Fred Wilhelm is an American songwriter/singer who grew up on a family farm where his duties included feeding the chickens and carting out a wheelbarrow of manure every day before school. The latter experience has proved extremely useful in the music business
After graduating from NYU, Fred formed several alternative rock bands, toured up and down the east coast, and eventually got signed as an artist to Elektra Records in New York. When the project dissolved, he moved to Nashville to concentrate on songwriting. His work has been recorded by numerous multi-platinum superstars, including Faith Hill, Rascal Flatts, Little Big Town, Walker Hayes, Lindsay Ell, Randy Travis, The Oak Ridge Boys and many others. A number of much beloved Americana artists have also recorded songs written with Fred including Mindy Smith, Lori McKenna, Aaron Espe, Mary Gauthier, and Matthew Perryman Jones.
Starting in 2016 Fred had a single on the charts consecutively for over two years, beginning with Lindsay Ell’s smash “Criminal” and her follow up single “Champagne” as well as the 52-week run of Rascal Flatts hit “Back To Life.” Alternative artist Kalie Shorr’s album “Open Book” features two songs written with Fred and was chosen as one of the top ten albums of 2019 - all genres, by The New York Times.
Recent cuts include DJ Superstars Cheat Codes, country recording artists Adam Doleac, Julia Cole, King Calaway, The Reklaws, and Tony Evans Jr., as well as pop newcomers Sadie Fine and Tyson Venegas.
Fred is the recipient of a New York Music Award, BMI Award and fifth grade fire prevention poster award. Though his work appears in numerous films and television shows, and is performed on stages and heard playing from speakers the world over, Fred considers his greatest achievement to be avoiding a day job since 1999.