Hailed by country music titan Kenny Chesney as "one of the best songwriters out there," Nashville lifer David Lee Murphy has carved out a niche for himself since releasing his first single in 1994. The Illinois native's debut, ‘Out with a Bang,' described the way his career took off, with the shake-it-off anthem "Party Crowd" leading country radio playlists as the most-played song of 1995 and the wisdom-filled midtempo track "Dust On the Bottle" hitting the top of Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart that year as well. Murphy followed up ‘Bang' with two more albums in the '90s—1996's ‘Gettin' Out the Good Stuff' and 1997's ‘We Can't All Be Angels'—where he evolved his rock-influenced sound, with the sonic detailing on ‘Angels' in particular showing how meticulous he was about his craft.

At the turn of the millennium, Murphy shifted his focus to songwriting, penning the brawny title track for traditionalist Aaron Tippin's 2000 album ‘People Like Us,' and writing songs for Nashville heavy hitters like Hank Williams Jr. and Brooks & Dunn. Because he anticipated the muscular anthems that would come to dominate 21st-century country, his songwriting career took flight in the late '00s. He co-wrote Kenny Chesney's chronicle of megastardom "Living in Fast Forward," which became Murphy's first chart-topping single as a songwriter. Then more No. 1 songs followed—like Blake Shelton's barfly tale "The More I Drink" and Jason Aldean's "Big Green Tractor." Murphy's conversational, honest tracks made him a go-to songwriter for Chesney and a slew of other acts, including Southern-rock flag-bearers Blackberry Smoke and husband-wife duo Thompson Square.

In 2018 Murphy released ‘No Zip Code,' his first album since 2004, and went on the road with Chesney as part of the megastar's Trip Around the Sun tour. The pair played two of his biggest '90s hits as well as the sun-kissed 2018 duet "Everything's Gonna Be Alright," which returned Murphy to the top of the country-radio charts that June. Whether playing football stadiums with Chesney or more intimate venues on his own, Murphy's hooky, twangy music and regular-guy charm captivate crowds across America.