Maren Morris facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Maren Morris
Morris in 2024
Born	Maren Larae Morris (1990-04-10) April 10, 1990 (age 35) Arlington, Texas, U.S.
Alma mater	University of North Texas
Occupation	Singer songwriter
Years active	2002–present
Spouse(s)	Ryan Hurd ​ ​ (m. 2018; div. 2024)​
Children	1
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Genres	Country country pop pop R&B
Instruments	Vocals guitar
Labels	Mozzi Bozzi Smith Columbia Nashville Columbia

Maren Larae Morris (born April 10, 1990) is an American singer and songwriter. Her music is mostly country, but it also mixes in sounds from pop and R&B. She has won many awards, including a Grammy Award, an American Music Award, and several Country Music Association Awards and Academy of Country Music Awards.

Maren Morris was born and grew up in Arlington, Texas. She loved singing from a young age. She started performing for audiences when she was a preteen. She even toured around Texas. In her late teens and early twenties, she released three albums on small record labels. During this time, she moved to Nashville to follow her dream of a country music career. She signed a songwriting contract and then a recording contract after her 2015 EP became popular online.

Her first big album, Hero (2016), came out on Columbia Nashville. It blended country music with R&B. The first song from the album, "My Church", became a huge hit on country radio. Other successful songs from Hero included "80s Mercedes", "I Could Use a Love Song", and "Rich". In 2018, Maren worked with Grey and Zedd on the song "The Middle". This song became a top ten pop hit in many countries.

In 2019, she released her second album, Girl. This album mixed country with other music styles and featured collaborations with different artists. It had two number one songs: "Girl" and "The Bones". Maren released her third album, Humble Quest, on March 25, 2022. This album set a Guinness World Records for the most first-day and first-week streams for a country album by a female artist on Amazon Music.

Besides her solo work, she has also recorded music as part of the group The Highwomen. She also collaborated with her former husband, Ryan Hurd. Maren Morris has had two albums certified for sales in North America. She has also had three number one songs on the Billboard Country Airplay chart. She has eight top ten songs on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

Maren Morris has been recognized on many important lists. Forbes magazine included her in their 30 Under 30 list in 2018. Out Magazine named her one of the most important LGBTQ+ artists of 2024. Billboard also put her on their Decade-end list of the top 50 most successful Country Artists of the 2010s. In 2024, she was on their list of the 100 Greatest Country Artists of All Time.

Early Life and Musical Beginnings

Maren Morris was born in Arlington, Texas. Her parents are Greg and Kellie Morris. Maren was named after an actress, Maren Jensen. She has a younger sister named Karsen. Maren's parents owned a hair salon called Maren Karsen Aveda Hair Salon. Maren spent a lot of her childhood there. She later worked at the salon, helping customers. In elementary school, she sang in the choir, acted in plays, and played soccer.

She found out she could sing at a party at her parents' salon. She sang karaoke songs by Patsy Cline and LeAnn Rimes. Her father, Greg Morris, was very impressed. He started to encourage her to sing regularly. One of Maren's first performances was at Johnnie High's, a country music show. From that moment, Maren knew that singing was what she was meant to do. When she was 12, her father bought her a guitar. This inspired her to start writing her own songs. She went to James Bowie High School in Arlington. She continued to play soccer there. Her favorite classes were creative writing and art.

Music Career Journey

Starting Out in Texas and Moving to Nashville (2002–2015)

Maren Morris began touring her home state of Texas when she was 11 years old. Her father helped her by managing her and finding places for her to perform. Maren often sang in Dallas and Fort Worth. She played at bars and clubs. She said, "Music was always this weekend job that I had while the rest of my friends were going to slumber parties."

In 2005, she flew alone for the first time to attend a Grammy camp. Maren was one of many high school students chosen for this camp. It was sponsored by the Grammy Foundation. She met people from the music industry at workshops. In 2005, when she was 15, Maren released her first album, Walk On. This album was released on a small label called Mozzi Bozzi. It had ten songs, mostly written by Maren herself. Her parents paid for the album. Her mother, Kellie Morris, said they "literally sold the furniture out of the house" to afford it. Smith Music released Maren's second album, All That It Takes, in 2007. This album also had mostly songs she wrote.

