BY ROGER SMITH
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
INEZ — Martin County native Cody McCoy will bring his raw and reverent songwriting to the Appalachian Artist Festival in downtown Inez on Aug. 2. With a voice shaped by coal dust, church hymns and Appalachian storytelling, the Beauty resident has carved out a place as one of the region’s most compelling singer-songwriters.
Whether he is reflecting on fatherhood, love, faith or a near-death experience at the Fallsburg Falls, McCoy’s songs are steeped in truth. He delivers them with the kind of grit and grace that can only come from lived experience.
From the coal mines where he works to the stages where he shares his artistry, McCoy gives voice to the soul of mountain life—straightforward, emotional and real.
“Coal mining is tough in general,” McCoy shared. “You deal with a lot of people with a lot of different stories that give you inspiration. And a lot of times you’re wearing earplugs, isolated from all the noise. That’s where writing comes from; you start thinking.”
Growing up in Beauty, McCoy sang in church. Through hymnal singing, he developed his vocal skills and musicality.
“My family were all musicians and singers,” said McCoy.
One family member is Nashville songwriter and recording artist Angaleena Presley, whose career and music influenced McCoy.
“I was 10 or 11 when she moved to Nashville,” he recalled. “I remember having her CD hanging on my wall and listening to it all the time. She and my dad [Bob McCoy] played music together. He influenced her—inspired her to get out and play.”
McCoy’s dad also inspired him to take up the guitar. It was around age 11 or 12 that McCoy penned his first song.
“It was something about the Titanic,” he chuckled. “I started really writing and playing songs when I was about 18 or 19.”
What began as church singing and childhood songwriting evolved into a work rich in memory, humor and hard truth.
“Growing up, I was around a lot of preachers and my cousins,” added McCoy. “Everybody could tell stories, and I thought it was so cool. I was not much of a talker, and this is how I figured out how to tell stories—through songwriting.”
His narrative roots are evident in his song “Fallsburg Chronicles Pt. 1,” a modern folk piece with a strong narrative bent, blending spoken-word storytelling, humor and traditional country phrasing.
McCoy delivers the lyrics in a conversational, almost confessional tone that feels like a front-porch tale. His writing draws on the oral tradition—full of vivid imagery, local color and exaggerated characters. Yet the emotions are grounded and sincere. The pacing is loose and unhurried, letting the story unfold naturally with punchlines and revelations timed like a good campfire yarn. Musically, the style leans acoustic and rootsy, matching the honesty of the lyrics. The chorus, repeated like a folk refrain, mixes melodrama and comedy, conveying a connection to regional identity and self-deprecating humor.
McCoy’s style invites listeners to laugh, cringe and reflect all at once.
Artists who inspired McCoy’s sound include his father Bob McCoy, John Prine, Kris Kristofferson, Todd Snider, Merle Haggard and Guy Clark. If he could collaborate with any artist alive, it would be Chris Knight.
McCoy revealed that he is not trying to push any kind of message on people through his music.
“I just hope they enjoy the stories,” he remarked.
The artist reaches his fans live through regional festivals and stages. Digitally they find him on platforms like Apple Music, SoundCloud and social media.
“There’s not enough of it on there,” he said of his digital portfolio. “I need to get an album out.”
Of his performances, McCoy said each holds great significance.
“I like to get up and play,” he noted. But one stands out.
“One that I really enjoyed, I got to sing one of my songs at Angaleena’s last album release in Lexington,” said McCoy. “I enjoyed that one.” He added with a laugh, “I choked tremendously.”
The 35-year-old McCoy is married to Lisa. He is the father of a 21-year-old son who attends school at Alice Lloyd College. His youngest, a daughter, is 2 years old. Finding a balance between family life, the coal mines, and music is a challenge that requires both endurance and heart.
“I don’t sleep very much,” he confessed. “About three hours, four hours a day. I haven’t been playing much lately since we adopted our baby, but I’m getting back into it. I took about a year and a half off just to be a dad. We’re getting lined out.”
Songs that define him
Two songs that speak to who McCoy is as a person are “Question Everything,” which he wrote to his son, and “Love Me For A Little While,” which he wrote to his wife.
