Brad Paisley was born on October 28, 1972 in Glen Dale, West Virginia. From the start, Brad had a love for music, and remembers his grandfather playing Merle Travis, Chet Atkins, and Les Paul on the guitar when he was very young. He received a guitar of his own on his eighth birthday from his grandfather. After practicing for two years, Brad became a talented player and took up singing as well. He performed at church and at meetings for the Lion’s Club and the Fraternal Order of the Elks before he formed his own band, Brad Paisley & the C-Notes.

Brad experienced early success when, at age twelve, the first song he wrote, “Born on Christmas Day,” got his school principal’s attention. Brad was asked to perform the song at the Rotary Club meeting, attended by the program director for WWVA. The director, Tom Miller, was greatly impressed with Brad’s performance and invited him to perform again on the station’s Saturday night show, Jamboree USA. After his appearance on the show, Brad became a regular and stayed for eight years. Playing on the show granted him with several other opportunities as well. It allowed him to perform at Jamboree in the Hills, a summer festival, where he could play for over 60,000 people. The most important thing Brad gained from the show was the advice from other, more experienced performers, including legendary George Jones.

Brad started college at West Liberty College near his home after high school. Here, he was able to stay close to his friends and family. However, considering his love for music and dream to be a country music artist, Brad was advised to move to Nashville and attend Belmont University for the music business program. Although hesitant at first, Brad took the advice and moved. Once there, he met Frank Rogers, Kelley Lovelace, and other musicians who later helped him in his songwriting and producing. Brad interned at ASCAP, the performing rights association, and met many new people who were impressed with Brad’s talent. They set up an appointment with the EMI Music Publishing Company for Brad and only a week after his graduation, he signed a songwriting deal with EMI.

To earn extra money, Brad continued singing and played on a few demos. Arista Nashville’s A&R Department was attracted by one of these demos and asked Brad to join their company. His first No. 1 single, “He Didn’t Have to Be,” co-written with Kelley, came in 1999. That same year, Brad’s debut album, Who Needs Pictures, was released and went platinum. Brad’s success continued through the next year when in 2000, he won the Country Music Association’s Horizon Award and the Academy of Country Music’s Best New Male Vocalist Award. In 2001, Brad was nominated for his first Grammy for the All-Genre Best New Artist Award.

His second album, Part II, was released in 2001 and furthered his success with another No. 1 hit, “I’m Gonna Miss Her (The Fishing Song).” In 2003, Brad released his third album, Mud on the Tires, with the hit song, “Celebrity.” Time Well Wasted was released in August of 2005 and featured another hit, “Alcohol,” and his duet with Dolly Parton, “When I Get Where I’m Going.” The duet won the 2006 ACM Awards for Best Video and Vocal Event of the Year.