In her late teens, Maren tried out for many TV music shows. These included American Idol, America's Got Talent, The Voice, and Nashville Star. She was not chosen for any of them. Years later, her songs would be sung by contestants on these very shows. Maren also joined a teen band called They Were Stars. She played keyboards and sang harmony vocals. After high school, Maren went to the University of North Texas for one semester but then left. In 2011, the Mozzi Bozzi label released her third album, Live Wire.

Around this time, she visited her friend, Kacey Musgraves, in Nashville. Kacey had met Maren on the Texas music scene. Kacey encouraged Maren to move to Nashville too. After saving enough money, Maren moved to Nashville. She spent her first year meeting other writers. She then met Carla Wallace from Big Yellow Dog Music. Carla was impressed by Maren's songwriting. She signed Maren to a four-year songwriting contract. Maren started writing songs with other writers. Soon, other country artists began recording her songs. Tim McGraw recorded "Last Turn Home" for his 2014 album. Kelly Clarkson recorded "Second Wind" for her 2015 album.

Some of Maren's songs were very personal. Carla Wallace encouraged Maren to start recording her own music. One of these personal songs was "My Church", which she wrote in March 2015. After hearing the demo, Maren knew she wanted to keep the song for herself. She also met record producer Busbee around this time. He was very impressed by Maren's writing and singing. He said, "She was singing her own music, and it was world class. I was super freaked out — in a good way."

Breakthrough with Hero (2016–2017)

Maren first released five songs on her own as an extended play called Maren Morris. It came out on Spotify in August 2015. The songs quickly gained 2.5 million streams in just one month. Three of her songs appeared on Spotify's US and Global "Viral 50" chart. The success of her EP caught the attention of bigger record labels. She signed with Columbia Nashville in September 2015. The label re-released her five-song EP in November 2015. "My Church" was the main song released from the EP. The EP reached number 22 on the Billboard Country Albums chart. It also hit number one on the Top Heatseekers chart.

In 2016, "My Church" became Maren's first big hit song. It reached number five on the Billboard country songs chart. It also hit number nine on the Country Airplay chart and number three on the Canada Country chart. Maren later won a Grammy Award for "Best Country Solo Performance" for the song. Her first album with Columbia Nashville, Hero, was released in June 2016. It reached number five on the Billboard 200 and number one on the country albums chart. The New York Times called Hero "both utterly of its moment and also savvy enough to indicate how the future might sound." Three more songs from Hero became singles: "80's Mercedes", "I Could Use a Love Song", and "Rich". Most of these songs reached the top ten of the Billboard country charts between 2016 and 2018.

With her new success, Maren toured with Keith Urban in 2016. Then, in 2017, she had her own "Hero" tour to support her album. A special edition of Hero was released in March 2017 with three new songs. She also sang on Thomas Rhett's song "Craving You" in 2017. Maren was also featured on Niall Horan's pop song "Seeing Blind" in 2017. She later opened for Horan on his Flicker World Tour. Maren continued to win awards, including "Best New Artist" from the Country Music Association. She also received more Grammy nominations.

Pop Crossover and Collaborations (2018–2019)

Maren Morris sang on Zedd's 2018 song "The Middle".

In 2018, Zedd and Grey chose Maren Morris to sing on their pop song "The Middle". Zedd traveled to Nashville to record Maren's part. The song became a huge pop hit for her and helped her reach new fans. "The Middle" reached the top five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Billboard magazine said the song "may have drawn the roadmap for a reliable new path to crossover success." On October 5, 2018, Maren Morris was a special guest during Taylor Swift's Reputation Stadium Tour in Arlington, Texas. She performed "The Middle" with Taylor Swift.

