Editor’s Note: This is the first part of a two-part series.
Meghan Linsey jokingly claims she came out of the womb singing.
Raised in Ponchatoula, Louisiana, Linsey’s voice is as unique and colorful as her birthplace. The musician’s perseverance through life’s challenges is as strong as her home state’s fortitude in the face of floodwaters and deadly winds.
The 29-year-old resurrected country star from the duo Steel Magnolia has lived in Nashville for 11 years writing music for record companies and most recently competing on NBC’s “The Voice.”
Linsey was the runner-up in this season’s singing competition, having both Pharrell Williams and Blake Shelton as her vocal coaches. The blonde haired singer competed for nearly 10 months in Los Angeles, California, befriending many of her fellow contestants.
“It’s a long process, and people don’t realize how much time it does take,” Linsey said. “We were all away from home at a hotel in Los Angeles for so long, so we just became family.”
In 2011, Linsey and her then-fiancé, Joshua Scott Jones, produced a country hit with “Keep on Lovin’ You.” Before a tour with Reba McEntire, Jones’ drug and alcohol addictions reached new heights, and the country star checked into a rehabilitation center in Tennessee.
Two years later, Steel Magnolia officially split, and the engagement was no more. Linsey described second chances in the music industry as rare occurrences that are hardly successful. Linsey was one of the lucky ones, and “The Voice” rolled the stone away from her musical grave.
After a long year in California, Linsey now prepares to release self-written, new music within the coming weeks with her signature soulful, pop-like sound.
“I really just write from experience,” Linsey said. “You have to just tell the truth, and I think that resonates with people. I’ve been through a lot and just dig deep and write it all down.”
While growing up, Linsey listened to ’60s and ’70s rock ’n roll with her dad in his pickup truck and ’90s contemporary and old country with her mom. She drew her musical inspiration from females such as Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Dolly Parton and Aretha Franklin.
Starting a band at 15 years old with the help of her mom searching for band members through classified ads in the newspaper, Linsey took in the style and energy of Louisiana music, helping her find texture and color within her musical talents.
“The more soulful pop stuff is where I fit better,” Linsey said. “It’s, A: really hard to be a woman in country music because they just don’t play women on country radio, and B: It’s really hard to be yourself in country music anymore. It is so narrow-minded, and you have to really cater to a certain thing to get played on the radio.”
From birth to her life today, her music career has thrown its fair share of obstacles in her direction, but Linsey swears that carrying on can make dreams come true.
“There are so many ups and downs. It is so much about persevering and moving forward no matter what,” she said. “I think that one minute you’re up, and the next you’re down. You think you have friends, and then you don’t. The next minute they’re gone.”
An LSU fan, born and raised, Linsey has a gift she said she is willing to offer the world and a home she is willing to thank for it.
“I’m really proud of where I’m from. I think that a lot of my success has to do with my support from Louisiana and my hometown.”
You can reach Justin DiCharia on Twitter @JDiCharia.