Kurt Lee Wheeler

Biography

Kurt Lee Wheeler is an Americana singer-songwriter, poet, performer, and U.S. Air Force veteran from Lathemtown, in Cherokee County, Georgia. The son of a cattleman, he taught himself guitar and recorded his first songs on reel-to-reel and four-track tape.
Kurt served in the Air Force from 1984 to 1989 as an Avionics Senior Systems Specialist at Seymour-Johnson Air Force Base and Osan Air Base, and Myrtle Beach Air Force Base. Earning Airman of the Quarter at both Seymour-Johnson, and Osan. While serving, he formed a band, Hint of Insurgence, with fellow airmen and began performing at parties and clubs.
After the military, Kurt spent more than 30 years as a teacher, known locally as ‘Coach Wheele, Mr Wheeler, and Dr Wheeler.” His albums include Bama Motel (1992), On Our Way (2021) and Lathemtown (2025), which was nominated in Americana Highways’ Best Albums of 2025. His song “Cherokee County,” written with his mother, is the official song of Cherokee County, Georgia.
Performing solo and with his band, The Lathemtown Poets Society, Kurt has played more than 1000 shows, including charity events for veteran causes, wearing his father’s 50-year-old cowboy hat. Above all, he is a storyteller.