Trisha Yearwood Reveals There Was No Backup Plan To Her Music Career

Trisha Yearwood knew from a very young age that music was her calling. Looking back on the journey that made her the country music icon she is today, Yearwood admits there was never any doubt or a backup plan when it came to her career.

It all began at age five, when she became determined to reach the same level of success as one of the best-selling artists of all time, Cher. By age six, she had recorded her first songs on a tape recorder while living in Georgia and although there were opportunities to pursue music in her small town, Yearwood knew she was destined for something bigger.

“I was never a kid who said, ‘I wonder what I want to do when I grow up.’ I knew, but I was in a really small town of 2000 people where nobody did this,” she shared during a recent conversation with hair and makeup artists and hosts of The Touch Up Podcast, Tarryn Feldman and Mari Brown.

Instead of sticking around Georgia to lead the church choir or teach music, she ventured off to Nashville at 19 years old to attend Belmont University. There, she connected with songwriters and landed a job singing on demos.

“I did that really solid for several years. Made a really good living. I had a job as a receptionist at a record label, but I didn’t tell anybody I sang,” she admitted.

Earning her degree in music business technically opened doors to other areas of the industry, but Yearwood says that was never a real option.

“I had never had a backup plan. Because I went to college…I was a music business major, I had a lot of people ask me, ‘oh, would you be in the music industry in the corporate part because you have this degree if you weren’t a singer?’ And I’ve always said no, because I think watching people do what I wanted to do would be much harder,” she explained.

That being said, if she hadn’t become the GRAMMY, CMA, and ACM Award-winning icon she is today, Yearwood believes she would still be spending her days sharing her love for music in some capacity.

“I feel grateful. I know a lot of people who don’t know their whole lives what they really want to do. And I’ve always known. And I think it would be hard to not do it,” she explained. “And I think I would be doing it even if it was on a level of playing five nights a week at a bar. I think I’d be singing. I just do.”

The songstress credits much of her success to the confidence instilled in her by her parents. Their belief in her abilities gave her the courage to pursue not only music but also acting, writing, cooking, entrepreneurship and many other ventures over the years.

“I think sending me off to Nashville to be the music industry was scary for them because it wasn’t a guaranteed job and a guaranteed paycheck and all of the things that they knew. But they always also wanted me to be happy,” she pointed out. “So they always made us both feel my sister and both feel like we could do anything we wanted to do.”

While she enjoys her cooking show, her furniture line, and everything else she’s pursued in her life, she’s clear about the fact that she would still always pick music in the end. It’s this persistence and confidence, combined with her powerhouse voice and passion for the genre, that have captivated millions of fans across multiple decades of a legendary career. Even with her years of experience in the industry, Yearwood shows no signs of slowing down.

The three-time GRAMMY® winner is gearing up to show fans a look into her evolution as an artist on The Mirror (Deluxe). Dropping January 23 via Virgin Music Group and Gwendolyn Records, the expanded digital edition of her acclaimed album The Mirror features four new tracks as well as the fan-favorite bonus song “Put It In A Song.”

Yearwood will honor the new set of releases when she hits the road for The Mirror Tour: An Intimate Acoustic Evening of Stories and Songs. Along the run, she will be joined by singer-songwriters Leslie Satcher and Bridgette Tatum. Kicking off March 4 in Santa Rosa, CA, the tour promises a rare, personal experience for fans, with Yearwood performing the heartfelt new tracks from the project and her timeless hits.