Dylan Osmon, a senior agriculture business major at Mississippi State University, has a strong passion for music and performing. 

“I started playing piano when I was eight or nine because my grandma taught me. I learned percussion in middle school when I joined the band, and I played the drums,” Osmon said. 

Church bands were also important in Osman’s musical journey.

“I played in two or three church bands growing up, but never sang only because I did not know I could,” Osmon said.

Osmon developed his musical ability even more, teaching himself how to play the guitar.

“I learned how to play the guitar my senior year of high school in Spanish class, but I was not any good at it until my sophomore or junior year of college,” Osmon said. 

After becoming more confident in his ability to play the guitar well, Osmon decided he wanted to start a band.

“A little before Christmas during my junior year of college I decided I wanted to start a band because I wanted something to do,” Osmon said. “I put up flyers around campus and the people that responded were a couple, and we met up and decided to call ourselves ‘The Third Wheel’ because I was single, and they were a couple.”

By the time he started his band during the spring semester of his junior year, Osmon had not started to sing yet. By that time, Osmon said the band had only five or six performances. 

The summer before his senior year, Osmon decided he was tired of paying singers. 

“I took voice lessons last spring because I wanted to learn how to sing, and I got a little better and had a few songs I felt comfortable performing in front of people, so I decided to go solo in my hometown in Arkansas,” Osmon said. 

After he took voice lessons, his love for performance developed. Since then, Osmon performs weekly. 

“During the summer, I started to perform two to three times a week in my hometown, and I got more comfortable with more songs,” Osmon said.

After school started, Osmon started performing for tips. 

“I came back to Starkville, and it was a slow grind getting into venues, but I worked my way in,” Osmon said. 

Osmon now has weekly shows at local bars and restaurants, such as Moe’s Original Bar B Que and Hobie’s Right Field Tiki Lounge. He also performs at on-campus venues, such as fraternity events. 

Along with being a local musician, Osmon is also involved in different organizations on campus. 

“I joined Roadrunners my sophomore year, and I am apart of the ‘78 club’, which means I have given 78 campus tours,” Osmon said.

Taylor Reeves, a senior business administration major, met Osmon through Roadrunners and booked Osmon for performances at his fraternity.

“I met Dylan through Roadrunners, which is an admissions tour guide program for incoming freshmen. We became good friends, and I heard Dylan started performing at venues, so I went to a couple of his shows, and I was impressed,” Reeves said. “His performance was wonderful. A lot of parents and Sigma Chi alumni were also impressed with Dylan’s sound and wanted to get his name to have him perform down on the Coast.”

During their time as Roadrunners, Reeves and Osmon have become close friends.

“I have wanted to model myself around Dylan because he will shoot you straight, and is a really good guy, so I have a lot of respect for him,” Reeves said.

Aside from his involvement with the Roadrunners, Osmon has been busy with different performances throughout this semester. 

“I have performed at King’s Craft Butcher and I host open mic night every Wednesday at Hobie’s Tiki Bar,” Osmon said. “I play for 20-30 minutes at an 18-and-up bar called Hobie’s, and other local musicians have the opportunity to take the stage and perform from 9:30 to 11:30 on Wednesday nights.”

Wyly Bigger, a recent MSU marketing graduate and musician, met Osmon at a show at Hobie’s. 

“I was at one of Dylan’s shows at Hobie’s, and I went up and complimented him because I loved his sound and thought he was talented. Whenever I’m down in Starkville we schedule something together, and I also enjoy seeing him play because he has a good voice,” Bigger said. 

At the moment, Osmon only sings cover songs, but he hopes to learn how to write music for future performances. 

“I play the guitar and sing into the mic, and perform what people tell me to. I predominantly sing country music because that is what people want to hear around here, but I love to sing John Mayer and the Eagles,” Osmon said. 

John Mayer is Osmon’s musical inspiration, describing him as a living legend.

Osmon will graduate this December with a major in agricultural business and three minors in mathematics, economics and business administration. After graduation, he plans on working for Southern Mississippi Trading. Preparing for graduation, Osmon’s describes his music as being a hobby that also makes him a little bit of money. 

“At the moment music is a side hustle for me, but it has been a great way to make income in college, and meet a ton of people, which is a great time,” Osmon said. 

Osmon typically performs every Thursday, Friday and Saturday. He posts his performance dates and venues on his Instagram account, @dylan_osmon.