Chernoff, Billy W.

Websites:  https://citizenfreak.com/artists/110575-charne-billy, https://www.billychernoff.com/
Origin: Grand Forks, British Columbia → Toronto, Ontario, 🇨🇦 → Nashville, Tennessee, 🇺🇸
Biography:

Billy W. Chernoff—also known under the stage names Billy Charne and Billy Charne Chernoff—is a Canadian singer-songwriter whose music reflects the spirit of the open range and the quiet depth of gospel introspection. With a style often described as “Urban Western” or “Asphalt Country,” Billy’s songs are richly narrative, spiritually grounded, and unmistakably rooted in the West.

Born and raised in Grand Forks, British Columbia, Chernoff grew up in a Doukhobor farming community steeped in tradition and self-reliance. His early life reads like a frontier novel: grooming and exercising racehorses, roughnecking in Alberta oil fields, riding bareback broncs, and clowning on the rodeo circuit in Oregon and Nevada. It was during one of these rodeos, in John Day, Oregon, that Billy entered a local talent contest—and won second place. That encouragement changed the course of his life.

He moved to Toronto in the late 1960s, began performing in clubs, and soon landed a deal with RCA Records after an independent session caught the attention of producer Jack Feeney. His early singles were Canadian chart successes: “Suzies’ Better Half” reached the top five, while “When You Were a Lady” hit number one nationally. These recordings, credited to Billy Chernoff, showcased a warm vocal tone and lyrical style that would become his signature.

A subsequent move to Nashville brought him into the orbit of legendary guitarist and producer Chet Atkins, who agreed to produce Billy’s first session in the U.S. The resulting single, “To-Ma-Ray Tom-O-Ray,” became a radio hit in Canada and gained regional attention in the American South. Unfortunately, label red tape and contractual complications stalled Billy’s U.S. breakthrough, prompting a shift westward once again—this time to California.

There, he signed a five-year management deal with Great Western Music Inc. and recorded an album for Sussex Records under the name Billy Charne. The LP featured the track “Fresno Rodeo,” which resonated so deeply with rodeo legend Casey Tibbs that he submitted it for nomination at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.

Though the business side of the music industry has sometimes proved disheartening, Billy never let commercial setbacks interfere with his calling. His songwriting continued, his faith remained strong, and his performances—whether on stage, in studio, or around a campfire—retained a quiet, heartfelt authenticity. For Billy, music is not a commodity; it is a vocation and an offering.

His later albums, including Fresno Rodeo (ATI Music, 1995), reflect his deepening fusion of cowboy storytelling, gospel roots, and reflections on life’s triumphs and trials. Songs like “Rodeo Cowboy,” “In My Dreams,” and “The Poet Lives On in a Song” have earned him a place among Canada’s great unsung troubadours.

Whether performing under Billy Chernoff or Billy Charne, his voice has always sounded like that of an old friend—familiar, lived-in, and full of soul. His music is meant to travel with you, like a good companion on the road: part prayer, part memory, part open sky.
-Robert Williston