Kuss plays the bass guitar and sings in the Classic Country group called Gary Nix and West Texas, a pastime he has enjoyed for 18 years.

“We travel all over – wherever they’ll have us,” Kuss said. “We’ve been to the Fort Worth Stockyards, we’ve been to New Mexico, we’ve been down to Corpus to play at a National Convention, Midland, Odessa, San Angelo. You name it.”

Last year, Kuss and his band received multiple awards from the Country Music Association of Texas (CMAT), including the coveted Troubadour Award, and the band’s steel guitar player, Baxter Vaughan, was awarded Instrumentalist of the Year for 2020.

“This year, as a matter of fact, we are still in the recording studio trying to finish our newest album, and CMAT called and said, ‘We heard you’re doing an album and we want to hear the songs,’” Kuss said. “We told them that we weren’t even done yet, but they asked us to send them what we have. We sent them about three songs that have been finalized, and they called back about three days later and told us that we won Album of the Year!”

Kuss said the band plays mostly country music, a lot of Classic Rock, Oldies, and Elvis inspired “Rock n’ Roll.”

“We are on YouTube, we are also on Facebook, and we also have our own website,” Kuss said. “I have loved music for so many years. Just being able to be on stage, entertain people, and see them smile is just like therapy.”

Kuss said that through the years, coaching and teaching at Frenship have brought him just as much joy as being an entertainer.

Kuss started teaching at Frenship Middle School as a math teacher in 1975, and after moving around to different school districts for a few years, he quickly learned that Frenship was where he was meant to be. He made his permanent move to Frenship in the early 1980’s, where he has been ever since.

“I was also Assistant Principal here at the high school in the mid-80’s,” Kuss said. “I lasted about two years but missed coaching so bad. Luckily, they had an opening, and I stepped right back in at the Varsity level.”

Kuss said that a few years ago he took a step back from coaching to focus on his family and his music.

“During Football, we were working seven days per week,” Kuss said. “Now I get to play with the band on weekends, and now if we have a gig on a Thursday or Friday night, I don’t miss it because I don’t have to coach. And the bonus is, I get to spend more time with my family.”

Of all the hats Kuss has worn, he says coaching will always be his favorite.

“I compare Frenship to a smaller, closer-knit kind of school,” Kuss said. “I think the kids see, that even thought we are a 6A school, they aren’t just a number, they are people. When I was coaching, every year I would work to learn each kid’s first and last name. Sometimes there were over one hundred kids out there, but I would work to remember every single one. It is amazing to see how a kid reacts when you call them by their name, like they are important and noticed.”

Kuss said that even though he is no longer coaching, he has that same goal in his classes now. He said he wants to be able to see any kid walking down the hall, and to be able to call them by their name.

“Kids come first,” Kuss said. “That is my philosophy – the kids come first.”

If you want to hear the music stylings of Gary Nix and West Texas, visit their webpage, Facebook, or check them out on YouTube. Kuss and his band members will be honored at an awards banquet in March 2021 for CMAT’s Album of the Year.