Sometimes aspiring artists spend years and years developing their music before being placed on a national platform. Then there are times when the fast forward button is hit and a new act seems to emerge almost overnight. Rush Of Fools is definitely on the divine fast track. In an amazingly short period of time, the Birmingham, AL based band went from winning a national talent contest to landing a record deal with Midas Records, a management deal with industry veteran Andrew Patton’s Patton House Entertainment and a booking agreement with the Greg Oliver Agency.
Although he didn’t foresee a career in the arts, Huguley has always had a love for music. So did Willis, “There were three things going on in my life,” recalls Willis of his high school years. “There was baseball, there was leading worship at my church and then there were cars.” A gifted athlete as well as musician, Willis also has a passion for restoring cars. After high school, he was attending college when a friend told him about Huguley, who was looking to recruit a lead singer for his band. “I just fell in love with his heart and passion,” says Huguley. “He had the same mindset as I did as far as worship and music. It was amazing.”
The pieces of the musical puzzle continued coming together as they recruited Chesnut and Sharpe. “We practiced in the summer a little bit and our first show was on October 19, 2005 in a really small town in Alabama,” recalls Willis. “We did a couple of little shows in December of ’05. At that point our drummer was 15 years old. We were still learning each other and having fun leading worship. Whatever opportunity God gave us, we did it.”
The group heard about a talent competition called Band With A Mission and decided to give it a try. They entered, not even knowing what the prize would be. They were just looking to get some feedback and improve their craft. “By the time we entered Band With A Mission, we had only been playing for probably five or six months,” says Wes. “That in itself just shows how big God is.” The guys traveled to Nashville and much to their surprise, they won Band With A Mission. “It was so not stressful for us because we weren’t expecting to win,” says Huguley. “We were going to just have a good time.” Representatives from several labels were at Rocketown Club, a popular Nashville venue, during the finals of the competition. “We always play the same way,” says Huguley. “We just try to share our hearts.”
The band was soon fielding offers from labels and managers who had seen the band’s promise on display in their passionate performance. When such desire meets talent and youthful enthusiasm, it’s a combination that’s immediately recognizable. Soon after, Rush Of Fools was in the studio working on a debut CD.
Lyrically engaging and musically inventive, the Rush Of Fools sound is being tagged by some as “progressive worship.” Though they are young, they aren’t the least bit hesitant to be bold about their faith. “People want to know the truth. Reality TV is the biggest thing right now,” says Huguley. “Everyone wants to know what’s real and what’s real is that we are tainted. For far too long now, people have been scared to say that because we’ve got to put on our armor and look great in front of everybody. It just doesn’t work because it’s not real and honest. Our message is to tell the truth.”