Kacey Musgraves

Kacey Musgraves's road into country music ran through Texas fairgrounds, a duo called Texas Two Bits, and a seventh-place finish on Nashville Star in 2007. Born in 1988 and raised in Golden, Texas, she began writing songs at eight and took up guitar at twelve with a local teacher whose lessons she later regarded as pivotal. Those early years gave her a grounding in tradition, and her later songs have stretched that tradition in directions that set her apart.

Her major-label debut, Same Trailer Different Park (2013), won the Grammy for Best Country Album, and its single "Follow Your Arrow" later placed 39th on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time. Pageant Material (2015) debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, carried by "Biscuits" and "Dime Store Cowgirl". Golden Hour (2018) won all four of its nominated Grammy categories, including Album of the Year. Star-Crossed (2021) became her fourth top-ten album on the Billboard 200, and in 2023 she featured on Zach Bryan's "I Remember Everything", which debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100.