Bentley's musical style is considered to be more traditional than many of his contemporaries and often contains traditional themes of lost or forbidden love, drinking and cheating. "Lot of leavin' left to do", one of his biggest singles, is also reminiscent of Waylon Jennings' style of Outlaw country with Western Swing influences.

Early life
Dierks Bentley was born in Phoenix, Arizona. Then he moved to Lawrenceville, New Jersey, where he attended the Lawrenceville School, graduating in 1993.[1]

Personal life
Bentley is married to his childhood sweetheart Cassidy Black. They live in Nashville, TN with their dogs Jake {who has appeared in a few of Dierks' videos} and George. The couple eloped in Mexico.

Music career
Bentley worked at The Nashville Network (TNN, now Spike TV), researching old footage of country performances. In 2003, Capitol Nashville released Bentley's self-titled debut album, which featured his successful first single, "What Was I Thinkin'?," which went to number 1 on the country charts. Some of Dierks Bentley's more recent hits include "Come a Little Closer," "Settle for a Slowdown," "Free & Easy (Down the Road I Go)," and "Every Mile a Memory."

Bentley's musical style is considered to be more traditional than many of his contemporaries and often contains traditional themes of lost or forbidden love, drinking and cheating. "Lot Of Leavin' Left To Do", one of his biggest singles, is also reminiscent of Waylon Jennings' style of Outlaw country with Western Swing influences.

2005 was a big year for Bentley, winning the CMA Horizon Award and being inducted into the Grand Ole Opry. He now stands as the youngest current Opry member.

He frequently performs with Cross Canadian Ragweed. He has also recorded two songs, "Train Travelin'" and "Good Man Like Me" with the Del McCoury Band.

On June 10, 2006, Bentley filmed his upcoming DVD release Live And Loud at the Fillmore in Denver, Colorado. The DVD -- directed by London-based filmmaker Russell Thomas and also the first-ever of its kind by Bentley -- was released March 20, 2007.

On Oct. 17, 2006, Bentley released the album Long Trip Alone, which had a number 1 hit, "Every Mile a Memory." The 'Long Trip Alone' video clip involved Dierks shaving his well-loved blonde curls.

On Oct. 31, 2005, Bentley had his first sold out show in Eugene, Oregon.

In October 2006, Bentley launched his first headlining tour across the U.S. and became only the third country act ever to be sponsored by Bud Light. The "Locked and Loaded" tour also featured Miranda Lambert and the Randy Rogers Band.

Bentley performed at historic Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida on February 10, 2007 as part of the race festivities for the 29th Annual Budweiser Shootout. He performed two songs prior to the race, and held a post-race concert on the famous track just past turn four. Bentley also delivered the famous words, "Gentlemen, start your engines" to kick off the 2007 Bud Shootout.

In June of 2007 he was one of the few country artists to perform at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee. Other country music acts included Charlie Louvin and Ralph Stanley.

In July of 2007, Dierks performed at Country Thunder in Randall, Wisconsin. At this show, he demonstrated his appreciation for his fans by driving around the show grounds, meeting people, signing autographs, and even shotgunning a beer with some fans.

In October of 2007, Bentley performed with many other country artists at the "Big State Festival" at the Texas World Speedway in College Station, TX. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.