Before They Were Famous

See what some of your favorite country artists did for money before they hit the big time.

Unveil the heartwarming friendship between Luke Combs and Lainey Wilson, showcased through mutual respect and shared experiences.

Unveil the fascinating tale of how DJ Dewey Phillips launched Elvis Presley into stardom 70 years ago.

Discover Keith Urban's evolution from studio musician to country star.

Jelly Roll commends Post Malone's authentic passion for country music during a recent interview, sparking excitement in the industry.

Big Kenny Alphin of Big and Rich might have the country record for most careers held before achieving success on Nashville's biggest stages. According to a 2005 article at Co-Opliving.com, the blond half of the duo held several jobs and ran several businesses before finishing high school. There was the T-shirt company, then he ran a logging crew...

Kix Brooks enjoyed a colorful childhood that eventually included four years at military school before heading to Louisiana Tech University as a theater arts major. He was closer to 30 years old before he arrived in Nashville and scored a songwriting gig for Tree Publishing.

Jason Aldean's country music dreams rode on the back of a Pepsi truck for years before he officially moved to Nashville. The singer began working at a Georgia Pepsi plant at age 17, and soon drove the delivery truck. "I was the guy that rode around in a truck and delivered drinks to all the convenience stores, so this was kind of my back-up plan," Aldean says. "The truck didn't have

Before singing 'Chicken Fried,' Zac Brown was making fried chicken. The Zac Brown Band singer owned his own restaurant (Zac's Place) near Lake Oconee in Georgia and did much of the cooking. He had experience on the stove from serving up catfish at a place called Wagon Wheel and Big Macs at McDonald's. Yep, at some point in his life, Brown likely asked someone: "Do you want fries with that?&qu

Before taking her talents to Nashville, Gretchen Wilson paid her dues in bars and clubs around rural Illinois. Mostly it was just one bar, a dive called Big O's. By age 15 she had dropped out of school to tend bar and cook for the rowdy customers. She worked her way up to manager pretty quickly, and always kept a loaded 12-gauge shotgun near her for protection.