Martina McBride Multi-platinum country singer Martina McBride was born Martina Mariea Schiff on July 29, 1966, in Sharon, Kansas. Growing up on a Kansas dairy farm, McBride became acquainted with music through her father, who was a member of a local band called the Schifters. Before long, McBride and her little brother Marty had joined their father in the band. McBride has commented that "There wasn’t much to do growing up on a farm. We had three channels on the TV, one of which was fuzzy. Marty and I would come home from school and we were kind of isolated. There were no neighborhood kids. There was no convenience store. No video games. But we always had musical instruments." After graduating from high school in a class of just nine other students, McBride played around town with various local bands. At age twenty-two, McBride married sound engineer, John McBride. Two years later, the newly-weds moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where they both worked on tours with Garth Brooks. Although she started off in the industry selling Garth Brooks t-shirts, McBride eventually got her own contract with RCA Records, by sending a demo to the company in a purple envelope labeled "Requested Material."
McBride released her debut album, The Time Has Come, in 1992. The following year, she released the country/pop crossover album, The Way That I Am, which featured the hit song, “Independence Day,” later covered by American Idol winner, Carrie Underwood. Since that time, McBride has released nearly twenty top-10 singles and has sold 15 million records. In August of 2006, McBride served as a guest coach on Canadian Idol. During the season finale of the show, she announced that the season’s winner, Eva Avila, would be invited to join her on her Canadian tour, slated for spring 2007. McBride will also appear on American Idol in April 2007. In 2006, McBride released the country compilation, Timeless, which she also produced herself. The album features songs by Hank Williams, Loretta Lynn, Hank Snow, Merle Haggard, Tammy Wynette, and Waylon Jennings; and features harmony vocals by Dolly Parton. McBride went to great lengths to give the album an authentic country feel, recording live material with vintage microphones, guitars, and amps from the 1930s and 40s. McBride’s husband, John, also worked on the engineering for the album. McBride has been named Country Music Association Female Vocalist of the Year four times, a record she holds with Reba McEntire. She has also received the Academy of Country Music Female Vocalist of the Year award three times, and been named CMA’s Female Vocalist of the Year in 1999, 2002, 2003, and 2004.
YUDDY |
