Everybody has to start somewhere. For Lainey Wilson, it was a 20-foot Flagstaff camper trailer parked in front of a Nashville recording studio. Leaving behind her tiny hometown of Baskin, Louisiana, the “Heart Like a Truck” singer hustled for a decade before her country music career started gaining traction. Now, Wilson is selling out arenas—but if you’re wondering when the Grammy winner will forget those who’ve been there since the beginning, it’s looking like never.
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Lainey Wilson Pauses Show to Hug Longtime Fan’s Neck
Halfway through her set during a recent show in Los Angeles, California, Lainey Wilson spotted a “day one” follower. And the “Hang Tight Honey” singer, 33, had to stop and say hello.
“How far did you drive to get here?” Wilson asked. “You didn’t drive? Did you fly? Lord have mercy, it is good to see you.”
Turning to the audience, the reigning Entertainer of the Year filled them in on the fan’s story. “Y’all, we go back, I’m not even playing, my friend down here in the front, we go way back to… how many years ago was that? A long time, it feels like… You were literally there when nobody was there,” she said. “I’m not even playing. Let’s just take a second. I’m gonna come hug your neck, first of all.”
As she did so, the country star continued reminiscing. “I mean, from the beginning, girl. Remember when we played that casino, and literally nobody was there?” she asked. “It was just you on the front row by the barricade and I was like, ‘My girl’s here, aye.”
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“There’s Been a Million Steps”
Lainey Wilson has spoken candidly about the decade-long slog that preceded her meteoric rise in country music. Even the success of her 2021 hit “Things A Man Oughta Know” didn’t immediately translate to fame and fortune.
“I could barely sell a ticket. It was like the strangest thing,” she told Today last year. “You know, a lot of people know the songs on the radio, but they don’t know who sings ‘em.”
Still, coming from a long line of “hard-headed folks,” Wilson kept at it. “A lot of people thought I was crazy,” she said. “‘Yep, 19-year-old Lainey.’ I knew it. I did… But there’s been a million steps.”
(Photo by Erika Goldring/WireImage)
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