The C2C Sit Down with Cory Marks
Blending the grit of rock with the soul of country, Cory Marks is redefining what it means to be a modern outlaw in the music scene. Hailing from North Bay, Ontario, Marks has carved out a unique sound that resonates with fans of both hard-hitting rock anthems and heartfelt country storytelling. Cory is the latest artist to make the trip from the Great White North to make his European debut at the Country to Country, where he would play sets across the festival stops in Berlin, Rotterdam and in London. We caught up with Cory between sets at the London weekend to find out how the shows have been going
Welcome to London. It’s nice to not meet you through a computer screen this time! It must be quite nice getting to sit down with European press that you’ve only previously done on Zoom.
Yeah, because I feel like I've been doing them for four or five years now since COVID, so it's nice to be able to see everybody face to face.
This weekend you're full band, but we saw you last weekend in Berlin which was just you and a guitar. Is it tough to take some of these songs acoustic?
No, I love it, and I think the fans were loving it. It's always nice to kind of strip it down and just sing your heart out. It's kind of back to the basics where it all started, just me, a song and a guitar, so that's always a lot of fun.
Does it almost take you back to kind of that day you most wrote some of those songs as well?
Yeah, yeah, it does. I always call them stripped down versions or bare-bone versions, and, you know, that's where it all began. I think it's cool also for the audience to see and I have so many fans saying you've got to make an acoustic album, so I think that'll be next.
Welcome to London. It’s nice to not meet you through a computer screen this time! It must be quite nice getting to sit down with European press that you’ve only previously done on Zoom.
Yeah, because I feel like I've been doing them for four or five years now since COVID, so it's nice to be able to see everybody face to face.
This weekend you're full band, but we saw you last weekend in Berlin which was just you and a guitar. Is it tough to take some of these songs acoustic?
No, I love it, and I think the fans were loving it. It's always nice to kind of strip it down and just sing your heart out. It's kind of back to the basics where it all started, just me, a song and a guitar, so that's always a lot of fun.
Does it almost take you back to kind of that day you most wrote some of those songs as well?
Yeah, yeah, it does. I always call them stripped down versions or bare-bone versions, and, you know, that's where it all began. I think it's cool also for the audience to see and I have so many fans saying you've got to make an acoustic album, so I think that'll be next.
With this being your first time over how was it meeting some of the fans, especially in Germany were you even had some of your own shows?
Yeah, first time across the pond, it's been nice. We played Kaiserkeller in Hamburg, Cologne. The one today was my eighth show and it's soon to be my ninth show in seven days. I’m starting to feel it a little bit, but it's literally been just been a bit of an eye-opener. I knew the fans were here, but you never really know until you see it firsthand. Every show we've played has been wall-to-wall. Everyone's singing, Blame It On The Double, It's Come From The Coffin, but they even know Sorry For Nothing and some of the newer material. I'm just really grateful and excited that I'm hoping I get to come back here even bigger, bigger venues and bigger, just bigger overall.
Having seen you play in Berlin, it was interesting to still see people singing along to words as you went through the set despite this being your first visit. Is that something you expected? I think I expected it from fans in England, but I never quite know in Germany as we are always told they are much more of a listening crowd.
Honestly, you hope for it. So, when it happens, I'm just like, thank God, this is so cool. So, yeah, it was very special.
Did you ask anyone what to expect before you came over, as you are one of a few Canadians on the lineup this year and it seems there is a mini-Canadian takeover each year now?
No, not really. I always like to just figure it out for myself and do my own thing and see what's going on in this part of the world. I've always just kind of gone, just go in there and give it all you got and do your thing and hopefully they love it.
C2C in London and Berlin are very different to a lot of the festivals you do back home because you play so many different sets. You've done one today. You've got, I think, two more sets to go still this weekend.
Yeah, two more sets to go. One in a couple hours and then we play tomorrow morning and then we head over to Glasgow and play the Cat House. Apparently, it's sold out, which is always great I'm going to try to save myself a little bit for that, but give London everything I've got.
