Jo Dee Messina
Encyclopedia
Jo Dee Marie Messina (born August 25, 1970), known professionally as Jo Dee Messina, is an American country music artist. She has charted nine Number One singles on the Billboard country music charts. She has been honored by the Country Music Association
, the Academy of Country Music
and has been nominated for two Grammy Awards. She was the first female country artist to score three multiple-week Number One songs from the same album. To date, she has two Platinum and three Gold-certified albums by the RIAA.
Messina debuted in 1996 with the single Heads Carolina, Tails California
. Her album was certified Gold by the RIAA. Her second album, I'm Alright
produced five Top 10 Country hits between 1998 in 1999 and sold over a million copies in America. Since her debut, six of her singles have peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country singles chart and five of her albums have received a certification by the RIAA or the CRIA
. She has sold 5 million records worldwide.
to Vincent and Mary Messina. Her father was of Italian descent and her mother was of Irish descent. She was raised in Holliston, Massachusetts
, with two sisters, Terese and Marianne, and a brother, Vincent.
Messina had a variety of country music influences, including Patsy Cline
, Reba McEntire
, and The Judds
. She soon started performing live, and by age 16 she was playing local clubs, singing while her brother and one sister provided backup on drums and guitar. The group continued performing until she graduated from high school.
Realizing that living in the Northeast would limit her chances of achieving country music stardom, Messina moved to Nashville, Tennessee
at age 19. She worked various temp jobs, including computer programming and accounting, while entering talent contests around Nashville.
One win led to a regular gig on the radio show Live at Libby's, which caught the interest of producer Byron Gallimore
, who helped her assemble a demonstration tape. Gallimore was also working with the young Tim McGraw
around the same time, and Messina befriended him. Backstage at one of his concerts, Messina met an executive from his label, Curb, and jokingly suggested that they needed a redhead. With the help of fellow Curb producer James Stroud
, Messina was soon signed to the record label. Gallimore and McGraw would later become co-producers of Messina's studio albums under Curb.
However, the two additional singles released from the album, "Do You Wanna Make Something of It" and "He'd Never Seen Julie Cry" peaked outside the Country Top 40 and were minor hits between 1996 and 1997. Following her major success, Messina performed 215 shows in 1996 and became one of the most successful new female vocalists of the 1990s. debut album sold over 500,000 copies and was certified Gold by RIAA.
Messina's finances suffered due to a series of poor business decisions and a change of management that led her to nearly declaring bankruptcy
; she nearly lost her home and her car. She spent nearly a year trying to write new songs and material for a new album that could help bring herself out of bankruptcy. She credited the radio success of "Bye, Bye" and "I'm Alright" with giving her a "second chance."
. The album spawned three #1 hit singles on the Billboard Country Chart
that year: "Bye, Bye";
"I'm Alright"; and "Stand Beside Me
," all three of which charted on the Billboard Hot 100
as well. The fourth single, "Lesson in Leavin", was a cover of the #1 Country hit by Dottie West
in 1980. The song peaked at #2 for 7 weeks. In 1999 she had another Top 10 hit from the album, "Because You Love Me," which peaked at #8 on the Billboard Country Chart.
In 2000 Messina received the Country Music Association
's "Horizon award," which is awarded to new Country music artists. She also won Billboard magazines "Most Played Female at Country Radio", and won three major awards from the Boston Music Awards, located in her home state of Massachusetts.
Messina's album also became her biggest-selling album to date, selling over two million copies in the US, receiving an RIAA certification of 2XPlatinum. Around the same time, Messina had guest roles on the television shows, Crash and Burn
, Nash Bridges
and Touched by an Angel
. She guest-starred on the series a couple of years earlier and stayed in touch with the show's producer/creator. In the episode titled "Bring On the Rain" (named after Messina's hit song), she appeared as Annie, the single mother of a teenage girl.
She released her third studio album, Burn
in 2000, which aimed towards Country pop
-styled music. The album's lead single, "That's the Way
" peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country Chart and also became her highest-charting single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #25. Following that success, she had two additional Top 10 hits with "Burn
" and "Downtime."
Messina had another #1 hit from the album in 2001 with "Bring On the Rain
," a duet with Tim McGraw that also became a Top 10 hit on the Adult Contemporary Chart
, peaking at #6.
In addition to headlining concerts, she also toured with Vince Gill
, George Strait
, and The Judds
' reunion tour.
