Country newcomer Cam — aka Camaron Ochs — didn’t figure many people knew who she was when she was on the lineup of a country music festival in Australia last month.
She walked into the artist tent and a man rushed up to her.
“You’re Cam!” he exclaimed, which took her by surprise.
“Do you know who I am?” she asked.
“Everybody knows who you are. Everybody knows all the words to ‘Burning House.’ Don’t worry about it. When you get up there; everything will be fine.”
She can be assured of a similar experience when she takes the stage at Country Thunder on Saturday, April 9. Her debut single “Burning House” has propelled her career into overdrive in the past year — from a No. 2 debut single to a jaw-dropping six Academy of Country Music Award nominations.
But her overnight success took five years.
The California native, who stands out in her signature sunny yellow outfits, was pursuing a career in psychology when she decided she needed to give her passion for music a fighting chance.
She considered going through the traditional channels — start out as a songwriter, make a modest name for herself, then pursue the dream behind the mic.
But the songwriting deals coming her way reminded her of an episode of “Shark Tank,” where she signs her life away and in return they get 50 percent.
So Cam decided if she was going in on a music career, she was going in all the way.
“The thing that I always wanted to do was the big dream, you know bet it all, which at the time was like an air mattress,” the 31-year-old said. “Why not bet it on the real thing?”
So she did what a lot of indie artists of all genres do these days to get their careers started: She launched a Kickstarter campaign and raised $11,000 to produce a demo that she could shop to the record labels. As it turned out, they loved it.
She was signed to Arista Nashville, which released her debut album “Untamed” last December. The debut single “Burning Bed” was certified platinum and went to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Charts, helping her to land the most 2016 ACM nominations of any female. (She went home empty-handed at Sunday’s ceremonies in Las Vegas.)
Cam’s music is a hybrid of classic country — think Patsy Cline — and California country — recalling Buck Owens.
“Somehow that all bled in along with being someone obviously from this generation who loves drums and noises and stuff,” she said. “Somehow it all came together through the filter of me.”
During the Australia festival, the audience sang along to the honky-tonk title song “Untamed” and the acoustic whistler “Mayday,” and they knew every word to “My Mistake,” which perhaps best spotlights Cam’s melding of classic and contemporary country.
But the highlight then — and likely it will be again on Saturday — was when the band and audience joined voices for “Burning House.”
“It never gets old. It’s the coolest thing ever,” Cam said. “People connect to that song.”
