0:09
Hi, my name is Glenn Story. I’m the founder and CEO of Patriot Mobile. I’d love for you to learn more about Patriot Mobile at www.patriotmobile.com.

0:21
More importantly, I’d like you to be a subscriber to his show. I mean, his Truthcast is amazing. And if you get to listen to some of them, you’ll never go back. I really encourage you to come watch it.

0:38
Some people watch opportunities pass by. Others create them. This is for the entrepreneurs, the dealmakers, the risk-takers, and the relentless few who refuse to settle for average.

0:46
Corporate Menace Coffee Co. is built for early mornings, late nights, and the moments that define careers. Specialty coffee roasted to order for you, the person with goals too big for excuses.

1:01
Work harder. Think bigger. Corporate Menace Coffee. What are you waiting for? Fuel up now at www.corporatemenace.com.

1:13
And welcome back to the Grassroots Truthcast. Gene Valentino here with two celebrities. I’m very proud to introduce you to Chad Wilson and Mark Sherrill—country legends unto themselves who have produced wonderful music. And they’ve been doing it here in the panhandle of Florida for the last how many years?

1:34
Ten years.

1:35
But it’s interesting, you both knew each other long before. What’s the connection?

1:40
Well, we actually are from the same hometown. We met in Nashville. I was running a bar downtown in Nashville, and we had this guy Paul Pace playing for us one night a week, sometimes twice a week. Mark and Paul worked together; Paul was writing for Mark’s publishing company. So I became a big fan of Paul Pace and a big fan of Mark Sherrill, and we started a friendship. We never did write any music together back then, but we sure enjoyed a lot of music together.

2:17
Interesting.

2:17
Yeah. And what’s the story with Mark? Going back how many… I heard you telling me earlier you had over 3,000 songs you’ve written since what, 18?

2:28
Since the 1800s.

2:33
You know, back in the day. But we all had little publishing gigs, you know, so there’d be two or three of us writing, and we could write three or four songs a day. Now, not all of them were good, but some of them were. And so that’s how I acquired so many songs. But out of the 3,000, I’m running about 10%. 300 of them have been recorded by artists such as George Jones, Tammy Wynette, David Allan Coe, Johnny Paycheck, Charlie Rich, and Tanya Tucker.

3:09
Wow.

3:09
So, the good Lord blessed me and showed me where I needed to be.

3:14
You stayed local in the panhandle of Florida, and now you’re featured at the Flora-Bama, right? And Johnny B’s Front Porch up in Lillian.

3:28
So that keeps you busy during the week. And while you’re not doing that, the two of you found each other and started writing something Mark has meaning to, and it’s the name of the album you’re coming out with.

3:43
Yes, called Wings.

3:44
It’s called Wings. The way this song came about is I lost my partner of 15 years, and she had cancer. I knew this day was coming. We knew that there was nothing else they could do. All the time she was sick, of course I had these ideas about writing songs, but I couldn’t pursue them because I didn’t want her to hear it.

4:15
You wanted it to be her surprise.

4:18
I didn’t want her to think that I was, you know, hurting.

4:24
Yeah, that’s a good word. But anyway, after she passed, seven, eight, ten months went by—not sure how long—when he knocked on my door. We had coffee, smoked cigarettes, and had shots. He said, “I came down here to write songs with you.” I said, “I’m not ready to write right now. Not ready to do it.” He said, “Okay.”

4:55
So we went on, and the next morning I was watching Good Morning America. It was early, and he knocked on my door. I said, “What the hell are you doing here?” So we drank some coffee and smoked a cigarette, and he said, “Man, I really want to write songs with you.” I said, “Dude, I want to write…”

5:16
Chad said that to you.

5:17
Chad said that to me. I said, “I want to write songs with you, too, but I need a little time.” Well, the next day—I very seldom look at Facebook—but Sharon’s daughter had put some pictures of her and me on Facebook, and I lost it. About 45 minutes later, he knocked on my door. I said, “All right, we’re writing today. Come on.”

5:44
Oh, wow.

5:45
We wrote this song called “Wings.”

5:47
How long ago was that?

