Born on June 26, 1973 in Pocahontas, Illinois, Gretchen Wilson moved from trailer to trailer throughout her childhood. Her mother was sixteen when Gretchen was born and without Gretchen’s father, they had a hard time finding enough money to pay the rent. By the time Gretchen was fourteen, she was working at the Big O’s bar with her mother. Here, she practiced her singing as she sang karaoke for tips almost every night.

The next year, Gretchen was living and managing the bar on her own. After singing in a band for a while, she believed that she could make something out of her musical talent and, in 1996, she moved to Nashville, Tennessee.

In Nashville, Gretchen worked at a bar in Printers Alley for a few years until her career took off. During that time, Gretchen had a daughter and kept practicing her vocal skills at the bar. About four years since she moved to Nashville, Gretchen encountered John Rich from Big & Rich at the bar and he became interested in her. John tried to contact Gretchen for several months but she ignored him until her friend advised her to let him help. When she did let John help her start her music career, he introduced her to his friends, used her singing on demos, and taught her about the songwriting community.

A few years after Gretchen met John she was signed to Sony Music Nashville. Her debut album, Here for the Party, was released in 2004 and sold over 4 million copies. The album made it to the #2 spot on the Billboard country album charts and her song, “Redneck Woman,” won the 2004 Grammy Award for the Best Female Country Vocal Performance. In 2005, Gretchen released All Jacked Up and won the 2005 Female Vocalist of the Year Award.