Dan Evans has never made a secret of his desire to pursue a music career.  The contestant of The Biggest Loser's fifth season has been performing to kids as a camp counselor for his family's business.  His mother and teammate Jackie also said that he's always wanted to be on the spotlight.  He thinks that his weight has gotten in the way of him making it big.  Well, his stint in the reality show contributed: at the end of the season, he lost 136 pounds, and although he was eliminated in the 13th episode, he's surely on his way to bigger things.

And to bigger things he has gone, indeed.  He is set to release a country album on September 30.  The album, titled Goin' All Out, is co-written with Stephanie Lewis, who won ASCAP's songwriter of the year honors in 2002.  It is produced by acclaimed songwriter Russ DeSalvo and composer Jim Kimball.  The title track will be released as the first single.

This is perhaps the beginning of the realization of Dan's lifelong dream.  In a recent interview, he talked about how his love for country music sprang.  “When I was 16, I saved all my money from my summer job to buy a truck,” he recounted.  “I had a brand new stereo installed and proudly drove that truck to the CD release party for Keith Urban's Golden Road.  I floated out of that show on cloud nine, knowing that my life and all my dreams had just changed forever—only to find that my truck and my new CD player had been stolen!  But it barely fazed me.  I remember thinking that whoever had my truck could have it; I had my CD, a new dream and I wouldn't trade my experience at that show for anything.”

He also talked about how his stint on The Biggest Loser changed his life. “I have met so many people who watched me every week and told me how much my determination inspired them,” he said.  “I'm honored to be an encouragement to people and my goal as an artist is to remind every audience I encounter that personal issues and insecurities should never keep you from pursuing the things you love.  I have my life back now and I want to inspire others who have similar dreams, but lack the motivation to achieve them.”

Stay tuned for Dan's song to hit the airwaves, and if you're lucky, he might drop by where you are, as he is touring throughout the summer.


-Henrik Batallones, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Sources: CMT, Buffalo Chip
(Image courtesy of NBC)