Jessica Harp entered the world on February 3, 1982, in Kansas City, Missouri. Music occupied a central place in her life from the outset, with singing underway by age three, lyric writing begun at eight, and guitar playing started at thirteen. Her first recording, the independent album Preface, surfaced in 2002 yet attracted scant notice. While employed as a Nashville singer and songwriter she supplied backing vocals for Michelle Branch. Branch’s choice to pause her own career in 2004 prompted Harp to form the country roots duo the Wreckers alongside her friend. Harp’s country edge blended effectively with Branch’s pop sensibility, and the Wreckers achieved success immediately. Their debut album, Stand Still, Look Pretty, was issued by Maverick Records in 2006; the live set Way Back Home: Live from New York City followed a year later in 2007. That same year the pair announced they were suspending the Wreckers to focus on solo work. In 2008 Harp married Jason Mowery, the duo’s fiddle player. Her solo album A Woman Needs, produced by Jerry Flowers and featuring guest appearances by Vince Gill and Keith Urban, was released by Warner Bros. Nashville in 2009.
