Book, Redneck Woman Stories from My Life, Autographed by Gretchen Wilson with bonus DVD.  Courtesy of The Twister and Clear Channel Radio. 

To all appearances, Gretchen Wilson went overnight from talented obscurity to phenomenon. Her meteoric rise, the kind experienced by only a handful of artists in the past few decades, was that rare instance where talent and moment meet to form a cultural tidal wave. Still, she knows better than anyone the simple force that fueled it.  

Dream and talent combined to send her in 1996 to Nashville, where she put her bartending skills to use in Printers' Alley, sitting in with the band now and then. It was there that John Rich and Big Kenny ran across her. Rich battled his way through her natural skepticism to convince her he could be helpful as she sought recognition as a singer. She began singing demos and became part of the fledgling Muzik Mafia, singing on Tuesday nights in ever-bigger clubs and pitching herself to record labels.  

"I think sometimes that I haven't even found my purpose yet," she says. "I think sometimes this is a stepping stone and there's something greater still for me to do. I'm not sure what, yet, but a lot of it I think comes from this overwhelming sense that my grandma knew something I didn't know. I know what her purpose was now. She never even could find her natural parents, but her purpose was to make me who I am, because I didn't have anybody else who molded me. She was it, and I know I have a greater purpose than all of this too, and I have a feeling that somehow she'll be the one to tell me."