Messina released her first holiday album in 2002 with A Joyful Noise
. The title track was released as a single and peaked at #16 on the Adult Contemporary chart in 2003. The album consisted of remakes of holiday songs previously made famous by other singers.
Messina planned to release a new album in 2003, but a Greatest Hits
album was released instead due to delays. The album covered most of Messina's hits between 1996 and 2003, and also included four new songs, including two that were released as singles. The first single, "Was That My Life," peaked in the Top 25 and the second single, "I Wish," became a Top 15 hit. The album was also certified Gold by RIAA.
In 2005 Messina released her first Country music studio album since 2000, Delicious Surprise
. It peaked at #1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and #9 on the Billboard 200
. It sold over 500,000 copies and became her fourth album to receive an RIAA Gold certification. The lead single, "My Give a Damn's Busted," peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country Chart and became Messina's first #1 single since 2001. The three follow-up singles ("Delicious Surprise (I Believe It)," "Not Going Down," and "It's Too Late To Worry") were minor Top 40 hits on the Billboard Country chart between 2005 and 2006.
Messina released a new single in July 2007, "Biker Chick," from her upcoming fifth studio album, Unmistakable. It was written by Kelly Archer and Max T. Barnes and was recorded in the fall of 2006 in Nashville.
Although the album was set for release on November 6, 2007, the album was shelved and therefore, the single was dropped from Country radio after spending 9 weeks on the charts, rising to a peak of #48.
On March 22, 2008, Messina released her second single from Unmistakable, titled "I'm Done." The single peaked at #34 on the Billboard Country Chart. Messina, who co-wrote the song, explained that the release of the album was "truly dictated by the success of the single."
On June 10, 2008, Messina and Phil Vassar
opened the 2008 CMA Music Festival, where she performed her two #1 hits, Bye, Bye and I'm Alright
, both co-written by Vassar.
She also performed her latest single, "I'm Done," which received a positive reaction from the audience that day. In early 2009 she released Shine, but that song failed to chart, and the album was pushed again.
In January 2010, Messina released the single, "That's God," although it failed to chart. Messina began debuting the single in late 2009 on her Music Room Series Tour. "My heart is exploding with excitement. This song is truly what I want to say. I believe in it and its message." Having had her first child in January 2009, Messina was inspired to write the song while spending time with her son on a trip to Jasper, Canada, where she saw mountains with glacier lakes. The single received a negative review at The 9513, where critic Sam Gadzidak thought that it was derivative of Lee Ann Womack
's "There Is a God
."
She later announced that the album would be released in a trilogy of extended plays, beginning with Unmistakable: Love
, released on April 27, 2010. It was followed by two additional extended plays, Drive and Inspiration, both released on November 9, 2010, via MP3 format.
In 2010 Jo Dee Messina performed at The Norfolk County Fair and Horseshow in Simcoe Ontario.
Messina became involved with the Special Olympics
after stumbling across an event while jogging. She has become an ambassador and performs at Special Olympics events in order to increase attendance.
In April 2004 Messina entered a rehabilitation facility in Utah
for treatment of alcoholism. Messina says her manager, Stuart Dill, confronted her in Houston following a rough performance after the 2004 Super Bowl. She says she wasn't "stumbling drunk," but she acknowledges that she doesn't recall much about the performance either. "I forgot the words to Stand Beside Me. That's what I can remember," Messina said. After Dill's confrontation, Messina was on a plane to Utah the next day. She entered a detox center for a few days before checking into rehab. Messina doesn't blame Muzquiz or Curb Records for her drinking problem; she points to her workaholic tendencies. She said rehab gave her the time to focus on herself and her issues, and she was able to turn to songwriting again for the first time in a long time. After finishing rehabilitation, Messina rented a cabin at Sundance
Ski Resort in Utah. She resumed touring on May 30, 2004, in Marksville, Louisiana. On June 22, 2007, Messina announced her engagement to businessman Chris Deffenbaugh from Albuquerque, New Mexico. They were married in Nashville in late 2007. A son, Noah Roger Deffenbaugh was born on January 12, 2009.
EPs & Other albums
Country Music Association
The Country Music Association was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of only 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre...
, the Academy of Country Music
Academy of Country Music
The Academy of Country Music was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Whereas the Country Music Association, founded in 1958, was based in Nashville, the Academy sought to promote country music in the western states. Among those involved in the...
and has been nominated for two Grammy Awards. She was the first female country artist to score three multiple-week Number One songs from the same album. To date, she has two Platinum and three Gold-certified albums by the RIAA.
