I was never into the Bluegrass, Bill Monroe and stuff like that.

My mom moved up between Leland and Greenville when I was just a little tot.

And I tell my audience, you know, give the real stars a round of applause. Because without them I'm nobody. So I learned so much from people like that.

We could play them through the week, and then the weekend we could play the black joints. I learned to be very versatile and learned to love it. So it stays with me even up to now.

And one of my favorites was Eddy Arnold of course. He just had that smooth, soulful voice.

I was born in a little place called Inverness, MS.

I did learn that it was the greatest thing in the world to respect yourself. Respect other people.