Donovan Woods

Blessed with a raspy voice that delivers maximum emotional impact, Donovan Woods is a master of songcraft and a poignant lyricist. Born in Sarnia, Ontario in 1980, Woods took to writing songs when he was a teenager, honing the skills that would make him an in-demand Nashville tunesmith for stars like Tim McGraw and inform his own 2007 debut, The Hold Up. That record was a sparse, folky affair, a vibe he pursued through 2011’s The Widowmaker and 2013’s Don’t Get Too Grand, albums on which he came into his own, penning melancholy numbers that partnered intimate narratives with soft, mesmerizing melodies, like “Your Daughter, John” and “Put On, Cologne.” On 2016’s Hard Settle, Ain’t Troubled, he fleshed out the production with lush instrumentation (“Portland, Maine”), and his subsequent albums have followed suit, embracing electronic elements and expansive arrangements on tracks like 2018’s “Burn That Bridge” and 2021’s “Being Together.”