Biography

Rachael Hester grew up with a passion for traditional music as a second generation singer. songwriter, and musician. The most significant influences musically came from her father who played modern country for a living and more traditional country and western swing for fun and from her mother who sang bluegrass gospel in church. Rachael grew up in the studio and backstage of famous Nashville shows such as The Grand Ole Opry and the nightly TV show Nashville Now. In fact it was on Nashville Now that she got her first taste of performing at age six when she sang Away In A Manger with her father and sister on the Christmas special. Rachaels love for performing seemed almost innate, and music was a major part of everyday family activities. Her father taught her and her sister to sing harmony and read the Nashville number system when they were small children. Long family road trips were filled with three-part harmony, and the hymn book was as important on those trips as the road map. Rachaels junior year of high school she entered the school talent show and received firstplace. More than anything, this experience gave her a taste of the adrenaline rush that comes only from performing for a crowd. Later that year her first real experience singing in the studio was on a two-song project with famous players Steve Wariner, John Gardner, Jeff Taylor, Andy Reiss, and Hoot Hester. Rachael began playing piano at age seven and has been playing guitar since 2008. She graduated from Belmont University in 2007 with a major in Music Business.At a very young age, Rachael decided she wanted to be a singer. She began working on her image at age six and started to grow her hair as long as Crystal Gayles after seeing the singer perform with her signature long hair flowing behind her. When in high school Rachael was introduced to 60s and 70s folk music by her dad who bought her a Gordon Lightfoot CD for Christmas. She has since cut her hair and began to develop her own sound influenced by her love of folk music, her mothers love of Kentucky bluegrass, and her fathera love of traditional country music all tied together by her pure, unique voice and her own original songs.