Born in 1964 in the small farming town of Monticello, Georgia, Trisha Yearwood became one of the most popular female country singers beginning in the 1990s. She studied music business at Nashvilles Belmont College and interned at MTM Records before being hired as a backup vocalist by country star Garth Brooks. Yearwood was the first female country singer to sell a million copies of a debut album. She won Female Vocalist of the Year recognition from the Academy of Country Music in 1997 and 1998. Yearwood has also won three Grammy awards and had a recurring acting role on the television show JAG.