James Otto

His second album, Sunset Man, was released in April 2008. It was co-produced by Otto, along with John Rich of Big & Rich and Jay DeMarcus of Rascal Flatts, the latter of whom is Otto's brother-in-law. The lead-off single to Sunset Man, "Just Got Started Lovin' You", became Otto's first Number One hit, as well as the Number One country single of 2008 according to Billboard.

• Name — James Otto • Birth Name — James Allen Otto • Born — 29 July 1973 • Origin — Fort Lewis, Washington, United States • Instrument — Vocals rhythm guitar • Genre — Country • Occupation — Singer-songwriter • Years Active — 2002–present • Label — Mercury Nashville Warner Bros. Nashville Blaster • Website — jamesotto.net

James Otto was born on July 29, 1973, on the Fort Lewis Army Base in the state of Washington. He first took up singing at age 2 and later learned to play violin and saxophone. However, he wanted to learn to play guitar as well. At age 13, he received a guitar for his birthday. He traveled throughout the country for most of his childhood, but his family finally settled in the small town of Benton City, Washington. After graduating from Kiona-Benton High School, Otto joined the United States Navy, where he served for two years. In 1998, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and began attending songwriters' nights there; three years later, he joined the MuzikMafia, a group of country music songwriters which includes Big & Rich and Gretchen Wilson. Otto married his wife Amy Alderson, the sister of actress and model Allison Alderson, in October 2005. Amy gave birth to their first child, Ava Katherine on August 24, 2010.

In 2002, Otto met Scott Parker of Mercury Nashville Records, who signed him to a record deal that year. His first single, "The Ball", peaked at No. 45 on the Billboard country charts, while a second single, "Long Way Down", failed to chart at all. Due to the poor chart performance of these singles, Otto's debut album was delayed. "Days of Our Lives", his third release for the label, was released in late 2003, peaking at No. 33 on the country charts. Shortly after the song peaked, his debut album (also entitled Days of Our Lives) was released on Mercury, and in 2004, Otto was signed as an opening act for Shania Twain on her Up! Tour. His fourth single for Mercury, "Sunday Morning and Saturday Night", peaked at No. 58. After the song fell from the charts, Otto exited Mercury's roster. From there, he began working with the MuzikMafia, a gathering of singer-songwriters founded by Big & Rich, Gretchen Wilson and Cowboy Troy. Otto co-wrote songs and sang background vocals on two of Cowboy Troy's albums: Loco Motive and Black in the Saddle, released in 2005 and early 2007, respectively.

By mid-2007, Otto signed to Warner Bros. Records Nashville. His first single for the label, "Just Got Started Lovin' You", was released at the end of that year as the lead-off single to his second album, Sunset Man. The album was co-produced by Otto's brother-in-law, Jay DeMarcus of Rascal Flatts, along with Big & Rich's John Rich. Sunset Man peaked at No. 2 on Top Country Albums upon its April release. "Just Got Started Lovin' You" reached Number One on the Hot Country Songs charts a month later, becoming the highest-charting single of his career as well as the Number One country single of 2008 according to the Billboard Year-End charts. The album's other two singles — "For You" and "These Are the Good Ole Days" — did not perform as well on the charts, peaking at No. 39 and No. 36 in September 2008 and January 2009, respectively. In mid-2008, Otto was commissioned to perform a new theme song for the Atlanta Braves, entitled "The Braves Play Here," composed by Greg Barnhill and Randy Wachtler for 615 Music. He also co-wrote Jamey Johnson's mid-2008 single "In Color" with Johnson and Lee Thomas Miller. This song was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Country Song at the 2008 Grammy Awards, and received the 2008 Academy of Country Music award for Song of the Year, which is awarded to the songwriters. Otto released a new single, "Since You Brought It Up", in April 2009. It peaked at number 37, and did not appear on a studio album. The song was followed by "Groovy Little Summer Song" in early 2010. It reached the Top 30 and served as the lead-off single from Otto's third album, Shake What God Gave Ya, which was produced by Paul Worley and was released on September 14, 2010. The album's second single, "Soldiers & Jesus," was released to country radio on September 7, 2010, and reached a peak of number 34. In March 2011, Otto announced on his Twitter that he had exited Warner Bros. Records. Otto also performed backing vocals on the original album cut of the song "Chicken & Biscuits", performed by country rap artist Colt Ford on his 2010 album of the same name. The single version, however, features Rhean Boyer of Carolina Rain in place of Otto singing on backup. Otto also co-wrote Zac Brown Band's 2012 single "No Hurry".

Otto self-released a new single, "Somewhere Tonight", in late 2014 via his own Ottopilot Records. In June 2015, Otto signed with Blaster Records, and "Somewhere Tonight" was released to country radio on July 13, 2015, as his first single with the record label. In 2024, Otto released a cover of the Beyoncé song "Texas Hold 'Em". That same year, Otto also announced a new studio album, Self Made Fool, though it has not been released as of March 2026. In mid-2026, the Mavericks announced that, following the death of their lead singer Raul Malo in 2025, they would begin a new tour that year with Otto as featured vocalists. This tour is known as the Music Lives On Tour.

• Title — Album details — Peak chart positions • US Country — US • Days of Our Lives — * Release date: March 9, 2004 * Label: Mercury Nashville — 61 — — • Sunset Man — * Release date: April 8, 2008 * Label: Raybaw/Warner Bros. Nashville — 2 — 3 • Shake What God Gave Ya — * Release date: September 14, 2010 * Label: Warner Bros. Nashville — 10 — 63 • "—" denotes releases that did not chart

• Year — Single — Peak chart positions — Certifications (sales threshold) — Album • US Country — US Country Airplay — US — CAN • 2002 — "The Ball" — 45 — — — — — Days of Our Lives • 2003 — "Days of Our Lives" — 33 — — — — • 2004 — "Sunday Morning and Saturday Night" — 58 — — — — • 2007 — "Just Got Started Lovin' You" — 1 — 27 — 71 — * US: Gold — Sunset Man • 2008 — "For You" — 39 — — — — • "These Are the Good Ole Days" — 36 — — — — • 2009 — "Since You Brought It Up" — 37 — — — — • 2010 — "Groovy Little Summer Song" — 26 — — — — — Shake What God Gave Ya • "Soldiers & Jesus" — 34 — — — — • 2015 — "Somewhere Tonight" — — — 57 — — — — • "—" denotes releases that did not chart

• Year — Video — Director • 2008 — "Just Got Started Lovin' You" — Ryan Smith • "For You" — Kristin Barlowe/Jack Roberts • | 2009 — "These Are the Good Ole Days" — Ryan Smith • 2010 — "Groovy Little Summer Song" — David McClister

The following is established of the heading itself.

The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count. Recorded with the gender male. Born on 29 July 1973. Classed in the genre country music. The same evidence establishes that james Otto is recorded as human. It is also recorded that james Otto is recorded with the occupation singer-songwriter. Recorded with the occupation musician. Institutional cataloguing adds that james Otto is recorded with the occupation singer.