friends".
"I didn't sing at all, until I saw a guy from Tulsa named Ben Kilgore sing at my school. Ben Kilgore had a great voice, and it changed that atmosphere of the room, and I had never seen that before. But I was just like 'What was that?' I want to find and feel that again."
Rector on how he started singing
Rector was born in south Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is the son of Evans Rector, a banker, and Bette Rector, a psychologist. He has two sisters. He did not grow up in a musical household, although Evans was a fan of Steve Winwood and Rector became a fan of his work at a young age. He became interested in music in eighth grade, listening to the Star 103 radio station in Tulsa, which played music from the 1960s and 1970s. He grew fond of pop music, particularly "Drift Away" by Dobie Gray. The first song he learned on piano was the theme song of the animated television series Rugrats in the 1990s.
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