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Faith was born Audrey Faith Perry in Jackson, Mississippi, but raised in the
nearby town of Star. Faith Hill began singing at a very early age and, after
briefly attending college, moved to Nashville to attempt a singing career. In
her early days in Nashville, Hill worked as a secretary and sold merchandise for
famous country stars. She also traveled and sang with a Southern Gospel group
called The Steeles.
Faith is adopted and met her biological mother in the early 1990s. Faith Hill
was married to a music executive named Dan Hill from 1988 to 1994.
Faith's voice caught the attention of Warner Brothers Records executives, who
eagerly gave her a record deal. Shortly after being signed to Warner, Hill was
given the opportunity to open for fellow country superstar Tim McGraw. They
married in 1996 and currently have three daughters together.
Faith's debut album was Take Me As I Am (1993); sales were strong, buoyed by the
chart success of "Wild One". A version of Erma Franklin's "Piece of My Heart",
also went to the top of the country charts in 1994, although rock fans drew
unflattering comparisons to Janis Joplin's cover. The recording of Faith's
second album was delayed by surgery on her vocal cords. It Matters to Me finally
appeared in 1995 and was another success, with the title track becoming her
fourth #1 country single. Hill began the Spontaneous Combustion Tour with
country singer Tim McGraw and later started seeing him, breaking off engagement
to her former producer, Scott Hendricks. When he proposed marriage to her in one
of his tour trailers, he had to go perform right then, so she took a permanent
marker and wrote her answer on the mirror. Hill after touring with McGraw
married him on October 6, 1996. They have three daughters together: Gracie
Katherine (b. 1997), Maggie Elizabeth (b. 1998) and Audrey Caroline (b. 2001).
Faith's 1998 album, Faith, moved her closer towards a mainstream, pop-oriented
sound. "This Kiss" became a #1 country hit, and went to #7 on the pop charts.
Faith's fame grew rapidly as she signed an endorsement deal with CoverGirl
makeup and released Breathe, an even more successful pop hit that became one of
the biggest albums of 2000. The title track "Breathe" was ranked as the #1 pop
song that year and has become Hill's signature song; especially notable is the
power and control she shows in her lower register during the song. "The Way You
Love Me" hit the top ten as well (#6), and becoming one of the longest running
singles in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 (57 weeks). The album won Hill
three Grammy Awards including Best Country Album.
The year 2000 was also very successful in a concert setting as Hill and Tim
McGraw staged the joint Soul2Soul Tour, one of the best-grossing concert tours
of 2000. By the holidays she had contributed "Where Are You Christmas?" to the
movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas; this gospel-flavored song, penned by
Mariah Carey, became very popular on the all-Christmas-all-the-time holiday
formats that American radio stations adopted in the 2000s.
The following summer she recorded the Diane Warren penned "There You'll Be" for
the Pearl Harbor soundtrack. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Hill showed
her gospel colorings again when she performed "There Will Come a Day" on the
America: A Tribute to Heroes benefit telethon. At the end of 2001, Hill released
her first collection called There You'll Be which reached the top 30 of the
Italian album chart and #6 on the UK album chart selling nearly 1 million copies
worldwide.
In 2002, Faith released Cry. Though the album debuted at #1 on Billboard
magazine's pop and country album charts, and Hill made her debut as musical
guest on Saturday Night Live, the album's singles (including the title track
"Cry", written and originally performed by Angie Aparo) received much less radio
airplay than her previous smashes. In fact, country radio pretty much ignored
the songs, considering them "too pop". The album did win one Grammy Award and
has sold nearly 3 million copies worldwide.
Faith was also interested in branching out into acting. She had the role of Mel
Gibson's wife in We Were Soldiers, which was released in 2002, but left the film
and was replaced by Madeleine Stowe. Then in the summer of 2004, Hill co-starred
with Nicole Kidman,
Matthew Broderick and Glenn Close in director Frank Oz's
remake of the 1975 thriller The Stepford Wives.
Faith references this sojourn in Hollywood as well as the chilly reception of
Cry in the 2005 country release "Mississippi Girl", the first single from her
back-to-roots album Fireflies. It worked, as the song restored her to the top of
the country charts. "Mississippi Girl" is her 8th song to have reached #1. Faith
Hill performed this song along with "Breathe" and "Piece of My Heart" at the
Live 8 concert in Rome on July 2, 2005, where McGraw also performed. The second
single, "Like We Never Loved At All", featured a duet with McGraw and reached
the top five of the country chart, as well as winning the duo a Grammy Award for
Best Country Collaboration with Vocals. The third single from the album was the
song "The Lucky One". The song was released to country radio in February 2006
and peaked at #5 on the Billboard Country Singles chart.
In April 2006, Hill and husband Tim McGraw embarked on their Soul2Soul II Tour
2006 which is now stands as the highest grossing country music tour ever with a
gross of $89 million. Faith's band has been a highly featured part in her
"almost rock n roll" show. For 2006 the line-up is as follows:
The fourth single was originally expected to be "Stealing Kissses", however
"Sunshine & Summertime" ended up becoming the fourth single released from the
album as the song was sent to radio in early June. The song went to #7 on the
Billboard Country Singles Chart. The video for "Sunshine and Summertime" was
made into a contest when CMT and Hill asked people to make a 30 second video for
the song. The winner was Issac Mezza.
Faith singing in a tribute concert for America's armed forces for ABC's Good
Morning America"Stealing Kisses" became the fifth single off of the album. The
video, directed by Sophie Muller (who also directed "Like We Never Loved At
All") was shot in New Jersey in Spring 2006. "Stealing Kisses" has had a harder
time getting started on the charts than the previous singles from "Fireflies."
Many of the fans believe the reasoning behind this is because of the dramatic
subject matter of the song. "Stealing Kisses" debuted at #58 on the Billboard
Country Singles Chart and then it charted at #36.
The album Fireflies has sold 2 million copies in the U.S. (3 million worldwide)
and was certified double platinum on January 2006.
In June 2006 a reader poll released by Country Weekly magazine voted Hill "the
most beautiful woman in country music".
In November 2006, Faith made entertainment news headlines when she appeared to
react angrily to losing the Female Vocalist of the Year award to Carrie
Underwood at the CMA Awards. [2] Hill, who was backstage at the time, could be
seen throwing both hands in the air as if she had won, and then mouthing
"What!?" into the camera and then stepping away from the camera after
Underwood's name was called. Hill claimed that her reaction was a joke, saying
in a statement, "The idea that I would act disrespectful towards a fellow
musician is unimaginable to me. For this to become a focus of attention, given
the talent gathered, is utterly ridiculous. Carrie is a talented and deserving
female vocalist of the year." Faith Hill later called Underwood to
congratulate her and to clear up any misconceptions between the two singers.

Discography List for Faith Hill
Studio albums
This Faith Hill Biography Page is Copyright The Planets © 2004 - 2006 Chuck Ayoub