Jennifer Nettles (born September 12, 1974 in Douglas, Georgia[1]) is an American country music artist. She is known primarily for her role as lead vocalist of the duo Sugarland alongside Kristian Bush. Before Sugarland's inception, she also fronted Atlanta, Georgia-based bands called Soul Miner's Daughter and Jennifer Nettles Band. She also charted as a duet partner on the country version of rock band Bon Jovi's 2006 single "Who Says You Can't Go Home", a Number One hit on the Billboard charts.[2]Contents [hide] 1 Musical beginnings 2 Sugarland 3 Personal life 4 Activism 5 Discography 5.1 Studio albums 5.2 Guest singles 5.3 Music videos 6 Awards 7 References 8 External links
[edit] Musical beginnings
Nettles began performing at school assemblies, Georgia 4-H's Clover & Company clubs,[3] her Southern Baptist church, and at regional theater.
Nettles attended Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia where she studied Sociology and Anthropology.[4] While a student there, Nettles and Cory Jones (who at the time was studying classical guitar at the University of Georgia) formed the group Soul Miner’s Daughter. Performing as both an acoustic duo and with a band, they released two albums: The Sacred and Profane in 1996 and Hallelujah in 1998, both of which were composed of songs written collaboratively by Jones and Nettles.[5]
In 1999, she formed the Jennifer Nettles Band, with whom she released three studio albums and two live albums. The band, who in addition to Nettles included Brad Sikes (drums), Scott Nicholson (piano), Wesley Lupold (bass), and Mike Cebulski (percussion), was selected the grand prize winner from more than 2000 bands in "The Big Deal $100,000 Music Search" presented by Mars Music and was invited to perform at Lilith Fair in 1999.[6]
Friends Jay Memory and Bubba Dean, who perform as Memory Dean, invited Nettles to sing on their 1999 release Still Hungry Souls. According to Alan Back, writing for The Technique, Georgia Institute of Technology's newspaper, Nettles' vocals "lend a powerful gospel tone to "Fix My Heart," a standout cut on the album."[7] [edit] Sugarland Main article: Sugarland
In 2003, Nettles teamed up with Kristen Hall and Kristian Bush to form Sugarland. Regarding the trio's collaboration, she said:
"We really wanted to get out of where we had all been as artists and move beyond that to something bigger. Consequently all the songs reflect that; 'Fly Away,' 'Baby Girl,' all of those songs - you speak to the human condition and write what you know in your life."[8]
Sugarland was nominated for a Grammy award in the Best New Artist category in 2006.[9] Although they did not win the award, Nettles and Bush performed for the awards show and Nettles presented both a Lifetime Achievement Award to Merle Haggard and the award for Best Country Group.[10]
A duet performance with rock band Bon Jovi, "Who Says You Can't Go Home", reached No. 7 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart and No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. The video for the song won a CMT Music Award in 2006 for Collaborative Video Of The Year. In February 2007, Nettles and Bon Jovi won a Grammy for Best Country Vocal Collaboration.[11] In 2006, Kristen Hall left the group[12] and Nettles and Bush continued on as a duo releasing Enjoy the Ride in November 2006. Their third album, titled Love on the Inside, was released on July 22, 2008.
In an interview on Fox News with Martha MacCullum, Nettles expressed interest in appearing in a Broadway play, stating in particular that she would like to play the role of Elphaba in Wicked.[13]
On Sunday, January 18, 2009, she performed at the We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial, singing James Taylor's "Shower the People" with James Taylor and John Legend.[14]
In early December 2008, Sugarland received three Grammy Award nominations and performed on the 51st Annual Grammy Awards show on February 8, 2009. They won awards for Best Country Song and Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group.[15]
On February 11, 2009, Sugarland received two nominations from the Academy of Country Music for Top Vocal Duo and Vocal Event of the Year for "Life in a Northern Town".[16] During the broadcast of the April 5, 2009 awards show, Sugarland was presented with the Vocal Duo of the Year award, ending Brooks & Dunn's nine-year run.[17] Nettles also received a Milestone award, presented to her by Reba McEntire.[18] [edit] Personal life
Nettles grew up in the small town of Douglas, Georgia. She credits her mother, who loved listening to the radio, with shaping her as musician, writer and artist.[8] Nettles has a sister Katie Bryce Ricketson[19] and a brother Seth Ricketson, who is currently serving in the United States Air Force.[citation needed]
Nettles was formerly married to Todd Van Sickle, one-time owner of Eddie's Attic, a music club in Decatur, Georgia. [edit] Activism
Nettles has lent her time and talent to support various non-profit organizations. In 2007, one dollar from every ticket sold during Sugarland's CMT Change For Change tour was donated to the Shalom Foundation.[20] More than $120,000 was raised in 2007.[21]
In 2008 she launched Common Thread, a series of musical events enabling artists to come together to share music and raise money for their favorite charities. The first three Common Thread concerts included performances by Nettles, Sugarland partner Kristian Bush, Emily Saliers, and Amos Lee and raised funds for the American Cancer Society, American Liver Foundation, Honor the Earth, and Intercultural Family Services.[22]
Following the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Nettles and Sugarland partner Bush sang on the remake of We Are the World as part of Artists for Haiti. [edit] Discography Main article: Sugarland discography [edit] Studio albums As Jennifer Nettles BandYear Album 2000 Story Of Your Bones 2002 Drag Me Down, Gravity 2002 Rewind
As Jennifer NettlesYear Album 2003 An Acoustic Evening with Jennifer Nettles 2004 An Acoustic Evening with Jennifer Nettles II
[edit] Guest singlesYear Single Artist Peak chart positions[2] Album US Country US CAN Country CAN NOR IRE NZ SWE SPA 2006 "Who Says You Can't Go Home" Bon Jovi 1 107 3 — — — — — — Have a Nice Day 2010 "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" Artists for Haiti — 2 — 7 1 9 8 5 15 Non-album song "—" denotes releases that did not chart
[edit] Music videosYear Title Director 2006 "Who Says You Can't Go Home" (with Bon Jovi) Anthony M. Bongiovi 2010 "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" (with Artists for Haiti) Paul Haggis
