Texas born and bred, J.D. Newbury's earliest influences came from “Uncle“ Mickey Newbury at family gatherings where he heard Newbury originals such as “Just Dropped in (To See What Condition My Condition Was In),“ and “American Trilogy.“ His next inspiration came from a stack of vinyls that he listened to over and over as Kris Kristopherson, Mickey Newbury, and Dean Dillon played songs that fascinated J.D. He went to school by listening to these greats as he learned to turn a phrase into a song through his music.

He caught the electric feeling that comes from performing and it continued to intrigue him as he watched Garth Brooks entertain massive audiences with sheer energy from his music. Starting out as a drummer, he discovered that music was in his blood and encouraged by his legendary “uncle“, he began to take his own life's experiences and turn them into songs. J.D. joined the “Write Around Texas“ songwriting group who recognized his gift and challenged him to develop his songwriting.

Blessed by a deep voice that is instantly recognizable with its heartfelt emotion, J.D. sang at a local event with several producers and successful songwriters in their own right from Nashville. With numerous number one songs and countless other awards as a songwriter and producer, Randy Boudreaux asked J.D. that night who had written the songs he was singing. Randy, who has been in the songwriting business for 30 years, knew immediately that J.D.'s music has a fresh, sincere quality that audiences will want to hear. His manager Richard Sutton said, “When I first heard J.D.'s music I knew it was special. Randy's reaction just substantiated that.“ Boudreaux brought J.D. into the studio to produce and record several songs including “Beer Makes You Lean.“

J.D.'s first single, "Beer Makes You Lean" written by Randy Boudreaux and Kim Williams was produced by Randy Boudreaux and was released on the Randy Boudreaux's Brokenheartsville label. It was recorded at Master Phonics and Omini Studios and engineered by Stoker White.