Cowboy Troy

Rapper Cowboy Troy exploded onto the country music scene in 2004 with a blend of country and rap he likes to call "hick-hop." In 1993, Troy (real name Troy Coleman) first met John Rich, then a member of Texassee, the band that would morph into Lonestar. Troy had grown up on country, hard rock, and hip-hop sounds, and found a friend in Rich, who also liked a broad range of music. By 1999, Troy was shopping demos for his rap-meets-country music, while Rich had co-founded Big & Rich. The duo asked Troy to do a guest rap on "Rollin' (The Ballad of Big & Rich)," and the massive success of the single led to Cowboy Troy signing a deal of his own with Warner Bros.; his first solo album, Loco Motive, came out in 2005.