SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Jenee Fleenor from Springdale is up for the Country Music Association’s Musician of the Year award on Wednesday night. If she wins, it would be her sixth straight.
After the red carpet walk at 6:30 p.m. on 40/29, the CMA Awards will be shown. The event itself will start at 7 p.m.
Before she won her fifth award in 2023, she told 40/29 News about how she became a country music star and what she misses most about Arkansas.
Fleenor said she began making songs when she was only three years old.
The fiddle player who won awards finished from Springdale High School before moving to Music City.
If you want to become famous in singing, she had some tips for you.
First, get to work.
Before I could do things like have a party, go to the mall, etc., I had to practice for an hour every day. That was a big part of my job.
“I practiced for an hour every day because I knew that was what it would take to reach my goals,” Fleenor said.She also said not to be afraid of hearing “no.”
I now understand that musicians who told me no before were just too busy. “They can only write with so many people, so if someone says they can’t, that’s fine. Just move on to the next thing and let it go,” Fleenor said.
She said that if you want to be a country music star, you need to be in Nashville.
“At some point, you have to move.” “For some people, moving to Nashville might be like moving from a small fish pond to a big one,” Fleenor said.
She has recorded and performed with many famous acts over the course of her career.
She asked if that’s something you get used to.
It seems to get more comfortable over time. I’ve been here for more than 20 years, and most of the acts in this room are ones I’ve recorded with before. The first few times I walked in, I didn’t know anyone. Now I get calls like, “This is your red carpet time,” Fleenor said.
The beauty of Arkansas and the Ozark Mountains is one of the things she misses most about the state.
“Every time I get home, I want to go hiking even more.” But sometimes I’ll end up at Devil’s Den,” Fleenor said. “Of course, I’m always busy seeing all my friends and family.”
She did say that this is the best thing about Arkansas, though.
“The people are number one. It means a lot that you’ve been so nice to me. I love the people in my town. When I play shows, I always… you know, sometimes I hear from the people who come to see me. I love all the people in my town. “I miss you all so much,” she said.
Fleenor was the first woman to ever win Musician of the Year, and she did it more than once.