Maren's next album, Girl, was released on March 8, 2019. Maren said the album showed her own experiences as a young woman. It also highlighted the experiences of other women her age. Rolling Stone magazine gave the album a good rating. They called it the project "where Morris makes her pop move." The album topped the Billboard country albums chart. It also reached the top five of the Billboard 200. She later went on the Girl: The World Tour to support the album. The first song from the album, "Girl", reached number one on the Billboard country airplay chart. It also hit number eight on the Billboard country songs chart. The second song, "The Bones", topped both the Country Airplay and Country Songs charts in 2020. A version of "The Bones" with Hozier became her second pop hit. It reached number 12 on the Hot 100 and number one on the adult contemporary chart. Girl won Album of the Year at the 2019 Country Music Association Awards. Maren herself won Female Vocalist of the Year from the association. She also won Female Artist of the Year twice at the Academy of Country Music Awards (2020 and 2021).

In March 2019, it was announced that Maren Morris would form a group. The group included Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires, and Natalie Hemby. They called themselves The Highwomen. This name was a nod to The Highwaymen. The group started recording with producer Dave Cobb. The Highwomen performed live for the first time in April 2019. They sang at Loretta Lynn's 87th birthday concert. "Redesigning Women" was released on July 19, 2019. It was the first song from the group's first album. Their self-titled debut album was released in September 2019. The album reached the top ten on the Billboard 200. It also hit number one on the Country Chart. Busbee, the producer, passed away in September 2019. Maren wrote on Twitter, "This just doesn't seem fair. I will always love you and the songs and albums I was lucky to make with you, Busbee."

Humble Quest and The Bridge (2021–2023)

In 2021, Maren worked with her husband Ryan Hurd on the song "Chasing After You". This song reached the top five on the Billboard country charts. She was also a guest singer on John Mayer's song "Last Train Home". This song was released on June 4, 2021. She also appeared on "Why You No Love Me" and "Shot In The Dark" on his album Sob Rock. In January 2022, Maren's next song, "Circles Around This Town", was released. Her next album, Humble Quest, followed in March 2022. Greg Kurstin produced this album. GQ magazine said its sound was a "return from glittery pop to her stripped-down country origins." Humble Quest debuted at number two on the Billboard country albums chart. It also reached number 21 on the Billboard 200. Pitchfork gave it a high rating, calling it "matter-of-factly masterful." Rolling Stone gave it 3.5 stars, calling it "fascinating, and proudly unresolved." In 2022, Maren reunited with Zedd for their second collaboration, "Make You Say", with Beauz.

In late 2023, Maren Morris shared that she was stepping back from the country music industry. She told the Los Angeles Times that she had "said everything" she wanted to say. In late 2023, Columbia released an extended play called The Bridge. This EP has the songs "The Tree" and "Get the Hell Out of Here". Greg Kurstin and Jack Antonoff produced these songs. She also announced plans to work on a new album with Antonoff.

Recent Projects (2024–Present)

In 2024, Maren Morris performed her song "Better than We Found It" at the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Maren also sang two songs for the DreamWorks animated movie The Wild Robot. These songs were "Even When I'm Not" and "Kiss the Sky". "Kiss the Sky" received great reviews. It earned Maren her first nominations at the Golden Globe Awards, Critics Choice Awards, and Satellite Awards. It was also considered for "Best Original Song" at the 97th Academy Awards, though it was not nominated. In late 2024, Maren released an extended play called Intermission. It has five new songs and a collaboration with singer-songwriter Julia Michaels. Maren also released a cover of Billy Idol's "Dancing with Myself". On October 25, she released the song "People Still Show Up". In November 2024, Billboard named Maren Morris the 99th Greatest Country Artist of All-Time.

On January 10, 2025, Maren Morris released her second song with Julia Michaels called "Scissors". On March 26, 2025, Maren announced that her fourth album would be called Dreamsicle. The album includes all five songs from her Intermission EP. It also features the songs "People Still Show Up", "Carry Me Through", "Bed No Breakfast", and "Too Good". The album was released on May 9, 2025. It received good reviews from music critics.