Tomorrow morning, you're on the outdoor stage as everyone's coming off the Tube at 11.30. The Jack Daniels stage, 11.30 on a hungover Sunday.
Yeah, that's it. Sunday fun day as well! We'll do our best to wake them up for the rest of the festival.
Yeah, first time across the pond, it's been nice. We played Kaiserkeller in Hamburg, Cologne. The one today was my eighth show and it's soon to be my ninth show in seven days. I’m starting to feel it a little bit, but it's literally been just been a bit of an eye-opener. I knew the fans were here, but you never really know until you see it firsthand. Every show we've played has been wall-to-wall. Everyone's singing, Blame It On The Double, It's Come From The Coffin, but they even know Sorry For Nothing and some of the newer material. I'm just really grateful and excited that I'm hoping I get to come back here even bigger, bigger venues and bigger, just bigger overall.
Having seen you play in Berlin, it was interesting to still see people singing along to words as you went through the set despite this being your first visit. Is that something you expected? I think I expected it from fans in England, but I never quite know in Germany as we are always told they are much more of a listening crowd.
Honestly, you hope for it. So, when it happens, I'm just like, thank God, this is so cool. So, yeah, it was very special.
Did you ask anyone what to expect before you came over, as you are one of a few Canadians on the lineup this year and it seems there is a mini-Canadian takeover each year now?
No, not really. I always like to just figure it out for myself and do my own thing and see what's going on in this part of the world. I've always just kind of gone, just go in there and give it all you got and do your thing and hopefully they love it.
C2C in London and Berlin are very different to a lot of the festivals you do back home because you play so many different sets. You've done one today. You've got, I think, two more sets to go still this weekend.
Yeah, two more sets to go. One in a couple hours and then we play tomorrow morning and then we head over to Glasgow and play the Cat House. Apparently, it's sold out, which is always great I'm going to try to save myself a little bit for that, but give London everything I've got.
Tomorrow morning, you're on the outdoor stage as everyone's coming off the Tube at 11.30. The Jack Daniels stage, 11.30 on a hungover Sunday.
Yeah, that's it. Sunday fun day as well! We'll do our best to wake them up for the rest of the festival.
Going back to the end of last year, you released the album. Was nice to get that album out?
It was, I mean, I've waited on some of these songs for four plus years. A song like Late Night at Drinking Again, I wrote that seven or eight years ago. I wanted that to come out as my real country song. Like on the first record, Who I Am, I had My Whiskey or Wine. It's kind of like an homage to my favourite Merle Haggard. It's kind of that country vibe. It's always nice to have a label finally release music.
It featured Make My Country Rock, which I think is going to go on to be an absolutely huge smash hit and has certainly gone down well with the crowds here. Looking back at the artists you got on that track with you is it still a pinch me moment?
Every day. Every day. I get a Christmas card from the Tritt family every day. You know, I'll text Travis about maybe doing shows together. Mick and I still keep in touch a lot and all those guys, they've just been so great and a huge part of my success really. I'm forever grateful to those guys for not only believing in me, but believing in the music and what I'm doing. They've all been in my shoes at one point or another and they know it's probably the hardest job in the world in the sense of making it, quote unquote. You know, it's not easy. There's a lot of great talent in this world. There's a lot of amazing artists. It's not only about talent and there's a little luck in there too. I've been very fortunate to have these people in my corner.
And then you've got a couple of tour shows when you head back to Canada as well. So does it kind of, does it feel like you're just nonstop at the minute?
As excited as I was, I'm like, this is going to be awesome. Like, man, one day, two days off, sleep and hang out with my dog, you know? But right now, yeah, we've got these two shows and then Glasgow and then we head back home for about two weeks. Then I'm going out across the US for three weeks with Dorothy and then from there I'm home for like five days. And then the Canadian tour starts. I think it's nine shows between Ontario and Canada. By the time we get to mid-May, I'm going to be around 50 shows! We're already like, yeah, it's almost now when I say it's like, holy shit, man, you know, it's been crazy.
