Lainey Wilson: ‘How You Treat Somebody Will Go Really Far’

Lainey Wilson is riding high in country music right now, going into the CMA Awards next week (11/8) with nine total nominations, including the night's biggest honor, Entertainer of the Year.

We talked with Lainey last week (10/25), and she told us about how she is staying grounded during this incredible time in her life and career. She told us, "I'm trying to keep one front on the ground. It's crazy, but it's like the most beautiful kind of whirlwind I can imagine. I do have a lot of people in my life who keep me grounded and make sure that I'm not getting ahead of myself."

She added, "I feel like all twelve and a half years that I have been here in Nashville have prepared me for all the blessings that are happening now. I don't know if I would have been quite ready for it (sooner) because this is a lot to take on all of a sudden. It feels like we've been shot out of a dang canon. But we're doing it, and I do think it is about surrounding yourself with people who have your best interest at heart and know you. And remind you who you are and who you were and who you want to be."

Wilson said that she knew from day one that she was different, "When I moved here in 2007 in my little camper trailer, I knew without a shadow of a doubt very quickly that my journey was not going to look like everybody else's. I knew it was gonna take me a long time because the truth is what I do was not cool then."

Lainey says it boils down to how she treated those she met along the way, "My parents raised me to be kind, and they made me very aware that how you treat somebody will go really, really far. I think that because I have created friendships in this town with songwriters and people within the industry, they might not remember the song that I played at this writer's night or the song that we wrote in that room, but they might remember the way that you made them feel."

As she celebrates her 31st birthday today (5/19), Lainey Wilson is the reigning Female Vocalist for the ACMs and the CMAs. She also won the ACM Album of the Year award for Bell Bottom Country, beating out albums by  Miranda Lambert and Luke Combs.

There is no doubt that Lainey is well on her way to becoming a country music superstar. She currently opens stadium shows for Luke Combs and gets a performance slot at the 2023 CMA Fest at Nissan Stadium in June in front of 65,000 fans worldwide.

As she celebrates her big day today (5/19), we count down what we believe are her six very best songs to date, with many more to come in the future.