Sincere, endearing, energetic, and always smiling: All words that have been used to describe emerging country music star, Russell Dickerson, by his fans and peers alike. His infectious personality radiates in everything he does, whether he’s writing a song, singing in the studio, or meeting fans. He’s constantly making people laugh, and makes new friends everywhere he goes. He asserts, “I just love life. Every day is a great day!”And lately there’s been plenty to smile about. The Nashville native and Belmont University alumnus had quite the surprising summer with the incredible grassroots reaction to his current single, “Yours.” The power ballad was selected for Sirius XM’s The Highway Find program, which showcases new, and often times unsigned, artists to country music fans across the country. And with his song competing with artists such as Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan on the satellite radio station’s weekly Hot 45 countdown, and successfully reaching #15, listeners have spent the entire summer discovering Dickerson. In just a few short weeks, Dickerson’s fans have solidified him unanimously as the next big thing. Hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube, massive sales numbers, and skyrocketing social media numbers from the fans have come pouring in. He happily keeps up with the messages daily across all his social outlets and reciprocates their dedication by responding to his fans personally. “Since day one, all I’ve ever known is music. I love touring, I love playing the shows...I love connecting with every single person.” The multi-instrumentalist, and successful songwriter, is busy recording his next project, and is characteristically optimistic that his fans will embrace the album just as much as they have him. “At the end of the day, it’s all about the fans. I want them to leave my shows feeling changed. I live to make them smile.”