Lainey Wilson

Lainey Wilson's work fuses a rural outlook with the refined sheen of today's Nashville sound. Delivering vocals in a forthright Southern drawl, she crafts contemporary country material that is both resilient and sincere, sharpened by influences from vintage Southern rock, classic rock, and a trace of present-day pop. Her initial full-length release, Tougher from 2016, already displayed a fully realized artistic identity, whereas the major-label debut Sayin' What I'm Thinkin' in 2021 featured smoother production values and introduced the breakthrough single "Things a Man Oughta Know." She built on that momentum with Bell Bottom Country in 2022, an album that channeled '70s outlaws and country-rock yet transformed those vintage elements into something original and distinctive. Following her selection as Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association, Wilson received a Grammy Award and joined the ensemble of Yellowstone. Her fifth studio album, Whirlwind, appeared in August 2024.

Born in Baskin, Louisiana—a community of only 300 residents—Wilson grew up with a farmer father and a mother who worked as a schoolteacher. Music captured her attention early; she began composing lyrics at age nine and picked up the guitar at eleven. During high school a teacher recruited her to portray Hannah Montana for a class assignment, an impersonation that proved so popular she soon toured the state with a tribute show. In a fitting pattern, she frequently opened those performances with original material before closing as the Miley Cyrus character. Upon graduation she relocated from Louisiana to Nashville, where her initial residence was a trailer her father placed in the lot of a recording studio whose manager supplied power. After several years of local gigs and songwriting refinement, she issued Tougher in 2016, an album that reached number 44 on the Country Albums chart. Her follow-up was the six-track EP Lainey Wilson.

As her profile increased, Wilson secured a publishing agreement with Sony/ATV and then a recording contract with Broken Bow Records, distributed through BMG. Following a support tour with Morgan Wallen, she recorded with producer Jay Joyce; Broken Bow issued the three-song EP Redneck Hollywood in September 2019. Two years later came the Joyce-produced full-length Sayin' What I'm Thinkin', whose lead single "Things a Man Oughta Know" ascended to the top of Billboard's Country Airplay chart. That success earned her two Academy of Country Music Awards—New Female Artist of the Year and Song of the Year—plus two Country Music Association Awards for Female Vocalist of the Year and New Artist of the Year. The next album cycle opened in May 2022 with "Heart Like a Truck," which climbed to number 16 on Country Airplay; its parent record, Bell Bottom Country, arrived that October. Reuniting with Jay Joyce, the project highlighted her '70s country-rock foundations and generated additional hits in "Watermelon Moonshine" and "Wildflowers and Wild Horses." Shortly afterward Wilson appeared on Yellowstone and supplied tracks for its soundtrack. At the 2023 CMAs she claimed five trophies, including Entertainer of the Year, marking the first time a woman had won that honor since Taylor Swift in 2009. Bell Bottom Country then received the Grammy for Best Country Album in 2024. That same year she collaborated with Keith Urban on "Go Home with U," placed "Out of Oklahoma" on the Twisters soundtrack, and issued "Hang Tight Honey" as the first single from Whirlwind, which followed in August.