Talent definitely runs in the family, at least for some country artists. There are numerous country artists who grew up watching their parents’ careers before launching their own. These four country artists followed in their family’s footsteps, finding plenty of success by themselves.
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Hillary Scott
Hillary Scott’s talent comes from both her mother and father, Linda Davis and Lang Scott. Davis sang in Reba McEntire’s band for a lot of years, while also enjoying her own solo career. So it seems logical that Scott would inherit the ability to sing.
Scott is best known for being one-third of the Lady A trio. In 2016, Scott released a solo gospel album, Love Remains, as Hillary Scott & the Scott Family.
But just because her parents were well known didn’t automatically give Scott an easy path to success. Scott, perhaps surprisingly, auditioned for American Idol and was turned away two separate times.
“I actually tried out for American Idol twice and didn’t get past the first round, if that gives anyone hope,” Scott says (via The Boot).
Thomas Rhett
Thomas Rhett is the son of singer-songwriter Rhett Akins. Akins released four studio albums between 1995 and 2002. He also had several hit singles, including “That Ain’t My Truck”, “Don’t Get Me Started”, “She Said Yes”, and more.
“When I started to become an artist, I did write with my dad a ton. And my dad was responsible for my first two number one songs,” Rhett tells Smooth Radio, referring to “It Goes Like This” and “Get Me Some Of That”. “But he was really diligent about letting me do it. He was always there for advice. But he was like, ‘Hey, it’s time for you to go figure out who you want to go be. … Go find a bunch of other writers that have nothing going on.”
Rhett has far surpassed Akins in success as an artist, but Akins is still doing quite well on his own. It’s Akins who is the writer behind hits like Jon Pardi’s “Dirt On My Boots”, Parker McCollum’s “To Be Loved By You”, and more.
Hank Williams Jr.
Hank Williams Jr. was just three years old when his father, Hank Williams, passed away. Still, the family legacy continues with Williams Jr., who is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, honoring his decades of success on his own.
Still, being part of the Williams family was not easy for him, especially as he began to create music on his own.
“It was fun for the little boy to do Hank Williams, but it was hell for the man. […] They wanted any part of him they could get back,” he admits.
The Williams family legacy continues, with his daughter and son, Holly Williams and Sam Williams, also pursuing musical careers.
Allie Colleen
Allie Colleen is the daughter of Garth Brooks and his first wife, Sandy Mahl. Allie Colleen grew up watching her father reign as one of the biggest superstars of all time, a title he still holds today. So it would be easy for her to bill herself as the daughter of Brooks and have instant success on her own.
But for Allie Colleen, that is not something she is willing to do. Instead, Allie Colleen wants to have success on her own, or not at all.
“You’re just always a daughter,” Allie Colleen explains. “You’re always someone who’s probably never worked very hard for anything … always someone who probably has all of our finances taken care of. You are probably someone whose dad sits in the meetings with you and makes sure that you’ve become as successful as you are.”
She goes on to say that makes her just “some kind of byproduct of someone else’s legacy. That’s not what I am.”
Photo by Gary Miller/Getty Images for iHeartRadio
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