Texas Crossing EP released today

By Savanna Gregg

The Highlander

Texas Country Music can be found found right here in our small town, if you look close enough. Texas Crossing, a husband and wife duo with Central Texas roots, has been gracing the stages of various venues throughout the Hill Country and beyond.

1993 Burnet graduate Colt Buckelew and his wife, Tiffany Valentine, put their hearts and souls into their music and look forward to sharing it with their fans many nights out of the week.

Buckelew began singing 37 years ago, sang in the Burnet High School choir, and even performed at the very first Bluebonnet Festival in 1983. Buckelew expanded his horizons as time went on, enjoying the opportunity to sing with talents such as Pat Green and Cory Morrow.

“Rusty Weirr, a great songwriter, was a big mentor of mine that opened up this music world for me,” Buckelew said.

Valentine moved to the Burnet area in 2006, when she met Buckelew. The two decided to start playing together in 2012 after realizing that she possessed the same talent Buckelew did.

“I bought a guitar 6 ½ years ago, took it to Colt's house to play, and now here we are,” Valentine said.

The duo now travels around the state in a camper, sharing their soulful voices and love for Texas Country Music at various venues. They even have a considerable fan base overseas, in places like Russia and China.

Two years ago, Valentine received some upsetting news: she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She decided to fight it, and after recovering from surgery and radiation, she was back on her feet and ready to sing again. This past August, Hurricane Harvey destroyed the couple's Rockport home. Despite the conflicts they have been faced with, the couple makes it a point to stay positive.

“We don't let this stuff get us down,” Valentine said. “We didn't have time to stop.”

The two continue their journey to success as husband and wife, band mates, and each other's support groups, though they claim to be polar opposites.

“I'm easygoing, and she runs circles around me,” Buckelew said.

The two work together to create relatable, honest music mixing their traditional country sound with hints of blues and rock. The two don't refer to themselves as a duo, because they each have their own songs they like to share with the audience at their shows. Valentine's song, “Here I Am,” spent four weeks at the top of the Texas country radio charts. She credits this achievement to the talents of her husband.

“[Colt] is the songwriter, so I couldn't make anything happen if we didn't have such a talented songwriter,” Valentine said.

The two have been nominated for Duo of the Year at the October 2017 Texas Country Music Awards in Carthage, TX. They did not take home the title, but the night still ended with success – Valentine received the Volunteer of the Year award for her services to those in the Texas Country Music Association.

The couple has support from all over the state and beyond, and many here at home, including a familiar face in Burnet, who graduated with Buckelew in 1993.

“Damon Beierle has done so much for us,” Buckelew said. “Every year he does more and more.”

Texas Crossing will release their new EP, “It's All Over,” this Friday, March 9 on iTunes and are scheduled to open the show for Bart Crow at Brass Hall in Marble Falls on Saturday, March 17.

“Brass Hall is one of our favorite venues,” Valentine said.

“We have so much fun there,” Buckelew added.

Burnet will be seeing more of Texas Crossing in the coming months, though. Buckelew and Valentine will open for Kody West and Radney Foster, the recently announced 2018 Bluebonnet Festival Headliners, on Saturday, April 14.