martina mcbride

Martina McBride at the American Music Awards; 2003. Background information Birth name Martina Maria Schiff Born July 29, 1966 (1966-07-29) (age 42) Origin Medicine Lodge, Kansas, US Genre(s) Country pop Occupation(s) singer-songwriter Instrument(s) Vocals Years active 1988 – present Label(s) RCA Nashville Associated acts Clint Black, Jim Brickman, Jimmy Buffett, Andy Griggs, Dolly Parton, Jason Sellers Website Official Website

Martina McBride (born Martina Maria Schiff, July 29, 1966, in Medicine Lodge, Kansas, USA) is an American country music singer and songwriter, best-known for her Inspirational-styled ballads about women and children.[1] McBride has been called "Celine Dion of Country Music" on account of her big-voiced ballads and Soprano range.[2]

McBride was signed to RCA Records in 1991, and made her debut the following year as a Neo-Tradionalist country singer with the single, "The Time Has Come."[3] It wasn't until 1997, when she released her fourth album, Evolution, that she broke through into the country music industry with a new Pop-styled crossover sound, similar to that of Faith Hill and Shania Twain. From that point on, McBride has had a string of major hit singles on the Billboard country chart and ocassionally the adult contemporary chart. Five of these singles went to #1 on the country chart between 1995 and 2001, and one peaked at #1 on adult contemporary chart in 2003.

To date, Martina McBride has recorded a total of nine studio albums, one Greatest Hits compilation, one live album, a Christmas compilation, as well as two additional compilation albums. Seven of her studio albums and two of her compilations have received an RIAA certification of "Gold" or higher. Worldwide, she has sold over 16 million albums. In addition, Martina has won the Country Music Association's "Female Vocalist of the Year" four times (tied with Reba McEntire for the most wins), and the Academy of Country Music's "Top Female Vocalist" award three times. Contents [hide] 1 Early life 2 Music career 2.1 Country success: 1992 — 1996 2.2 Breakthrough: 1997 — 2003 2.3 Timeless & Waking Up Laughing: 2005 — present 3 Charity work 4 Personal life 5 Discography 6 Awards 7 References 8 External links //

Early life

McBride was born Martina Maria Schiff in Medicine Lodge, Kansas, in 1966. She was raised in nearby Sharon, Kansas, a small town that consisted of about 200 people. Her father, who was a farmer and cabinetry shop owner, exposed McBride to country music at a young age. Listening to country music helped acquire love for singing. After school, she would spend hours singing along to the records of popular artists like Pat Benatar, Linda Ronstadt, and Bonnie Raitt.[1] Around age 8 or 9, McBride began singing with a band her father fronted called, "The Schiffters." As Schiff grew older her role in the band progressively increased, from simply singing, to also playing keyboard with them. Although she enjoyed performing, Schiff