MILTON — Brandon Bostic became a professional musician immediately after graduating from Pace High School in 2007. He started as a guitar player in a bluegrass band.
Today, he still finds success in bluegrass music as a player, singer, award winner, guitar endorser and record producer.
"You can say I was born into music," Bostic said.
His father, Ben, made his living as a professional bass player.
"He was at Hobbs (Middle School) in band, started out on a horn," Ben said about his son’s start as a musician. "One day he came and asked me for a guitar. He had a real knack for it.Brandon said his start as a saxophone player was not a good one, but that he had a talent for stringed instruments. Brandon plays Dobro (resonator) guitar, mandolin and acoustic guitar, in addition to singing.
Brandon's break into professional music came while he was still in high school. He was attending a bluegrass festival in Arcadia, Florida, and met some of the members of the Grammy-winner band Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike. The band members started an after hours jam session and Brandon joined in playing guitar. The impression Brandon left with the other players and the fact that the band was losing their guitar player lead to a job offer.
The offer was a 30-day tour in Germany and England with Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike. Brandon's mother, Debbie, told Smith that her son had to graduate high school first.
Brandon graduated and left that summer for the tour.
Since then, Brandon has continued to play and record with various groups, although his main band is Blue Moon Rising. He has been a member of the band for ten years playing mandolin, Dobro and singing. The band's latest CD release, called "After All This Time," has just had its second number one hit he song "Fallen Star Saloon."
In 2015, Brandon performed at the Grand Ole Opry for the first time as a member of the Patty Loveless band. In 2018, Brandon won the International Bluegrass Music Association's Gospel Performance of the Year award as a member of the Becky Buller Band. Bostic also became an endorser for Preston Thompson hand made Guitars.
Bostic agreed with steel guitar great and local legion Sandy Wyatt from Chumuckla FL., that writing songs and producing music was where the money is. Wyatt has always advised his mentors to get better at writing and music production.
Bostic took the advice to heart. Seven years ago Bostic built and opened his own Root Note Studio in Spring Hill, Tennessee, where he lives with his wife, Jessica.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Making it in Bluegrass