The River Cryers Begin Crowdfunding Campaign for Debut Album
The River Cryers in a Nashville studio working on their debut album. L-R: Matt Nelson, Ron Hemby, Dan Haseltine, Billy Smiley, Steve Hindalong
New Adult Alternative / Americana band of notable Music City vets is launching kickstarter campaign for eager fans.
The River Cryers have created a brilliant debut album. Think of The Traveling Wilburys hanging out with Don Henley onboard the Mississippi Queen as it navigates through the heartland of America.”
NASHVILLE, TN, UNITED STATES, August 11, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The River Cryers, an Americana rock band made up of notable members from other successful groups, will be crowdfunding support for the release of their self-tilted debut album starting August 11th and ending Sept 10th, 2026 via Kickstarter. — Mark Hollingsworth
Made up of Dan Haseltine (Jars of Clay, "The Chosen" soundtracks) on lead vocals/keys, Billy Smiley (White Heart) on guitar/BGVs, Steve Hindalong (The Choir, Sixpence None the Richer) on drums/harmonica/BGVs, Ron Hemby (The Imperials, Eaglemaniacs) on lead vocals/bass/guitar, and Matt Nelson ("The Chosen" soundtracks, composer/multi-instrumentalist) on guitar/bass/cello/BGVs, this quintet has sold over 13 million albums within the groups in which they have been a part. The River Cryers view this collection as a labor of love. Based on their mutual respect for and commitment to song craft, they have co-written eleven tunes that will be a hit with fans of multi-harmony rock, in the vein of CSNY, The Byrds, Tom Petty, and The Eagles.
“We started this whole River Cryers band under the banner, ‘No one is asking for this,’ but now people are starting to ask to actually hear what we’ve been creating,” states Dan Haseltine, who sold over 9 million albums and received three Grammy Awards with Jars of Clay. "We aren’t doing this for a label. We haven’t done any of the songwriting for anybody else other than just what sounded good to us and what was fun to write about. We didn’t intend to be a band initially, but then eventually we thought, ‘well, let’s call it something’, and it became The River Cryers.”
Billy Smiley continues, “Really, more than anything, we want people to empathize and to feel what we’re writing about and to go on that journey with us.”
“There’s a lot of creative flow within what we do, and everybody’s got a little different thing to what they do. Our voices are radically different, but we blend together quite well,” Ron Hemby states.
Matt Nelson adds, “To get to see the creative brains of the other four guys and to bear witness to the ingenious processes of all of our band is a really impactful experience.”
The River Cryers have already finished the lead single Cry Me a River, along with a video that will be marketed as part of the campaign.
The collection of songs that was produced by the band, will be mastered by the legendary Richard Dodd who has completed albums for the likes of George Harrison, Tom Petty, Bob Scaggs, Wilco, Robert Plant, The Black Keys, Traveling Wilburys, Steve Earle, and hundreds of others.
The effort to gain funding from fans will be done through the Kickstarter platform, and is being administered by the Galaxy21 Productions team of Dan and Lisa Michaels. For several decades, Dan was the head of marketing for INO/Fair Trade Records, responsible for selling tens of millions of albums.
“We’ve known Dan and his wife, Lisa, for many years, and trust their ability to convey how heartfelt music can connect with listeners,” says Steve Hindalong. “They’ve had tremendous success building Kickstarter campaigns for other artists, and we know they’ll do the same for The River Cryers.”
“The River Cryers have a brilliant debut album being created in the studio. Think of The Traveling Wilburys hanging out with Don Henley onboard the Mississippi Queen as it navigates through the heartland of America,” states manager, Mark Hollingsworth.
“We hope to raise enough funding to also help with some promotion out to Americana format broadcasters, as we feel this album has loads of radio-friendly material,” Hollingsworth concludes.
The band has already made waves as one of the featured artists on the soundtrack for "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever," the top grossing film on the Lionsgate roster in 2024. The River Cryers Kickstarter campaign will run for 30 days starting Aug. 11th. Backers will be able to receive digital downloads, CDs, and vinyl versions of the album before the general public. There will also be additional reward incentives including handwritten lyrics, instruments that were utilized during the writing/recording process, collectibles from their other bands, personal visits with band members, and more.
Further details can be found here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rivercryers/the-river-cryers-debut-album-on-vinyl-cd-and-digital?ref=1wgx5i
Mark Hollingsworth
The Mark Hollingsworth Company
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The River Cryers Kickstarter Campaign Video
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