5:50
It’s been a little over a year. And so we got to playing it out. We play at the Flora-Bama on Thursdays and some other places. The first time we sang it, I looked out at the crowd—and it was a full house—and I saw all these tears coming down. I thought, “Oh my God, we’ve messed up. We don’t need to sing this song anymore.” Turns out they were tears of joy. When we came off the stage, people said, “Thank you so much for that song. It made me think about my dad.” And so that’s how I knew we had something. Now he has to sing it a couple of times a night when we play.

6:36
Well, that’s amazing. So, guess what? Let’s break away right now and listen to Chad entertaining us with your rendition of “Wings.”

6:42
Okay.

7:05
I knew this day was coming, so I was not surprised.
The moment that you left me, I held your hand and cried.
But I know now you’re not hurting; I’m so glad the pain is gone.
It’s just me and these memories in this house now that you’re home.

Was Jesus waiting by the gate? Did you get to see His face?
Did you join in when you heard the angels sing?
Are the streets paved with gold like we’ve always been told?
Oh, I wonder what you look like with wings.
Oh, I wonder what you look like with wings.

There are so many questions I don’t know the answer to,
And I probably never will until I get there with you.

Was Jesus waiting by the gate? Did you get to see His face?
Did you join in when you heard the angels sing?
Are the streets paved with gold like we’ve always been told?
Oh, I wonder what you look like with wings.
Oh, I wonder what you look like with wings.

9:24
Well, okay. Was it worth it? Quite a moving song from a local artist who has been renowned worldwide for his work in country music. And then comes Chad Wilson, and you see his potential in the way he modulates your sound on that song and the rest of the album. You’ve got about ten songs on the album, right?

9:54
Yeah.

9:54
And in August 2026, you’re on your way to Nashville, and you’ve got yourself a producer and a recording studio. So it’s not like this is a neophyte starting from day one; you’re at second base. You’re on your way.

10:14
Yeah, this is a year into this. A little bit more than a year.

10:22
And folks, that’s what we’re doing here at the Valentino Homestead, and you can participate as well. Click on the QR code which you’ll see on the screen, or just write us at genevalentino.com, and we’ll make sure your contribution to Chad and Mark gets to them to support their cause in Nashville.

10:46
So the steps are: we get you to Nashville, you record the songs, and it becomes part of an album. The album’s going to have at least ten songs on it. Then what happens? You’ve got a master; are you going to make money on the record circuit, or do you go concert to concert? How do you make your money?

11:09
Well, if anybody knows country music, country music is all about partying. So when we get the record done, Jean, we’re going to have to have a party.

11:17
Well, you better come back here then, right? We’d love to have you back here, and that’s the idea.

11:27
In fact, on a lighter note, that’s what the Grassroots Truthcast is all about. Grassroots means people in the neighborhoods, the villages, and the streets coming together. That’s what we’re doing here, folks. We like to bring friends and family together because all government, societies, and cultures are rooted in the grassroots of their heritage, faith, and community at large. Yes, sir, you’re coming back, and we’re going to do it again with a much larger crowd as well. But today, you get the chance to tell your story.

12:09
Yeah.

12:10
So the next step is—and I don’t want to lose it—getting you to the marketplace. Are you selling old 45s, albums, CDs? How are you going to make money? Are you going to Spotify for distribution on social media?

12:30
We’re going to have to start with those areas, and it’s not a bad way to start. It’s something that’s new to me, but I think you can hire anybody to do anything.

12:40
Well, that’s what we’re intending to do—get you to second base. You’re already at first base, so the idea is to get you to market now. Your album is going to have “Wings,” the song and title track, plus nine or so other songs. Where are the other songs coming from?

13:06
We wrote a lot of them—well, we wrote all of them. Most of them we wrote together. Some of them are songs that I heard from him 20 years ago down on Broadway that never got recorded, and here I am with the opportunity to record them.

13:24
Can I ask a dumb question? How come this hasn’t gotten out before now? Twenty years went by with national-standard music culture and talent. Is the wall in the marketplace that difficult?

