Rob Mayes Musical Debut Is Not an Act

Any time an actor announces a musical project, eyebrows around the world immediately go up in amazement and skepticism. What are they thinking? How dare that actor think they can put out music. After all, they’re an actor.

Granted, there have been some horrendous attempts over the years but there have also been some great surprises as well. Bradley Cooper wowed everyone with his vocal prowess on “Maybe It’s Time” in the movie A Star Is Born. Kevin Costner, Gwenyth Paltrow, Rick Springfield, Jack Wagner. I could go on and on.

Now add Rob Mayes to that list and do not, under any circumstance, underestimate his chops.

At first glance, fans may recognize Mayes as Marc Nickleby from the ABC TV series Mistresses. He also starred in the cult classic John Dies at the End with Paul Giamatti and most recently in the newly released Civil War Western, A Soldier’s Revenge, where he appears alongside Val Kilmer, AnnaLynne McCord, and Jake Busey.  Lifetime Network fans will see him in this holiday season’s forthcoming Christmas Edition, in which he stars alongside Grammy award-winning Carly Hughes and Marie Osmond.

But we’re not here to talk about Mayes acting. The man has a song to share.

Back in the spring when the pandemic was starting to really tighten its grip, Mayes wrote and recorded a series of songs in his living room. Those songs have now become his first EP, entitled Songs From The Sofa: A Quarantine Project and are due out on October 9^th. In addition to Songs From The Sofa, Mayes has garnered industry attention with three other original songs he released over the summer, “What I Remember Most,” “Don’t Give Up On Me,” and “Didn’t Do This On My Own” (co-written with Earl Bud Lee, “Friends In Low Places”). Collectively, Mayes’ releases have received strong support on Spotify, including on some of the platform’s most popular Country music playlists, such as New Boots, Wild Country, Breakout Country, Next from Nashville and Fresh Finds.  His music has also been featured on Apple Music’s Hot Tracks and the fledgling Tidal’s New Tracks.

Now in a surprising twist, American Songwriter is premiering another new track that he co-wrote with Heath Owens, son of Randy Owen, lead singer for the band Alabama. While his talent is easy to hear, it’s refreshing to hear his thoughts on how important ‘the song’ is and what it means to him.

“Length of A Song” is an homage to the song itself, and the power a simple 3-minute song can have on our feelings, our thoughts, our decisions, and our relationships,” muses Mays. “A song is indeed a powerful thing.

“Few art forms exist that can distill a vibe, a point of view, a message, and a feeling more than a song can. There is so much music that can take me back to a place of love, sorrow, hope, and happiness, and there’s no question that others feel the same way.

“Music has had such an impact on me, and that’s why this song means so much to me. It pays tribute to the medium that is so present in everyone’s lives and holds such significance in our world. Music can give a wide range of positive and negative emotions, and that’s what this song is about. When you consider the number of songs you hear throughout a life span and the impact it can have on one’s life, it’s hard not to consider music as a form of therapy. During these last few months, there’s one thing we can probably all agree on, that music is still heavily wanted and needed.”