Bucky Covington, ‘Drinking Side of Country’ Will Help Sandy Heroes
Bucky Covington and his twin brother, Rocky, are donating proceeds from the song "Drinking Side of Country," to firefighters in the northeast U.S., who have been helping everyone in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.
"When you saw a photo or video, in just about every one, there was a firefighter or two, grabbing someone or helping someone grab something," Bucky tells The Boot. "There were 2,000 firefighters who lost their personal homes in the hurricane, yet there they were, helping others.
"We had one million views of the video of that single, which Shooter Jennings dueted with me on, so we decided that if you go on iTunes and download the song, every penny will go to the firefighters up north. Every time you spend that dollar, it goes straight to them. So, God bless my brother and Ducky Metlock, who wrote the song with us."
Bucky is the spokesperson for "Be a Hero, Save a Hero," a campaign which is working to help reduce the risk firefighters have when they respond to a house fire. The campaign asks people to sign a pledge that they will have enough up-to-date, working smoke alarms in their home, plus a home fire-escape plan.
"The only reason a firefighter goes into a house when it's burning is if someone is in there," Bucky explains. "So if the alarm goes off and you get your family out, the firefighter doesn't have to be put in harm's way."
For each person who takes the pledge and shares it through social-medial, one dollar will be donated to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and Help the Good Guys, organizations that help the families of injured and fallen firefighters.
"After I had been in Nashville for seven years or so," Bucky notes, "I realized that country artists participate in a lot of charity events. I love helping people and being able to use your name and what you are to do good deeds. It's very easy to show up with a guitar, do your show and get back on the bus. I wanted an organization to be a part of and be involved with, so during interviews I can shed light on that organization's cause. Awareness is a very big part of making charity organizations work. People have to be able to hear 'Help the Good Guys' and know that we help firefighters."
Bucky just returned from Chattanooga, where he performed a benefit concert for a family whose son was diagnosed with cancer at 13 years of age and has to fly back-and-forth to New York City for treatment. Bucky's concert help raise $10,000 to help the boy and his family.
When Bucky released his album, Good Guys, in September, he donated a portion of the first-week sales to Help the Good Guys and the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Charitable Foundation. An exclusive version of the album has also been made available to IAFF members and chapters to raise money for the Foundation. Visit here for details.
"The Drinking Side of Country" video has now had more than two million views on YouTube. It features, Bucky and Shooter along with Bucky's brother, Rocky, and Kellie Pickler, who plays a Daisy Duke-type character helping the singing duo out of a sticky situation with a police officer. The blue '68 Camaro in the clip is Bucky's car.
Watch the 'Drinkin' Side of Country' Video