Lainey Wilson's Parents Believed in Her When No One Else Did - Facts about Them

Lainey Wilson's parents were her first call when she heard of her first Country Music Awards nomination in 2021 because, before anyone else believed in her, her mama and daddy did.

Michelle Choate Wilson and Brian Wilson have listened to their daughter, Lainey Wilson's songs since she started writing at nine and drove her to first performances and honky-tonk talent searches.

Though a man of few words, she always knew when her dad liked one of her compositions by the tap of his boot. He showed faith in his daughter's chosen path when he helped her move to Nashville in a camper trailer at 19.

Lainey Wilson's Family Was Surrounded by Country Music

The "Small Town, Girl" singer was born on May 19, 1992, to a teacher mother, Michelle, and a farmer and banker father, Brian. She is not the only child of her parents, as she has a sister, Janna Wilson Sadler.

For the Wilson family, country music was "more than just a genre." They were surrounded by country music; it was "just a way of life." Lainey said in February 2021:

"I'm from a town of 300 people, and we live out every single line of a country song."

That small town is Baskin, Louisiana, home to another future country star, Tim McGraw. Lainey's step-grandmother used to babysit Tim, who grew up "right down the road" from Lainey's family.

On Michelle and Brian's 30th wedding anniversary in July 2015, the teacher praised her husband for having "done an awesome job taking care of his family."

She joked that she still had the "tiger by the tail" and would never let him go. July is also her birthday month. Michelle frequently takes to social media to appreciate her family.

"Brian and I are very proud of our daughter and all her hard work," Michelle posted on Facebook in November 2021 on the news that her daughter is presenting at the Country Music Awards. The mom of two gave all the glory to God and wrote:

"Lainey is an example of one who has set her expectations high and has traveled the long, brutal road and never looked back. She teaches me something all the time!!"

The "Wildflowers and Wild Horses" songwriter began that musical journey at a young age, and her family nurtured her talent. Her maternal grandmother was the one to first noticed her singing ability when she heard the youngster sing "How Much Is That Doggy in the Window?"

Musicality runs deep on both sides of the singer-songwriter's family tree. However, no one could "carry a tune in a bucket," as Michelle quipped when her mom told her about Lainey's blossoming singing voice. Michelle soon realized that her daughter was the exception.

Brian can play guitar and "a little bit of piano" by ear. He taught his daughter her first guitar chords when her hands were big enough to play the instrument at 11.

His childhood friend, Jerry Cupit, was making moves as a producer and singer in Nashville, which served as an example of what someone from their town could do for Lainey.

Not long after writing her first song at nine, a Britney Spears-inspired bop, Lainey convinced her father to take a detour through Nashville on the way back from a family vacation in Gatlinburg. She told Holler:

"I remember exactly where I was in the backseat on the interstate, staring up at the Batman building, when I said, 'This is home.' My mama, she turned around, and she's like, 'Lainey, don't say that; you're a baby!'"

Lainey Wilson Canceled Her Shows Because of Her Father's Health

On Sunday, July 24, 2022, Brian, "sick with pain and his left eye became swollen shut," let his family convince him to go to the ER. Many tests followed, and he had nine surgeries within a month and a half, with his left eye and some bones in his face removed.

The "Sayin' What I'm Thinkin'" star apologized to her fans when she canceled a few shows in Iowa at the end of that month. She assured fans that she would not be "backing out" if it was not "critical."

The father of two also suffered a stroke and spent two months in the ICU with a fungal infection that "pretty much wiped out the left side of his face."

"You know, all the things that he taught me growing up," Lainey spoke later about when her father came out of the hospital in October 2022, "I'm having to tough-love him now, and I'm like, 'Nope. Get up, get moving.'"

Brian, born in October 1962, had his own country music dreams in his youth. The farmer used to dress up as Glen Campbell and play guitar for passing cars on the highway. He is a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA).

The southern man worked hard in rehab to accompany his daughter to the 2022 CMA. He smiled proudly in a cowboy hat, boots, and eye patch when he walked the red carpet on November 9, 2022. Before the show, Lainey said it was a big moment for her family.

Lainey Wilson's Mother Brought Her to Her CMA Fest at 14

In her teens Lainey and her mom watched Taylor Swift perform "Tim McGraw" on the River Front Stage at the annual CMA Fest. Michelle was "grateful" when her daughter got her chance at that stage in 2022.

They also reflected on the values that her parents instilled in her.

The prolific Facebook user uploaded photos taken from the stage at the event she had been taking her daughter "since she was 14 years old, maybe younger."

Lainey called her mother and sister the best mamas she knows on Mother's Day 2020. She uploaded a photo with the two women and her nephew, captioned in part, "Mama, you real cute and kinda funny."

The singer-songwriter's signature look of bell bottoms is inspired by the first pair her mother bought her as a child, a blue leopard print number.

Michelle is also a devout woman. She once shared clips taken by "brothers and sisters in Christ" in Ukraine and asked for prayers. Her sister and family came into contact with missionaries who were "smack in the middle of the war" through their Bible study group.

Lainey Wilson's Parents Inspired Her Songs.

The "Yellowstone" actress's rural upbringing significantly influences her music. When conceptualizing "Things A Man Oughta Know," she and her co-writers dove into her childhood to list some of the things she learned to do around the farm from her parents.

They also reflected on the values that her parents instilled in her. She was grateful that her audience connected with the track about "treating people with kindness and having good character."

She mused about how incredible it is how she and her sister were raised on the same values and "Things A Man Oughta Know" by their father, "yet they ended up being two completely different people" in the single "Two Story House." Janna is married with two children and does the payroll for a large corporation.

"Those Boots (Deddy's Song)" was recorded on top of 2022, before Brian went through his medical crisis. Lainey Wilson wondered if she could perform the song if her father passed away, and is "glad he's here, and at the end of the day, life can be short, but we have so much to celebrate and be happy about."