Brandy Clark

Brandy Lynn Clark (born October 9, 1975) is an American country music singer-songwriter.

Her songs have been recorded by Sheryl Crow, Miranda Lambert, The Band Perry, Reba McEntire, LeAnn Rimes, Billy Currington, Darius Rucker, and Kacey Musgraves.

As a child in the 1980s she was influenced by the country-pop and traditional country music artists she heard her parents and grandmother play, like Barbara Mandrell, Ronnie Milsap, Merle Haggard and Loretta Lynn.

Clark cites the Patsy Cline movie "Sweet Dreams" as one of her biggest early influences.

Clark began playing guitar at nine years old and sang in school musicals, also writing songs.

She obtained a basketball scholarship at Central Washington University, but later moved back home, obtaining an associate degree from a community college.

Still a teenager, she joined the music business program at Belmont University, and moved to Nashville in 1998.

At Belmont she took guitar lessons again and joined a band with her mother and a friend.

She studied commercial music and was chosen to perform in the school's "Best of the Best Showcase".

Upon graduation, Clark got a job with Leadership Music which led to her eventual publishing deal.

In 2011 "Mama's Broken Heart", written by Clark with Shane McAnally (her frequent collaborator) and Kacey Musgraves, appeared on Miranda Lambert's album Four the Record.

In 2012 she opened shows for Grammy Award-winning artist Sheryl Crow.

Brandy found an advocate in country artist Marty Stuart when on Saturday December 8, 2012 she joined him to make her Grand Ole Opry debut when she played his Grand Ole Opry Anniversary celebration and also at his Late Night Jam at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium.

In December 2012, Clark digitally released a self-titled three-track EP including songs "Pray to Jesus", "Stripes" and "Take a Little Pill".

She debuted as an artist in her own right in 2013 with her album 12 Stories and has released four additional studio albums.

It was released on January 14, 2013, as the fourth single reaching No. 2 on both the Billboard Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts.

Clark's biggest success to date was as the co-writer along with McAnally and Trevor Rosen when she celebrated a No.1 song ASCAP Party at an industry gathering for The Band Perry's third No. 1 hit, "Better Dig Two".

As a Music Row songwriter Clark writes songs that are mostly about the seedy underbelly of country folk.

They are observational pieces based on flawed characters that tell the truth on the human condition.

They contain dark humor, with a blend of wit and realism, while having the artistic license to make them fictional.

At the beginning of 2013 Brandy was chosen by CMT as one of the "Women of Country", a year-long promotion featuring up and coming artists.

The song "Stripes" was released as a single and the official video made its CMT debut on July 4, 2013.

It was directed by Becky Fluke (Little Big Town, Pistol Annies) and HLN's Nancy Grace plays a cameo role.

As a co-writer of Miranda Lambert's "Mama's Broken Heart", on September 10, 2013 Brandy received a nomination in the Song of the Year category (presented to the songwriters) for the 47th Annual CMA Awards broadcast, held in Nashville on November 6, 2013.

She was also twice nominated for Song of the Year at the 4th Annual American Country Awards which were held in Las Vegas on December 10, 2013.

On October 22, 2013 Clark released her debut album 12 Stories.

Produced by Dave Brainard, it features Vince Gill on background vocals.

It made its debut at No. 28 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart On January 6, 2014 Clark made her network CBS network TV debut on The Late Show with David Letterman, performing the lead single "Stripes".

In 2014, Clark opened for Jennifer Nettles on her "That Girl" tour.

Clark is a sixteen-time Grammy Award nominee, including the 2015 Best New Artist award, and won the Country Music Association Award for Song of the Year as a co-writer on "Follow Your Arrow".

In 2023, Clark and frequent collaborator Shane McAnally wrote the music and lyrics for the musical Shucked, earning a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Original Score.

Brandy Clark was born in Morton, Washington, a logging town of 900 people in the shadow of Mount Rainier.

On June 10, 2016 Clark released her second album Big Day in a Small Town, which was produced by Jay Joyce.

Lead single "Girl Next Door" became her only chart entry to date, reaching No. 39 on Country Airplay.

Clark releasedYour Life Is a Record in 2020.

Also produced by Joyce, the album was nominated for a Grammy for Best Country Album.

In 2023, Clark released a self-titled album, Brandy Clark.

It was nominated for five Grammys, including Best Americana Album.

Clark won the Grammy, her first, for Best Americana Performance for her song, "Dear Insecurity", featuring Brandi Carlile.

Clark's song "Stripes" received favorable reviews from critics.