Country
at Heart
From plowing on the family farm in Oak Park to
writing songs for some of Nashville's most talented
artists, Mitch Oglesby has risen in the ranks of
notoriety while keeping his small town roots.
BY TERI R. WILLIAMS PHOTOS PROVIDED BY MITCH OGLESBY
the smell of the diesel
mixed with that of the
rich black dirt was the
perfect accompaniment to
the country music coming from
the International 986 tractor
radio. As the young boy plowed
the fields on his family’s farm in
Oak Park, he sang along. He knew
every word to every song. With
crops to plant, livestock to tend,
and a poultry operation with over
50,000 laying chickens, there
was always plenty of work to be
done. Instinctively, the farm work
shaped Mitch’s awareness of the
connection between the music
and the land. It’s really no surprise
that his singing and writing led to
his songs being recorded by artists
like Chris Young, Cody Johnson,
and a #1 hit by Chris Janson.
It takes talent and a lot of
hard work for a song to become a
CMA #1 hit song, which is exactly
what 1990 Toombs County High
School graduate Mitch Oglesby
brought to the song “Done,”
co-written with Janson, Jamie
Paulin, and Matt Roy. The song is
one of six that Mitch co-wrote on
Janson’s most recent album called
Real Friends including the title
song, which Janson recorded as a
duet with Blake Shelton.
Looking back, the road from
the family farm to a publishing
48 TOOMBS COUNTY MAGAZINE