He and his brother Doug shared a bedroom when they were kids. Every night mom would call up the stairs around 8 p.m. and say ‘hey boys it’s time to stop singing and go to sleep.’ The two brothers were a bit like the Baker Boys, performing in local bars in Pullman, Washington while both attending Washington State University. The duo was called “Back to Back.” Later in Seattle, he formed a popular duo, BACKHOLM/HALL, with Patti Hall, 2007 New Music Awards “Breakthrough Country Artist of the Year”.

In 2007, Music and Media International (MMI) of Los Angeles signed a national publishing contract picking up all 11 tracks from his first CD “A Question for You”. In 2008, “Mother and Child” was selected by the National March of Dimes for a debut fundraiser compilation CD called “Stork Tunes.” Artists on the project include Billy Joel, Wynona, Norah Jones, Sinead O’Connor and others. Proceeds from the sale of the new CD will fund the nonprofit’s efforts to give every baby a healthy start in life. That same year, “Turn Off the Moon”, a co-write with Cheryl Ashton, Cathy Serum and Richard Davis of Nashville, was a semi-finalist in the International Songwriting Competition, one of the largest contests in the industry.

At the Kauai Music Festival, “Undeniable” and “Long Way Home” were honored as two of the seven best songs out of the more than 2000 entered in the conference songwriting contest. The video for “Long Way Home” took second place.

The Texas Songwriters’ Cruise is a respected songwriters’ gathering held each year in the Caribbean on a cruise ship. Hundreds of songwriters gather to perfect their craft and submit songs for judging. Dean and Cheryl Ashton’s songs “Undeniable” and “Long Way Home” took home the Grand Prize. Both are currently being shopped to Nashville artists and record companies.