Tracy Darrell "Trace" Adkins
(born January 13, 1962) is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1996 with the album Dreamin' Out Loud
, released on Capitol Records Nashville. Since then, Adkins has released seven more studio albums and two Greatest Hits compilations. In addition, he has charted more than twenty 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 somthing turned on at home went to #1 in Canada. All but one 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.
He has also made several appearances on television, including as a panelist on the game shows Hollywood Squares
and Pyramid
, as a finalist on The Celebrity Apprentice
, and in television commercial voice-overs for the KFC restaurant chain. In addition, Adkins has written an autobiography entitled A Personal Stand: Observations and Opinions from a Free-Thinking Roughneck
, which was released in late 2007.
|
TRACE ADKINS TICKETS
EVENT | DATE | AVAILABILITY |
---|
Trace Adkins Tickets 1/3 | Jan 03, 2025 Fri, 7:00 PM | | Trace Adkins Tickets 1/4 | Jan 04, 2025 Sat, 8:00 PM | | Trace Adkins Tickets 1/17 | Jan 17, 2025 Fri, 8:00 PM | | Trace Adkins Tickets 7/4 | Jul 04, 2025 Fri, 7:00 PM | | Trace Adkins Tickets 8/21 | Aug 21, 2025 Thu, 7:30 PM | |
|
Early life
Adkins was born and raised in
Sarepta, Louisiana, the son of Peggy and Aaron Adkins, a mill worker.
[1] [2] His musical interest came at an early age, when his father taught him to play the
guitar.
[3] In high school, he joined a
gospel music group called the New Commitments. He was also a member of Future Farmers of America (FFA). Later, Adkins went on to study at
Louisiana Tech University, where he also played football; after graduation, he took up work at an
oil rig. He lost the
pinky finger on his left hand in an accident, and asked doctors to reattach the finger at an angle so that he could continue to play guitar.
Adkins then moved on to playing in
honky tonk bars around
Nashville, Tennessee in the early 1990s. An executive of
Capitol Records spotted Adkins playing at a
honky tonk, and soon signed him to the label.
Career
Adkins's first single, "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.
A change in management delayed the release of Adkins's third album,
[4] 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.
2001-2004
On July 5, 2001, Adkins was charged with
driving under the influence in
Nolensville, Tennessee.
[5] The singer pled guilty and was sentenced to 11 months in jail; however, the sentence was suspended after 48 hours.
In addition, he had to pay $350 in fines, and his driver's license was suspended for one year.
[6] Shortly afterward, he was injured in a tractor accident and had to temporarily cancel touring.
[7] He later entered a 28-day alcohol rehabilitation program in Nashville
[8], shortly after the release of his
Chrome
album.
Chrome
was the first album of Adkins's 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
.
The same year, he was inducted into the
Grand Ole Opry.
[9] He also made appearances as the center square on the game show
Hollywood Squares,
[10] and did voice-overs in commercials for fast-food chain
KFC.
[11] Only one single, "
Then They Do", was released from the Greatest Hits compilation.
Comin' on Strong
, which succeeded the Greatest Hits album, produced two singles: the Top 5 single "
Hot Mama", and "Rough & Ready", which peaked at #13.
Adkins and
Travis Tritt played the roles of prison convicts in a February 2004 episode of the television series
Yes, Dear
(
Greg & Jimmy's Criminals).
2005-2007
In 2005, Adkins released his
Songs About Me
album.
The album's second single, "Arlington", generated controversy over its content (a first-person account of a fictional soldier who was about to be buried in
Arlington National Cemetery).
[12] It was followed by "
Honky Tonk Badonkadonk", which became a highly successful crossover hit, bringing Adkins into the Top 40 of the
Billboard Hot 100 for the first time.
2006 saw the release of Adkins's seventh studio album,
Dangerous Man
. "Swing", the album's lead-off single, peaked at #20, while the follow-up "
Ladies Love Country Boys" became Adkins's first Number One single on the country charts since "(This Ain't) No Thinkin' Thing" in 1997. The album's final release, "I Wanna Feel Something", proved unsuccessful on the charts; as a result, Adkins announced that he would stop supporting the single.
In August 2007, Adkins released a single entitled "I Got My Game On".
