Lee Ann Womack facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lee Ann Womack
Womack in 2003
Background information
Born	(1966-08-19) August 19, 1966 (age 58) Jacksonville, Texas, U.S.
Genres	Traditional country country pop Americana
Occupation(s)	Musician singer songwriter
Instruments	Vocals guitar
Years active	1996–present
Labels	Decca Nashville MCA Nashville Mercury Nashville Sugar Hill ATO

Lee Ann Womack (born August 19, 1966) is an American singer and songwriter. She is famous for her country music. She has had many songs on the American Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. Her most well-known song is "I Hope You Dance", which was a big hit across different music styles. She also had five songs reach the top 10 in Canada.

Lee Ann was born in Jacksonville, Texas. She signed with Decca Records Nashville in 1996. When she started her music career in 1997, her style was compared to famous country singers like Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette. Her music mixed old-fashioned country sounds with newer elements. That year, she had her first top 10 hits with "The Fool" and "You've Got to Talk to Me".

After two albums with Decca, she released her first album with MCA Nashville in 2000, called I Hope You Dance. This album had a different sound, using more pop music styles instead of traditional country. Later, in 2005, she returned to recording traditional country music with her album There's More Where That Came From. She made five albums with MCA before releasing independent albums. These newer albums mixed country and Americana music.

Four of Lee Ann's albums have sold enough copies to be certified Gold or higher. Her most successful album, I Hope You Dance, sold over three million copies in the United States. She has also won many awards, including five Academy of Country Music Awards, six Country Music Association Awards, and one Grammy Award. Lee Ann is married to record producer Frank Liddell. She was previously married to musician Jason Sellers. Her daughter with Jason, Aubrie Sellers, is also a country music artist.

Early Life and Music Start

Lee Ann Womack was born on August 19, 1966, in Jacksonville, Texas. Her dad, Aubrey, was a high school principal and a radio DJ. Her mom, Ann, was a schoolteacher. Lee Ann's older sister, Judy, became a lawyer.

From a young age, Lee Ann loved country music. Her dad often took her to the radio station to help him pick songs to play. As a child, she learned to play the piano. She graduated from Jacksonville High School in 1984.

After high school, Lee Ann went to South Plains College in Levelland, Texas. This college was one of the first in the U.S. to offer degrees in country music. She started touring with the college band, Country Caravan. A year later, she moved to Belmont College (now Belmont University) in Nashville, Tennessee. There, she studied the business side of music and worked as an intern at MCA Nashville.

In 1990, Lee Ann left college and married Jason Sellers. She spent a few years raising her daughter, Aubrie. In the mid-1990s, she returned to music. She started performing her songs in demos and at special concerts where music scouts looked for new talent. One scout signed her to a music publishing company. Lee Ann wrote songs with famous Nashville songwriters. After she and Jason separated, Lee Ann decided to become a country music artist. She impressed Bruce Hinton, the head of MCA, and signed a contract with Decca Nashville in 1996.

Music Career Highlights

Starting Out: 1997–1999

Lee Ann Womack released her first album, Lee Ann Womack, in May 1997. This album was produced by Mark Wright. Her first single, "Never Again, Again", reached number 23 on the country charts. Her next song, "The Fool", was even more successful, reaching number two. Then came "You've Got to Talk to Me" and "Buckaroo". Music critics really liked her first album, praising her voice and traditional country sound. The Academy of Country Music named her Top New Female Vocalist.

Her second album, Some Things I Know, came out in 1998. This album had four singles that made it to the Top 40 on the country charts. "A Little Past Little Rock" and "I'll Think of a Reason Later" both reached number two. In January 1999, Lee Ann won Favorite Country New Artist at the American Music Awards. She then moved to MCA Nashville Records. Later that year, her first album was certified platinum (meaning it sold over one million copies), and her second album was certified gold (selling over 500,000 copies).

