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Eric Normand is a professional freelance guitarist and writer living in Nashville Tennessee and is currently the tour manager, band leader, and lead guitarist for country music artist and songwriter Rhett Akins.
Shortly after his arrival in Nashville in 2002, Eric, a Berklee Alumni and New England native, landed his first touring job as a guitar tech on the Toby Keith Shock N’ Y’ All Tour. Following his stint with Toby, Eric worked as a guitarist on the Honky Tonk Tailgate Party tour playing guitar behind Rhett Akins, Daryle Singletary, Chad Brock, and Jeff Carson nightly. After the breakup of this package tour in 2005, Eric stayed on with Rhett.
Eric has performed in every state in the Continental US as well as performances in Canada, France, and Switzerland. He has worked on the Grand Ole Opry, the Tonight Show, the Jimmy Kimmel Show, and The View, and has performed on stage with Toby Keith, Blake Shelton, Vern Gosden, Jamey Johnson, Colt Ford, Oteil Burbridge (Allman Brothers), Garth Hudson (The Band), Joe Nichols, Wayne Jackson (Memphis Horns) and Phil Keaggy. His original music has been featured in the television shows “Real Trees Road Trips”, “The Tommy Wilcox Show”, and the documentary “Chef de Riz” by award winning filmmaker Jeremy Campbell.
Eric is currently authoring the book “The Nashville Musician's Survival Guide”. This street-level perspective to the music related jobs found in the Nashville music industry provides information about basic job requirements, pay scales, and the networking required to land those jobs. The book also features in-depth interviews with several music industry veterans, as well as extensive information about living, working, and Relocating to Nashville. Through his hubs and blogs, Eric is working to provide insight and perspective into the world of the professional musician.