Jo Dee Messina
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| Jo Dee Messina | |
|---|---|
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| Years active | 1996—present |
| Genre(s) | Country |
| Label(s) | Curb |
| Website(s) | jodeemessina.com |
Jo-Dee Marie Messina (born August 25, 1970 in Holliston, Massachusetts, USA) is a country music singer. She has had several number one hits and two platinum albums. She is known for her fiery personality and strong life-affirming music including fun, "kiss-off" songs.
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[edit] Early years
Raised in Holliston, Massachusetts, she sought to be a singer from a young age, causing her mother, Mary, to drive her to public performances.
At age 16, Messina formed her own band, handling publicity, marketing and song selection. In her high school yearbook she wrote that she aspired to have a single out on country radio someday. At 19 she packed up all she could and drove to Nashville, Tennessee, with little money and no contacts in the music business. The feisty redhead was determined to make her dream come true.
Soon after arriving, she met a struggling singer named Tim McGraw. The two became close friends.
Messina struggled for the first couple of years in Nashville. She entered and won talent contests around town and took up odd jobs to make ends meet, including a stint as a bartender. She managed to get a regular gig on the local Nashville radio show “Live at Libby’s” where she caught the attention of producer Byron Gallimore. With his help, Messina started making inroads into the Nashville music community.
All looked up when she was signed with RCA, but she was subsequently dropped from the label after a management shakeup. Meanwhile, her friend, McGraw, was having modest success on country radio, and she watched as his stardom began to take off.
As McGraw's backstage guest during Fan Fair in the early 1990s, Messina approached an executive from McGraw's record label and joked they needed a redhead on their roster. Her boldness caught the attention of Curb Records, and not too long after, she was signed to a recording contract. She reports selecting what she wanted to be her first 10 singles from more than 1,000 songs.
[edit] Mainstream success
Messina's first success in the country music scene was in 1996 with her debut single "Heads Carolina, Tails California". The song made it all the way to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles and Tracks chart. The self-titled album, co-produced by Tim McGraw and Byron Gallimore, had modest success after its release. It eventually went gold. The second single, "You're Not In Kansas Anymore", broke the top 10 that fall.
But after her impressive debut, Messina soon lost her radio airtime. The following singles, "You Wanna Make Something Of It" and "He'd Never Seen Julie Cry", did not fare so well. The album, like the singles, began sputtering. Before she knew it, her tour dates began drying up and money started getting tight.
"Bye Bye" was released to radio in late 1997. The song was the first track from her sophomore effort I’m Alright. The song soared to No. 1 on the Billboard and Radio and Records charts in early 1998 for two weeks. "I’m Alright" was a top 10 album. Messina was back on track.
History was made when her next two singles also hit No. 1: "I’m Alright" and "Stand Beside Me". Messina became the first woman in country music history to have three consecutive multi-week No. 1 songs from one album.
In 1999, she was named Billboard's most-played female country artist. She also won the prestigious CMA Horizon Award and won the award for Top New Female Artist from the Academy of Country Music. Her kiss-off rendition of Dottie West's 1980 No. 1 hit song, "Lesson In Leavin'" was a major hit, spending nearly two months at No. 2 on Billboard’s country chart, unable to unseat Lonestar’s mega-hit “Amazed”. “Lesson In Leavin’” became the No. 3 country song of 1999 on the Billboard charts (behind "Amazed" and Kenny Chesney's "How Forever Feels"). She also toured with country superstar George Strait.
Messina finished out 1999 by releasing “Because You Love Me”, a ballad showcasing her softer side. I’m Alright was certified double platinum and was a top five album. “Because You Love Me” became a top 10 hit, peaking at #8.
Messina also was chosen to be the opening act for the Judds Reunion tour in 2000.
As Messina entered 2000, she released “That’s The Way”, the lead single from her latest album Burn. “That’s The Way” spent four weeks at No. 1 on Billboard, and in August Burn was released. It debuted at No. 1 and went platinum. The title cut climbed to No. 2 on Billboard and crossed over to the adult contemporary chart. Messina also became engaged to her tour manager, Don Muzquiz.
The third single off Burn was “Downtime”, which peaked at #5. With steady album sales, Messina released another ballad, “Bring On The Rain” in 2002, a duet with longtime friend Tim McGraw. The song soared to No. 1 and became the second crossover song to make it on the pop charts.
Messina embarked on her first headlining tour with the group Rascal Flatts as the opening act, sponsored by Jerzees and Slimfast. She also made appearances on Nash Bridges and Touched By An Angel.
“Dare To Dream” was the last single released from Burn and was featured on the movie soundtrack for “Driven”. The single didn't fare so well though, peaking at #23.
But before 2002 ended, Messina released a Christmas album, A Joyful Noise.
Messina continued working with McGraw and Byron Gallimore on her fourth studio album. The single “Was That My Life” was released to radio. The single struggled to climb the charts. When Messina and her co-producers turned in what was to be her next album, Curb Records opted to release a greatest-hits package instead. They replaced McGraw and Gallimore with other producers and had Messina continue working to put together songs to include on a new studio album to be released at a later date.
Her Greatest Hits album was released in 2003 and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. But the second single from the album, “I Wish”, peaked at #15. 2003 ended with many of Messina’s fans wondering when a new album would be released. They ended up having to wait all of 2004 as well.
In late 2004, Messina revealed she was an alcoholic and had entered herself into a rehab program. In the meantime, her engagement to road manager Don Muzquiz was broken. The setback didn't hold Messina down. She attributed to her faith and family her will to keep going. And that’s exactly what she did, she kept going.
At the end of 2004 Messina’s label released “My Give A Damn’s Busted”. The spunky, fiery redhead was back, as witnessed by the song's climb to the No. 1 spot for two weeks. The song was the first single from her long-awaited album Delicious Surprise, released in stores on April 26, 2005.
The second single from the album was the title track, which peaked at #23. Messina's third single, "Not Going Down" didn't even break the top twenty, peaking at a modest #28. Her newest single, "Too Late to Worry," was released on July 10, 2006, but only peaked at #32 on the Billboard charts.
[edit] Albums
- Jo Dee Messina (1996)
- Certified Gold on 1/6/03
- I'm Alright (1998)
- Certified Gold on 9/4/98
- Certified Platinum on 4/29/99
- Certified 2x Platinum on 3/28/00
- [[Burn]] (2000)
- Certified Gold on 8/24/00
- Certified Platinum on 2/9/02
- A Joyful Noise (2003)
- Greatest Hits (2003)
- Certified Gold on 10/22/04
- Delicious Surprise (2005) #7 US, #1 US Country
- Certified gold in September,05
[edit] Notes
[edit] External links
