This star's nickname should have been "Broadway." Check out video of Eric Church's college performance of Garth Brooks' "We Shall Be Free" here!
Country music star Eric Church has certainly evolved since his days as a student at Appalachian State University. In this throwback clip, the outlaw country music star belts out Garth Brooks’ “We Shall Be Free” for an audition. Yes, that’s the rebellious singer-songwriter sporting a striped long sleeve shirt, light wash jeans, brown shoes, and a clean-cut exterior. It’s really odd to see the Chief without his scruff, baseball cap, and signature sunglasses. He also has quite the theatrical voice— who knew. Check out Eric Church’s college performance below!
In 2007, his alma mater profiled the star and detailed his musical beginnings at the university, “His experience at Appalachian not only gave him a chance to take plenty of music classes – among them, theory, music industry studies and engineering – he also was exposed to music beyond the country genre. ‘Everything from Phish to Led Zeppelin,’ he says.”
Eric Church’s college years at Appalachian helped launch his performance career. “That’s where I learned how to work a crowd,” he says, as in his own lyric, “Give me a crowd that’s redneck and loud and we’ll raise the roof.”
“We Shall Be Free” Lyrics
This ain’t comin’ from no prophet
Just an ordinary man
When I close my eyes I see
The way this world shall be
When we all walk hand in hand
When the last child cries for a crust of bread
When the last man dies for just words that he said
When there’s shelter over the poorest head
We shall be free
When the last thing we notice is the color of skin
And the first thing we look for is the beauty within
When the skies and the oceans are clean again
Then we shall be free
We shall be free
We shall be free
Stand straight, walk proud
‘Cause we shall be free
When we’re free to love anyone we choose
When this world’s big enough for all different views
When we all can worship from our own kind of pew
Then we shall be free
We shall be free
We shall be free
Have a little faith
Hold out
‘Cause we shall be free
And when money talks for the very last time
And nobody walks a step behind
When there’s only one race and that’s mankind
Then we shall be free
We shall be free
We shall be free
Stand straight, walk proud, have a little faith, hold out
We shall be free
We shall be free
We shall be free
Stand straight, have a little faith
We shall be free