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VIDEO: Coal's new crooner

AN UNLIKELY challenger has stepped up in the war being waged against the American coal industry.

Staff Reporter

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Former coal miner and Marine veteran Jimmy Rose may well be the human face the industry needs to fight Obama’s “war on coal”

The 32-year-old from Pineville, Kentucky wowed audiences when he sang his original song “Coal Keeps the Lights On” on America’s Got Talent this week.

“Where I’m from, it’s such a small town. It’s either coal mines, the military or you go to college. So I dove straight into the coal mine,” Rose said on the show.

You can see Rose's performance on the America's Got Talent YouTube channel here:

“I was 18 years old when I graduated high school and went straight underground four days after I graduated.

“It’s such a hard life and it’s dangerous. It kind of made me think, if you’re going to risk your life, risk it for your country. It’s more than worth it.”

Rose dedicated his song to his hometown, adding that all his friends and family back home are coal miners.

With lyrics such as, “Coal keeps the lights on in my home town, keeps the food on the spoon in my young’un’s mouth”, ILN can just see the advocacy ads now.

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