Willie Nelson facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Willie Nelson
Nelson performing at Farm Aid in 2009
Background information
Birth name Willie Hugh Nelson
Also known as Red Headed Stranger
Born April 29, 1933 (1933-04-29) (age 86)
Abbott, Texas, United States
Genres Country, progressive country, country rock, outlaw country, alternative country, vocal pop
Occupations Musician, songwriter, producer, actor, activist
Instruments Vocals, guitar
Years active 1956–present
Labels Liberty, RCA, Atlantic, Columbia, Island, Justice Records,
Associated acts Waylon Jennings, The Highwaymen, Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson
Website www.willienelson.com
Notable instruments

"Trigger" (Martin N-20)

A signature penned in black ink
Signature of Willie Nelson

Willie Hugh Nelson (/wɪli nɛlsən/; born April 29, 1933) is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist.

Early life

Willie Nelson was born in Abbott, Texas on April 29, 1933, during the Great Depression to Myrle Marie (née Greenhaw) and Ira Doyle Nelson. He was born on April 29, 1933, but his birth was recorded by doctor F. D. Sims on April 30. He was named Willie by his cousin Mildred, who also chose Hugh as his middle name, in honor of her recently deceased younger brother. Nelson's ancestry includes English, Irish, and Cherokee. His parents moved from Arkansas in 1929, to look for work. Nelson's grandfather, William, worked as a blacksmith, while his father worked as a mechanic. His mother left soon after he was born, and his father remarried and also moved away, leaving Willie and his sister Bobbie to be raised by their grandparents. The Nelsons, who taught singing back in Arkansas, started their grandchildren in music. Nelson's grandfather bought him a guitar when he was six, and taught him a few chords, and with his sister Bobbie, he sang gospel songs in the local church. He wrote his first song at age seven, and when he was nine, played guitar for the local band Bohemian Polka. During the summer, the family picked cotton along with other citizens of Abbott. Nelson didn't like picking cotton, so he earned money by singing in dance halls, taverns, and honky tonks from age thirteen, and continuing through high school. Nelson's musical influences were Hank Williams, Bob Wills, Lefty Frizzell, Ray Price, Ernest Tubb, Hank Snow, Django Reinhardt, Frank Sinatra and Louis Armstrong.

Personal life

Nelson is the co-chair of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) advisory board.

Images for kids

  • Young-willie-nelson

    Nelson as a junior in Abbott High School's Annual, 1949

  • A man with a leather helmet and a white football jersey

    Nelson's high school football portrait, c. 1950

  • Willie Nelson Grand Ole Opry publicity - cropped

    Nelson performing on a Grand Ole Opry package show in 1965

  • Willie Nelson in Kansas

    Nelson performing in Topeka, Kansas on August 2, 2016

  • A classical guitar. There are several damages in the soundboard, near the sound hole there is a big hole and the wood is worn out in the surrounding areas of it. The guitar has several signatures on it. there is a blue and white strap in the soundhole.

    Willie Nelson's guitar, Trigger, has been signed by several of Nelson's friends

  • Three men. From left to right, the first man has brown hair and beard. He wears a blue T-shirt and a white jacket and is looking at the man in the middle. The man in the middle wears a green cap and shades, and long red hair. He wears a brown T-shirt. The man at the right has brown hair, he looks at the man at the middle. He wears a white shirt and a black letter jacket.

    L-R: Kris Kristofferson, Nelson, and Waylon Jennings at the 1972 Dripping Springs Reunion

  • A man with long white hair and white beard playing a guitar. He wears a black T-shirt, which is crossed by the red, white and blue strap of the guitar. He also wears black pants.

    Nelson, and his guitar "Trigger", performing at Cardiff on January 25, 2007

  • A store with a sign that reads "Willie's Place". The apostrophe is replaced in the sign by a bullet hole. The structure of the store is constructed in wooden with three columns. There are four windows and there are a red and a grey car in the parking lot.

    In 2008, Nelson reopened the truck stop Willie's Place near Hillsboro, Texas

  • A sign of a street that reads "2nd street, Willie Nelson BLVD 100". It is night time and the sign is lighted. The borders and letters are white and the inside is red.

    The Willie Nelson boulevard in Austin, Texas


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