John Rich

American country singer-songwriter John Rich was born in Amarillo, Texas, on January 7, 1974. After graduating high school, he moved to Nashville and worked as a singer at the Opryland USA theme park before joining the ranks of country music group Lonestar in 1992. He stayed with the band until 1998, after which he formed the country duo Big & Rich with Big Kenny. "I Pray for You," his debut single, appeared in 2000 and was followed by the release of his first studio album Rescue Me (2001), which was largely inspired by an encounter with a cancer patient named Katie Darnell. Originally recorded in 1999, his sophomore effort Underneath the Same Moon was finally released in 2006 and hit Number 64 on the US country charts. Due to the growing popularity of both his solo output and Big & Rich's catalog, John Rich became one of the most sought-after songwriters in the country music business, penning songs for artists like Gretchen Wilson, Keith Anderson, Jewel, and Taylor Swift. Released in 2009, his third LP Son of a Preacher Man peaked at Number 3 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart and produced his first Top 40 solo single "Shuttin' Detroit Down." Over the next few years, John Rich released three Top 10 country albums with Big & Rich and served as a mentor on the reality music competitions The Celebrity Apprentice and The Next: Fame Is at Your Doorstep. He resumed his solo career during the last half of the 2010s with the singles "Shut Up About Politics" (2019), "Earth to God" (2020), and Progress (2022), which debuted at Number 14 on the Hot Country Songs chart.