13:40
The market changes; you never know. Mark moved down here 15 years ago. Me and my brother went on and had a very successful album as The Wilson Brothers. We got to travel the whole world and do some incredible things, but it was 20 years after Nashville that he and I got back together. I had left Nashville, and my future was uncertain, but I knew one thing: I still had a desire to write music, and I knew who I wanted to write music with.

14:18
Both of my heroes lived here, so I knew if I was going to write music with them, I’d probably have to be here. It wasn’t an easy task getting in to sit down and write a song with them. It took me a while, but when I finally did, they wrapped their arms around me and accepted me.

14:38
Well, there’s a bit of an age difference between the two of you. You’ve obviously got the history and the legend behind you, Mark. Are you looking at Chad as your protégé?

14:50
Well, here’s the thing about it: I’ve produced records, had songs recorded, got awards, and all that. To be honest with you, I thought all that was kind of behind me. I was playing music, having a good time, my royalties were good, all that. So I didn’t know that this opportunity was going to come along.

15:21
But after I listened to him sing a little bit—working with me on the Flora-Bama stage and this stage—I heard something in his voice that I can’t describe. It’s just something that touches you. It’s lonesome, it’s happy, it’s just something different. And then we came up with these songs, and I thought, “Damn, this just doesn’t happen every day.”

16:06
So it put me back in the mood to get back in the studio now that I had something to work with. I didn’t have anything to work with before, so there was no sense in doing anything except playing music. But this gave me something to work toward. I’d just been out of the spotlight so long I wasn’t quite sure how to do it, but the production side came back to me pretty quick.

16:36
You know, you and I are pretty much the same age, and I notice a lot of people born in the 1950s are now swinging back into the marketplace. In your case, it’s arts and entertainment; in business, I feel the same thing happening. People are coming back because we have a socio-political crisis within America with a big gap in talent, education, and experience. Mark, they’re looking for people like you to step up and bring some of that artistic form back into the mainstream before it goes unnoticed. I commend you for doing it, and I commend you, Chad, for picking up on it.

17:26
Yes, sir.

17:26
Because arts, culture, and entertainment are reflections of the political and social anxiety we feel in the community today. Was it not that way after World War II with “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy”? Music became a consequence of the emotional experience we were having at the time, and it still is today. It’s just amazing how music moves people. I’ve known it all my life.

18:09
Okay, so what is your direction with Chad in the next four weeks?

18:14
In the next four weeks, we’re going to go to Nashville, make some records, and see what we can get done while we’re there. We’re going to try to cut six songs, and I believe that’s extremely possible. Then we’ll do vocal overdubs and background vocals if we need them after we get a final vocal track on him. We’ve got two days, so we’ll get all we can get done in two days, but we’ll definitely have to go back.

18:57
Chad, anything to add?

18:57
Well, after that, Jean, we get to sit back and enjoy it for a little bit.

19:05
Don’t be going woke on me now! You don’t enjoy anything until you do hard work first, right? Then you can sit back and enjoy all you want. The path in front of you is loaded with hard work.

19:24
Yes, sir. If I can’t have fun, I’m with the wrong buddies here. It’s all fun.

19:32
Okay, so how are you getting paid? Through royalties?

19:38
I’m never paid, Jean! I haven’t ever made money. Look, if we get any royalties, he makes all the money.

19:43
It’s a year and a half away at least, because it’s going to take time to go through all the particulars of making a record with six tracks. It’s going to take a couple of months to finish it up because first, we’ve got to think about doing overdubs, then it has to be mixed. Six songs take a little while to mix. Then, to get a final product, we’ve got to master it. That process on six songs could take three or four days. But then again, I don’t have to mix and master the whole project at one time; I could just do “Wings.” But it seems like a waste of time when I’ve got everything set up not to just go on and do it. It makes for a long day, but it works out pretty good.

20:41
This is your chance to speak directly to the audience. In a word, what can those watching today do to help Chad Wilson and Mark Sherrill?

20:59
We thought about going through AI and all that stuff, but that wasn’t for us. The reason we’re going to Nashville is so we can get in a studio with real musicians, real engineers, and real background singers to make a real record. So to be honest with you, we need support and financial backing.

