Benjamin Tod's minimalist folk, country, and Americana songs channel the unvarnished honesty of artists like Townes Van Zandt and Blaze Foley. Rooted in themes of poverty, grief, addiction, and redemption, his unfiltered narratives bear the authenticity and wisdom of a hard life lived, as heard on assured efforts like I Will Rise (2017), Songs I Swore I'd Never Sing (2021), and Vengeance and Grace (2026). In addition to his solo work, Tod is the frontman of Lost Dog Street Band, a group he co‑founded in 2010 with fiddler and vocalist Ashley Mae. Born and raised in Cottontown, Tennessee, Tod spent his formative years picking away on a Fullerton parlor guitar, hopping trains, getting expelled from school, and otherwise earning a crash course in Country Songwriting 101. After briefly joining a group called Barefoot Surrender, he split off with bandmate/fiddler and future wife Ashley Mae -- and their Labrador, Daisy -- to form the Lost Dog Street Band. 2011's Sick Pup introduced audiences to the duo's unflinching honesty, grit, and commitment to shining a spotlight on life on the margins in America, a thematic thread that carried over on subsequent efforts Life’s a Dog‑Gone Shame (2013), Homeward Bound (2015), and Rage and Tragedy (2016). Utilizing a pair of microphones and no overdubs, Tod released his debut solo album, I Will Rise, in 2017, with the like-minded A Heart of Gold Is Hard to Find appearing in 2019. That same year, Lost Dog Street Band unveiled the acclaimed Weight of a Trigger, which reached number five on the Billboard Bluegrass Album chart. 2022 saw the releases of Tod's solo effort Songs I Swore I'd Never Sing and the Lost Dog Street Band's Glory, with Survived (LDSB) and Vengeance and Grace (Tod solo) appearing in 2024 and 2026, respectively. - Biography by James Christopher Monger