In an article published by the Bryan-College Station Eagle on April 13th, Randy Rogers described his first time he met Kimberly and what he thought about her first single, “Randy Rogers.”

“I got to meet her and give her a hug and tell her thank you,” Rogers said.

The article reflected on Rogers’ return to Chilifest this weekend and the success he and his band have experienced since the last time they performed in Snook, TX.

View the whole story originally published in the April 13, 2012 edition of The Bryan-College Station Eagle.

Kimberly Dunn’s victory at MSC Town Hall’s Battle of the Bands last year came with an unexpected bonus. The singer-songwriter met Scott Willson and Will Harrison of Up & Out Artists backstage, and they quickly became her management team, setting her on a Texas country career path.

Dunn returns to headline this year’s battle on Friday at Rudder Theatre. The San Antonio native’s brand of country is miles away from her initial musical endeavor upon enrolling at Texas A&M: She played alto sax in the Aggie Band for a semester.

“I loved it,” says the bubbly 23-year-old during a phone interview. “It’s the coolest thing to march on Kyle Field. I still know how to turn around in the Aggie Band. I know every part. It’s something you never forget. It’s ingrained in you.”

Her time in the band and the Corps of Cadets was short-lived, however, because of the amount of yelling involved. Dunn says it caused nodes on her vocal cords.

“I wanted to sing, to become what I’m doing now, and I couldn’t do it in the Corps,” she says. “It was one of the most difficult decisions in my college career because I loved it so much.”

Dunn graduated in August with a degree in agricultural leadership. Her One Foot Over the Other EP was released on Nov. 1. You can hear select tracks at KimberlyDunnMusic.com.

The EP’s standout track comes with a clever twist — a nod of sorts to Texas country hero Randy Rogers.

Dunn was coming out of a difficult relationship and wrote Randy Rogers as a wistful look back at the music that marked that time. Word traveled fast, and Rogers caught wind of the track. The two met at a Texas Country Music Hall of Fame event.

“He said, ‘I’m so flattered,’” Dunn says. “He had seen videos of me singing it on YouTube, and he loved it.”

She also name-drops Granger Smith, Eli Young and Stoney LaRue in the catchy chorus. That helped to score opening dates for Aggie favorite Smith. It’s an example of what Dunn calls the “totally supportive” Texas country scene, especially from such artists who have graduated to successful careers.

“My managers always tell me that in Texas country, it’s not who’s the best vocalist or guitar player or songwriter,” she says. “It’s the people who work the hardest. In Nashville, it’s more who you know. But in Texas country, if you work your butt off, you’re going to see results.”

Dunn’s performance Friday won’t be in competition with this year’s battlers, but her story may inspire them.

“People told me that one day, something’s going to happen, and it did at the Battle of the Bands,” she says. “It’s been exactly a year. It’s incredible how much somebody can get done — 70 shows without a booking agent or radio promoter.”

“It’s proof of the hard work my management company has done and I’ve done as an artist. It’s like a ball rolling down a hill, and it’s rolling faster and faster.”

IF YOU GO

Dunn headlines MSC Town Hall’s Battle of the Bands, which also features four competing bands: The Jeremiahs, The Off Brand, The Votary and The Year of Happiness. Friday at 8 p.m. at Rudder Theatre. Free. townhall.tamu.edu.

Dunn also performs Saturday at 10 p.m. at Fitzwilly’s Bar & Grille, 303 University Drive.

This story originally appeared in the November 17, 2011 edition of The Bryan-College Station Eagle.