Musical Style

Maren Morris's music style mixes country music with country pop, R&B, and even hip hop. Music writers and critics have said that Maren's first two albums with Columbia combined country with R&B and hip hop sounds. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic noted that her 2016 album Hero had "R&B influences." Jewly Hight of Billboard described Hero as showing how "country-pop" can be flexible. The Hartford Courant praised her 2019 album Girl for using similar styles. They said, "Morris brings straight-up elements of '90s R&B to the album."

Maren Morris's singing style has also been noticed by many. When reviewing her 2019 album, Jon Caramanica called her voice "versatile." He said it could easily move between country and pop music. Chris Richards of The Washington Post said Maren Morris has "the best voice of any country singer working today." Richards explained, "Listen to her jump in and out of her lyrics and you'll hear a sophistication that feels like something metaphysical."

Overall, Maren Morris sees herself as a country artist. In an interview with NPR, she was asked if she still felt connected to the genre. She replied, "even though I live in Nashville and I'm from Texas and I feel like my songwriting at its core is country, I think you can hear a lot of different influences when you've heard any of my records." Other writers agree. Stephen Thomas Erlewine said, "Morris' music was grounded in country... but she also incorporated elements of pop, R&B, hip-hop, and rock, creating a distinctive, stylish hybrid."

Maren Morris has said that many artists from different music styles have influenced her. These include Katy Perry, Coldplay, Linda Ronstadt, Dolly Parton, Taylor Swift, Chaka Khan, and Hank Williams.

Advocacy and Support

In 2017, Maren Morris started the Heroes Fund. This fund raises money for music education in public schools. Through this program, Maren donated $70,000 to East Nashville Magnet High School. This money helped their music and drama departments. In April 2021, Maren donated $300,000 to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Together We Rise, and Ecologi. In August 2021, Maren joined other country artists to raise money for a program called Together: Feeding Nashville. The concert raised money to help with food insecurity in the Nashville area. A total of $450,000 was raised from the show.

Maren Morris has spoken out for fairness in country music. She has talked about the differences, especially for white and black artists in the genre. She told The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2021, "I'm a white woman in country music. I already have this sort of leg-up. There's a huge disparity between men and women in our genre, there's even more of a disparity between white women and black women trying to be in country music." In her 2020 CMA Awards acceptance speech, Maren thanked several black artists who helped make the award possible. These included Mickey Guyton, Linda Martell, and Brittney Spencer. Maren Morris supports kindness and fairness for everyone. She has partnered with organizations like GLAAD to promote understanding.

Personal Life

Maren Morris married Ryan Hurd in 2018. Hurd is shown performing at C2C (Country to Country) in Nashville, March 2018.

Maren Morris met fellow country singer-songwriter Ryan Hurd when they were writing "Last Turn Home" for Tim McGraw. They started dating in December 2015. The couple announced they were engaged in July 2017. They got married on March 24, 2018, in Nashville. Their son was born in March 2020. Maren Morris shared her identity as bisexual on June 9, 2024.

Discography

• Walk On (2005)
• All That It Takes (2007)
• Live Wire (2011)
• Hero (2016)
• Girl (2019)
• Humble Quest (2022)
• Dreamsicle (2025)

Film and Television Appearances

Awards and Recognition

Maren Morris has won many awards for her music. This includes five awards from the Academy of Country Music, five from the Country Music Association, and one from the Grammy Awards.

Tours

Headlining Tours

• The Hero Tour (2017)
• GIRL: The World Tour (2019)
• Humble Quest Tour (2022)
• RSVP Redux Tour (2024)
• The Dreamsicle World Tour (2025–2026)

Supporting Tours

• Ripcord World Tour (2016) (with Keith Urban)
• 15 in a 30 Tour (2017) (with Sam Hunt)
• Flicker World Tour (2018) (with Niall Horan)
• Roadside Bars & Pink Guitars Tour (2019) (with Miranda Lambert)
• The Chicks World Tour 2023 (2023) (with The Chicks)
• 2024 North American Summer Tour (2024) (with Maroon 5)

See also

In Spanish: Maren Morris para niños