Pop emo outfit Rookie of the Year started as a solo acoustic project in the style of Dashboard Confessional, but quickly turned into a proper band by their second album. Rookie of the Year began in 2004 when Fayetteville, NC, native Ryan Dunson wrote and recorded the solo album Having to Let Go. After the album's initial self-released run, Dunson signed to the indie One Eleven Records, which reissued Having to Let Go with new cover art. In the meantime, Dunson assembled a full-band lineup of Rookie of the Year for touring purposes, backing his own vocals and acoustic guitar with Mike Kamerman on electric guitar, Pat Murphy on bass, and T.J. Holt on drums. The new and improved Rookie of the Year debuted in the spring of 2006 with The Goodnight Moon, which also featured new guitarist Brandon Schade. The newly expanded five-piece joined the summer 2006 edition of the Vans Warped Tour following the album's release, as well as sharing stages with bands such as Secondhand Serenade, Copeland and Reliant K. A second album came in the form of 2008's Sweet Attention, a release that leaned more on the influence of 80's synth pop. They toured ceaselessly in support of Sweet Attention, opening a massive tour for LFO, among other various dates. They followed with a string of EPs over the next several years, including 2009's Since I Left Your World, 2010's The Most Beautiful and 2012's Along for the Ride. Dunson busied himself with various side-projects and other commitments before turning in the self-released third full length The Goodnight Moon, Part II in 2013. The band set out on a tour in support of the album in the fall of 2013, playing songs from it and it's 2006 predecessor. ~ Stewart Mason