About the Composer: Cory S Miller

Cory Miller is lead guitarist, singer-songwriter with numerous live performances and studio recording projects to his credit. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Minnesota - Moorhead with an emphasis in guitar performance and studio production. Cory also has 17 years of experience performing both nationally and internationally in professional touring groups and has played a wide variety of musical styles ranging from heavy metal to classical, rock, pop, blues, funk, and country.

Read on to learn more about Cory Miller...

Cory Miller grew up in small town Iowa. His mom was a high school music teacher and his dad was in charge of water treatment for the city and also a police officer. “My mom says I could carry a tune at age 3. I don‘t remember that but I’ll take her word for it.” Even though singing came naturally, his real interest was in the guitar. “Ever since I was a little kid I wanted to play the guitar. My parents bought me a plastic guitar and figured I would get tired of it sooner or later. But, when I was 15, my mom brought a guitar home one day and said she had to learn to play it for work. She didn’t see it much after that because I took it along with all the books she had and started learning chords. She was very annoyed with me because I knew more chords than she did.” After a summer of walking beans and detasseling corn, Cory purchased his first electric guitar and amp with the money he had earned and immediately joined a garage band. Not long after, he began to sit in on gigs with a few local bands. “We played parties, picnics, bars…wherever there was a gig I was there.”

Cory attended college at Mankato State University in Minnesota and enrolled in the classical guitar program there. He played guitar with the swing choir and went on a tour of the Bahamas. The group played on the main stage in Disneyworld and also in the town square in Nassau, Bahamas. Two years later he transferred to the University of Minnesota at Moorhead where he studied rock guitar, jazz guitar and audio production and recording. “I was very fortunate to go to school with many talented musicians. During that time I was in a heavy metal band. We all quit school for a while to go on the road and learned a lot about the music business the hard way. I did eventually return to college and graduate.”

Cory joined a few other bands of various styles in an attempt to learn more about the guitar. Playing metal, classical, rock, pop, funk, blues, country and a bit of jazz helped him to develop his versatility. “I just wanted to be able to play music and eat, eating is good! When the metal scene went cold in the mid-90’s I was offered a gig at Valleyfair in the Twin Cities playing in a country show. I had never played country before but decided it would be a good idea to learn. At that time I was working at a gas station and figured it would be more fun to play music, even if it was country music.”

Since then, Cory has toured nationally and internationally with various groups. He was a part of the Red Hot Country Show at Valleyfair Amusement Park in Shakopee, MN performing six shows daily. Cory played with Kid Hollywood on Regal Cruise Lines for a one month tour of Jamaica, Mexico, and the Caribbean and also played with his own funk/blues band Soul Power. He was the worship leader for Community Church of Joy and played contemporary Christian rock and pop every week for a congregation of over 4000 for almost 4 years. “My wife and I were invited to lead worship in Israel as part of a tour group from Community Church of Joy in March of 2004, which was an amazing experience.. We were fortunate enough to have been invited back in 2005 as part of the Fuller Seminary Tour to Israel where we were blessed to perform a live concert for over 400 Muslim and Christian school children in the Millenium Concert hall at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Bethlehem.”

In September 2006, Cory left the 'sacred world' to persue performing live on a full-time basis with up and coming country-rock artist Brandon Shepard and the Redneck Revolution. Cory plays lead guitar and sings as well as co-writes for the band. They are currently in the studio (July-August 2007) working on their first CD project as a group. The album should be available for release in November 2007!

Cory continues to operate his royalty-free music business - BOS Music & Productions, LLC - on a full-time basis. He writes, arranges, records, produces, and plays all instruments on all the music for BOS Music and Productions LLC. In the Fall of 2006, he initiated an alliance with Rock House Studios in Nashville, TN, which has become a lucrative venture. Cory’s experience with numerous musical styles allows him to write and record original music in a wide variety of genres. The music is custom made for use in personal, non-profit and corporate presentations, television, radio, internet or video.

In September 2008, Cory released his first solo work during a benefit concert for the St. Mary's Food Bank Alliance of Arizona. The event was a success - meeting the goal of raising $3,000.00 and over a ton and half of food and water for the non- profit organization. And we're planning to do it again in 2009 at a time when the need has increased 70% over this time last year. Now, more then ever, your community and fellow Americans need your help. Click here to learn more.