Frank Ray set to Headline P.C. Fair Concert Series

As the evening sun begins to set, the crowd at the grandstands for the night show will put their hands together and give Frank Ray a true Montana welcome. Lined up as the top-billed act of the evening, he will follow opening acts of Tanner Laws and Sam Barber.

The native of Deming, New Mexico, brings a youthful voice with a varied background. He started working as a police officer in Las Cruces, New Mexico. This was his passion for ten years; he then made the decision to hang up the badge and become a full time musician.

In his younger years, he was influenced by Hispanic artists such as Freddy Fender. He said he hopes to become the next breakout Hispanic country artist.

"Guys like Freddy Fender, Johnny Rodriguez and Rick Trevino are all guys that opened the door and paved the way for people like me in the younger generation of Hispanics to come in and carry the torch – but there really hasn't been one and there's a lot of us out there. It's the biggest growing demographic in country music."

Frank, born Francisco Gomez, and grew up between living with each parent for a while; he worked odd jobs before he signed up with the Las Cruces in 2007. "I blinked and I was an officer for 10 years." Even as an officer, he would perform on his days off and juggled his career in law enforcement with country music, though it wasn't easy.

He and his cousin and buddies put together "Border Avenue" and they created a buzz in the music industry.

After he gained seniority and had Thursday, Friday and Saturday off each week, his schedule became such that something had to give. He chose to retire from law enforcement when calls started coming in and he was getting booked more often. It was a family decision, and his wife was supportive of his vision to follow his dream.

Ray said, "The turning point for me is when I played an acoustic writers round in El Paso with a buddy of mine who was managed by Oscar Chavira. He got wind of me, called me out to his house and I played him some songs. He said he could back me financially and got me on Texas Country Radio."

Ray said once "The Drive" went to No. 1, his career was put on overdrive.

"They all loved that I was a police officer, family man and a Hispanic in country music. The buzz I think directly translated to our first article in Rolling Stone magazine, '10 New Country Artists You Need to Know in 2017' and that was huge. It opened up the flood gates."

Following that article, Ray was asked to perform at the Hyundai Sun Bowl in El Paso in front of 45,000, which was televised nationally.

He opened for artists like Wynonna Judd, Josh Turner and Ashley McBride.

Ray stated he competed on "USA Network's 'Real Country.' There, performers like Travis Tritt, Shania Twain and Jake Owen showcase 21 up-and-coming musicians in Nashville.

He is another artist who is bringing his own songs to the stage, with an energetic performance that is definitely making a name for himself in country music, with an accent you will enjoy.