21:35
We’re going to put the QR code up on this interview and on the website, folks. If you get a chance, please contribute what you can, and we’ll make sure the funds are sent directly to Mark and Chad for the expenses related to this production. Within a year’s time, we should see some good news coming out of the woodwork here.

22:02
Oh, absolutely.

22:02
Okay, folks, we’re talking with country legend Mark Sherrill and Chad Wilson. Chad’s going to take some of Mark’s tunes—including “Wings” again—and sing them for us now. Thank you for joining me today. This is a special edition of Grassroots Truthcast. Loosen up, get a drink, and let’s go listen to some more fine music coming out of the panhandle of Florida. Thanks for joining us. Amen.

22:51
What a beautiful setting, huh?

22:57
I’ve been all around this world a time or two.
Shame everywhere there’s a little I do.
Every time that I fall through,
There’s nothing like the sunset on the horizon.
My feet are people who love me, and that’s all I ever need.
I’m just making my way back to the king.

We wash our way, and come in and out,
And on that silver white sand,
I found some solid ground down here.
I’m going to stay, yes I am.

Oh, there’s nothing on the horizon as the sun is setting.
There are some people there who love me, and that’s all I ever need.
I’m just making my way back to one.
There’s no need; if you’re looking for me, I’ll be in the Keys.

You know what they say—we all do.
You see, in every conversation comes a free consultation
Where they throw in a penny or two, but it’s just hear to say.
So I’m going to do it my way until I find out who is “they.”

Who is “they”? Oh, how do they know?
Is “they” a secret looking down on us all from a place we came alive before?
Is “they” a convention? Do they hold an exposition?
Are they the brightest minds of our day?
But who can say, who is “they”?

It must be nice having all that advice,
Part of a higher institution, always handing out solutions,
No one checking if they’re wrong or right.
You win every debate, even when no one can say who is “they.”

Who is “they”? How do they know?
Is “they” a couch holding all the knowledge, passing it down as we go?
Is “they” working under everybody’s mother? I’d love to know these days,
So I can say who is “they.”

Whoa, how do they know?
Is “they” a foreign delegation? Is “they” our imagination?
They follow us wherever we go.
Who has proven that they know what “they” is doing?
I wonder why we all obey everything “they” say.
I don’t know who is “they.”

A council of elders in an underground cell,
Deciding how the young should live.
We know “they” exist; what we don’t know is who “they” worship. Yeah.

Oh, if I were a fly,
Oh, if I were a fly, I’d try to fly as high as the sky.
I could find me a raindrop and rest my wings.
I’d sit through the clouds like a buzz on a branch.
I’d fly around all day watching the world go by, if I were a fly.

Oh, if you want to,
Oh, if you want to, we could fly around this thing and do.
We could try to touch heaven; we’d never come down.
Side by side, we’d just be flying around.
Imagine the places we’d go and the things we could do if you want to.

If you want to, we could sit on a mountain top and circle the stars,
Jump off a rainbow, dance on Mars.
When the sun goes down and the nights burn all night long,
Girl, I’ll be buzzing on you.
We’d be living us a pretty good life up there in the sky.
Oh, we’d be living us a pretty good life high in the sky,
If you and I were a fly. If you and I were a fly.

31:16
I just want to close by saying thank you for joining us on another episode of Gene Valentino’s Grassroots Truthcast. This is one of our special episodes outside of the politics and rancor of the day-to-day. This is us kicking back as a community and being proud of our nation, our heritage, our faith, family, and new friends. I’m so grateful to be surrounded by so many patriots who are just sitting in the wings waiting for folks like Chad and Mark to step up and keep us united. Thank you.

32:00
Some people watch opportunities pass by. Others create them. This is for the entrepreneurs, the dealmakers, the risk-takers, and the relentless few who refuse to settle for average.

32:19
Corporate Menace Coffee Co. is built for early mornings, late nights, and the moments that define careers. Specialty coffee roasted to order for you, the person with goals too big for excuses.

32:27
Work harder. Think bigger. Corporate Menace Coffee. What are you waiting for? Fuel up now at www.corporatemenace.com.