Messina debuted in 1996 with the single Heads Carolina, Tails California
Heads Carolina, Tails California
"Heads Carolina, Tails California" is the title of a song written by Tim Nichols and Mark D. Sanders and recorded by American country artist Jo Dee Messina. The song was released in January 1996 as her debut single and served as the lead-off single for her self-titled debut album. The song reached...
. Her album was certified Gold by the RIAA. Her second album, I'm Alright
I'm Alright (Jo Dee Messina album)
I'm Alright is the second studio album released by American country music singer Jo Dee Messina. It was released in 1998. Her highest selling album to date, it has been certified 2× Multi-Platinum for U.S. sales of two million copies...
produced five Top 10 Country hits between 1998 in 1999 and sold over a million copies in America. Since her debut, six of her singles have peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country singles chart and five of her albums have received a certification by the RIAA or the CRIA
Canadian Recording Industry Association
Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada...
. She has sold 5 million records worldwide.
Early life
Messina was born Jo Dee Marie Messina on August 25, 1970, in Framingham, MassachusettsFramingham, Massachusetts
Framingham is a New England town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 68,318 as of the United States 2010 Census. -History:...
to Vincent and Mary Messina. Her father was of Italian descent and her mother was of Irish descent. She was raised in Holliston, Massachusetts
Holliston, Massachusetts
Holliston is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States in the Greater Boston area. The population was 13,547 at the 2010 census. It is part of the region known as MetroWest. Holliston is the only town in Middlesex County that borders both Norfolk and Worcester...
, with two sisters, Terese and Marianne, and a brother, Vincent.
Messina had a variety of country music influences, including Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
, Reba McEntire
Reba McEntire
Reba Nell McEntire is an American country music artist and actress. She began her career in the music industry as a high school student singing in the Kiowa High School band , on local radio shows with her siblings, and at rodeos. As a solo act, she was invited to perform at a rodeo in Oklahoma...
, and The Judds
The Judds
The Judds were an American country music duo composed of Naomi Judd and her daughter, Wynonna Judd. Signed to RCA Records in 1983, the duo released six studio albums between then and 1991. One of the most successful acts in country music history, The Judds won five Grammy Awards for Best Country...
. She soon started performing live, and by age 16 she was playing local clubs, singing while her brother and one sister provided backup on drums and guitar. The group continued performing until she graduated from high school.
Realizing that living in the Northeast would limit her chances of achieving country music stardom, Messina moved to Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
at age 19. She worked various temp jobs, including computer programming and accounting, while entering talent contests around Nashville.
One win led to a regular gig on the radio show Live at Libby's, which caught the interest of producer Byron Gallimore
Byron Gallimore
Byron Gallimore is an American record producer known for his work in the field of country music. He has worked with artists such as Sugarland, Lee Ann Womack, Jo Dee Messina, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, whose 1999 album Breathe won him the Grammy Award for Best Country Album.-Biography:Byron...
, who helped her assemble a demonstration tape. Gallimore was also working with the young Tim McGraw
Tim McGraw
Samuel Timothy "Tim" McGraw is an American country singer and actor. Many of McGraw's albums and singles have topped the country music charts with total album sales in excess of 40 million units in the US, making him the eighth best-selling artist, and the third best-selling country singer, in the...
around the same time, and Messina befriended him. Backstage at one of his concerts, Messina met an executive from his label, Curb, and jokingly suggested that they needed a redhead. With the help of fellow Curb producer James Stroud
James Stroud
James Stroud is an American musician and record producer who works in pop, rock, and country music. In the 1990s he was the president of Giant Records and held several credits as a session drummer...
, Messina was soon signed to the record label. Gallimore and McGraw would later become co-producers of Messina's studio albums under Curb.
1996–97: country success
Messina released her self-titled debut album in 1996. It spawned two Top 10 hits, starting with the lead single, "Heads Carolina, Tails California," which peaked at #2 on the Country charts and its follow-up, "You're Not in Kansas Anymore" gained similar success.However, the two additional singles released from the album, "Do You Wanna Make Something of It" and "He'd Never Seen Julie Cry" peaked outside the Country Top 40 and were minor hits between 1996 and 1997. Following her major success, Messina performed 215 shows in 1996 and became one of the most successful new female vocalists of the 1990s. debut album sold over 500,000 copies and was certified Gold by RIAA.
Messina's finances suffered due to a series of poor business decisions and a change of management that led her to nearly declaring bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
; she nearly lost her home and her car. She spent nearly a year trying to write new songs and material for a new album that could help bring herself out of bankruptcy. She credited the radio success of "Bye, Bye" and "I'm Alright" with giving her a "second chance."
