Brandi Marie Carlile is an American singer-songwriter and producer whose music spans many genres, including folk rock, alternative country, Americana, and classic rock.
54 Facts About Brandi Carlile
2.
Brandi Carlile was the most nominated woman at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, with six, including nominations for Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
3.
In 2019, Carlile formed an all-female quartet with Amanda Shires, Maren Morris, and Natalie Hemby called the Highwomen.
4.
Brandi Carlile garnered wider recognition with her 2007 single "The Story", from her album of the same name.
5.
That same year, Brandi Carlile released Cover Stories, featuring 14 artists covering tracks from the original The Story album, including Adele, Pearl Jam, and Dolly Parton, it debuted at No 30 on the Billboard 200.
6.
Brandi Carlile was born on June 1,1981, in Ravensdale, Washington, a small town 30 miles outside Seattle.
7.
When she was four, Brandi Carlile contracted bacterial meningitis, which almost took her life.
8.
Brandi Carlile's heart flatlined several times and she was in a coma.
9.
Brandi Carlile spent her early life living in King County's southern cities of Black Diamond, Maple Valley, and Auburn, in Sumner, Washington, and briefly lived in West Seattle.
10.
Brandi Carlile taught herself to sing when she was a child, and she began singing country songs on stage when she was eight years old.
11.
At age eight, Brandi Carlile performed Johnny Cash's "Tennessee Flat Top Box" with her mother, Teresa Brandi Carlile, and began playing the guitar and writing songs at age 15.
12.
At 16, Brandi Carlile became a backup singer for an Elvis impersonator.
13.
Brandi Carlile attended Tahoma High School, but later dropped out to pursue her music career.
14.
Brandi Carlile began her career performing in Seattle music clubs with twin brothers Phil and Tim Hanseroth.
15.
The crack in Brandi Carlile's vocals during the title track, "The Story", came out by accident and was a direct result of the way the album was recorded.
16.
In 2007, Brandi Carlile performed at the Borderline in London and as guest on Newton Faulkner's UK tour.
17.
Brandi Carlile was the opening act for Maroon 5 and OneRepublic during their Australia tour.
18.
Also that same year, during the 21st GLAAD Media Awards, Brandi Carlile was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for "Outstanding Music Artist" for the album.
19.
The live album finds Brandi Carlile performing a mix of original songs and cover material.
20.
Brandi Carlile was a judge for the 10th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.
21.
On January 11,2014, Brandi Carlile sang the national anthem for the Saints vs Seahawks NFL playoff game.
22.
Brandi Carlile recorded a cover of Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain" for the compilation album Sweetheart 2014.
23.
Brandi Carlile performed with the Avett Brothers on Late Show with David Letterman on May 4,2015, singing the song popularized by the Carter Family, "Keep on the Sunny Side".
24.
On December 6,2015, Brandi Carlile was nominated for the Top Americana Album category, with her The Firewatcher's Daughter for the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.
25.
Brandi Carlile was the featured musical guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers on April 7,2016.
26.
Brandi Carlile sang the song "Mainstream Kid", and dedicated the performance to Senator Bernie Sanders, who appeared on the program that night.
27.
Brandi Carlile made a guest appearance on John Prine's album The Tree of Forgiveness.
28.
The album received critical acclaim from critics, leading Brandi Carlile to receive 6 nominations at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, the most nominations for a female in 2019, including the all-genre Album and Song of the Year categories.
29.
Brandi Carlile won in three categories: Americana album and both best American roots song and best American roots performance.
30.
In 2019, Brandi Carlile co-founded the country music supergroup the Highwomen with Amanda Shires and Maren Morris, later adding Natalie Hemby to complete the line-up.
31.
On January 16,2019, Brandi Carlile appeared as part of a five-hour all-star tribute concert to Chris Cornell, which took place at The Forum in Los Angeles.
32.
On October 14,2019, Brandi Carlile performed Joni Mitchell's album Blue in its entirety in Los Angeles at Walt Disney Concert Hall.
33.
In February 2020, Brandi Carlile was named Record Store Day 2020 Ambassador.
34.
On June 2,2020, Brandi Carlile teamed up with remaining Soundgarden members Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron, and Ben Shepherd.
35.
In October 2021 Rolling Stone reported that Brandi Carlile has expressed interest in continuing her collaboration with the surviving members of Soundgarden.
36.
In late September 2021, City of Hope confirmed that Brandi Carlile would join the 16th annual Songs of Hope celebration program and would be honored with the She is the Music Award, presented by Universal Music Publishing Group chairman and CEO Jody Gerson, on September 20,2021.
37.
On October 23,2021, Brandi Carlile was the musical guest on NBC's Saturday Night Live.
38.
Brandi Carlile thanked the organizers for the opportunity and for placing a woman in this role.
39.
In January 2023, Brandi Carlile headlined the inauguration party for Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, the first lesbian governor in the United States.
40.
In July 2018, Brandi Carlile announced the creation of her own music festival, "Girls Just Wanna Weekend".
41.
Brandi Carlile was inspired to create her own festival after participating in the Cayamo Cruise festival for numerous years.
42.
Brandi Carlile had previously worked as Paul McCartney's charity coordinator for ten years.
43.
Phil is Brandi Carlile's brother-in-law, having married Brandi Carlile's younger sister Tiffany.
44.
Brandi Carlile keeps various animals, including goats, chickens, a horse, a dog, and a cat.
45.
Brandi Carlile is a Christian and lives in Maple Valley, Washington.
46.
Brandi Carlile donates $2 from every concert ticket sale to the foundation.
47.
In May 2017, Brandi Carlile released Cover Stories, a benefit album featuring songs from her 2007 album, The Story.
48.
Troubled by the world's refugee crisis, and the impact it has on children, Brandi Carlile and Looking Out Foundation chose War Child UK as the beneficiary of the album.
49.
In October 2018, Brandi Carlile teamed up with Sam Smith to re-imagine the single "Party of One" as a duet with the proceeds going to the ongoing Story Campaign.
50.
Brandi Carlile has donated $1 million to War Child UK and Children in Conflict through the Story Campaign and sales of her benefit album Cover Stories.
51.
In October 2020, Brandi Carlile teamed up with Alicia Keys to urge people to vote with their song "A Beautiful Noise", which the pair performed on 'Every Vote Counts: A Celebration of Democracy' and aired on CBS on October 29.
52.
Brandi Carlile is the inspiration for chef Tom Douglas's 13th Seattle restaurant, The Brandi Carlile Room.
53.
Brandi Carlile is the first female songwriter to receive two Grammy nominations for Song of the Year in the same year, and the first time that any songwriter or songwriting team was nominated for Song of the Year twice in the same year since 1994.
54.
Brandi Carlile won Seattle's City of Music Breakthrough Award for 2010.