By Kara Fellows

Cody Joe Hodges, country crooner and Texas native, is returning to Dallas this Thursday to perform at Sundown at Grenada at 8 p.m.

His songs will get you off of your feet and singing along, even if you only know the chorus. His ability to intersperse smooth music with raspy kicks adds a depth and complexity to his music, which basically means it’s an absolute blast to listen to.

Hodges draws a lot of inspiration from artists like Pat Green and George Straight, whom he listened to growing up. Living in a college town and taking college classes, Hodges said he would use his college ID to get into local bars and see artists like Pat Green perform for $3.

Hodges’ inspirations show through his music in songs like “Getting Back to Country,” which debuted at no. 24 on Texas Regional Radio Report and no. 26 on Texas Music Charts and talks about the roots of classic country.

“To me, country music is sitting under an oak tree playing the guitar,” Hodges said.

But things have changed for Hodges since being a high school kid in a college bar. Hodges joined the Army after college, until he was discharged and started working in the energy field on power lines in 2010. Through all of it, Hodges was performing.

While in the Army he performed with “Harmony in Motion,” which performed for private military events as well as large entertainment venues. After joining the energy field, Hodges formed a band with his friends called “The Linemen” and they produced their first album in 2012. But since 2013, Hodges has been focusing entirely on his music: performing, writing and recording songs.

“It’s been a lot more hours, a lot more fun,” Hodges said. “It’s been exciting you know and I can’t remember having so much fun just going to work.”

Part of what has made it so fun, according to Hodges, is that his wife Jamie is supporting him through al of it. She manages Hodges and co-writes many of his songs.

“I don’t believe I would ever do this as a profession if my wife wasn’t supportive of it,” Hodges said. “It’s just one of those things that makes all the difference in the world.”

Hodges is currently touring through Oklahoma and Texas on his Radio Tour. He said that right now he is focusing on getting his name out and making people more aware of him by performing on radio shows and in venues that may already have a fan base. But he knows that he wouldn’t have made it this far without some help.

“I just want to say thank you to Texas, I would not be where I am today without the support of my fans and the state and it’s just amazing, so I think the main thing is that I just want to say thank you.”

Cody Joe Hodges will perform this Thursday at Sundown at Grenada at 8 p.m.