Avery Michaels can’t remember when music and singing weren’t a part of his life’s story. The truth be told, he probably cut his first tooth while listening to his mama and daddy singing a song his daddy wrote from his own life experiences. Music, singing and songwriting are in Michaels’ bloodline and his talents have taken him and his wife Sophia to places, experiences and people they would have otherwise never known.
The son of Harvey and Billie Jean Belgard, Avery Michael Belgard took the stage name ‘Avery Michaels’ upon the suggestion of his agent as some of his fan base had difficulty pronouncing the surname ‘Belgard,’ particularly when touring in northern parts of the country.
“My agent told me to take my middle name ‘Michael’ and add an ‘s’ to it,” Michaels explained.
“Back when we wrote checks, I’d go places and sign my checks with ‘Belgard’ and people would ask me why I hadn’t taken my husband’s last name,” Sophia said laughing. The two met in a recording studio, as Sophia grew up in a musical family as well.
The Belgard family has roots in country music that run all the way back to The Louisiana Hayride and the Grand Old Opry, and Michaels’ respect and admiration for his parents’ and early family’s accomplishments far outweigh that for his own. His uncle, J.W. Thompson, was a regular on The Louisiana Hayride and dad, Harvey, was a member of Thompson’s band. A prolific song writer, the elder Belgard penned over 200 songs for the gospel and country venues and his Uncle J.W. recorded some of those songs and sang them on the show. Harvey and Billy Jean were regulars on LA Hayride as well, singing an array of country music. To say that Michaels grew up in a musically talented family is an understatement.
The elder Belgards played with the likes of country music legends including Hank Williams Sr. and Jim Ed Brown. Many of Harvey’s songs were recorded, with some hitting the country music charts.
The couple won the then prestigious “Pet Milk Talent Contest” sponsored by the Grand Old Opry during their career, and even received a commentary stamp picturing country music performer Hank Williams Sr. from the manager of Hank Williams Jr.
The Belgards left the stage when the senior Belgard watched upcoming and celebrated stars head into lifestyles of addiction to drugs and alcohol. He quickly realized that wasn’t the life he wanted for his sons and wife and felt a higher calling to work for God. As Michaels termed it, his dad wanted to ‘go home, raise a family and preach’, and that’s what he did.
“Dad and Uncle J.W. even played for ‘Uncle’ Earl K. Long during his campaigns,” Michaels recalled. “I grew up around it (music). When I was 9 years old, Daddy had left performing and was the pastor at the Chickasaw Free Methodist Church in Summerville. I sat down at the piano and started picking out my first tune, “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” From there, I started picking out more tunes. One Sunday before Sunday School, Daddy came in from the barn and I was playing the “Boogie Woogie.” He just listened, then looked at me and said, “Son, you better go and get ready for church!”
That was just the beginning for young Avery. He went on to play the piano at his dad’s church, and the rest of the story reads like a well-written country song. His rich musical heritage and his personal talent soon found him and his two brothers forming their own country group, South Band. They traveled extensively performing in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana.
Michaels’ songwriting and singing abilities took off and the ‘90s landed him in Nashville in a recording studio where his song “Right Smack Dab in the Middle of Wrong,” reached #7 on the charts. He sang with Toby Keith, who became a close friend, and opened concerts for Hank Williams Jr. and George Jones, among others, and played at political rallies for then Presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Touring became a way of life for him and recording contracts opened up and became a reality.
Friends with Uncle Si, from the Duck Dynasty series, he has collaborated with the cast on musical projects. One of his songs, “Cajun Style” was featured on the Discovery Channel, and a favorite memory centers around the time he served as the Grand Marshal in a big town parade.
“I bought Johnny Paycheck’s old bus, and we traveled all over the country,” he said. “We toured three or four years and we were right up there with the big boys. I even got invited to Alan Jackson’s ‘Chattahoochee’ party – from his big hit! Billy Ray Cyrus’s manager wanted me to sign a deal with him, but he wanted a 15% booking and a 50% managing fee. I told him I wasn’t selling my soul!”
Music and singing “are kinda like therapy” for Michaels. He and Sophia spend weekends performing at various places, frequenting San Antonio, TX and Oklahoma City, OK doing what they love best, but they “don’t do bars.” They play at private parties and continue to write songs. He performs often for the Cattleman’s Association on RFD TV and music continues to be at the center of their lives. They sing in churches as well.
“Music’s been my life,” he reflected. “I had a dream when I was 14 years old that I had a tour bus and was opening for Hank Williams Jr. Years later, that dream came to pass, I opened up for Hank. Me and Sophia just put up a Christmas podcast of my new song, “Christmas Baby” and I just wrote a new song, “Front Porch Memories”, about my family. We also do shows at the Jena Strand Theatre and at the Ferriday Arcade Theater.”
Michaels is proud of the gospel songs he’s written including the #1 song on the Independent Gospel Charts, “Don’t Forget to Pray” and “I’ll Stand for the Cross”. Some of his favorite memories include hanging out with singer and country music star George Jones simply saying, “He was an awesome man”, and performing before a live audience of over 65,000 people in the 1990s when country music had exploded in popularity.
Michaels’ songs – the words and melodies – continue to pour from his pen, and his fingers make the music come alive on the old piano and guitar that have befriended him over the years. His heartbeat – no doubt – thuds in a musical pattern that was set by his parents years ago and continues to express itself through the songs he sings and the words he writes. His story sings like a familiar favorite country song and is as old as the music itself.
