Michelle Wright
country singer, songwriter | born 1961
BornJuly 1, 1961 in Chatham, Ontario, Canada
Biographyas told to Sarah Boesveld
Known for her rich alto voice and R&B-infused country sound, Michelle Wright is one of Canada’s most celebrated women in country music. She first made her mark in 1992 with “Take It Like a Man,” a No. 1 hit in Canada and the United States and has since gone on to tally up 25 Canadian Top 10 radio hits (six of which hit No. 1). An important country voice of the 1990s, Wright’s down-to-earth appeal resulted in her twice winning the Canadian Country Music Associations’ Fans’ Choice Award in addition to a pair of JUNOS and an induction into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame.
IN DEPTH
Michelle Wright on chasing her dreams, life on the road and the staying power of her first big hit, “Take It Like a Man”:
I knew music was something I’d pursue seriously on my second week on the road in Muscatine, Iowa. I was in college. I had an offer to go out on the road and play with a band from Nashville. I went to audition and I got the gig. I thought I’d just do this for the summer and then return for my second year of college. But I called my mom up and said “Mom, I think I’ve found what I’m going to try and pursue. My life is playing music.” And she was very happy for me and very supportive. And I sat down and wrote a song called “Reaching for the Stars,” and it’s on my first album, Do Right By Me. It’s so innocent and sweet and naive and I love that I wrote that song. The first verse is: “My life lies before me/I’m young and I’m free/and I know there’s one thing that’s a part of me/as long as I’m singing and playing my guitar/I’ll keep on reaching for the stars.”
Mom, I think I’ve found what I’m going to try and pursue. My life is playing music.—Michelle Wright
I played on the road and in the clubs six nights a week for 10 years before I got my record deal. We stayed in some pretty rat-infested rooms above hotels, but you know, whatever, that’s the way it was. I’m a clean freak and I would go in first and clean these rooms because I did not want my band to live in that. Years later, I remember my band and I were playing in a club in Texas and we started “Take it Like a Man” and the crowd went bonkers. Well maybe not bonkers, but they went wild. The 300 people that were there responded and started singing. The band and I got on the bus and I think I looked at them and said “There, that’s what it looks like to have a hit record.” That song, to this day, thank God, it literally stands the test of time. I say that humbly because I just climbed on board. This minute if you asked me to sing it, I would happily pick up my guitar and sing it.
Known for her rich alto voice and R&B-infused country sound, Michelle Wright is one of Canada’s most celebrated women in country music. She first made her mark in 1992 with “Take It Like a Man,” a No. 1 hit in Canada and the United States and has since gone on to tally up 25 Canadian Top 10 radio hits (six of which hit No. 1). An important country voice of the 1990s, Wright’s down-to-earth appeal resulted in her twice winning the Canadian Country Music Associations’ Fans’ Choice Award in addition to a pair of JUNOS and an induction into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame.
IN DEPTH
Michelle Wright on chasing her dreams, life on the road and the staying power of her first big hit, “Take It Like a Man”:
I knew music was something I’d pursue seriously on my second week on the road in Muscatine, Iowa. I was in college. I had an offer to go out on the road and play with a band from Nashville. I went to audition and I got the gig. I thought I’d just do this for the summer and then return for my second year of college. But I called my mom up and said “Mom, I think I’ve found what I’m going to try and pursue. My life is playing music.” And she was very happy for me and very supportive. And I sat down and wrote a song called “Reaching for the Stars,” and it’s on my first album, Do Right By Me. It’s so innocent and sweet and naive and I love that I wrote that song. The first verse is: “My life lies before me/I’m young and I’m free/and I know there’s one thing that’s a part of me/as long as I’m singing and playing my guitar/I’ll keep on reaching for the stars.”
Mom, I think I’ve found what I’m going to try and pursue. My life is playing music.—Michelle Wright
I played on the road and in the clubs six nights a week for 10 years before I got my record deal. We stayed in some pretty rat-infested rooms above hotels, but you know, whatever, that’s the way it was. I’m a clean freak and I would go in first and clean these rooms because I did not want my band to live in that. Years later, I remember my band and I were playing in a club in Texas and we started “Take it Like a Man” and the crowd went bonkers. Well maybe not bonkers, but they went wild. The 300 people that were there responded and started singing. The band and I got on the bus and I think I looked at them and said “There, that’s what it looks like to have a hit record.” That song, to this day, thank God, it literally stands the test of time. I say that humbly because I just climbed on board. This minute if you asked me to sing it, I would happily pick up my guitar and sing it.
Contemporary Country Singer-Songwriter | born 1961
amplifier-maker, electronic engineer, musician | 1921 - 2006
