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TRYON—The Tryon Fine Arts Center kicks off its annual Americana Concert Series at its amphitheater Thursday night with David Childers and the Serpents. Childers grew up in Mount Holly, NC, and says music was ever-present in his life as a child. 

“I just grew up with it, going to church and my mother liked music a lot,” says the singer-songwriter, who plays acoustic guitar. “It was always around, always has been in my life.”

Childers started playing guitar at 18 and continued to play while earning undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill where he earned honors for creative writing and taught poetry in public schools.

“I didn’t really foresee that I could play music in front of large crowds of people without making a total fool of myself,” he says.

Childers decided to go to law school and spent 35 years as a lawyer while performing and recording music on the side. He retired in 2016 to finally pursue his dream of being a full-time professional musician. 

“So now I’m doing what I always wanted to do for a long time, which is play music and paint and cut the grass,” he jokes. 

Childers has toured in the US and Europe but says he sticks closer to home now, doing gigs mostly in the Carolinas. His band “The Serpents” includes his son Robert on drums and vocals, Korey Dudley on bass, Dale Shoemaker on electric guitar, Geoff White on fiddle and David Niblock on acoustic guitar.

Season passes for the series cost $45, and individual tickets can be purchased in advance at tryonarts.org for $10 or at the gate the day of the show for $12. Beer, wine, and other beverages will be available for purchase, and there will be a food truck. The show starts at 6:30 p.m.