From the Gulf Coast of Texas to the bright lights of Nashville, RaeLynn has established herself as a breakout country star within the often rough and tumble music business.

Growing up in Baytown, Texas, RaeLynn knew what she wanted to do with her life and soon set her sights on becoming a singer and songwriter. In 2012 at the age of 17, she was chosen from a blind audition for season two of ‘The Voice.’ Although coached and mentored by country music star Blake Shelton, she didn’t make it past the quarter finals and was eventually eliminated.

That elimination was a blessing in disguise because the broken-hearted teenager ended up with a record deal that same year. In fact, RaeLynn went on to receive two major record deals which led to her redefining country music with her gift for storytelling through songwriting, accented by a one-of-a-kind, electric personality.  “Writing has always been my escape to really dive into my feelings,” she explains.

RaeLynn’s debut studio album ‘Wildhorse’ was recognized among the best country albums of 2017 by Rolling Stone, UPROXX and Stereogum. In 2018, it arrived at number one on Billboard’s Country Albums chart and in the Top 10 on Billboard’s All-Genre Albums sales chart.

The 20-something, who says she gets her inspiration from “everything,” has continued her collaboration with Shelton and other established country artists and is already a two-time ACM New Female Vocalist nominee. She says the best advice Shelton has given her is not to give up, and to stay authentic. “This industry can be hard sometimes, but if you remain true to who you are and what you believe, it’s going to work out and you will see some incredible milestones.”

In addition to her music, RaeLynn has been a steady voice for Type 1, Type 2, and juvenile diabetes, after being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 12. In 2016, she founded the RaeLynn Diabetes Fund to offer support, empowerment and a special community for those facing diabetes.

We wanted to know what this rising Texas star never leaves home without – also known as her Texas Essentials.

Perfume

Always gotta smell good!

Insulin

Always need to stay healthy with my diabetes.

Snacks

I always have a bar or something.

Dry shampoo

Just in case I want to party and have greasy hair! 🙂

Phone

Because who can live without their phone?

My Nintendo Switch!

It’s the one thing I have to take in my carry-on when I travel! I love playing video games.

Catch RaeLynn on Maren Morris’ Girl: The World Tour: Houston April 18, Dallas April 19 and New Braunfels April 20.

Cover: RaeLynn. Courtesy photo

Austinite Lisa Davis is the Editorial Assistant at Texas Lifestyle Magazine and a student at Concordia University Texas.