When Lainey Wilson was invited by Reba McEntire to become the next member of the Grand Ole Opry, after Wilson performed on The Voice, she had no idea what was in store. The Louisiana native thought McEntire was giving her a belated birthday present, unaware that her biggest dream was about to come true.
“First of all, I love and respect her so much … My birthday was a couple of days before this, and I thought maybe she was bringing me out a cupcake,” Wilson recalls on the Today Show. “And I thought, ‘Dang, Reba’s bringing me a cupcake!’ And then, next thing I know, she’s got this belt buckle, which is so cool, because her and I both, we grew up [doing] rodeo. I think we share that bond.”
Wilson has often said McEntire has been one of her biggest role models, in music and in life. It’s McEntire who has inspired Wilson in so many ways, on and off stage.
“I just think she hung the mooon,” Wilson says.” I think what she has done, how she’s continued to stay true to herself, but not been scared to try anything that’s been thrown her way, that’s what I want to do.”
Becoming a Grand Ole Opry member is just one of Wilson’s dreams that have come true. After years and years of hard work, the 32-year-old is now thankful that all her successes didn’t happen at once.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Grand Ole Opry / Chris Hollo
“It makes it that much sweeter,” Wilson acknowledges. “The truth is, I think when I got to Nashville in 2011 in my little camper trailer, I had not lived enough life at that point to tell the kind of stories that I think I was supposed to tell, so I could connect with the people that I am connecting with. I do believe that timing is everything.”
Wilson has been open about the steps she took to unsuccessfully jumpstart her career in music, including trying out for both American Idol and The Voice, the latter an astonishing seven times, although she was always turned away. Painful at the time, Wilson now sees that it was all just part of her paving her own path.
“I’ve tried out for anything that would take me …Somehow it turned it into a yes, in a weird way,” Wilson reflects. “I was never going to have the opportunity, if it was going to always be. That’s a little crazy, but the truth is, you’ve got to be a little crazy to do this.”
Wilson has another hit at radio, with “Hang Tight Honey,” the debut single from her forthcoming Whirlwind album. The singer-songwriter knew early on that she wanted the record to be named Whirlwind, as a nod to how wild her past couple of years have been.
“The last two years of my life especially have been a whirlwind, and that’s the name of the record,” Wilson says. “I was like, ‘We have to name the record Whirlwind because that’s what it’s been.’ But trying to keep one foot on the ground, I feel like my life has changed, but I haven’t. But I think that’s ’cause I keep my people close.”
Whirlwind will be out on August 23. Wilson is currently headlining her own Country’s Cool Again Tour. Find “Hang Tight Honey” and all of Wilson’s music and upcoming shows at LaineyWilson.com.