Cody Jinks

Meredith Cody Jinks, popularly known as Cody Jinks, is an American country music artist born on August 18, 1980, in Halsom City, Texas. He took up the guitar at age 16, practicing on his father's instrument. Initially interested in country music, in 1998 he formed Unchecked Aggression, a trash metal band influenced by Metallica and Pantera. He left behind a single album, The Massacre Begins, released in 2002. Following the band's breakup in 2003, Cody Jinks distanced himself from music only to rediscover the country music of his youth shortly after. As a solo artist, he released several self-financed albums in 2008: Collector's Item, Cast No Stones, Less Wise, 30, Adobe Sessions, and I'm Not The Devil, which featured his backing band, The Tone Deaf Hippies. It was with I'm Not the Devil, recorded on a ranch, that he burst onto the scene, reaching number 4 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. The album was named one of the best country records of the year by Rolling Stone magazine. In 2017, he surprised his audience with a bold cover of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here." The following year, he unveiled a new studio album, Lifers, distributed by Rounder Records. As prolific as ever, the following year he released two albums within a week of each other, After the Fire and The Wanting. Mercy, his eleventh studio LP, arrived in 2021 and peaked at number 12 on the US country charts. Preceded by the single "Outlaws and Mustangs," Change the Game reached number 128 on the Billboard 200 in 2024.