Coy Bowles self taught his signature sound in a small room near the attic of his parents' Thomaston home.
He joined a band by the age of 13 and nearly 30 years later, the life-long devotion to the strings landed him a spot doing what he loves with the Zac Brown Band.
Bowles met the groups' namesake, Zac, at West Georgia College.
"We're really, really good friends. When we're off the road, we talk to each other on a regular basis. We write tunes with each other and go out to eat and stay in touch. Our kids play with each other and all that," said Bowles.
But before the tours, Grammy nominations and wins, Bowles started out like most musicians. He was playing in back-rooms and bars looking for that big break.
"For me personally, I would just look over and see somebody kind of goofing off on stage or whatever, and I was like, 'this isn't a place you goof off man, this is like holy ground, this is where you let it all pour out,'" Bowles said.
After college in 2007, Bowles officially became a part of the band. Zac offered him a full-time spot after a gig they played in Auburn, Alabama.
Fast forward a few years and the boys were taking the Grammy stage to claim the trophy for Best New Artist in 2010.
"I remember just like, going completely flush, like my toes feeling like they had 9-volt batteries hooked to them or something," said Bowles. "Then all of a sudden we were on stage, and I'm like looking down, and all the boys were up there looking down, and we see Beyoncé and Jay-Z and all these iconic musicians and everything... and then everything just kind of fades."
Bowles says he wouldn't have made it to that stage without the influences and inspiration of Central Georgia legends like Otis Redding and the Allman Brothers.
"Being so close to Macon, Georgia, and being from Thomaston, Georgia, that was kind of like sacred land over there, especially during that time period when all of that was happening," Bowles said. "We would go and eat at the same restaurants, the H&H, just kind of try and be just close to where all that stuff was happening as we could."
And it’s not just Bowles' music jumping off the charts.
Fans may see less of him, because the soon-to-be 40-year-old is on a journey to better health before the next tour.
"I really wake up every day, and I'm super grateful for the life I live. I try to give back as much as I can, and take care of myself and all of that good stuff, and do one of these and just feeling good, you know," Bowles said.
Bowles and his band mates recently played a show with the Foo Fighters last week during the pre-Super Bowl festivities and are about to launch another leg of their tour in mid-March while finishing up a new album.
You can follow Bowles on Instagram to follow his fitness journey and see if he reaches his goal before his 40th birthday on February 20.