SALT LAKE CITY, Aug. 27, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Country superstar Kellie Pickler and her husband, songwriter Kyle Jacobs, chatted (via satellite) with Gephardt Daily entertainment editor Tony Toscano about their careers and the second season of their CMT TV show, “I Love Kellie Pickler.”
Pickler grew up immersed in country music in the small town of Albemarle, N.C., with the words of Tammy Wynette, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Dolly Parton shaping her musical footing.
At the age of 19, she gained fame as a contestant on the fifth season of “American Idol.” In 2006, she signed with 19 Recordings/BNA Records and released her debut album, “Small Town Girl,” which has gone on to sell more than 900,000 copies worldwide and produce three hit singles: “Red High Heels,” “I Wonder,”and “Things That Never Cross a Man’s Mind.”
She followed that success in 2008 with her second album, “Kellie Pickler,” featuring country radio hits “Don’t You Know You’re Beautiful,” “Best Days of Your Life” (co–written with Taylor Swift, and her first Top 10) and “Didn’t You Know How Much I Loved You.”
Having established herself as not only a powerful vocalist but also a songwriter, Pickler released her third studio album, “100 Proof,” in 2011 to huge critical acclaim. The album was named the No. 1 Country Album of the Year by Rolling Stone and was listed on Best of 2012 lists by Washington Post, Rhapsody and AOL’s The Boot.
In spring of 2013, Pickler partnered with dance coach Derek Hough and won the Mirror
Ball trophy on “Dancing with the Stars.” That same year, she also released her fourth
album, “The Woman I Am,” with Black River Entertainment, which featured three songs co-written by Pickler, including the title cut.
She voiced the lead character, a sweet potato named Mirabelle, in the Veggie Tales animated movie “Beauty and the Beet” in 2014, and launched her home goods line, Selma Drye by Kellie Pickler, in cooperation with the Opry Stores in 2015.
She returned to “American Idol” twice in 2016, once to mentor two of the top 24 finalists, and in April, she performed on the series finale.
Her CMT docu-comedy series, “I Love Kellie Pickler,” which co-stars her husband, Kyle Jacobs, debuted in November 2015, propelling the network to its highest premiere with adults since 2012 and with women since 2008.
Pickler is an avid supporter of the U.S. military, having recently completed eight USO tours thus far. For more information, please visit www.kelliepickler.com.
Three years after Jacobs moved to Nashville from Minneapolis, he achieved his first significant success as a songwriter in 2003 with Kimberly Locke’s Top 10 Adult Contemporary hit single “8th World Wonder.”
In 2007, Jacobs co-wrote “More Than A Memory” with Lee Brice and Billy Montana. The song was recorded by Garth Brooks and became the first song ever to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, making country music history.
Jacobs also co-wrote Tim McGraw’s Top Ten hit “Still” and Eli Young Band’s Top Ten hit “Dust,” and has had two songs featured in the ABC television series “Nashville.”
In addition, Jacobs produced three No. 1 singles for Lee Brice: “Hard to Love,” “I Drive Your Truck,” and “Drinking Class.”
Jacobs has been a staff writer for Curb Music since 2003. His songs have been recorded by Trace Adkins, Gary Allan, Lee Brice, Garth Brooks, Jason Michael Carroll, Kelly Clarkson, Eli Young Band, Josh Kelley, Kimberly Locke, Scotty McCreery, Tim McGraw, Jo Dee Messina, Craig Morgan, Kellie Pickler, George Strait, Thompson Square, Randy Travis, Clay Walker, James Wesley and many others.
Jacobs frequently collaborates with many of the industry’s top songwriters and artists, including Joe Leathers, Phillip Lammonds, Vicky McGehee, Billy Montana, David Nail, Darius Rucker, Rachel Thibodeau and Wynonna.
Jacobs writes on piano and guitar and is an accomplished vocalist.
The second season of “I Love Kellie Pickler” debuts on CMT.
