It's All in a Name to Rodney Atkins

Rodney Atkins photo courtesy of Curb Records

June 28, 2007 — The new issue of Guideposts magazine features a cover story by Rodney Atkins in which he reveals he was willing to do almost anything to make the big time, except change his name.

Although aspiring artists often change or modify their family names to be distinctive and stand out from the crowd, Rodney refused to consider that option, even when his record company practically insisted.

"If you're a big country music fan, then my name probably sounds a little familiar to you," Rodney writes. "And not just because I've had a couple of hit singles recently. My last name has an illustrious history in the business.

"Back in 1994 I was making my first forays into Nashville from east Tennessee, where I grew up," he continues. "My new record label told me they had something they needed to discuss with me before we even got started. 'Rodney, we're going to have to do something about that name of yours. It's just too close to some folks out there who everyone already knows — Chet Atkins, Trace Adkins — you're not related, are you?"

Rodney goes on to describe how he was given up by his birth mother as a newborn and then by two adoptive couples who couldn't deal with a sick and colicky baby before he found a home.

"That family name — Atkins — is what saved me from who knows what and gave me the richly blessed life I have today," he writes. "A family has a way of healing you. I turned into just about the healthiest, happiest kid you could find in east Tennessee. I outgrew the colic, of course, but I will never outgrow my family. Because family, well, that's just about the most important thing in life. Just ask a couple by the name of Allan and Margaret Atkins."