Gretchen Wilson Information

A hard start in life probably prepared Gretchen Wilson for the ups and downs of a career in music. Born in rural Illinois to a teenage mother and without a father in her life, Gretchen Wilson had quit school and was cooking and tending bar alongside her Mom by age 14. By 15 Gretchen Wilson was living on her own. She started out singing along to CDs at the bar for tips and then began to sing for two local cover bands.

Gretchen Wilson moved to Nashville in 1996 but it took her four years to make a dent in the music business, tending bar and singing in bars while she waited. John Rich and Big Kenny (of Big & Rich) heard her sing with the house band and John asked her, "How come you ain't got a record deal yet?" She threw him a homemade demo and a business card and went on tending bar. He listened, and called, but Gretchen Wilson didn't take him seriously for months. When she did, it led to work on demos, introductions in the industry, and the Muzik Mafia, a loose-knit group of singers, songwriters, and musicians who jam together (and party) weekly in a local Nashville nightspot. Gretchen Wilson soaked up what she learned from the Muzik Mafia and landed a record contract with Sony Music Nashville.

Gretchen Wilson blasted into the country music charts with "Redneck Woman," and went to No. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song also won Gretchen Wilson a Grammy. Gretchen Wilson went from not making the rent to being the hottest new star in Nashville overnight. The 2004 Gretchen Wilson debut album Here For the Party debuted at No. 1 on the country chart, reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200, and sold more than 4 million copies. The followup, All Jacked Up, was released in September 2005.

Gretchen Wilson and longtime boyfriend Michael Penner have a daughter, Grace Frances Penner, born in 2000.

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