Posted by For The Providers and Friends, making music has never been about chasing hits or building a brand. It’s about showing up for the people who matter.
The project centers on Les “Doc” Cunningham and Audie Smith, two musicians who have played together across various bands for over thirty years. These days, they operate as a studio duo—no stages, no tour buses, just a creative space where ideas take shape surrounded by familiar faces.
And those faces tell a story of their own.
Cunningham’s son Cameron played piano on their debut single “Perfect Day.” Another son, Colin—who now drums for Linkin Park—contributed a verse to the track and helped mix it in Los Angeles. Producer Travis Wyrick‘s daughter Emily lent backing vocals and starred in the music video. Cunningham’s stepdaughter, Logan Brill, a Nashville singer-songwriter with a decade of credits to her name, has already recorded two cover songs with the project set for release later this year.
At the heart of The Providers and Friends sits Wyrick himself. The veteran producer—whose credits include work with Dolly Parton—has collaborated with Cunningham and Smith for years. He pushes when necessary, encourages when it counts, and consistently draws out performances the duo didn’t know they had in them.
What’s shifted over time isn’t the music itself but how Cunningham and Smith relate to it. They worry less about outside opinions now. The joy lives in the process—writing, recording, sitting in a room with people who have earned decades of trust.
Their latest single, “I Saw You On The Radio,” dropped April 3. An acoustic version heads to the studio next month, with cover tracks and new originals rounding out an upcoming EP.