“Question Everything” stands on its own as a folk anthem—part advice letter, part protest, part prayer. McCoy blends humor, grit and wisdom in verses that mix fatherly counsel with personal conviction. Lines like “don’t drink nine-dollar vodka, son” and “never drink Martin County water” reflect both regional authenticity and a sharp social awareness.
The song’s tone is conversational yet pointed, offering lessons on a range of topics, from the importance of staying humble and avoiding addiction to the need to distrust politicians and maintain faith in God. With a strong narrative voice and plainspoken truth, “Question Everything” demonstrates McCoy’s ability to fuse cultural commentary with musical storytelling firmly anchored in rural life but resonant far beyond it.
“Love Me For A Little While” is a love song rooted in sincerity and lived experience. The song tells the story of two imperfect people who found something real and held on to it. From the first verse, McCoy sets a scene of vulnerability and unlikely connection. He is fresh off a four-day bender, ragged and unsure, while she is a single mother who probably should have known better than to take a chance on him. Yet love, as McCoy portrays it, is not born of ideal timing but of something deeper and more persistent.
The song’s style is personal and narrative-driven, blending Appalachian folk with outlaw country. McCoy’s lyrics unfold like pages from a shared life—unfiltered, messy and steeped in emotion. The chorus evokes a sense of fleeting intimacy with a strong woman who finds comfort in storms and porch nights. Their relationship is portrayed as both fiery and faithful.
By the final verse, McCoy’s voice shifts to a fierce, almost mythic devotion. He would “walk barefoot through the fires of hell” to protect her peace, a poetic tribute to the depth of their bond. “Love Me For A Little While” is about earned love, tested love, and the kind of partnership that survives the storms and holds steady on the porch after.
McCoy’s goals for his music are to “keep playing and writing.”
“Hopefully there will be an album coming out soon,” he said.
“Don’t quit,” is McCoy’s advice to young artists growing up in Martin County.
“You’re going to be terrible and you’re probably still terrible but hang in there,” he said as a smile crossed his face. “People will get used to hearing it, I guess.”
Composing for visual works
McCoy has also written music featured in Kadin Tooley’s film “Exodus 23:20.” Among his compositions are “The Hand of God” and “Letter to Mother,” both of which reflect the film’s Appalachian setting and spiritual themes. He also covered the folk classic “Hang Me, Oh Hang Me.”
McCoy played a vital role in shaping the film’s emotional tone and regional authenticity. His music weaves gospel, folk and coal country into the cinematic landscape of “Exodus 23:20.”
“The Hand of God” is a deeply reflective song that draws on biblical imagery and personal confession, aligning closely with the themes explored in the film. McCoy’s lyrics evoke spiritual struggle and inherited imperfection, contrasting the steadfastness of a divine hand with the frailty of human nature. Lines like “my hands are not my father’s / and my father’s not like me” examine generational burden and identity. At the same time, the refrain emphasizes divine gentleness: “The hand of God never raised in anger / it ain’t never hurt a soul.”
McCoy’s “Letter to Mother” is a haunting, emotional ballad that fits naturally into the thematic framework of “Exodus 23:20.” Told as a final confession from a jailed man to his mother, it explores love, violence, loyalty and remorse—all filtered through the lens of rural faith and familial duty. McCoy’s voice carries both grit and tenderness as he sings lines like “they tell me I’m guilty / I say justified” and “don’t shed a tear and think the devil has won,” drawing out a sense of tragic defiance softened by devotion.
The song’s structure—an epistolary plea from an older brother facing the death penalty—adds a powerful narrative layer to the film’s exploration of justice, sin and redemption. Like “The Hand of God,” this piece contributes to the film’s spiritual realism, grounding its drama in the voices and values of rural communities. McCoy’s songwriting speaks to the internal battles of men caught between faith and blood, law and loyalty, echoing the larger moral struggle at the heart of “Exodus 23:20.”
Make plans now for McCoy’s show Aug. 2 on the stage on Court Street. He joins fellow Appalachian artists Annalyse & Ryan, John Thomas Moore, Nathan Coots, Adalyn Ramey and Cody Lee Meece & The Poor Excuses.