1998−2006: breakthrough success
Messina released her second album in 1998, I'm AlrightI'm Alright (Jo Dee Messina album)
I'm Alright is the second studio album released by American country music singer Jo Dee Messina. It was released in 1998. Her highest selling album to date, it has been certified 2× Multi-Platinum for U.S. sales of two million copies...
. The album spawned three #1 hit singles on the Billboard Country Chart
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
that year: "Bye, Bye";
"I'm Alright"; and "Stand Beside Me
Stand Beside Me
"Stand Beside Me" is the title of a song written by Stephen Allen Davis and recorded by American country music singer Jo Dee Messina. It was released in October 1998 as third single from her album, I'm Alright, the song spent three weeks at the top of the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart, making...
," all three of which charted on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
as well. The fourth single, "Lesson in Leavin", was a cover of the #1 Country hit by Dottie West
Dottie West
Dottie West was an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with her friends and co-recording artists Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, she is considered one of the genre's most influential and groundbreaking female artists...
in 1980. The song peaked at #2 for 7 weeks. In 1999 she had another Top 10 hit from the album, "Because You Love Me," which peaked at #8 on the Billboard Country Chart.
In 2000 Messina received the Country Music Association
Country Music Association
The Country Music Association was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of only 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre...
's "Horizon award," which is awarded to new Country music artists. She also won Billboard magazines "Most Played Female at Country Radio", and won three major awards from the Boston Music Awards, located in her home state of Massachusetts.
Messina's album also became her biggest-selling album to date, selling over two million copies in the US, receiving an RIAA certification of 2XPlatinum. Around the same time, Messina had guest roles on the television shows, Crash and Burn
Cra$h & Burn
Cra$h & Burn is a Canadian television drama series created by Malcolm MacRury. The show takes place in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, where it is also filmed.The series stars Luke Kirby as Jimmy Burn, a claims investigator for Protected Insurance....
, Nash Bridges
Nash Bridges
Nash Bridges is an American television police drama created by Carlton Cuse. The show starred Don Johnson and Cheech Marin as two Inspectors with the San Francisco Police Department's Special Investigations Unit. The show ran for six seasons on CBS from March 29, 1996 to May 4, 2001 with a total of...
and Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della...
. She guest-starred on the series a couple of years earlier and stayed in touch with the show's producer/creator. In the episode titled "Bring On the Rain" (named after Messina's hit song), she appeared as Annie, the single mother of a teenage girl.
She released her third studio album, Burn
Burn (Jo Dee Messina album)
Burn is the third studio album by American country music artist Jo Dee Messina, released in August of 2000 by Curb Records.Her first No. 1 Billboard album on the Top Country Albums charts, it also hit No. 19 on the Billboard 200...
in 2000, which aimed towards Country pop
Country pop
Country pop, with roots in both the countrypolitan sound and in soft rock, is a subgenre of country music that first emerged in the 1970s. Although the term first referred to country music songs and artists that crossed over to Top 40 radio, country pop acts are now more likely to cross over to...
-styled music. The album's lead single, "That's the Way
That's the Way (Jo Dee Messina song)
"That's the Way" is the title of a song written by Annie Roboff and Holly Lamar, and recorded by American country music singer Jo Dee Messina. It was released in May 2000 as lead-off single for her album, Burn, the song spent four weeks at the top of the Hot Country Singles & Tracks , and was her...
" peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country Chart and also became her highest-charting single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #25. Following that success, she had two additional Top 10 hits with "Burn
Burn (Tina Arena song)
"Burn" was covered by American country singer Jo Dee Messina for her third studio album Burn. It was released as the second single in October 2000, and peaked at #2 on the US Country charts in February 2001.-Music video:...
" and "Downtime."
Messina had another #1 hit from the album in 2001 with "Bring On the Rain
Bring On the Rain
"Bring On the Rain" is the title of a country music song written by Billy Montana and Helen Darling. It was recorded by Jo Dee Messina on her 2000 album Burn, and was released in September 2001 as that album's fourth single...
," a duet with Tim McGraw that also became a Top 10 hit on the Adult Contemporary Chart
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
, peaking at #6.
In addition to headlining concerts, she also toured with Vince Gill
Vince Gill
Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
, George Strait
George Strait
George Harvey Strait is an American country music singer, actor, and music producer. Strait is referred to as the "King of Country," and critics call Strait a living legend. He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional...
