Trace Adkins

His maternal uncle was the Christian musician James W. Carraway (1923–2008).

His musical interest came at an early age when he was ten and his father bought him a guitar and hired someone to give him lessons.

At Sarepta High School, since defunct, Adkins joined a gospel music group called the New Commitments.

He was also a member of the FFA.

Later, Adkins attended Louisiana Tech University in Ruston.

A walk-on offensive lineman on their football team, Adkins left the team after his freshman season due to a knee injury, without ever playing in a game.

Adkins never graduated.

After leaving college, he worked on an oil rig.

He also played music in a band called Bayou.

Adkins also worked as a pharmacy technician before pursuing a career in music.

He lost the pinky finger on his left hand in an accident using a knife to open a bucket, and asked doctors to reattach the finger at an angle so that he could continue to play guitar.

Tracy Darrell Adkins (born January 13, 1962) is an American country music singer and actor.

Adkins moved to play in honky-tonk bars for the next few years in the Ark-La-Tex area and eventually moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1992.

In late-1994, Adkins met Rhonda Forlaw, who was an executive at Arista Records Nashville.

Forlaw had numerous music industry friends come out to hear Adkins over the next few years.

Scott Hendricks of Capitol Nashville signed him "on the spot" one night while Adkins was playing at Tillie and Lucy's bar in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee.

Adkins made his debut in 1996 with the album Dreamin' Out Loud, released on Capitol Records Nashville.

Since then, he has released ten more studio albums and two Greatest Hits compilations.

Adkins' first single, which he wrote himself, "There's a Girl in Texas", was released in 1996, reaching the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts.

It was followed by the release of his debut album, Dreamin' Out Loud, later that year.

The album produced several hit singles, including his first Top 5 single, "Every Light in the House", his first Number One in "(This Ain't) No Thinkin' Thing", and another Top 5 hit in "I Left Something Turned on at Home".

The latter single was also a Number One hit in Canada.

His second album, Big Time, produced a Top 5 in "The Rest of Mine", but subsequent singles proved less successful.

In addition, Adkins has charted more than 20 singles on the Billboard country music charts, including the Number One hits "(This Ain't) No Thinkin' Thing", "Ladies Love Country Boys", and "You're Gonna Miss This", which peaked in 1997, 2007, and 2008, respectively.

"I Left Something Turned on at Home" went to No. 1 on Canada's country chart.

Adkins was named "Top New Male Artist" by the Academy of Country Music in 1997.

In 1998, Adkins appeared on the PBS music program Austin City Limits (season 23).

A change in management delayed the release of Adkins' third album, but the album (titled More...) was eventually released in late 1999.

Although the album's title track reached Top 10, More... failed to achieve gold status.

Adkins' daughter, Mackenzie, was featured in the "More" video.

In 2001, Adkins was injured in a tractor accident and had to cancel touring temporarily.

Shortly after the release of his Chrome album, he entered a 28-day alcohol rehabilitation program in Nashville.

Chrome was his first album to reach the Top 5 on the country albums charts; its title track reached Top 10 in late 2002.

In 2003, Adkins released two albums—a Greatest Hits collection and Comin' on Strong.

At least six of his studio albums have received gold or platinum certification in the United States; his highest-selling to date is 2005's Songs About Me, which has been certified 2× Multi-Platinum for shipping two million copies.

Adkins is widely known for his distinctive bass-baritone singing and speaking voice.

Also, Adkins has written an autobiography titled A Personal Stand: Observations and Opinions from a Free-Thinking Roughneck, which was released in late 2007.

He has appeared in numerous films, including The Lincoln Lawyer, Moms' Night Out, and I Can Only Imagine.

Adkins was born in Sarepta, Louisiana, the son of Peggy Carraway and Aaron Doyle Adkins.

He has also made several appearances on television, including as a panelist on the game shows Hollywood Squares and Pyramid, as a 2008 finalist and as the 2013 winner on The All Star Celebrity Apprentice, as the voice for recurring character Elvin on King of the Hill, and the main role of Albie Roman on Monarch, as well as in television commercial voice-overs for KFC and Firestone.