Bethany and the Guitar

Bethany has always loved to sing, but it was only after she began recording with her brother, Kurtis Parks, that she realized her passion for songwriting. Shortly after recording the song “As Long As I’ve Got You” in her bedroom, she and her brother created a music myspace under the name “Bethany and the Guitar,” and it stuck. The project slowly developed from a hobby when the two had free time to something much more.

The desire to become a well-established indie singer-songwriter really settled with Bethany when she attended an Ingrid Michaelson show for the first time:

“She really engages her fans and has so much fun on stage,” says Bethany, “I was watching her and thinking about how she built this whole huge following from the ground up and I suddenly realized–I could do that too. I literally texted my brother Kurtis immediately and said ‘I’m at the Ingrid Michaelson concert and I really think I want do music for REAL.’”

And they have. Because Kurtis lived in Nashville and Bethany in Blacksburg, VA, they would co-write by sending short video clips of a melody or guitar riff, and built off each other’s ideas. They recorded wherever they could. The songs “Soul with a Body” and “In the End” were recorded in the guest bedroom of Bethany’s mother’s house. The song “Careful with Me” was recorded in Bethany’s freshman dorm, and “In Need” was recorded at a christian summer camp where Kurtis was leading worship. These songs and “As Long As I’ve Got You” made up Bethany’s first release, an EP that debuted February 2010. They're currently working on Bethany's first full length album, which will be released in Spring 2011.

Bethany and the Guitar is:

Bethany Parks (lead vocals, ukulele, acoustic guitar)

Kurtis Parks (vocals, guitars, keys)

Sarah Parks (keys, background vocals, bass)

Nick Welsh (drums, acoustic guitar).