In the last several weeks, you’ve probably heard the name of Giovannie & the Hired Guns and said “uh, ok… who? Who’s that? Never heard of ’em”. And you’d be right.

Hailing from Mineral Wells, Texas, with a population of less than 17,000, frontman Giovannie Yanez got into song writing around the age of 17 after getting his heart broken, all the while working at a local quarry by day and performing in the local bars by night.

A few years ago, working at a pawn shop in Stephensville, Texas, Yanez formed his band and started having great success locally along with the streaming crowd, gaining millions of streams predominately via word of mouth.

Now, the band is ready to take over the world. With two previous albums released without the backing of a record label, Giovannie & the Hired Guns are preparing to release their third full length album.

 

The lead single is “Ramon Ayala”, which according to Yanez is ”a freewheeling anthem named for the famed Mexican singer/songwriter, Ramon Ayala, whose Norteno music served as an essential part of  Yanez’s childhood. “Some of our songs are pure fun, and some will hit you in the gut and make you cry—it all just depends on what’s in my heart in that moment,” says Yanez.

While the song is inspired by Ayala, the video seems to be highly influenced by Van Halen and “Hot for Teacher”