R.J. Vandygriff (his friends call him "R.J.") is an award winning singer/songwriter, playwright and actor not to mention a pretty darn good cowboy.
He’s at home on stage, in front of a camera or horseback in the big pasture. R.J. grew up ridin’ horses and strumming an ol’ guitar, competed in Saddlebronc and Bareback as well as working as a rodeo clown and bullfighter.
Whether he’s performing as a solo artist or starring in the highly acclaimed musical "The Cowboy Ain’t Dead Yet!" R.J. has the God given talent to walk on a stage in front of any audience and connect with them. He is one of those performers who "creates" a moment when he steps to the microphone, a moment remembered by all.
He has appeared on stage with George Strait, Garth Brooks, Alabama, The Judds, George Jones, Merle Haggard, Moe Bandy. Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, Andy Williams, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Sons of the Pioneers, Red Steagall, Michael Martin Murphy, and Baxter Black just to name a few.
Some performers sing the songs, but R.J. has lived them. He lives his life by the cowboy code on and off the stage. He earned his spurs and has the scars to prove it.
"The Cowboy Ain’t Dead Yet!" is the most successful cowboy show touring! His extraordinary talent has also been widely recognized in the field by his peers and has received some very notable honors for his work:
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| 2012 Wrangler Award Winning Show |
2023 International Western Music Assoc. Songwriter Of The Year
2021 CMA of Texas-Western Entertainer of the Year
2016 Western Swing Hero
Cowtown Society of Western Swing Music
2016 Western Album of the Year Nominee
Western Music Association
2014-2020 Texas Touring Artist
http://www.arts.state.tx.us/
2015 CMA of Texas Hall of Fame Inductee
Country Music Association of Texas
2015 Western Male Vocalist of the Year Nominee
Western Music Association
2013 Western Male Vocalist
Academy of Western Artists
2013 Cowboy Keeper Award
National Day of the Cowboy Organization
2012 Wrangler Award "Best Original Western Composition"
National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
2004 Will Rogers Recipient for Western Humor
Academy of Western Artists
Plus - he consistently rates in the top 15 of the Most Heard Artists Top 100 lists!
R.J. worked or appeared in over 100 episodes of the TV series "Walker, Texas Ranger" and opened for some of the biggest names in the Country/Pop/Western Music businss and has appeared at major Festivals, High Schools, College and Civic Auditoriums in the USA and Abroad. Among just a few are:
San Antonio Symphony "In The Bunkhouse"-RFD Channel with Red Steagall
National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum-Oklahoma City, OK
Silver Dollar City-Branson, MO**Theatre Victoria, Victoria, TX
Heritage Of The Plains-Spearfish, SD**Queen Of The Prairies Festival-Sedalia, MO
Lincoln Co. Cowboy Symposium-Ruidoso, NM**Festival of the West-Scottsdale, AZ
National Cowboy Symposium-Lubbock, TX**Stockman’s Casino-Elko, NV
Westfest-Snowmass, CO**Riverbend Live Concert Series-Rosenberg, OR
National Cutting Horse Futurity-Fort Worth, TX
National Chuckwagon Championships-Clinton, AK
MPEC Center-Wichita Falls, TX**Camp Creek Inn-Jackson, WY
Globe News Center for the Performing Arts-Amarillo, TX
Hopkins Co. Civic Center-Sulphur Springs, TX**Terrell Civic Center-Terrell, TX
Moe Bandy Theater-Branson, MO**Festival of the Horse-Springfield, MO
Convention Center-San Antonio, TX**Cal Farley’s Poetry Gathering-TX
Peterborough Music Festival-Peterborough, England
Westham Town Hall-London, England
Lyme Park Music Festival-Stockport, England
And, yes, he is available for hire for his award winning music and the longest running one-man cowboy show - The Cowboy Ain’t Dead Yet! Click here to contact R.J. and make your arrangements today (slots tend to fill up very quickly).