, and The Judds
The Judds
The Judds were an American country music duo composed of Naomi Judd and her daughter, Wynonna Judd. Signed to RCA Records in 1983, the duo released six studio albums between then and 1991. One of the most successful acts in country music history, The Judds won five Grammy Awards for Best Country...
' reunion tour.
Messina released her first holiday album in 2002 with A Joyful Noise
A Joyful Noise (Jo Dee Messina album)
A Joyful Noise is an album of Christmas music, released by American country music artist Jo Dee Messina. Her first Christmas album, it was released in 2002 on Curb Records...
. The title track was released as a single and peaked at #16 on the Adult Contemporary chart in 2003. The album consisted of remakes of holiday songs previously made famous by other singers.
Messina planned to release a new album in 2003, but a Greatest Hits
Greatest Hits (Jo Dee Messina album)
Greatest Hits is the name of a compilation album released by country singer Jo Dee Messina in 2003.This album featured Messina's biggest hits from her first three studio albums . Also included are four new studio tracks: "Was That My Life", "Wishing Well", "You Belong in the Sun", and "I Wish"...
album was released instead due to delays. The album covered most of Messina's hits between 1996 and 2003, and also included four new songs, including two that were released as singles. The first single, "Was That My Life," peaked in the Top 25 and the second single, "I Wish," became a Top 15 hit. The album was also certified Gold by RIAA.
In 2005 Messina released her first Country music studio album since 2000, Delicious Surprise
Delicious Surprise
Delicious Surprise is the name of the fourth album by American country music artist Jo Dee Messina, released in 2005. Her first studio album since Burn almost five years previous, it produced a Number One single on the Billboard country music charts in "My Give a Damn's Busted", a song co-written...
. It peaked at #1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and #9 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. It sold over 500,000 copies and became her fourth album to receive an RIAA Gold certification. The lead single, "My Give a Damn's Busted," peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country Chart and became Messina's first #1 single since 2001. The three follow-up singles ("Delicious Surprise (I Believe It)," "Not Going Down," and "It's Too Late To Worry") were minor Top 40 hits on the Billboard Country chart between 2005 and 2006.
2007–present: Unmistakable
Although the album was set for release on November 6, 2007, the album was shelved and therefore, the single was dropped from Country radio after spending 9 weeks on the charts, rising to a peak of #48.
On March 22, 2008, Messina released her second single from Unmistakable, titled "I'm Done." The single peaked at #34 on the Billboard Country Chart. Messina, who co-wrote the song, explained that the release of the album was "truly dictated by the success of the single."
On June 10, 2008, Messina and Phil Vassar
Phil Vassar
Phil Vassar is an American country music artist. Vassar made his debut on the country music scene in the late 1990s, co-writing singles for several country artists, including Tim McGraw , Jo Dee Messina , Collin Raye , and Alan Jackson Phil Vassar (born May 28, 1964 in Lynchburg, Virginia) is an...
opened the 2008 CMA Music Festival, where she performed her two #1 hits, Bye, Bye and I'm Alright
I'm Alright (Jo Dee Messina song)
"I'm Alright" is the title of a song written by Phil Vassar and recorded by American country music singer Jo Dee Messina. It was released in May 1998 as the second single from her 1998 album of the same name. It became her second consecutive Number One hit on the Billboard country charts, spending...
, both co-written by Vassar.
She also performed her latest single, "I'm Done," which received a positive reaction from the audience that day. In early 2009 she released Shine, but that song failed to chart, and the album was pushed again.
In January 2010, Messina released the single, "That's God," although it failed to chart. Messina began debuting the single in late 2009 on her Music Room Series Tour. "My heart is exploding with excitement. This song is truly what I want to say. I believe in it and its message." Having had her first child in January 2009, Messina was inspired to write the song while spending time with her son on a trip to Jasper, Canada, where she saw mountains with glacier lakes. The single received a negative review at The 9513, where critic Sam Gadzidak thought that it was derivative of Lee Ann Womack
Lee Ann Womack
Lee Ann Womack is an American country music singer and songwriter, who is best known for her old fashioned-styled country music songs that often discuss subjects such as cheating and lost love....
's "There Is a God
There Is a God
"There Is a God" is the title of a song written by Chris DuBois and Ashley Gorley, and recorded by American country artist Lee Ann Womack. It was released in November 2009 as the lead-off single to her upcoming seventh studio album.-Content:...
."
