Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 17, 2026

Ruston Kelly

Ruston Samuel Kelly is an American singer-songwriter. After signing with the music publisher BMG Nashville in 2013, his song "Nashville Without You" appeared on Tim McGraw's album Two Lanes of Freedom. Following a record deal with Razor & Tie's Washington Square, he released his debut EP, Halloween, produced by Mike Mogis in 2017.

Last revised
Jun 17, 2026
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Ruston Kelly
Ruston Kelly performing for WMOT Roots Radio in August 2025
Born
Ruston Samuel Kelly

(1988-07-31) July 31, 1988
Georgetown, South Carolina
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2017; div. 2020)​
Musical career
Genres
OccupationSinger-songwriter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • mandolin
  • harmonica
Years active2013–present
Labels

Ruston Samuel Kelly (born July 31, 1988) is an American singer-songwriter. After signing with the music publisher BMG Nashville in 2013, his song "Nashville Without You" appeared on Tim McGraw's album Two Lanes of Freedom.1 Following a record deal with Razor & Tie's Washington Square, he released his debut EP, Halloween, produced by Mike Mogis in 2017.2

In 2018, Kelly signed with Rounder Records and released his debut studio album, Dying Star, to generally favorable critical reviews.3

In 2020, Kelly released Shape & Destroy.

Personal life

Ruston Kelly was born in South Carolina and comes from a musical family.4 The family moved frequently because of his father's job, and he lived in Wyoming, Ohio for nearly eight years.5 Kelly began playing music and writing songs when he was a teenager.6 Kelly attended Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Kelly struggled with drug addiction for years and decided to pursue a life of sobriety following an overdose in December 2015. Regarding his recovery he stated, "I went to rehab once, but it was all I could afford, so it was this kind of rehab in North Carolina."7

Kelly met singer Kacey Musgraves after performing at the Bluebird Café in Nashville in March 2016.8 They married in October 20179 and filed for divorce in July 2020.10

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

  • The Bootleg Sessions (2013)
  • Halloween (2017)
  • Dirt Emo Vol. 1 (2019)
  • Weakness, Etc. (2024)
  • Dirt Emo Vol. 2 (2025)

Singles

Tours

Headlining
  • Dying Star Fall Tour (2018–2019)14
  • Shape and Destroy Fall Tour (2021)
  • The Weakness Tour (2023)
  • Too Chill to Kill Tour (2024)
Opening act

Songwriting contributions

Year Artist Album Title Co-writers
2013 Tim McGraw Two Lanes of Freedom "Nashville Without You" Kyle Jacobs, Joe Leathers
2014 Josh Abbott Band Tuesday Night EP "Tuesday Night" Josh Abbott
2015 Front Row Seat "Front Row Seat" Brian Davis
2016 Rob Baird Wrong Side of the River "Run of Good Luck" Rob Baird
Hayes Carll Lovers and Leavers "Love Is So Easy" Hayes Carll
2018 Lucie Silvas E.G.O. "Just for the Record" Lucie Silvas, Jarrad Kritzstein

2

References

References

  1. McKenna, Brittney (2018-09-07). "Ruston Kelly on New Album Dying Star and Why Women Are Superior Songwriters". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  2. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Ruston Kelly - Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  3. "Dying Star by Ruston Kelly". Metacritic. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  4. DeSantis, Rachel (November 5, 2021). "Tim Kelly's New Album with Son Ruston Kelly Proves It's Never Too Late to Realize a Dream". people.com. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
  5. "Ruston Kelly Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
  6. "Ruston Kelly". Rounder Records. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
  7. Gravley, Garrett (2019-01-16). "Ruston Kelly Went Through Hell, and Made a Few Stops in California On the Way Back". Dallas Observer. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
  8. Despres, Tricia. "Kacey Musgraves on Finding Love with Ruston Kelly". Taste of Country. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  9. Milano, Marie. "Kacey Musgraves Husband Ruston Kelly". Country Living. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  10. "Reps: Singers Kacey Musgraves, Ruston Kelly file for divorce". Apnews.com. 20 April 2021. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  11. Crowmaster [@RustonKelly] (January 17, 2023). "My third album The Weakness produced by @natemercereau is coming April 7. Title track out now as well as preorder/merch/etc https://t.co/rEVi2sAydq https://t.co/ncqBWgBQg6" (Tweet). Archived from the original on March 15, 2023. Retrieved March 28, 2023 – via Twitter.
  12. "Ruston Kelly - Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  13. "Triple A Future Releases". All Access Music Group. Archived from the original on December 13, 2022. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  14. "Ruston Kelly - Tour". Ruston Kelly. Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  15. Gage, Jeff (2018-11-12). "Brothers Osborne Extend Headlining Tour With New 2019 Dates". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 22, 2019.