Trisha Yearwood Every Girl
Story by Snehashree Mandal for Country Music News International
MTM Records granted Yearwood an internship, and she was later employed with them as a full-time employee. She recorded a series of demo recordings and sang background vocals for new artists using the record label’s resources. Garth Brooks was one of the performers with whom she collaborated. Brooks promised Yearwood that if his career took off, he would help her obtain a recording contract. Brooks introduced her to his producer, Allen Reynolds, who introduced her to producer Garth Fundis.
Where it all began?
In Monticello, Georgia, Yearwood was born to Gwendolyn Yearwood, a schoolteacher, and Jack Howard Yearwood, a local banker. Since she was a child, she has always loved music and has participated in many music events hosted by her school and neighbourhood. Talent shows, church gatherings, and musicals were among the possibilities. Yearwood attended Young Harris College for two years after graduating from high school, earning an associate degree in commerce. She then dropped out of the University of Georgia after one semester. Yearwood then relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1985 to pursue a music business degree at Belmont College.
In 1991, Yearwood released her self-titled debut album. The album’s debut hit, “She’s in Love with the Boy,” reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, propelling her to stardom. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified her debut album double-platinum for shipments of two million copies after it sold one million copies. Yearwood’s debut record also made her the first female country musician to sell a million copies. The album received four and a half stars from AllMusic, who described it as “an exquisite debut that stands the test of time.”
Her musical journey so far….
Yearwood continued to pursue more possibilities as her career progressed. After parting ways with her prior management agency, she went to work with Ken Kragen, who was in charge of Kenny Rogers and Travis Tritt. She also became the endorser for Revlon’s Wild Heart fragrance. Yearwood revealed in a 2010 interview with Good Housekeeping that she was asked to embrace a male model while filming the fragrance’s commercial. She refused and stated that she would not continue production until her manager arrived to back her up. Eventually, the commercial was filmed and broadcast on numerous television networks.
Hearts in Armor, Yearwood’s second studio album, was released in 1992. Yearwood chose tracks for her second album inspired by her inner turmoil after divorcing her first husband, Chris Latham. The album featured ballads and collaborations with Don Henley, Emmylou Harris, and Raul Malo and departed from her prior work. The album received positive reviews from music critics who stated it was one of the best heartache records ever recorded by country music in the ’80s and ’90s. According to About.com, Hearts in Armor is “perhaps Trisha’s finest work ever.”
Everybody Knows, her fifth studio album, was released in August 1996, and it was identical to her last album. The songs on the album were predominantly ballads with more prominent melodies. Critics gave Everybody Knows a mixed response. The album received three out of five stars from AllMusic, with the songs being described as “a touch inconsistent.” Everybody Knows gave birth to Yearwood’s fourth number-one single on the Billboard country chart, “Believe Me Baby (I Lied).” In 1996, the title tune was released as the second single and reached the top five.
What shaped her songs
Yearwood’s seventh studio album, Real Live Woman, was released in March 2000, following her second divorce. The record represented emotional issues following the split, comparable to Hearts in Armor. The CD featured Bruce Springsteen’s “Sad Eyes” and Linda Ronstadt’s “Try Me Again,” among other songs. Real Live Woman was praised by AllMusic, who described it as a “measured, thoughtful record in the finest conceivable manner.” In the United States, the album sold 500,000 copies, which featured two singles: the title track and “Where Are You Now.”
When Yearwood is not making music
Over the year’s she did different things after departing from MCA Nashville in May 2007. She began a cooking show and wrote several cookbooks. Though she took a break from the music industry yet, she was active within it. She frequented her husband Garth Brooks world tour and his several musical accomplishments. She also participated in the live television musical show The Passion.
In 2018, she returned to music and did an album on Frank Sinatra’s previously recorded albums. From cooking, film & television, artistry & philanthropy, her interests seemed many down the line. She is doing finely even now and appears to be doing everything she can lay her hands on alongside music.