Nashville country star Cody Pennington to play Birmingham O2 Academy in May

A rising Nashville country music star who studied in the West Midlands is to play the Birmingham O2 Academy in May.

Born and raised Nashvillian Cody Pennington, who is starting to make waves in the British country music scene, is heading back to the Midlands after being inspired by a highly varied and interesting life.

From leaving Nashville for the United States Air Force in 2011 to selling out several UK music venues, Cody’s life experiences have been inspiring his songwriting.

Cody grew up in Nashville, TN where he cut his teeth in the local music scene, studying business management before joining the US Air Force.

His time in the Air Force took Cody around the world, working as a medical technician, but his love for music led him to use his down-time performing as much as he could.

Post enlistment, his pursuit of music full-time meant sleeping in his car while simultaneously booking tours in the southern US before getting gigs playing cruise ships, again globetrotting across the oceans.

After meeting his wife in Australia, Cody decided to move back to the UK, studying law in Wolverhampton before hitting the road hard to realise his musical dream.

Last year, Cody’s 2022 tour sold over 5,000 tickets and his debut country EP Downtown is scheduled to be released this summer.

He’s now back on tour again in the UK, playing national venues between May and July, including in Birmingham, Leeds, Leamington Spa, Holmfirth and Sheffield.

You can catch Cody Pennington at the Birmingham O2 Academy on Friday 19 May. Tickets are available here.