Jimmy Wayne
Jimmy Wayne Barber (born October 23, 1972) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He released his self-titled debut album in 2003 on the DreamWorks Records label. Four singles were released from it, including "Stay Gone" and "I Love You This Much", which both reached Top Ten on the Billboard country charts. A second album, Do You Believe Me Now, was released in August 2008 via Big Machine Records subsidiary Valory Music Group, and its title track became his first Number One hit in late 2008. Sara Smile followed in 2009.
Jimmy Wayne
Jimmy Wayne Barber
October 23, 1972[1]
Kings Mountain, North Carolina
Singer-songwriter, author
Vocals, guitar
1999–present
DreamWorks Nashville
Big Machine Records
Valory Music Group
Early life[edit]
Jimmy Wayne was born on October 23, 1972, in Kings Mountain, North Carolina,[1] and grew up in Bessemer City.[2] His biological father abandoned him, and he and his sister were raised in and out of foster homes or were left with other people when their mother would leave them or was in prison. She served four months in prison in 1985 when Wayne was 12.[1] After entering a group home, Wayne ran away and lived with his mother for a brief time before living on the streets and with his sister, Patricia, for a short while.[1] He was invited to move in with an elderly couple, Russell and Bea Costner, (just down the road from where his mother was living), after being hired to mow their lawn.[3] After finishing high school and earning a degree in Criminal Justice, he worked as a guard at the Gaston Correctional Facility, where he worked as a corrections officer for four years before moving to Nashville, Tennessee, to pursue his musical interests.
Meet Me Halfway[edit]
On January 1, 2010, Wayne set out on a 1,660-mile (2,670 km) walk from Nashville, Tennessee, to Phoenix, Arizona, to raise awareness to the plight of the 30,000 children who age out of foster care every year in America, into homelessness homeless youth aging out foster system. Called the "Meet Me Halfway" campaign, he walked 25 miles (40 km) a day, only taking days off the walk for scheduled concerts[8] and to go to the California State Capitol to speak in favor of a bill that would increase the age kids age out of the foster system from 18 to 21.[9]
He successfully arrived in Phoenix on August 1, 2010, after suffering a broken foot four days prior, having successfully walked 1,700 miles over seven months.[10] Even after completing his walk, Wayne continues to advocate for foster children. He has been a spokesperson for CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), a national network of volunteers who represent the best interests of abused and neglected children in the courtroom and other settings.[11] and says his goal is to have the age that youth "age out" of foster care raised from 18 to 21 across all 50 states[8] and to bring awareness to the cause of foster youth who are aging out of the system.
Writing[edit]
In 2012, he co-wrote the novel Paper Angels, a Christmas story about a child who receives help from the Salvation Army's Angel Tree program and the man who picked his name. He wrote Walk to Beautiful: The Power of Love and a Homeless Kid Who Found the Way with Ken Abraham. The autobiography, published in 2014, details his life story which inspired the "Meet Me Halfway" campaign.[12] In 2017, he wrote and published Ruby The Foster Dog, a children's book, published by Broadstreet Kids in November 2017. The book chronicles Wayne's adopting a dog during his walk halfway across America. The story is told from the dog's perspective. Simultaneously, Wayne released Ruby Toons, a 13-song album of songs reflecting themes in Ruby The Foster Dog.