In a world where conformity is often the path of least resistance, singer/songwriter David Dunn has always managed to stand out in a crowd. And considering he grew up with three brothers and two sisters in a city where working in the oil industry is practically a given, that’s really saying something.
Before forging his own path as a musician, however, all roads pointed to a future career in engineering. It wasn’t a move totally out of left field since that’s what David majored in. But as he indulged his inner nerd at Texas Tech University and even enjoyed his studies to a certain degree, David also felt an undeniable pull toward more creative pursuits.
For some music lovers, writing songs and performing is more of a hobby, but for David, an honors student who moonlighted as a singer/songwriter, playing the local acoustic scene in Lubbock only added fuel to his passion. In fact, during his senior year, David seriously upped the ante by recording his first full-length album
before heading to Africa for 13 months of humanitarian and missions work.
After what he describes as “probably the biggest growth period of my life,” David returned to the States with a horrible case of malaria and plenty of songwriting fodder. As David tweaked his sound and continued writing about “the things he cared about,” it became increasingly clear that his engineering degree would remain unused.
As it turns out, his persistence in pursuing the road less traveled would pay off. In addition to appearing on TV’s “The Voice,” his music was gaining traction with audiences in a major way, not always the easiest of feats for an independent artist.
And now, with the support of Seattle-based BEC Recordings, Dunn is making his debut on a national stage with Crystal Clear. Culled from nearly 100 songs that were written over two and a half years, Dunn’s main goal is “to tell the truth, and do it in a beautiful way.”