[13] Originally, the song was planned to be the lead-off to a new album, tentatively titled
Game On
; however, Adkins decided not to release a full album, and instead released his second Greatest Hits compilation,
American Man: Greatest Hits, Vol. 2
, for which "I Got My Game On" served as the lead-off single.
[14] The album has also produced Adkins' fastest-climbing single to date in its second single, "
You're Gonna Miss This".
[15]
"You're Gonna Miss This" has also become his third Number One hit on the
Hot Country Songs, as well as the most successful single to date on the
Billboard Hot 100 (#12),
Billboard Pop 100 (#19), and
Hot Digital Songs charts (#8).
He also released his first book, entitled
A Personal Stand: Observations and Opinions from a Free-Thinking Roughneck
.
[16]
2008-present
Adkins was previously a January-March 2008 contestant on
NBC's
The Celebrity Apprentice
.
Each celebrity contestant on the show was playing for money for his or her own selected charity. Adkins was playing for the
Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, which provides education, advocacy and research support to families dealing with the daily nightmare of serious and/or life-threatening food allergies. The musician chose the charity because his 6-year-old daughter, Brianna, suffers from life-threatening reactions to peanuts, milk and eggs. Adkins made it to the finale as one of the two finalists.
Donald Trump ultimately "hired" Adkins' rival, tabloid editor
Piers Morgan, who had selected his own charity.
Adkins' efforts for FAAN didn't go unnoticed: A couple of weeks after the show ended, a poker player and fan of Celebrity Apprentice donated $1,000 from a media tournament to FAAN.
[17]
Adkins appeared on the May 2nd, 2008 episode of
CBS's
The Young and the Restless
playing himself and singing an acoustic version of "You're Gonna Miss This" to the characters of Nicholas and Phyllis.
In 2008, Trace Adkins released the single "Muddy Water," the lead single from
X
, which was released on November 25. The video for "Muddy Water" also has an appearance by fellow
Celebrity Apprentice competitor Stephen Baldwin as a man being baptised in a muddy river, and later approaching Trace as a friend.
X
also includes the single "
Marry for Money" which peaked at #13 in 2009.
Adkins made his acting debut in the 2008 film
An American Carol
.
In November 2008, Trace Adkins made an appearance in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Trace rode with his family on the "Jimmy Dean" float and performed his popular song "You're Gonna Miss This".
Adkins also co-wrote "Country As Country Can Be", a song on
Billy Ray Cyrus' 2009 album
Back to Tennessee
. It was co-written with Cyrus as well as
Casey Beathard.
In 2009, Adkins appeared in local Kansas City commercials to advertise season tickets and the 50th season of the
National Football League's
Kansas City Chiefs.
Injuries
Trace Adkins has experienced a number of serious injuries as an adult. He was involved in a number of bar room incidents, and was also shot in the heart and lungs by his second wife. Adkins denies abusing her but comments that the relationship was marked by excessive alcohol use.
[18]
Discography
Awards
- 1996 ACM Top New Male Vocalist
- 2008 CMT Male Video of the Year "I Got My Game On"
- 2009 ACM Single of the Year "You're Gonna Miss This"
References
- A Dream Come True for Trace Adkin
- Trace Adkins: A Personal Stand
- Trace Adkins Biography
- CMT.com : Trace Adkins : Trace Adkins Nixed Song That's Now His Album's Lead Single
- CMT.com : Trace Adkins : Adkins Case Continues
- CMT.com : Trace Adkins : Trace Adkins Sentenced for DUI Charge
- CMT:com : Trace Adkins : Adkins to Resume Touring
- CMT.com : Trace Adkins : Trace Adkins Completes Rehab Program
- CMT.com : Trace Adkins : Trace Adkins to Become Newest Opry Member
- CMT.com : Hot Talk : Adkins Goes Hollywood, Bellamys Sue
- CMT.com : Trace Adkins : Adkins Will Voice KFC's New Ads
- USA WEEKEND Magazine
- Adkins Impatient To Unveil New Single, Album
- Trace and Trump
- Trace Adkins brings "The Boardroom" to Nashville
- First Book by Country Star Trace Adkins Hits Bookshelves Nationwide
- http://traceadkins.com/news.php?title=celebrity_apprentice_fan_donates_winning&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
- [http://new.music.yahoo.com/trace-adkins/news/countrys-trace-adkins-comes-full-circle--12176400 Yahoo music article