It was, I mean, I've waited on some of these songs for four plus years. A song like Late Night at Drinking Again, I wrote that seven or eight years ago. I wanted that to come out as my real country song. Like on the first record, Who I Am, I had My Whiskey or Wine. It's kind of like an homage to my favourite Merle Haggard. It's kind of that country vibe. It's always nice to have a label finally release music.
It featured Make My Country Rock, which I think is going to go on to be an absolutely huge smash hit and has certainly gone down well with the crowds here. Looking back at the artists you got on that track with you is it still a pinch me moment?
Every day. Every day. I get a Christmas card from the Tritt family every day. You know, I'll text Travis about maybe doing shows together. Mick and I still keep in touch a lot and all those guys, they've just been so great and a huge part of my success really. I'm forever grateful to those guys for not only believing in me, but believing in the music and what I'm doing. They've all been in my shoes at one point or another and they know it's probably the hardest job in the world in the sense of making it, quote unquote. You know, it's not easy. There's a lot of great talent in this world. There's a lot of amazing artists. It's not only about talent and there's a little luck in there too. I've been very fortunate to have these people in my corner.
And then you've got a couple of tour shows when you head back to Canada as well. So does it kind of, does it feel like you're just nonstop at the minute?
As excited as I was, I'm like, this is going to be awesome. Like, man, one day, two days off, sleep and hang out with my dog, you know? But right now, yeah, we've got these two shows and then Glasgow and then we head back home for about two weeks. Then I'm going out across the US for three weeks with Dorothy and then from there I'm home for like five days. And then the Canadian tour starts. I think it's nine shows between Ontario and Canada. By the time we get to mid-May, I'm going to be around 50 shows! We're already like, yeah, it's almost now when I say it's like, holy shit, man, you know, it's been crazy.
And that's the point you always want the label to go, don't ask me for any more new music.
Oddly enough you say that because now they want to release the other nine that they've been holding back for a few years. The fans are going to get more new music this year too.
Thank you for talking and it’s great to not be doing it over Zoom for once. I'm looking forward to seeing your set later today and I'm definitely going to be powering through the hangover tomorrow morning at 11.30. Do not worry.
Thank you, the energy is definitely what helps me get it through. I'm going to give everything I got one last time today and then rest up after the set tomorrow.
SORRY FOR NOTHING is available now on exclusive red vinyl, cd, and/or digital download at
https://corymarks.ffm.to/sfn. Exclusive merch bundles are available HERE at the BNM
European label store.
Find CORY MARKS online at:
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE
C2C: Country to Country will return to Berlin in 2026 across the weekend of March 6th to 8th where you will be able to find more details on their WEBSITE and keep in the loop regarding lineups and ticket information on INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK. Then we will see you again in London (or maybe even Belfast/Glasgow) a week later across March 13th to 15th with early bird tickets set to go on sale at 10am on Friday 21st March where you can find more details on the WEBSITE and socials (FACEBOOK X and INSTAGRAM)
Oddly enough you say that because now they want to release the other nine that they've been holding back for a few years. The fans are going to get more new music this year too.
Thank you for talking and it’s great to not be doing it over Zoom for once. I'm looking forward to seeing your set later today and I'm definitely going to be powering through the hangover tomorrow morning at 11.30. Do not worry.
Thank you, the energy is definitely what helps me get it through. I'm going to give everything I got one last time today and then rest up after the set tomorrow.
SORRY FOR NOTHING is available now on exclusive red vinyl, cd, and/or digital download at
https://corymarks.ffm.to/sfn. Exclusive merch bundles are available HERE at the BNM
European label store.
Find CORY MARKS online at:
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE
C2C: Country to Country will return to Berlin in 2026 across the weekend of March 6th to 8th where you will be able to find more details on their WEBSITE and keep in the loop regarding lineups and ticket information on INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK. Then we will see you again in London (or maybe even Belfast/Glasgow) a week later across March 13th to 15th with early bird tickets set to go on sale at 10am on Friday 21st March where you can find more details on the WEBSITE and socials (FACEBOOK X and INSTAGRAM)
