Willie 3rd Street was born Carson Gream in a small town in western Kentucky to a construction family. The name Willie 3rd Street derived from his first name William and 3rd street the street he grew up on in Mayfield Kentucky. Bluegrass would be an influence through his younger years. Willie 3rd Street’s first full album titled “Live From Two North” is a work rich with Americana and a Tom Waits influence. In 2004, W3S took the project to Bowling Green, Kentucky where he met up with the likes of Cage the Elephant and hip hop group Nappy Roots. Playing shows with Cage the Elephant during the early stages of their carrier was when Willie got the first taste of playing full band performances at a little joint called Tidball’s. “We would book a show together. They would back me up as a band then play their set after me. Once they got so busy that we were double booking shows I gathered up my own band.” After meeting up with Joel “HoP” Hopper, the Genre all changed. Hopper, a hip hop producer affiliated with Nappy Roots, connected Willie with the group who was in need of a fresh look for the album “The Humdinger”. The group traded studio time for album cover art. “I was hooked the first time HoP took my acoustic and vocals and put a beat on it. I don’t have a name for whatever kind of genre it is but calls a broad fan base.” The Willie 3rd Street live performance is a whole other topic. Dubbed the Lawn Dart Posse Willie has worked with a handful of enthused professional players. “I’ve been blessed to have found the musicians I did when I did. People who get it and know when less is more kinda thing. My music isn’t complicated.” Since 2005 when Willie brought the camp to Nashville he has entertained Music City’s historic venues such as Exit/In, Mercy Lounge, 3rd N Lindsey, 12th N Porter, and Limelight. The latest Willie 3rd Street effort titled “The Redbook Sessions”, available on iTunes, has tracks produced by Joel Hopper compliments of Nappy Roots Entertainment Group (NREG), Severe Records in Nashville, and features Danniel Tichenor and Jarad Champion of Cage the Elephant. It also includes tracks produced by DJ Wickit and Justin Kalk of Justin Kalk Orchestra.