Country Music’s Blonde Bombshells: Carrie Underwood, Dolly Parton and More

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Country Music’s Blonde Bombshells: Carrie Underwood, Dolly Parton and More

Nobody’s fool! Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, and of course, Dolly Parton, have showed time and again that blondes have more fun — and have massive success in the country music world. “I know people make fun of me. All these years, people think the joke has been on me, but it’s actually been on the public. I know exactly what I’m doing … I make more jokes about myself than anybody,” Parton told Barbara Walters in 1977. “I’ve often made this statement that I would never stoop so low as to be fashionable, that’s the easiest thing in the world to do, so I just decided that I would do something that would at least get the attention.” The “Jolene” singer added: “Once they got past the shock of the ridiculous way I looked and all that then they would see there was parts of me to be appreciated. I’m very real where it counts, and that’s inside.” Parton, who is known for her big, blonde hair and even bigger boobs, has sung about her looks for decades, including her 1967 hit, “Dumb Blonde.” "I hope people see the brain underneath the wig and the heart beneath the boobs," the Tennessee native told Al Roker in June 2003, noting she’s been wearing blonde wigs for years because her natural locks wouldn’t tease the right way. "Part of the magic is that I look so totally artificial, but I am so totally real.” [jwplayer sBd0Fnqm-l3ahXupL] Underwood, for her part, spoke with CMT Insider in November 2009 about being one of the many blonde beauties in country music rising to fame. When asked if she felt responsible for blondes having a bigger role in country, she responded, “I don’t know if I ever really thought about it that way because I think of people like Miranda who were around before I was. So you could say she started it all. It’s her fault.” The “Before He Cheats” singer added that “it’s all good” that the platinum hair color is dominated among women in the industry. “Us blondes have all got to stick together,” she concluded. The Oklahoma songstress also addressed how she felt about women’s rise in country, saying, “I feel like before it was always this anomaly — woman one, singular — that would come in and really make her mark and do great. And now there’s more of us, and we’re all doing this. And so, I’m really happy with the way things are going. Hopefully, we can take over. I know it’s possible.” Scroll down to see country music’s most beautiful blonde bombshells. [podcast_block]

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Miranda Lambert

The country star rose to fame as the third-place finalist on Season 1 of USA Network's Nashville Star. Since then, the Texas native and Pistol Annies singer has gone on to release eight studio albums. In 2011, Lambert married Blake Shelton, but the pair announced that they were splitting in July 2015. Following a whirlwind two-and-a-half month courtship with former police officer Brendan McLoughlin, the “Bluebird” singer tied the knot for a second time in January 2019.

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Carrie Underwood

The American Idol season 4 winner caught her shooting star with her second single, "Jesus Take the Wheel." Since then, she has taken home seven Grammys and debut album, Some Hearts, went platinum in 2005. As of 2021, Underwood is the most awarded artist in CMT Music Awards history with 22 wins, including the most Female Video of the Year wins. The Oklahoma native married NHL player Mike Fisher in 2010 and they share two sons, Isaiah and Jacob.

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Jewel

Her debut album, Pieces of You, made the then-21-year-old a big success, selling more than 12 million copies in the U.S. It generated singles, "You Were Meant for Me" and "Who Will Save Your Soul" and went platinum in 1995. The pop country star has since been nominated for four Grammys and has released 12 studio albums. In December 2021, Jewel won the sixth season of The Masked Singer as the Queen of Hearts. The Utah native, who has also had success as an actress in the Fixer Upper Mysteries series on Hallmark Channel, split from Ty Murray in 2014 after six years of marriage. The pair share son Kase.

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Taylor Swift

The release of her eponymous debut album made the Pennsylvania native a star in 2006. Her sophomore album, Fearless, became the top-selling album of 2009, winning her four Grammys. Since then, the blonde beauty has won total of 11 Grammys with 41 nominations for her nine studio albums. She is one of two female artists to win Album of the Year twice for her solo recordings. The other is Adele.

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LeAnn Rimes

Rimes made her debut as one of the youngest country music stars at age 13. She has since released 12 albums. The Mississippi native made headlines for her romance with Eddie Cibrian in 2009, as both were married when they started dating. Following their respective divorces — Rimes split from chef Dean Sheremet and Cibrian left Brandi Glanville — the pair tied the knot in 2011.

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Faith Hill

The Mississippi native rose to stardom in the mid-'90s with her debut album, Take Me as I Am. Since then, she has released eight studio albums, taken home five Grammys, and married fellow country star Tim McGraw in 1996. The couple share three daughters, Gracie, Maggie and Audrey. In 2021, the duo starred alongside one another in the Yellowstone spinoff series 1883. 

