Born on This Day in 1958, the Child Prodigy Who Had Her First Hit at 13 and Paved the Way for Your Favorite Female Country Stars

On this day (October 10) in 1958, Tanya Tucker was born in Seminole, Texas. She started her career when she was a child in the early 1970s and consistently released hit singles and albums throughout the next three decades. More recently, Tucker staged one of those most impressive and long-awaited comebacks in the history of country music.

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Tucker landed her first hit with “Delta Dawn” at the age of 13 in 1972. The song peaked at No. 6 on the country chart and signaled the beginning of a long and successful career. She found her first No. 1 with “What’s Your Mama’s Name” in 1973. She continued to sporadically land hits throughout the decade, collecting a total of seven top 10 hits and six chart-toppers.

[RELATED: Country Music Vault, 1973: 15-Year-Old Tanya Tucker Performs Her Debut Single on ‘Hee Haw’]

Tanya Tucker Finds Decades of Success

Tucker, like many child stars, saw her popularity wane as she grew up in front of her audience. In the late 1970s, she began to lean into the Outlaw Country movement. The early 1980s saw her sales dip. Then, in 1986, she inked a deal with Capitol Nashville and released Girls Like Me, which peaked at No. 20 on the Top Country Albums chart, her highest-charting LP to date. The album’s singles saw her return to the upper reaches of the chart. “One Love at a Time,” the album’s lead single, peaked at No. 3 and kicked off a string of 10 top ten hits, including four chart-toppers.

Tucker continued to see success throughout the 1990s. “Down to My Last Teardrop,” “Some Kind of Trouble,” “It’s a Little Too Late,” “Hangin’ In,” and several other singles found major chart success. However, she did not send a single to the No. 1 position, despite coming close several times, landing 10 top-five hits. Tanya Tucker’s success began to wane once more as the new millennium dawned. In 2009, she released My Turn, her first album in seven years. Then, she all but disappeared from the spotlight.

A Comeback for the History Books

In 2019, after a decade of relative inactivity, Tanya Tucker returned to the country music spotlight. At the urging of singer/songwriter/producer Brandi Carlile, Tucker recorded and released While I’m Livin’. Produced by Carlile and Shooter Jennings, the album brought Tucker her first Grammy Awards. The LP won Best Country Album, and the single, “Bring My Flowers Now,” won Best Country Song.

“There would be no Miranda, no Brandi, no Gretchen, no Maren without Tanya Tucker,” Carlile said, summing up Tucker’s impact and influence.

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