For Mindy McCready's songs to move an audience, they
have to pass a rigorous test first: the artist herself.

"I don't choose a song unless it's personal to me," the
outspoken McCready comments. "It has to move me in
order to record it."

Mindy's third CD, I'm Not So Tough, (BNA) is filled with
tunes that affect the artist in a deep, individual way and
help her convey her vision of women as equal, direct and
strong. Produced by Billy Joe Walker, Jr. and Csaba
Petocz, the CD will be released in September. "All I
Want Is Everything," the first single, is a jangly, Buddy
Holly-style tune with a defiant lyric written by acclaimed
songwriter Matraca Berg ("Strawberry Wine"). "When I
first heard it, the lyric reflected so much of my
personality," Mindy says. " 'All I want is everything' is
something I've actually said before. I grabbed the song."

Other cuts on the album also provoked emotional
responses in Mindy. The haunting "I'm Not So Tough,"
the title cut by Hillary Lindsay, has a message that
Mindy believes. "The song is spoken like a woman, but
with dignity," she reflects. The Tia Sellers song, "Dream
On," a moving, powerful ballad, made Mindy cry when
she first heard it. "I identified with the content of the song,
about being in a relationship where both people are far
away from each other," Mindy says.

Mindy's favorite cut on the CD is "Over and Over," a
groove-laden tune with a strong hook, written by Aimee
Mayo. "It's one of the sexiest songs I've ever heard," she
says. "It's got simple lyrics but they're stated in such a
great way."

Other cuts on the album include "Take Me Apart," with
its cool melody and solid groove, the upbeat,
tongue-in-cheek "Lucky Me" and the powerful ballad,
"Hold Me." Mindy specifically searches for songs that
women can identify with. In fact, almost every cut on I'm
Not So Tough was written or co-written by a woman.

"I'm very attracted to strong female lyrics," Mindy says.
"All my songs are tunes that women will want to listen to
and say, 'Yes, sister!' They're not traditionally country, in
the sense that they have images of dogs in trucks or
submissive women. If the women aren't equal to the men,
the songs aren't there for me.

Born in Fort Myers, Florida, on November 30, 1975,
Mindy has always been attracted to music. She sang in
church beginning at age 3. As she grew, she ordered
karaoke tapes of Madonna, Trisha Yearwood and Reba
McEntire and honed her vocal skills while singing along.
She cites musical influences as diverse as Madonna,
gospel singer Sandi Patti, Crystal Gayle, Janet Jackson,
Def Leppard and classical opera.

At age 9, Mindy embarked on seven years of formal
opera training. Motivated by a desire to pursue a
professional musical career, she graduated high school
(with honors) at 16 and at 18, she moved to Nashville to
pursue her dream.

"I liked all music, but I loved country," she says. "I liked
its lyric content and I could identify with it. I loved to
listen to it and sing it."

Mindy made a deal with her mother: she would stay in
Nashville for one year. If she didn't make it as a singer,
she'd return to Florida and attend college.

Almost immediately upon arriving in Nashville, Mindy
began singing demos and became one of the busiest
performers in Music City. Ultimately David Malloy, a
producer she worked with, took her to BNA Records,
where Mindy sang for RLG Chairman Joe Galante in his
office. She was immediately offered a record deal -51
weeks after her arrival in Nashville, with one week to go
on the agreement with her mother.

Mindy's first album, Ten Thousand Angels, was produced
by Malloy and released in 1996. The double platinum
seller spawned the hit singles, "Guys Do It All The Time,"
"Maybe He'll Notice Her Now," "A Girl's Gotta Do (What
A Girl's Gotta Do)" and the title track. The success of the
CD led to extensive concert appearances with George
Strait, Tim McGraw and Alan Jackson. (Ironically, prior to
that, Mindy had never appeared on stage). Her second
CD, If I Don't Stay the Night, also produced by Malloy,
came out in 1998 and featured the successful U.S.
single, "You'll Never Know," and "Oh Romeo," a hit in
Europe.

Out of the spotlight, Mindy lives in Nashville with her two
brothers, 20-year-old T.J., a student at Belmont
University, and 18-year-old Joshua, a student at the
University of Tennessee Knoxville. She has a third
brother, two-year-old Sky, who lives with her mother in
Florida.

Mindy's vision remains focused on her music. "I love
music and that's what motivates me," she says. "When
I'm performing and the audience is singing every word to
my songs, or when I get a letter saying that my song
made someone feel good, that's what excites me. My
goal is to be a singer, not a country music singer, just a
singer. That's what it's about for me."

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