With over a million streams of his newest album, a local musician’s impact on the Huntington community has become an inspiration to others. 

“I’ve always had a different connection with music, almost an obsession if you will,” Trace Adkins, a current Marshall University student, said. He said his career has grown exponentially in the last year.

Adkins said he chose to pursue a career in music after watching one of his cousins record vocals at a local studio. He said seeing someone close to him pursuing a career in music inspired Adkins to pursue his own dreams.

“My taste in music is diverse because I love all kinds of music, from John Mayer to J. Cole,” Adkins said. 

Adkins also said that seeing what some of his favorite artists faced early in their careers showed him that he could overcome the difficulties that he has faced himself.

 Along with the struggles of being a college student, Adkins said his career is self-funded and that working a part-time job and pursuing music has introduced him to hard work. 

The extensive hours of homework and keeping up with his education are the biggest struggles that Adkins said he faces in his career. 

When he’s not performing, Adkins works at Marshall’s Autism Services where he said he tries to give back in any way he can.

He said balancing all of these responsibilities is “absolutely doable if you love it.”

In the beginning of his career, Adkins said another issue he faced was gaining support from people who did not always take him seriously.

“I feel that people began to see my progress and slowly came around to be my biggest supporters,” Adkins said.

The artist’s following has grown from close friends to receiving over a million plays on  streaming services for his newest album, “Oblivion,” with listeners ranging from Huntington to across the world in Europe. 

Adkins goes by the name 7RU7H, pronounced like “truth.”

Considering he has the same name as another famous musician,  Adkins said that creating his own presence and reputation is important to him. 

“This is all incredible. I have invested so much time and money into this and to see it come to life is truly a blessing to me,” Adkins said. “I am here to inspire others, not looking for money or fame, but in order to help people, I had to build a following first.”

Looking to the future, Adkins said his ultimate goal is to go on a tour and actually meet all his fans face-to-face, showing them that it is possible to obtain a dream through dedication and focus.

Adkins music can be downloaded from iTunes, Apple Music and other popular music platforms. Fans are able to view behind-the-scenes videos and previews to music videos that he posts on social media. 

His local tour begins at 11 p.m. Sept. 28 at the Marigold on 4th Avenue in Huntington where he said he plans to meet fans and audience members after the show. 

Michael Morgan can be contacted at [email protected].