Wyoming singer-songwriter Ian Munsick always seems to have something a little bit different to pair with his growing popularity as a country music star.
His newest album “Eagle Feather," with 20 tracks of Wyoming-inspired music, is no exception.
This time the cross-promotion isn’t a documentary about Native Americans, as it was for the previous album, “White Buffalo.”
This time it’s a line of trendy Western accessories, designed by Montana Silversmiths, a business that was started by a ranching family.
The jewelry and accessories include things like belt buckles, bolo ties, bracelets, rings and hat accessories. Perhaps the most unique are a full line of silver and gold hat feathers, including one that’s customizable with a message down the center.
Munsick has lately taken some rather public criticism for using backing tracks in live performances and for weaving pop sensibilities into some of his music, trends he has been equally public in defending. Given that, some might see this new line of Western accessories as something of a sell-out move.
If you ask Munsick, it’s about taking the reins of his own music career while also giving his wife, Caroline, an opportunity to shine.
“As usual, it’s my wife’s (idea),” Munsick told Cowboy State Daily. “I’ll make an album and then she has this brilliant idea to complement the album in a more visual space.
“And so for this album — it being so grounded in the West and the Rocky Mountains and just the culture that comes along with it, we thought it would be really cool to do a jewelry line with Montana Silversmith.”
Classic Western Two-Tone with Bull Rider (Montana Silversmith) 
A couple of the hat feathers available at Montana Silversmiths. (Montana Silversmith) 
Longorn Cattle Drive Buckle (Montana Silversmith) 
Double Essence Open Ring (Montana Silversmith)
The Loyalty Card
Montana Silversmiths is one of few homespun Western companies with the ability to scale production up to mass market numbers, Munsick said. Wyoming has some boutique silversmith shops, but none that could accommodate mass production.
“They’ve really been able to scale up in a huge way and become a very important part of the cowboy world and the Western world,” Munsick said.
Equally important, Munsick said, was a shared understanding of the Western way of life, the kind that someone only gets by living it.
“The people who are in charge of that company come from a ranching background,” he said. “And it was really important for us to partner with a company that truly understands where we’re coming from, to help us provide authenticity.”
But that wasn’t the only checkmark for Montana Silversmith.
“Montana has always been very, very kind to me and Caroline,” Munsick added. “Before we had any kind of branding deals with hardly anyone else, they really showed us support early on.”
That earned the company a loyalty card in Munsick’s book.
“They really understand the way of life that we live and what we’re trying to do,” Munsick said. “They understand what we’re trying to protect and educate the rest of the world about.
“And so, it just had that authenticity, and Wyoming and Montana are cousins, so it’s all in the family.”
New Album, Cheyenne Frontier Days
Munsick is hard at work on two big projects. His next album, and then his upcoming appearance at Cheyenne Frontier Days as a headliner — the first from Wyoming.
That makes it a history-making moment, but it’s also a pretty big bucket list item for Munsick, who posted about that last year just after playing a sold-out Red Rocks show.
It didn’t take Cheyenne Frontier Days long to take the popular singer songwriter up on his offer.
Not even a year went by before it was announced that Munsick would headline on opening night of CFD, which has long laid claim to being the world’s largest outdoor rodeo.
“I’ve been brainstorming our set list for the night and just combing over it just trying to make it as Wyoming as possible,” he said. “But also as fluid as possible, so that when me and my band hit the stage, we can just kind of go into performance mode.
“We don’t have to think too hard. We can just put on an amazing show for the people who have helped me get to where I am right now.”
Munsick is also in writing mode now between performances, putting together new songs for what will be his fourth album.
“Just like my other three albums, I have to make sure that it’s a cohesive project,’ Munsick said. “And that they all tell a story together.”
Munsick said there will undoubtedly be another twist from his wife when the new album comes out, but it’s not something that’s being worked out just yet.
