Women in Country: First Lady of Country Music Tammy Wynette

March is Women’s History Month, so in celebration, each week we’ll take a look at some of the many women who broke barriers in the industry and helped pave the way for female artists today. This week, we take a look at one of the biggest-selling female artists, Tammy Wynette.

Tammy's father passed away when she was only nine-months old, her mother left Tammy in the care of her parents in Mississippi so she could move to Memphis where she worked in a World War II defense plant. Tammy did not have an easy childhood and music was always her escape. She taught herself how to play a variety of instruments when she was young.

She married young, became a hairdresser in 1963, left her first husband and moved to Nashville in 1966 to pursue here dream of becoming a singer. According to Wikipedia, she renewed her cosmetology license every year, just in case she ever had to go back to a daily job.

After being turned down by almost every record company, she auditioned for Billy Sherrill and was signed to Epic records. Her first single 'Apartment 9' just missed the Top 40 in December of 1966, and in 1967 she had her first hit with this song.

From 1968 to 1969, Tammy had five number one hits, 'Take me to Your World', 'D-I-V-O-R-C-E', 'The Ways to Love a Man', 'Singing my Song', and this controversial song that earned her a Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal Performance.

Tammy married George Jones in 1969 and their marriage made more headlines than any other marriage in country music at the time. While the two divorced in 1975, reportedly due to his alcoholism, according to Wikipedia, they continued to record hit records together.

During the 1970's Tammy ruled the country charts, along with Loretta Lynn. She would win the CMA Female artist of the year three times, holding a record for the most consecutive wins until Reba broke that record with her fourth win in 1987.

Health issues plagued her for most of her life, she had many surgeries in her lifetime and in 1998 she passed way from a blood clot. She was only 55. Yet, through all of this she continued to record and perform. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1998, after her death. Her life story was made into a made-for-TV movie as well as a musical.

Tammy sang about everyday life and, after having lived through many heartaches herself, you believed every word she sang.