Catrina and her Skull

Paulo Franco is a Richmond, Virginia based bilingual singer/songwriter. He has opened for the likes of nationally touring singer/songwriters such as Chris Knight, Adam Carroll and Bloodshot Records artists Cory Branan and Austin Lucas. His music has been featured on radio stations XL102's Studio B, WRIR and WDCE in Richmond, WNRN and WTJU in Charlottesville, VA and WHRO in Hampton Roads, VA. He was also been featured on WTVR Channel 6's Virginia This Morning. In 2012, he was named a finalist in the Southeast region of the Mountain Stage NewSong songwriting contest. He was the only Virginia songwriter so selected in 2012.
His latest release is The Last Card. Emily Hinde of No Depression Magazine calls it “A phenomenal Sophomore record.” Louise Parker of Paste Magazine calls it “possibly the most sincere record I have heard all year.” Richmond’s Style Weekly calls it “brilliant.” The album features performances by Daniel Clarke of Ryan Adams' current backing band The Shining, as well as performances by Stephen McCarthy of The Long Ryders and Jayhawks, and Silos founding member Bob Rupe. The album was produced and engineered by Bob Rupe at P&P Studios in Richmond, Virginia.

Paulo’s music is a reflection of growing up a first generation American. Although he was born and raised in the United States, Paulo's parents hail from Medellín, Colombia. He grew up with American music, but the music of his parent's homeland was also a part of that soundtrack. His Americana music is a blend of rock, old school country, alt-country and blues. The music draws heavily from influences like Steve Earle, Hank Williams, John Hiatt, Slaid Cleaves, Chris Knight, the Gram Parsons inspired music of the Rolling Stones, the Drive By Truckers and The Grateful Dead. Paulo has also begun writing songs in Spanish, fusing traditional Latin and Colombian rhythms with American Rock and Roll. That fusion can be heard on his homage to Medellín, La Estrella del País, along with Llorando and Catrina Y Su Calavera, the tale of man overcome by the beauty of a mysterious woman he meets and a shot of tequila. The song was inspired by a beer called La Calavera Catrina, brewed by Central Virginia’s Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery. The heart of his music is storytelling, and his family is a great source of inspiration - from the love story of Paulo's parents in "Married in a Black Dress" to the roller coaster emotions of leaving his daughter behind for her first year of college in "Rolling Back to Raleigh." Paulo is a songwriter who proudly wears all of his emotions on his sleeves.

He has performed as a solo artist and with his band The Freightliners (Dan Sessler on lead guitar, Dave Hess on drums, Chad Bennett/Doug Thompson on bass) in venues throughout Virginia, Maryland DC and North Carolina, and he has also performed as a solo artist in Austin, TX, Boston, MA, Ohio and Johnson City, TN and throughout Colombia, South America.