Chely Wright was born on Oct. 25, 1970, in Kansas City, Mo., but grew up in rural Kansas in a family with four generations of musicians. Amid the gospel and rock records in her family's collection, Wright was fascinated by the music of Buck Owens, Loretta Lynn, Connie Smith, Wanda Jackson, Porter Wagoner and Conway Twitty. At age 9, her Christmas list included a doll and a wish to move to Nashville.

She started singing in bands at age 11 and within a few years had formed her own band, County Line. The summer before her senior year in high school, she went to Branson, Mo., and landed a job in the Ozark Jubilee, the long-running country show whose alumni included Brenda Lee and Red Foley. At her grandfather's urging, she auditioned and won a job in a musical production at the Opryland theme park. She took her final exams a week early and moved to Nashville.

While there, she interned and attended writers' nights, while honing her singing and songwriting. Harold Shedd (whose production credits include Alabama) signed her to Mercury/Polygram, and her first album was released in 1994 on the corporation's Polydor label. She was named top new female vocalist by the Academy of Country Music, though her singles did not crack the Top 40. Her second album failed to make a dent as well.

In 1996, she wrote out a wish list for her career, including among others things a new record label and producer. At the top of her list were MCA Nashville and Tony Brown. She locked it up in a box and asked to be released from Mercury. Within a year or so, she signed with MCA and went into the studio with Brown. Her 1997 album featured the hit "Shut Up and Drive," and the title track to her fourth album, Single White Female, hit No. 1 in 1999.

--CMT.com