Pop Success: 2000–2004

Lee Ann's third album, I Hope You Dance, released in 2000, was a huge success. The main song, "I Hope You Dance", which she sang with the band Sons of the Desert, became her biggest hit. It reached number one on the country charts and number 14 on the main pop charts. This song won "Song of the Year" and "Single of the Year" at the Country Music Association Awards. The album was nominated for a Grammy Award. By 2002, I Hope You Dance had sold over three million copies in the U.S. and was also very popular in Canada.

In 2002, Lee Ann released her fourth album, Something Worth Leaving Behind. The main song from this album reached number 20 on the country charts. She also released her first Christmas album, The Season for Romance, that year. She sang with Willie Nelson on his song "Mendocino County Line," which won a Grammy and a Country Music award. In 2003, she appeared on the TV show The District.

In 2004, Lee Ann performed "I Hope You Dance" at a big political event for George W. Bush. She also released her first Greatest Hits album, which included two new songs. This album was certified gold in 2008.

Return to Traditional Country: 2005–2012

Womack at the 2006 National Memorial Day Concert in Washington, DC.

In 2005, Lee Ann released her fifth album, There's More Where That Came From. Many people in the music world called this album a "return to tradition" because it had a classic country sound with steel guitar. The album won "Album of the Year" at the Country Music Association Awards in 2005. The first song from the album, "I May Hate Myself in the Morning", was a Top 10 hit and also won "Single of the Year" by the CMA.

Lee Ann has also appeared on TV specials, like CMT's "100 Greatest Duets," where she sang with Kenny Rogers. She was also listed at No. 17 on CMT's "40 Greatest Women of Country Music" in 2002.

In 2008, Lee Ann's sixth album, Call Me Crazy, was released. This album featured serious songs about life and love. Two songs from the album, "Last Call" and "Solitary Thinkin'", reached the top 40 on the country charts. "Last Call" was nominated for a Grammy Award.

In 2009, Lee Ann released a song called "There Is a God", which reached number 32 on the country charts. In 2010, she sang "Liars Lie" for the movie Country Strong. She also sang with Alan Jackson on a cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire". In 2012, Lee Ann left MCA Nashville.

Americana Music: 2014–Present

In 2014, Lee Ann signed with Sugar Hill Records. Her first album with them, The Way I'm Livin', was released on September 23, 2014. This album included some cover songs. Critics loved the album, comparing it to Dolly Parton's best work.

Her second album for Sugar Hill was an extended play (EP) of cover songs called Trouble in Mind, released in 2015. The Way I'm Livin' was nominated for Best Country Album at the Grammy Awards. Lee Ann also received nominations for Album of the Year and Artist of the Year at the Americana Music Honors & Awards.

In 2014, Lee Ann sang with R&B singer John Legend on an episode of CMT Crossroads. She also toured in the UK in 2015.

On August 15, 2017, Lee Ann announced her new album, The Lonely, the Lonesome & the Gone, which came out on October 27. This album had 14 songs, many of which she helped write. It also included covers of classic songs. Critics praised the album, saying it showed her growth as an artist. The Lonely, the Lonesome & the Gone and one of its songs, "All the Trouble," were nominated for Grammy Awards in 2019.

Personal Life

Lee Ann Womack met country singer-songwriter Jason Sellers at Belmont College. They married in 1990 but later separated in 1996. They have a daughter named Aubrie Sellers, born in 1991. In January 1999, Lee Ann had a second daughter with record producer Frank Liddell. Lee Ann and Frank married later that year on November 6, 1999.

Discography

Studio albums

• Lee Ann Womack (1997)
• Some Things I Know (1998)
• I Hope You Dance (2000)
• Something Worth Leaving Behind (2002)
• The Season for Romance (2002)
• There's More Where That Came From (2005)
• Call Me Crazy (2008)
• The Way I'm Livin' (2014)
• The Lonely, the Lonesome & the Gone (2017)

Awards and Nominations

Lee Ann Womack has won many awards for her music. Here are some of her achievements:

Film and TV Appearances

Lee Ann Womack has also appeared in some TV shows and movies.

Television

Films

Images for kids

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  Womack in 2003

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  Womack at the 2006 National Memorial Day Concert in Washington, DC.

See also

In Spanish: Lee Ann Womack para niños