Lee Greenwood

Lee Greenwood was born on October 27, 1942, in Los Angeles, California, and raised on a poultry farm in Sacramento. A multi-instrumentalist who mastered the saxophone, piano, and bass, Greenwood performed in Las Vegas casino circuits before signing with MCA Records in Nashville in 1981. Over the 1980s, Greenwood scored seven number-one Billboard Country hits, including 'Somebody's Gonna Love You', 'Going, Going, Gone', and 'Dixie Road', winning the 1985 Grammy Award for Best Male Country Vocal Performance for 'I.O.U.'.

In early 1984, inspired by the shooting down of Korean Air Lines Flight 007, Greenwood penned 'God Bless the U.S.A.' for his album 'You\'ve Got a Good Love Comin\''. The song won the Country Music Association (CMA) Song of the Year award in 1985. It experienced historic revivals during the 1991 Gulf War, the aftermath of September 11, 2001, and subsequent national commemorations, becoming the only song in American history to enter the top five on country singles charts in three separate decades. Appointed to the National Council on the Arts by President George W. Bush in 2008, Greenwood is a dedicated supporter of military veterans and USO tours.