Rissi Palmer facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rissi Palmer
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Rissi Palmer performs at the Chicago Music Country Festival 2008 at Soldier Field
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| Background information | |
| Born | August 19, 1981 |
| Origin | Sewickley, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Genres | Country, R&B, Southern soul |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, radio host |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Labels | 1720/Universal Music Group, Baldilocks |
Rissi Palmer (born August 19, 1981) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She made her debut in 2007 with the song "Country Girl". This song was special because it made her the first African-American woman to have a country song on the music charts since 1988.
"Country Girl" reached number 54 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. It was the first song from her first album, called Rissi Palmer. Another song from that album, "Hold On to Me", also became a Top 100 hit. In 2008, Rissi Palmer also sang a cover of "No Air", an R&B hit song. Today, she hosts a show on Apple Music Country called Color Me Country Radio with Rissi Palmer.
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About Rissi Palmer
Rissi Palmer was born in Sewickley, a town near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. When she was 12, her family moved to Eureka, a town near St. Louis. Her parents were originally from Georgia.
Rissi shared that her mother, who passed away when Rissi was seven, loved Patsy Cline. Her father enjoyed music from artists like Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton, Chaka Khan, and Santana. Rissi knew from a young age that she wanted to sing. As a child, she sang in a local TV group called Team 11. When she was 16, she performed country music at the Arkansas State Fair.
Early Career Steps
When Rissi was 19, famous R&B music producers James "Jimmy Jam" Harris III and Terry Lewis offered her a music deal. However, Palmer turned it down. She felt they wanted her to change her "twangy" country style into a "pop/soul" sound. Rissi explained, "I love R&B music, but it wasn't what I wanted to do. I knew I wouldn't be happy doing that."
After that, Rissi sang jingles for Barbie commercials. She also recorded music for the Dance Fever TV show. She even competed on Star Search. For seven years, she tried to get a recording contract in Nashville, which is known for country music.
In 2004, Rissi was part of a documentary called Waiting in the Wings: African-Americans in Country Music. This film showed the important contributions of African-Americans to country music. It also asked why few had become very successful in the genre. The documentary was shown on CMT.
Rissi performed at the 2nd Annual Black Girls Rock ceremony in 2007. She also attended the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver in August 2008, supporting Barack Obama. In December 2008, she was invited to perform at the White House for the National Tree Lighting Ceremony.
Rissi also starred in and hosted a Travel Channel show called Rissi Palmer's Country. The show aimed to explore the music of different cities. The first episode focused on the blues music in Chicago. This episode aired in February 2009, but the show was not continued. In June 2024, she appeared in the country music documentary Rebel Country. After some legal discussions, Palmer left her record label, 1720 Entertainment, in 2009.
Rissi Palmer's Music
First Album: Rissi Palmer (2007–2008)
In 2006, Starbucks Entertainment released a four-song collection of Rissi's music. This helped Palmer become one of the top 5 best-selling country artists on iTunes. She was also featured in a 2005 CMT documentary about African-Americans and country music.
Palmer's first album, Rissi Palmer, came out on October 23, 2007. Rissi helped write nine of the 12 songs on the album. She was also highlighted on Yahoo! Music's "The New Now," which showcased talented new artists. The album had two songs that made it onto the music charts: "Country Girl" and "Hold On to Me". These songs reached numbers 54 and 59 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
In 2008, Palmer released a new song, a cover of Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown's "No Air." This song started at number 58 and eventually reached number 47. It became her first song to reach the Top 50 on the Hot Country Songs chart. This song was added to a new version of her first album later that year. Palmer also released a Christmas song in late 2008 called "Grown Up Christmas List."
The Back Porch Sessions EP (2015)
On March 18, 2014, Rissi started a Kickstarter campaign. This allowed her fans to help fund her next music project. It was a five-song collection called The Back Porch Sessions. Grammy Award-winning producers Shannon Sanders and Drew Ramsey worked on this project. They had also produced songs on her first album.
Rissi has described the sound of this collection as "Southern Soul." It's a mix of country, soul, R&B, and a bit of gospel music. The title of the project is a tribute to her great-grandmother's porch in Summerville, Georgia. Rissi says she started singing there as a child. The Back Porch Sessions was released on May 26, 2015, through Rissi's own label, Baldilocks LLC.
Music critics gave the project good reviews. It was featured in well-known publications like Rolling Stone and People Magazine.
Revival (2019)
On October 22, 2019, Rissi released her full-length album, Revival. Brian Owens, Shannon Sanders, and Palmer herself produced the album. The first song, "Seeds," came out on October 15, 2019. It also had a music video. "Seeds" has been called a "protest song" because it talks about important social topics.
Another song from the album, "Soul Message," was featured in Rolling Stone Country's "10 Best Songs of the Week."
Revival has been described as a powerful mix of soul, R&B, and country music. Many say it is Rissi's most personal work so far. Kyesha Jennings from Indy Week said that Revival offers "pure inspiration for navigating love, racial tensions, self-acceptance, and, above all, perseverance."
Color Me Country Radio with Rissi Palmer
On August 30, 2020, Color Me Country Radio with Rissi Palmer started on Apple Music Country. This show highlights the Black, Indigenous, and Latinx histories of country music. These stories have often been overlooked in mainstream music. The show airs every two weeks and has featured interviews with artists like Darius Rucker, Mickey Guyton, The War and Treaty, and Crystal Shawanda.
The show's name comes from the debut album of country artist Linda Martell. She was the highest-charting solo Black woman on the Billboard Country Chart. She was also the first to perform at the Grand Ole Opry in 1969.
As an extension of the show, Rissi created the Color Me Country Artist Grant Fund. This fund helps support underrepresented artists of color in country music. It provides small cash grants of up to $1,000. The fund started on December 18, 2020, and all the money goes directly to artists.
In 2023, Rissi was featured in an episode of the PBS series American Masters called “In the Making.” The episode highlighted her leadership of a Color Me Country day at a music festival in England.
In 2024, Palmer's first album was updated and re-released on streaming platforms. It included three extra songs that were not on the original record.
Discography
- Studio albums
- Rissi Palmer (2007)
- Best Day Ever (2013)
- Revival (2019)
