By Chris Gray and Matthew Keever
HONORABLE MENTION: SUNNY SWEENEY Thus far mainstream success has eluded Sunny Sweeney, but not for lack of either talent or trying. According to her Facebook page, Sweeney (a former standup comic) has now played the Grand Ole Opry 41 times but continues to reside in Austin, where she did an acoustic set at Waterloo Records last month to celebrate the release of her third LP, Provoked. Both Country Weekly and NPR have come calling since then, so Sweeney -- also a 2013 nominee for the CMA's New Female Vocalist -- can't possibly stay under the radar much longer.
Facebook fans: 106K
10. PAT GREEN In 2001, Pat Green's Three Days carried the San Antonio-born musician to immediate fame. His rapid rise to stardom was then entrenched by his follow-up albums, including 2012's Songs We Wish We'd Written II, which was recorded at Houston's own Sugar Hill Studios. A polarizing figure in the country genre, Green now resides in Fort Worth with his family.
Facebook fans: 186K
9. ROBERT EARL KEEN The beloved Texas singer-songwriter -- whose wit is drier than a furnace fan in Scottsdale, Arizona -- grew up in the Sharpstown area of Houston, but these days celebrates Merry Christmas with the family in the picturesque Hill Country town of Kerrville, where his home reportedly overlooks a golf course. As he told Rocks Off in December 2012, one of Keen's kids went to Tivy High with none other than Johnny Football himself.
Facebook fans: 220K
8. LYLE LOVETT Residing just outside of Houston proper, Lyle Lovett calls Klein home. Born and raised in the Bayou City, where his parents worked for Humble Oil Co. (later Exxon), Lovett has traveled far and wide but still chooses to live near his old stomping grounds. His kin have resided in the Klein area since the 1840s, and many extended family members still live there, which keeps the four-time Grammy Award winning singer and actor nearby.
Facebook fans: 239K
7. CASEY DONAHEW BAND Over the past 12 years, the Casey Donahew Band has become a staple of the Texas bar circuit. And despite garnering plenty of attention, the group has stuck to its roots and kept it about the music. Burleson-based Donahew and crew manage to write true country music, influenced by the likes of Garth Brooks and even the Rolling Stones, with enough satirical lyricism to keep listener's attention and force a few smiles from even the most cynical concertgoers.
Facebook fans: 298K
List continues on the next page.
