Lainey Wilson lived in a camper trailer for three years to jump-start her country music career
Lainey Wilson shares what being an American means to her
Lainey Wilson told Fox News Digital being an American ‘means being free’ and that 'freedom is a good feeling.'
Lainey Wilson released her fifth studio album "Whirlwind" on Friday, but life wasn't always so easy for the country music sensation.
The release of her new album comes a full decade after Wilson released her debut record. The country music star told The Associated Press that her latest project represents how her journey in Nashville has been – a "whirlwind."
"It’s been a journey," she told the outlet. "I’ve been in Nashville for 13 years and I tell people I’m like, it feels like I got there yesterday, but I also feel like I’ve been there my whole life."
Lainey Wilson lived in a trailer for three years at the start of her career. (Getty Images)
Thirteen years ago, the "Yellowstone" star packed up her belongings and moved from the 200-person town of Baskin, Louisiana, and headed to Nashville to pursue her dream of being a country music star. In February, Wilson took home her first Grammy.
To get where she is today, she lived in a Flagstaff bumper-pull camper trailer in her mentor's studio parking lot for three years.
In 2022, Wilson returned to the grounds of her former home, which sparked "sadness" inside of her to relive some of her darkest days.
"I feel a sense of hopefulness standing here, but I also feel a little sadness," she told "Good Morning America" at the time. "There were a lot of dark days for me. I was very lonely. I didn't know hardly anybody in town."
"There were a lot of dark days for me. I was very lonely. I didn't know hardly anybody in town."
— Lainey Wilson
The weather in Tennessee was something the Louisiana-born aspiring country star had to get used to.
"The winters were cold. I had to sleep in three or four jackets, three pairs of socks just to stay warm," Wilson explained. "When I look back, honestly, If I had known it was going to be this hard, I don't know if I would go and do it again."
Lainey Wilson's fifth studio album, "Whirlwind," bowed Friday. (Getty Images)
"And that sounds crazy, but it has been hard, but this is my only option," she said.
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In 2023, Wilson was a guest on Theo Von's "This Past Weekend" podcast and explained that she "bummed" electricity, water and Wi-Fi off her mentor's studio just to get by.
There was also a time when her propane tank ran out, her shower head broke and her camper trailer flooded — so she was forced to shower with a water hose.
Lainey Wilson said living in a camper trailer was full of "dark days." (Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images)
"I remember I was sitting there showering and it was ankle-deep water, my propane was running out, so the water was cold. My shower head fell off, so I'm showering with a water hose," she began. "I'm like, ‘You know what? This is some s---, but whatever.'"
Despite coming from humble beginnings, Wilson told Fox News Digital that the course of her career panned out exactly how it was meant to.
During an interview with Fox News Digital in May, Wilson explained that the beginning of her career was filled with heartbreak.
Lainey Wilson won her first Grammy Award in February. (NDZ/Star Max/GC Images)
"I think a lot of the rejection really just kind of made me want it that much more. I am hardheaded. I really am, and if you could sit down and talk to my parents, you would realize why I am the way that I am," Wilson said at the time. "Both of them, when they have their mind made up, that's it. And I've had my mind made up from the very beginning that I was going to do this."
Having to go through hardships early on in her career allowed her to get where she is today, Wilson told Fox News Digital.
"I think it's really just a part of my story. And I think the Lord kind of wanted me to live a little bit more life, so I could have more stories to tell, so I could relate to more people," she said. "That's what it's about when you kind of zoom out and you think about all of this. It's important to remember and realize, why are we doing this? And what are we doing this for?
"It's just because we all want to feel something. And, I think, because of that rejection, I think people can relate to some of my stories."
Lainey Wilson called Nashville a "10-year town." (Presley Ann/Getty Images for CTAOP)
Wilson told the AP on Monday that there were moments where she should have wanted to give up on her dreams and head back to her small town in Louisiana, but that was never the case.
"I had always heard that Nashville was a 10-year town. And I believe ‘Things a Man Oughta Know’ went No. 1, like, 10 years and a day after being there," she told the outlet. "I should have had moments where I should have packed it up and went home. I should have went back to Louisiana. But I never had those feelings. I think there’s something really beautiful about being naive. And, since I was a little girl, I’ve always had stars in my eyes."
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Fast-forward to 2024, and Wilson's just-released "Whirlwind" album perfectly describes what the country singer has been through.
Lainey Wilson said the last several years have been a "whirlwind." (Getty Images)
"The word that I could use to describe the last couple of years is ‘whirlwind,’" she told the AP. "I feel like my life has changed a whole lot. But I still feel like the same old girl trying to keep one foot on the ground."
Wilson concluded, "And so, I think it’s just about grasping on to those things that truly make me me and the artist where I can tell stories to relate to folks."
Janelle Ash is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to
