For Michael Ray, music is his grandfather singing and sweating on a rural Florida stage. It’s the childhood refuge he found during the pain of his parent’s divorce. It’s family and stories, history and hope. Ray says music saved him, but it did even more: Music made him. In five short years, Ray has built an impressive foundation: four No. 1 songs – RIAA Platinum-certified “Think a Little Less,” RIAA Platinum-certified “Whiskey And Rain,” RIAA Gold-certified “Kiss You in the Morning,” RIAA Gold-certified “One That Got Away” – plus “Get to You” and “Her World or Mine,” brings his tally to four Gold-certified singles. Ray has garnered over 1 billion global streams, over 650,000 album equivalents, over 100 million YouTube views, and has performed at the Grand Ole Opry over 65 times. Now, two hit albums into that all-too-rare blend of critically acclaimed and commercially successful career, Ray has released Higher Education, a seven-song collection produced by GRAMMY-nominated producer Ross Copperman. Proof that heartbroken wallowing can feel good if it swings, “Whiskey And Rain” marked his first multi-week No. 1, cementing Ray as the ideal bridge between vintage country cool and modern country’s best sounds. The latest single “Holy Water” from Higher Education is currently climbing the charts at Country radio. The Warehouse Sessions live EP is available now and Ray recently released a cover of Tracy Lawrence’s “Time Marches On” from his upcoming The Bootleggers Sessions EP. For more information, visit MichaelRayMusic.com or follow him on Instagram and Twitter @MichaelRayMusic and Facebook.com/MusicMichaelRay.