Kennys biography

In , Rogers made musical history with his cross-over success of "Lady. The album from which the song was pulled, Kenny Rogers ' Greatest Hits , was certified Diamond for sales of over 10 million units. In the s, Rogers stayed on top of the charts with No. He also established a successful career as an actor — playing the lead role of Brady Hawkes in the record-breaking, five-movie The Gambler TV series, starring in the motion picture "Six Pack" and more — and as a photographer, with several published books of photos to his credit, including "This Is My Country.

In , he returned to the No. At the time Rogers was 61 years old and became the oldest artist in chart history to have a No. Contact About Privacy. Charles Aznavour. Sophiya Rotaru. Taisia Povaliy. This opportunity led him to perform on the popular television program American Bandstand, marking an essential step in his early career. Following this success, he shifted genres multiple times, playing bass for the Bobby Doyle Trio and eventually joining the New Christy Minstrels in After a year, he departed to form the First Edition, where he found his distinctive voice by blending folk, rock, and country styles.

This diverse early education in music provided Rogers with a unique sound that resonated with audiences for decades. Kenny Rogers began his musical journey in the late s, initially finding modest success with the single "That Crazy Feeling" while working with various groups, including the Bobby Doyle Trio. However, it was his time with the New Christy Minstrels in that marked a pivotal moment in his career.

Shortly thereafter, he left to co-found the First Edition, a band that married folk, rock, and country sounds. The group enjoyed a series of hits throughout the late s and early s, establishing Rogers as a prominent figure in the music scene. In , Rogers made a bold decision to pursue a solo career focused on country music. His first major hit as a solo artist, "Love Lifted Me," paved the way for a series of successful releases, including the chart-topping "Lucille" in This ballad not only showcased his emotional vocal delivery but also garnered him his first Grammy Award.

The release of "The Gambler" in further solidified his status in both country and pop genres, marking a transition that would see him collaborate with legendary artists and reach wider audiences. Kenny Rogers stands as a monumental figure in the country music genre, celebrated for his distinctive voice and storytelling prowess. One of his most defining moments came with the release of "The Gambler" in , which not only topped country charts but also earned him a Grammy Award.

This success was further solidified by other hits, including "Lucille" and "She Believes in Me. Brown Jr. Although the stores closed in the United States, they are still a fixture in Asia. Rogers was said to be of Irish and Native American ancestry. In , Rogers won a talent show at the Texan Theatre. He later attended the University of Houston.

In , on The Phil Donahue Show , Rogers told the audience that he was the first person in his family "as far back as we know" to graduate from high school. We lived in a federal housing project. There were times as a child that, I don't think I was ever really hungry — I always had food to eat — but there's no question that our family were nutritionally-deprived at times.

We'd eat peanut butter sandwiches, cause that's all there was. Quite honestly, when you're a kid, you don't know any better, you think that's how everyone eats. In a recording career dating back to the s, Rogers moved from teenage rock and roll through psychedelic rock to become a country-pop crossover artist of the s and s. He had a minor solo hit in called "That Crazy Feeling".

The group recorded for Columbia Records. Rogers also worked as a producer, writer and session musician for other performers, including country artists Mickey Gilley and Eddy Arnold. In , he joined the New Christy Minstrels as a singer and double bass player. Feeling that the Minstrels were not offering the success they wanted, Rogers and fellow members Mike Settle, Terry Williams, and Thelma Camacho left the group.

They were later joined by Kin Vassy. When the First Edition disbanded in , Rogers launched his solo career. He charted more than 60 top 40 hit singles including two number ones—"Lady" and "Islands in the Stream". The First Edition broke up in , which was a rough time for the recently divorced Rogers. Rogers's first outing for his new label was Love Lifted Me.