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Kellie Pickler

Although the "Red High Heels" singer finished sixth place on season 5 of American Idol, she has made a name for herself in the country scene as a quirky Southern belle. The North Carolina native has become one of the most successful country singers from the Idol contestant pool, winning three CMT Music Awards and producing four studio albums. After competing on Dancing With the Stars in 2013, Pickler starred on her own reality series, I Love Kellie Pickler, for two seasons with husband Kyle Jacobs. She then cohosted Pickler & Ben for two years and has starred in multiple Hallmark Channel movies, including Christmas at Graceland.

Sadly, in February 2023, Pickler’s husband died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound at the age of 49.

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Kimberly Perry

The guitarist and pianist heads her family country trio, The Band Perry, whose 2010 song, "If I Die Young," reached No. 1 on the Country Songs and Adult Contemporary Billboard charts and has been certified quadruple platinum. The Band Perry has won three Country Music Association awards and has won one Grammy.

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Dolly Parton

Deemed one of the most successful female country artists and best-selling artists of all time, the Queen of Country Music is also a noted songwriter, actress, and philanthropist. She has released over 50 studio albums and has won 10 Grammys. Her charity, the Dollywood Foundation, promotes literacy in the U.S., and in April 2020, she donated $1 million to coronavirus vaccination research to help stop the worldwide pandemic.

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Sheryl Crow

The Missouri native has released 11 studio albums since her 1993 debut, Tuesday Night Music Club. Some of her biggest hits include “All I Wanna Do,” “Soak Up the Sun” and “If It Makes You Happy.” Her music has incorporated various genres, including pop and country. Over the course of her career, she’s earned nine Grammys and a total of 31 nominations. Crow is the mother of two sons, Wyatt and Levi.

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Trisha Yearwood

Yearwood, a Georgia native, kicked off her country music career in 1991 with her first-ever single, “She's in Love With the Boy.” She released her self-titled debut album later that year. The three-time Grammy winner has had four hits peak at the No. 1 spot on the Billboard charts, including “Inside Out.” She has also worked on music with her husband, country crooner Garth Brooks, on songs like “What Gave Me Away” and “In Another’s Eyes." Outside of music, Yearbook has written a cookbook and is the star of her own cooking show, Trisha’s Southern Kitchen.

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Kelsea Ballerini

The “Dibs” singer kicked off her career with her gold-certified 2015 debut album, The First Time. She earned a Best New Artist nomination at the 2017 Grammys, later nabbing another nod for Best Country Album at the 2019 ceremony. Some of Ballerini’s hits include “Peter Pan,” “Homecoming Queen?” and “Legends.” In 2017, the “Hole in the Bottle” songstress married fellow musician Morgan Evans. The duo called it quits in August 2022 and settled their divorce two months later. 

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Lauren Alaina

Alaina became a household name after competing on American Idol’s 10th season in 2011. Though she was the runner-up to winner Scotty McCreery, she still found post-show success upon releasing her debut album, Wildflower, in 2011, and follow-up record, Road Less Traveled, in 2017 and 2020’s Getting Good EP. “The “Ladies in the ‘90s” singer competed on Dancing With the Stars’ 28th season with pro dancer Gleb Savchenko.

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Carly Pearce

Pearce, a Kentucky-born singer from Tennessee, found great success with her debut single, “Every Little Thing,” in 2017. The song landed in the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart. This was followed by the release of her debut album, also titled Every Little Thing, later that year. She dropped her second record, Carly Pearce, in February 2021. The “I Hope You’re Happy Now” singer split from singer Michael Ray in June 2020 after eight months of marriage.

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Kimberly Schlapman

Schlapman is a member of country music group Little Big Town. With the band, she has won three Grammy Awards. The group released Nightfall, their ninth studio record, in 2020. The Georgia native shares two daughters, Dolly and Daisy, with husband Stephen Schlapman.

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Cam

The California native released her debut pop album, Heartforward, in 2010. At the time, she was releasing music as “Camaron Ochs,” but later transitioned into being a country music artist. Her EP, Welcome to Cam Country, was released in 2015 followed by her sophomore album, Untamed, later that year. The Grammy nominee has released hit songs, like “Road to Happiness” and “Burning House." She dropped her third studio album, The Otherside, in 2020. Cam shares one child, daughter Lucy, with husband Adam Weaver.

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Lindsay Ell

The Canadian country star released her first single, “Trippin’ on Us,” in 2013. Though Ell’s vocal abilities are a standout, she is also known for her guitar skills. Since finding fame, she has released five studio albums, with her most recent being 2020’s Heart Theory.