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A true wild card. Miranda Lambert<\/strong><\/a> is known for speaking her mind through her music<\/a> \u2014 and she\u2019s not afraid to get candid about the country music scene<\/a>, either.<\/p>\n The \u201cBluebird\u201d singer has been open about the sexism she\u2019s faced over the years since she got her start as a contestant<\/a> on the reality show Nashville Star<\/em> in 2003. While she was still a teenager trying to book shows in her home state of Texas, she realized how much harder she\u2019d have to work just because she\u2019s a woman.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Texas scene wasn\u2019t a place for girls at all back then,\u201d she told NPR<\/a> in November 2019. \u201cBar owners would hang up on my mom and say, \u2018We don\u2019t book girls.\u2019 So, I would go to these places with my guitar and say, \u2018Can I play during set change?\u2019 [Collaborator] Jack Ingram<\/strong> was one of them that we\u2019d always show up at his shows, and he would be like, \u2018Yeah you can play a couple of songs while we\u2019re changing.\u2019 And people would be moving cords around my feet. It\u2019s because I couldn\u2019t get a gig \u2014 and then the bar owner would be like, \u2018Well, she\u2019s pretty good.’\u201d<\/p>\n The \u201cActin\u2019 Up\u201d songstress released her major label debut album, Kerosene<\/em>, in March 2005. It was certified platinum in the United States, but none of its singles hit No. 1 on the country chart. This pattern repeated itself again and again over the years, with Lambert\u2019s subsequent albums receiving critical and commercial acclaim but little radio play.<\/p>\n When she released her sprawling album The Weight of These Wings<\/em> in November 2016, the CMA Award winner<\/a> knew that many of its tracks weren\u2019t radio-friendly, but she wasn\u2019t willing to compromise. \u201cI walked into [my manager\u2019s] office, saying, \u2018I\u2019ve got 24 songs,’\u201d Lambert told HITS Daily Double<\/em><\/a> in June 2018. \u201cShe said, \u2018How\u2019re you going to cut it down?\u2019 I said, \u2018We\u2019re not.\u2019 She said, \u2018We\u2019ll deal with it.\u2019 Because I needed to say things, if only for me.\u201d<\/p>\n Natalie Hemby<\/strong>, who\u2019s cowritten many songs with Lambert over the years, is a major fan of her colleague\u2019s ability to stand up for herself. \u201cPeople are afraid to try s\u2013t,\u201d the Highwomen member told the Los Angeles Times<\/em><\/a> in April 2022. \u201cBut Miranda\u2019s attitude has always been: Hold my beer \u2014 watch this.\u201d<\/p>\n Keep scrolling to see more of Lambert\u2019s most critical quotes about the country music industry.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n