Baseball gave Austin Bohannon confidence. Music gave him a voice.
Austin “Bo” Bohannon did not set out to be a musician. In fact, for much of his early life, music was something that existed on the sidelines. It was overshadowed by long days on the baseball field and the sport that demanded everything he had. But somewhere between small town ballfields, college classrooms and late nights learning guitar chords, a different kind of career began to take shape — a career that now defines him just as much as the game of baseball once did.
Bohannon’s introduction to performing came in an unexpected way. As a seventh grader, he joined show choir, stepping into a world that often felt miles apart from athletics. At the time, he was already deeply rooted in sports. The combination was unusual.
Still, his brief experience with show choir planted a seed. It was the first time he sang in front of an audience. The first time he felt the pull of performing, much like the adrenaline of stepping onto the mound in a high-pressure game.
“I guess I always had that knack,” Bohannon said. “Pitching and playing ball, you come up with the big play, you love it. Performing kind of gave me that same feeling.”
Even so, music remained more of a curiosity than a calling throughout his early years. Growing up in Russellville, he was shaped more by the rhythms of small-town life than by any formal musical ambition. It is a place, he said, where everyone knows everyone, where relationships matter, and where every day experiences become stories worth telling. That upbringing would later become the backbone of his songwriting, grounding his music in authenticity.
“You live what you sing about,” he said. “That’s important. In a small town, you get that.”
While music simmered quietly in the background, baseball took center stage. Bohannon emerged as a standout player at Russellville High School, culminating in a remarkable senior season in 2016. That year, Russellville won the Alabama Class 5A state championship, and Bohannon was named the Alabama Class 5A State Championship Series MVP.
He remembers it simply.
“Sometimes you just catch fire at the right time,” he said.
But the championship run was about more than individual recognition. It reflected the rare chemistry of a team that seemed to have everything. For Bohannon, it reinforced lessons which would later prove invaluable beyond the diamond.
Those lessons followed him to the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he continued his baseball career while pursuing a degree in biomedical science. At the time, his future seemed clear. He planned to become an orthopedic surgeon, a path that required discipline, focus, and years of study. Music, again, was not part of the plan.
It wasn’t until college that Bohannon picked up a guitar in any serious way. What began as a personal outlet quickly became something more. He started writing songs, by his own admission not very good ones at first, about whatever he was feeling at the time. Eventually, he worked up the nerve to share one with his roommate.
That moment changed everything.
When his roommate encouraged him, telling him he was “pretty good,” Bohannon took it as a sign to keep going. He wrote more. He practiced more. Slowly, the idea of performing for others became less intimidating and more exciting.
After earning his degree, he found himself at a crossroads. Preparing for the Medical College Admission Test meant committing fully to a medical career, but something else was pulling at him. He picked up a small gig at Swampers Bar & Grille in Florence. The pay was modest, but the experience was not.
“I made like a hundred bucks and got some free food and drinks,” he said, “and I thought, this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.”
From there, Bohannon’s music career grew organically. There was no grand plan, or carefully mapped out strategy. Instead, it was a series of connections, opportunities and a willingness to put himself out there, something he credits largely to his background in sports.
“Baseball taught me not to quit,” he said. “With music, you’ve got to put yourself out there. If you have fear, it’ll stop you.”
That fearlessness has become a defining trait. Bohannon has seen firsthand how talented musicians can hold themselves back, unwilling to take the risks necessary to succeed. For him, years of competition helped strip that hesitation away. On the field, failure is inevitable. You learn to move past it quickly. The same mindset applies to music.
The work ethic he developed through baseball also continues to shape his approach to music. Long days of practice, early mornings and relentless repetition prepared him for the demands of songwriting and performing. Compared to the grind of athletics, he said, sitting down to write a song feels almost like a luxury.
“It’s actually pretty pleasurable,” he said. “There are worse things I could be doing.”
Musically, Bohannon draws inspiration from a mix of personal experiences and established artists. One of his earliest influences was Eric Church. He recalls attending a concert where Church walked onstage wearing sunglasses with a bottle of whiskey in hand and immediately commanding the crowd. It left a lasting impression.
“I remember thinking, that’s the coolest guy I’ve ever seen,” Bohannon said.
That moment sparked a deeper interest in learning guitar and studying songs, setting him on a path that would eventually lead to his own original music. Today, he continues to refine his sound, experimenting within the country genre while staying rooted in the stories that shaped him.
One of his released songs, “Alabama Rain,” stands out as a personal favorite. It represents a step in a new direction, a sign of growth as an artist. At the same time, he remains focused on perfecting unreleased material, including a song titled “Eighth Wonder,” which he has recorded multiple times in pursuit of getting it just right.
That pursuit of perfection echoes the mindset of an athlete reviewing game film, always looking for ways to improve.
Beyond music, Bohannon has also found an outlet in podcasting. His “Bad Dog Podcast,” created with a friend, offers a stark contrast to the structured nature of his music career. Where music comes with pressure, streams, playlists, and performance metrics, the podcast is intentionally unfiltered and relaxed.
“It’s just something we do to hang out,” he said.
The name itself comes from a running joke at home, inspired by his Yorkie and the phrase he often repeats when guests come over. Like much of his career, it was not overthought. It just felt right.
Despite his growing presence as a musician, Bohannon has not forgotten where he came from. He remains deeply connected to the Shoals community, a place known for its rich musical history and strong sense of support for local artists. When he first started performing, that community embraced him, even as a newcomer to the scene.
“They didn’t have to accept me,” he said, “but they did.”
That acceptance left an impression, one he carries with him as he continues to build his career. Giving back, supporting local efforts and staying connected to his roots are all part of who he is.
In many ways, Bohannon’s journey is defined by the intersection of two worlds. Baseball gave him discipline, resilience, and confidence. Music gave him a voice, a way to tell stories shaped by his upbringing and experiences. Together, they form the foundation of a career that, while unplanned, feels anything but accidental.