The single " Lucille " was a major hit, reaching number one on the pop charts in 12 countries, selling over five million copies, and firmly establishing Rogers's post-First Edition career. In the late s, Rogers teamed up with close friend and Country Music legend Dottie West for a series of albums and duets. Of West, Rogers stated in a TNN interview: "She, more than anybody else I ever worked with, sang with such emotion that you actually believed what she sang.

A lot of people sing words, Dottie West sang emotions. In the same release, West credited him with taking her career to new audiences. Rogers was with West only hours before she died at age 58 after sustaining injuries in a car accident, as discussed in his biography "Luck Or Something Like It". Later in came his partnership with Lionel Richie , who wrote and produced Rogers's No.

His first Christmas album was also released that same year.

Kennys biography

Rogers would return the favor by singing backing vocals on Richie's top 5 hit " My Love ". The album's the title track reached No. It was the theme song of Rogers's film Six Pack. Also a number 1 single on the Country charts in the United States, it reached the Top 30 on the British charts. The two would continue to collaborate on occasional projects through subsequent years, including a duet single " You Can't Make Old Friends ".

When it was eventually released in the United States, it was more successful, charting high on the Adult Contemporary chart and making the country top The album itself reached No. Shortly after came the album What About Me? David Foster was to work again with Rogers in his album The Heart of the Matter, although this time Foster was playing backing music rather than producing, a role given to George Martin.

This album was another success, going to No. The next few years saw Rogers scoring several top country hits on a regular basis, including "Twenty Years Ago", "Morning Desire", "Tomb of the Unknown Love", among others. On January 28, , Rogers was one of the 45 artists who recorded the worldwide charity song " We Are the World " to support hunger victims in Africa.

The following year he played at Giants Stadium. He visited Miller's during this time period. In , Rogers released his "dream" album titled Timepiece on Atlantic Records. In , Rogers released an album Vote For Love where the public requested their favorite love songs and Rogers performed the songs. Several of his own hits were in the final version.

The album, sold exclusively by QVC , was a huge success and was later issued in stores under a variety of different titles. It reached No. In , Rogers scored with the single "The Greatest", a song about life from a child's point of view looked at through a baseball game [ 21 ] The song reached the top 40 of Billboard's Country singles chart and was a Country Music Television Number One video.

In the 21st century and at age 61 , Rogers was back at No. Rogers held the record until , when then year-old Willie Nelson became the oldest artist to have a No. Although Rogers did not record new albums for a couple of years, he continued to have success in many countries with more greatest hits packages. In 42 Ultimate Hits , which was the first hits collection to span his days with the First Edition to the present, reached Number 6 on the American country charts and went gold.

It was the first new solo Rogers hits album to reach the United Kingdom for over a decade, despite many compilations there that were not true hits packages. Although this CD did contain 21 chart-toppers as the title claims recorded between and the present day , this was not a complete collection of Rogers's No. The third single, "Calling Me", which features Don Henley , became popular in early , and was nominated for a Grammy Award at the Grammy Awards.

Also in , the Kenny Rogers album was re-issued as a double CD, also featuring the Kenny album and this once again put Rogers's name into the sales charts worldwide. The following year, another compilation album A Love Song Collection also charted. The album included some of Rogers's greatest hits, plus three new songs. The release is designed to celebrate Rogers's 50th year in the music business.

In , the England national rugby union team adopted Rogers song "The Gambler" as their unofficial Rugby World Cup anthem, [ 29 ] after hearing prop Matt Stevens playing it in the team hotel. Before the semi-final against France and the final against South Africa, Rogers sent video messages of support to the team in light of them choosing his song.

In , Rogers toured with his Christmas Show. He split the show up, making the first half his "best of" and the second half his Christmas songs. Dolly Parton and Lionel Richie were among those set to perform with Rogers during a show celebrating his contribution to country, blues and pop music. Also in , Rogers re-recorded the hit song "Lady", a duet with its songwriter Lionel Richie, on Richie's album Tuskegee.

This album included the title track, a new duet with Dolly Parton , which was his first single released in six years.