'Voice' winner introducing self with Fox Tucson show

Call it his introductory lap, part of his first extensive tour after snagging “The Voice” Season 7 crown last December. We get him Sunday and later in the week, when he swings back into the state Thursday, Nov. 5, for a show at Flagstaff’s The Museum Club.

Here is a quick primer to introduce you to Boyd before his show Sunday.

• Bio in brief: He was born and bred in Texas, but nurtured by Music City. The 36-year-old Mesquite, Texas, native hightailed it to Nashville, Tennessee, when he was 25. He signed a songwriting deal and penned a lot of songs in between club and festival dates and opening gigs for artists, including Jamey Johnson, Brantley Gilbert and Randy Houser. During a phone call last week, he admitted “I was ready to give it up” at the time that he landed on “The Voice” last fall. “I would still have played music, but I would have gotten a day job,” he said.

• No covers: On “The Voice,” Boyd impressed the coaches, the audience and the millions watching from their living rooms with his covers of George Strait’s “You Look So Good in Love,” Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line,” the Eagles’ “Take It Easy” and Merle Haggard’s “Workin’ Man Blues,” but don’t expect to hear any of those tunes Sunday. “I don’t do covers. I spent years covering other people’s songs,” he said, adding that his live shows pull from his pre-“Voice” indie releases — “Craig Boyd” in 2008 and “I Ain’t No Quitter” in 2013. He also will perform songs from his yet-to-be-released post- “Voice” album, which he hopes to get out by year’s end. The disc will include “My Baby’s Got a Smile on Her Face,” which debuted two weeks after his “Voice” win at No. 1 on Billboard’s country charts — only the second song in chart history to debut at No. 1, following Garth Brooks’ 2007 hit “More Than a Memory”; and his latest single, “I’m Still Here,” which he penned in the final days of the competition last winter as a summary of his music venture and his somewhat rocky run at “The Voice.” His improbable win followed several elimination close calls in which coaches saved him. He was, however, a consistent fan favorite throughout Season 7.

• Ditching Dot: Back in March, Boyd split company with Universal Republic and Dot Records, the label that signed him after his “Voice” win. Last week, Boyd said the situation got a little complicated when he was ready to go into the studio to record and much of it revolved around competing visions for the record. He said he is on the verge of signing a new deal and still hopes to have the album — his national debut — out by year’s end. He released his latest single, “I’m Still Here,” on his own indie Long Haul Records to iTunes and Google Play.

• Yallers: That’s the name of his fans, a word that in country-speak means “y’all” as in you all. He sells T-shirts (“Yaller Crazy”) on his website (craigwayneboyd.com) and shouts out to his fans on social media with #yallers.

• Family man: Boyd is the father of a 3-year-old son and is engaged to Taylor Borland, his girlfriend of less than a year. Boyd tweeted out Oct. 10 that the couple is expecting a child: “And then there were 4... #halloween #newlife #itsagirl #blessed @taybrookebo @cwbyall.”