“We really like to let the music come into fruition before we come up with ideas of how to creatively elevate the music,” he said. “So, once we have a strong foundation of what we think this next album will turn into musically, then we’ll start to come up with more ideas.”
Musical Family
The youngest of three brothers raised on a ranch near Sheridan, Munsick grew up in a family that was full of music and was already playing piano by age 4.
Music has been part of his life for as long as he can remember. He was playing piano by age 4, and there were those early campfire concerts with his dad and his brothers, too.
Eventually, that moved to more grown-up concerts all over Sheridan County as part of The Munsick Boys band.
Munsick recalls writing his breakout hit “Horses Run Faster” on the back deck of his parents’ home near Sheridan, just as the sun was setting over the Bighorn Mountains.
He looked out and saw four horses taking off across a sagebrush sea, with the sun slipping from the sky. It was like poetry and a painting all in one, and it begged to become part of a song.
That song gained a lot of traction on YouTube, Munsick said. That helped inspire Munsick’s move to Nashville, as well pursue a full-time musical career.
“That song has become a staple,” Munsick said. “I put that out when I was 19 years old, I made it in Wyoming just all on my own.”
In Nashville, Munsick attended Belmont University, earning a degree in both songwriting and music business, but he was also immersed in a collaborative environment that included some of the world’s best songwriters. That helped Munsick find his way as an artist.
Caroline Munsick designs many of the items in the line of Western accessories. (Getty Images) 
Caroline Munsick designs many of the items in the line of Western accessories. (Getty Images)
Still About Bringing The West To The Rest
But Munsick missed Wyoming while he was in Nashville. He made himself a promise that he would never forget his Wyoming roots.
He was going to take the West with him, wherever he went, and let it live and breathe through his music.
That “bringing the West to the rest” motto — and his new line of Western accessories — couldn’t be hitting at a more opportune time.
Fueled by popular television series like Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone,” Craig Johnson’s “Longmire,” and C.J. Box’s “Joe Pickett,” Western attire and cowboy culture are finding an audience that has a seemingly bottomless appetite.
Many celebrities have hopped aboard the old chuckwagon, from Beyoncé with her album “Cowboy Carter,” Miley Cyrus with her bedazzled denim vests and rhinestone-covered cowboy hats, and even Lady Gaga sporting a pink cowboy hat on her album “Joanne.”
The craving for all things West has not hurt the sales of Munsick’s new line of accessories.
“They sold out,” Munsick said. “We cut the first run of them, and so now we’re making a lot more. And I know that we’re scaling into, I’m not sure exactly the number, but we’re scaling to Boot Barn stores all over the country now.”
The initial release of the accessories had been limited to Nashville Boot Barns and online sales. It was a way to test the market, Munsick said.
Now those accessories should be showing up in Boot Barns in Wyoming soon.
A publicity rep for Munsick told Cowboy State Daily the accessories are supposed to hit Boot Barn stores in Wyoming by July 18, in time for Munsick’s headliner appearance at Cheyenne Frontier Days.
Munsick credited his wife’s talent with fashion and her creative process for the success of the accessories, which include things like silver bracelets, bolo ties and an Eagle Feather belt buckle.
“She spent over a year with the Montana Silversmiths team designing these pieces,” he said. “And she would bring them to me after she was happy, and then I’d say, ‘Well, maybe we just need to tweak this here and there.’ So, she just kind of brought me in on it at the end, to make sure it was something I would personally wear.”
The names of all the pieces are also inspired by Wyoming and Montana.
“I think the bracelet is called Cloudy Mountain, and that’s inspired by Cloud Peak in the Bighorn Mountains,” Munsick said. “There’s the Black Tooth bracelet, which is obviously inspired by the Black Tooth Mountain in the Bighorns. And the White Buffalo Bolo, that was inspired by my music that was inspired by Native American culture.
“These are all just real influences of the west. Not the Hollywood West, not the Yellowstone West, but the real, untamed inspiration of the West.”
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