She later announced that the album would be released in a trilogy of extended plays, beginning with Unmistakable: Love
Unmistakable: Love
Unmistakable: Love is the first extended play by American country music singer-songwriter Jo Dee Messina. The EP was released on April 27, 2010 through Curb Records. Unmistakable: Love is the first volume of a three part extended play trilogy. The trilogy was initially planned to be full-length...
, released on April 27, 2010. It was followed by two additional extended plays, Drive and Inspiration, both released on November 9, 2010, via MP3 format.
In 2010 Jo Dee Messina performed at The Norfolk County Fair and Horseshow in Simcoe Ontario.
Personal life
In 2004, Messina was engaged to road manager Don Muzquiz, but then broke off the engagement. However, the two remained in a business relationship.Messina became involved with the Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
after stumbling across an event while jogging. She has become an ambassador and performs at Special Olympics events in order to increase attendance.
In April 2004 Messina entered a rehabilitation facility in Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
for treatment of alcoholism. Messina says her manager, Stuart Dill, confronted her in Houston following a rough performance after the 2004 Super Bowl. She says she wasn't "stumbling drunk," but she acknowledges that she doesn't recall much about the performance either. "I forgot the words to Stand Beside Me. That's what I can remember," Messina said. After Dill's confrontation, Messina was on a plane to Utah the next day. She entered a detox center for a few days before checking into rehab. Messina doesn't blame Muzquiz or Curb Records for her drinking problem; she points to her workaholic tendencies. She said rehab gave her the time to focus on herself and her issues, and she was able to turn to songwriting again for the first time in a long time. After finishing rehabilitation, Messina rented a cabin at Sundance
Sundance
Sundance Resort is a ski resort located northeast of Provo, Utah, spanning over on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos in Utah's Wasatch Range. Snow skiing began on the site in 1944...
Ski Resort in Utah. She resumed touring on May 30, 2004, in Marksville, Louisiana. On June 22, 2007, Messina announced her engagement to businessman Chris Deffenbaugh from Albuquerque, New Mexico. They were married in Nashville in late 2007. A son, Noah Roger Deffenbaugh was born on January 12, 2009.
Discography
Main albums- 1996: Jo Dee MessinaJo Dee Messina (album)Jo Dee Messina is the self-titled debut album of American country music singer Jo Dee Messina, released in 1996.It was co-produced by country music artist Tim McGraw and McGraw's frequent co-producer Byron Gallimore...
- 1998: I'm AlrightI'm Alright (Jo Dee Messina album)I'm Alright is the second studio album released by American country music singer Jo Dee Messina. It was released in 1998. Her highest selling album to date, it has been certified 2× Multi-Platinum for U.S. sales of two million copies...
- 2000: BurnBurn (Jo Dee Messina album)Burn is the third studio album by American country music artist Jo Dee Messina, released in August of 2000 by Curb Records.Her first No. 1 Billboard album on the Top Country Albums charts, it also hit No. 19 on the Billboard 200...
- 2005: Delicious SurpriseDelicious SurpriseDelicious Surprise is the name of the fourth album by American country music artist Jo Dee Messina, released in 2005. Her first studio album since Burn almost five years previous, it produced a Number One single on the Billboard country music charts in "My Give a Damn's Busted", a song co-written...
EPs & Other albums
- 2002: A Joyful NoiseA Joyful Noise (Jo Dee Messina album)A Joyful Noise is an album of Christmas music, released by American country music artist Jo Dee Messina. Her first Christmas album, it was released in 2002 on Curb Records...
- 2003: Greatest HitsGreatest Hits (Jo Dee Messina album)Greatest Hits is the name of a compilation album released by country singer Jo Dee Messina in 2003.This album featured Messina's biggest hits from her first three studio albums . Also included are four new studio tracks: "Was That My Life", "Wishing Well", "You Belong in the Sun", and "I Wish"...
- 2010: Unmistakable: Love
- 2010: Unmistakable: Drive
- 2010: Unmistakable: Inspiration
Awards & honors
| Year | Award Program | Award |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Academy of Country Music Awards | Top New Female Vocalist |
| 1999 | Billboard Magazine | Most Played Country Female Artist of the Year |
| Boston Music Awards | Outstanding Country Act | |
| Outstanding Female Vocalist | ||
| Act of the Year | ||
| Country Music Association Awards Country Music Association Awards The Country Music Association Awards, also known as the CMA Awards, or the CMAs, and not to be confused with the ACM Awards, are voted on by business members of the Country Music Association. The first CMA awards were presented at an untelevised ceremony in Nashville's Municipal Auditorium in 1967... |
Horizon award |