Is Oklahoma the Greatest Country Music State in America? The Case Is Hard to Argue

Texas will tell you it owns country music. Tennessee will remind you it has Nashville. Both have a point. But there is a quiet argument to be made that the single greatest producer of country music legends per square mile is a landlocked state most people drive through on their way somewhere else. 

Oklahoma has given the genre its best-selling solo artist of all time, its reigning Queen of Country, an American Idol champion with one of the most powerful voices ever recorded, a man with 31 number ones and one of TV's most recognizable faces, and one of the most Grammy-decorated singer-songwriters in history. All from the same state.

Reba McEntire: The Queen Was Born Here

Reba McEntire was born in McAlester, Oklahoma, and grew up on her family's eight-thousand-acre cattle ranch in nearby Chockie. Her father was a three-time World Champion Steer Roper. Her grandfather was a World Champion before him. By the time she reached high school, she and her siblings were performing as the Singing McEntires on local radio. In 1974, cowboy singer Red Steagall heard her singing the national anthem at the National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City and financed a recording session that led to her first record deal. She has never really looked back. Three Grammys, a Kennedy Center Honor, a Hollywood star, a hit TV series, a Broadway run, and a coaching stint on The Voice later, the girl from Chockie is still one of the most recognizable entertainers in America. Get her full story on our website.

Garth Brooks: The State's Greatest Export

Garth Brooks was born in Tulsa and raised in Yukon, Oklahoma, where his parents hosted regular family talent nights that gave him his first real experience performing. He earned a track scholarship to Oklahoma State University, graduated with a degree in advertising, and headed to Nashville not once but twice, the first time lasting only twenty-three hours before he turned around and went home. The second time stuck. 

What followed is the most commercially dominant solo career in American music history. Brooks is the top-selling solo artist in United States history with over 157 million certified albums, ahead of Elvis Presley, with nine Diamond-certified albums to his name. He is still based in Oklahoma, still roping cattle, and still selling out stadiums. Explore his complete bio on our website.

Carrie Underwood: From a Checotah Farm to Eight Grammys

Carrie Underwood was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, and grew up on her family's farm in Checotah, where she began singing at her local church and performing at small-town talent shows from a very young age. At fourteen, she auditioned for Capitol Records in Nashville, but the deal fell through. She went back home to Oklahoma and kept singing. 

Then American Idol came calling in 2005, and she turned that platform into one of the most decorated careers in country music history. Eight Grammys. Dozens of number ones. A global touring career. She is still arguably the most powerful female voice in the genre. Read her full bio on our website.

Blake Shelton: Ada's Favorite Son

Blake Shelton was born on June 18, 1976, in Ada, Oklahoma, and has never really left in spirit. He still maintains his 1,200-acre Ten Points Ranch in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, where he retreats from the noise of Nashville and Los Angeles whenever he can. He grew up dreaming of Music Row and moved to Nashville at seventeen. 

His debut single "Austin" spent five weeks at number one, and he has added 31 number ones to that total since. He built a second career as one of The Voice's most beloved coaches, married Gwen Stefani on his Oklahoma ranch, and remains one of country music's most enduring presences. Discover his full story on our website.

Vince Gill: The Most Grammy'd Man in Country Music

Vince Gill was born in Norman, Oklahoma, where his father was a lawyer and part-time musician who encouraged him to learn multiple instruments from an early age. He attended Northwest Classen High School in Oklahoma City, where he played bluegrass with a local band called Mountain Smoke, then spent years in various groups before his solo career took flight in the late 1980s. 

What followed is a Grammy haul that staggers the imagination. Vince Gill has won 21 Grammy Awards, more than any other country artist in history, and has written and recorded some of the most beloved songs in the genre's catalog. He is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and one of the most respected musicians in any genre. Get all the details on our website.

Five artists. Five Oklahoma zip codes. A combined total that includes the best-selling solo album career in American history, 21 Grammy Awards from a single artist, eight Grammys from another, and enough number ones to fill a jukebox ten times over. Texas may have the attitude. Tennessee may have the address. But Oklahoma has the receipts.