Lainey Wilson’s “Whirlwind” Journey from Honky-Tonks to Headliner

Lainey Wilson’s “Whirlwind” Journey from Honky-Tonks to Headliner

Lainey Wilson reflects on the whirlwind of her career, from Grand Ole Opry dreams to CMA triumphs, while staying grounded with grit, humor, and Southern roots.

Whirlwind is not just the name of Lainey Wilson’s most recent album, but it is a very accurate description of her life right now.  She is continuing on the County’s Cool Again Tour, she has partnered with Wrangler, Kendra Scott, and Charlie 1 Horse. She has won numerous CMA awards, ACM awards, and others.  She spent time on a little show called Yellowstone.  In addition, she is one of the newest members of The Grand Ole Opry and opened a bar in Nashville.  A whirlwind indeed!

In addition to being country’s most popular female artist, you’re also a role model and hero for young women. What does that feel like?

I will tell you, it’s a good feeling, but I don’t take it lightly. I know I’ve got a lot of little girls watching me, and I just want to make sure that I’m doing and saying things I’m proud of. And, yeah, it’s a little bit of a pressure, but I feel like I do better under pressure, so I can handle it, right? 

I’ve noticed in interviews and on social media, you seem very real and down to earth. Does that come pretty natural on and off the stage?

I’ve learned that you can’t take yourself too seriously. I mean, at the end of the day, social media has become like a full-time job in itself.  I signed up to write music and play shows and do all these things, but you gotta lean into these things. And for me, it just makes it much easier to be silly and not take it too seriously.  I’d like to think I’m approachable, but I will tell you this: I have a lot of people in my life that keep me humble. I guess you could say I like to keep my people close; the people who make me feel like Lainey, the sister, the friend, the daughter, like the people who knew me before. They really just help keep both feet on the ground. 

My daughter and I saw you at Radio City Music Hall in June with Ian Munsick and Zach Top. That was the best country concert we’ve ever seen! Whoever designed the set needs to win an award.

For a long time, I have been saying I wanted a truck on stage. So a lot of work went into it, and just hats off to my team – they made it happen. And it wasn’t easy, you know, we had to pivot a bunch, but we pulled it off. And now I’m like, what are we gonna do next? 

I grew up impersonating Hannah Montana.  I think that’s where I learned a little bit of stage presence because you get thrown into certain situations and you’re playing for a three-year-old’s birthday party and you’re playing for a nursing home the next day. You’ve got to figure out your crowd and figure out how to ebb and flow. It keeps you on your toes.

Have you ever met Miley Cyrus?

I actually met her a few months ago because I got to honor her at a Disney Legends performance. I got to get up there and sing “Best of Both Worlds”, honor her, and tell her how much she even meant to me in my journey. It really showed me the ropes, and if you really want to do this, it’s not going to be easy. I was doing three or four parties a weekend. I did it for five years straight. If you want it, you’ve got to go get it yourself.

Tonight Steven Curtis Chapman is being inducted into The Opry, and you’re one of the newest members of the Opry. What does that feel like?

It’s the biggest honor that I have ever had in my life. There’s been a lot of really, really cool things happening in the last couple of years, but I will tell you, The Opry is where my dreams really started, that’s where they got set on fire. My parents took me when I was nine years old, and I remember seeing Little Jimmy Dickens, Crystal Gayle, and Bill Anderson. I remember thinking, I’m gonna stand in that circle one day. I just had this feeling even at nine years old. I know exactly where I was sitting. I look out there when I’m playing that stage, and I just think that little girl. wasn’t as crazy as maybe some people thought she was.

You are obviously a hard worker. What do you do when you’re not working so hard, or when you’re not entertaining millions of people?

Those days are few and far between right now. But I do take those moments. Yesterday, I got to spend the whole day at home in my pajamas, sitting on the porch with my dog, drinking my coffee, and having a whiskey by the fire. The simple things are the things that fill my cup and bring me so much joy, So I can go back out there and keep pouring out. Because if you don’t take those moments and you just keep on pouring and pouring and pouring that can get pretty dangerous.

I’m sure some young artists will come up to you and ask, “How do I do it?” And I’m sure there’s no secret formula because it didn’t happen overnight for you. Can you dive deeper on that?

I just say to find your thing and keep at it. Keep at it, keep at it, keep at it. It’s different for everybody. If there were a formula, everybody would be doing it. There’s not. It’s like the stars have to align, and then they have to align again, and then somehow align again. And so I always just tell them – find your thing. It was about year seven of being in Nashville, and now I’ve been there for 13 years, but I worked as a songwriter for those seven years because I knew that that was my strongest thing at that point. And I felt like if I could just get my voice heard by these labels, and my songs get pitched to these other female artists, maybe that’s how I can get my foot in the door with becoming an artist like I aLaineyays knew I wanted to do too. If your thing is social media, lean into it. If your thing is performing, then lean into it. It’s about not taking no for an answer but also being kind to everybody that you meet because they might not remember the songs you played or the song you sang in their office that day, but they might remember how you made them feel. Building those friendships and relationships with a lot of people. It matters.

Was there a moment where you feel like you like after struggling, after fighting, after working, that you felt like you knew you like you were making it? 

It is still a little surreal, but I will have moments every now and then that just kind of hit me out of the blue. And normally it’s when I’m by myself, like after the CMA’S this past year, I remember being in the back of the bus. We were somewhere in Florida about two weeks after I played this, after the awards, and I remember just sitting there by myself, I had done a little devotional, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I don’t think I had taken enough time to really let it soak in about what had just happened. And so that was a moment where I felt like we were making it. And I hope I never really feel like I made it.  I want to have the mentality that I was given this gift, and it’s my job to keep sharing it as much as I can. 

Lainey is performing at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on December 14th. To find out about everything she is doing go to laineywilson.com.

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