country

Jo Dee Messina

1 festival played

Massachusetts-raised country singer behind a run of late-nineties radio staples — 'Bye, Bye' and 'Heads Carolina, Tails California' sung with unfussy force.

Jo Dee Messina grew up in Massachusetts before moving to Nashville, an unusual route into a genre still centred on the South. She signed to Curb Records and broke through in the mid-1990s, then built a run of country radio hits across the late nineties and early 2000s, among them "I'm Alright," "Stand Beside Me" and "Lesson in Leavin'."

Her records sit on the country-pop side of the format, with bright, uptempo arrangements and a direct, forceful delivery rather than a stylised twang. Tim McGraw was closely involved in her early career as a producer, and the two later recorded the duet "Bring On the Rain."

country