Kelly Willis

Singer-songwriter Kelly Willis captured critical acclaim from her first release, with a distinctive voice that conveys both tender heartache and smoldering heat. Born in Oklahoma, she moved often as a kid with her Army Colonel dad. She started singing professionally at 16, fronting the rockabilly band “Kelly and the Fireballs” in the DC area, but it soon became clear she was more of a country singer. After high school, she moved to Austin and it wasn’t long before she got on the radar of MCA’s Tony Brown, who signed her after an introduction by Nanci Griffith.

Kelly’s recording career began at a time when Nashville was experiencing a creative resurgence with the likes of Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle, Foster & Lloyd and The O’Kanes. She recorded three albums for MCA that were critical hits, but it wasn’t until she left the major label restrictions behind that she came into her own with 1999’s What I Deserve for Rykodisc.

The albums Willis has made since What I Deserve have only burnished her reputation as Austin’s reigning queen of Americana, including being inducted into the Austin Music Hall of Fame. When not performing her own music, Kelly tours with Brennan Leigh and Melissa Carper as Wonder Women of Country, in support of their 2023 self-titled EP.