NEED TO KNOW<\/h3>\n\n- \n\n
Lainey Wilson reflects on balancing fame with her personal life and staying grounded through therapy and family support<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
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Her Netflix documentary, streaming April 22, explores her rise to stardom, mental health struggles and egg-freezing journey<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
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Wilson credits her fianc\u00e9 Devlin \u201cDuck\u201d Hodges for being her anchor<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
On a sunny Los Angeles day in late March, Lainey Wilson<\/a> is commanding the set of her People cover shoot.<\/p>\nOne minute she\u2019s dolled up, posing on a bar in her signature cowboy hat and bell-bottoms. The next she\u2019s dressed down in a trucker hat, her golden waves tucked into an oversize bomber jacket, as she heads out to catch a flight home to Nashville.<\/p>\n
The switch from country superstar to incognito face in the crowd feels Hannah Montana<\/a>-coded \u2014 fitting for a singer who impersonated the Disney icon at parties before finding fame herself.<\/p>\n\u201cI feel like I have the best of both worlds,\u201d Wilson tells PEOPLE in this week’s cover story, lyrical reference intended. \u201cI get to be the songwriter and businesswoman, and then I get to take the hat off every now and then and be Lainey the sister, the friend, the daughter, the fianc\u00e9e.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Lainey](\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/.MoMCMT4izGvINVZwyc4Aw--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTEyODA7Y2Y9d2VicA--\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/people_218\/cdaa22ed74143e09828fb3683729a19d\"\/)
<\/span><\/div>\nLainey Wilson for PEOPLE
Credit: Alex G. Harper<\/i><\/p>\n
Despite her success, Wilson, 33, feels she can still \u201cgo undercover pretty easily\u201d in her daily life. Until she speaks.<\/p>\n
\u201cI could be at Walgreens or Walmart, and as soon as I\u2019m checking out at the counter, the cashier will kind of look at me weird,\u201d she says in her unmistakable Louisiana drawl. \u201cThere\u2019s no hiding the voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Since her 2019 breakout hit \u201cThings a Man Oughta Know\u201d introduced the world to that voice, Wilson has become one of country\u2019s brightest stars, earning a Grammy, notching nine country radio No. 1s and landing a recurring role on the blockbuster Paramount series Yellowstone.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven 15 years in Nashville could not prepare me for the way my career exploded,\u201d says Wilson, who will headline the Stagecoach music festival<\/a> in Indio, Calif., the last weekend of April. \u201cI mean, this is all I could have ever wanted and more.\u201d<\/p>\nNow Wilson is giving fans a peek behind the scenes of her breakneck rise in the new Netflix documentary Lainey Wilson: Keepin\u2019 Country Cool, streaming April 22. It covers both her professional and her personal triumphs \u2014 including her engagement to former NFL player Devlin \u201cDuck\u201d Hodges<\/a>, 30, who proposed in February 2025<\/a> \u2014 as well as her struggles with mental health.<\/p>\n![\"Lainey](\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/grQ_Qpm_5oKb.n.PNQK1Wg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTEyMDA7Y2Y9d2VicA--\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/people_218\/9cc92ed26e5d376d611afbd7ace7bd6a\"\/)
<\/span><\/div>\nLainey Wilson for PEOPLE
Credit: Alex G. Harper<\/i><\/p>\n
Wilson was raised in Baskin, La. (population approximately 200), by her dad, Brian, a fifth-generation farmer, and mom, Michelle, a schoolteacher<\/a>.<\/p>\nAfter writing her first song at 9, she spent her teen years impersonating Hannah Montana, the fictional pop star played by Miley Cyrus.<\/a> \u201cI didn\u2019t have the Malibu mansion, but I did have a little portable sound system,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n![\"Lainey](\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/5yFy15clsOaFCmn70uREtg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/people_218\/883217c73b801207ac21f59285a7d764\"\/)
<\/span><\/div>\nLainey Wilson with her parents in a 2017 Instagram
Credit: Lainey Wilson\/Instagram<\/i><\/p>\n
At 19, Wilson moved to Nashville in a camper trailer, then spent nearly a decade grinding before landing her major-label deal in 2018.<\/p>\n
As her career took off, Wilson struggled with anxiety and depression, and a relentless schedule pushed her to her breaking point.<\/p>\n
Lainey Wilson reflects on balancing fame with her personal life and staying grounded through therapy and family support<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
Her Netflix documentary, streaming April 22, explores her rise to stardom, mental health struggles and egg-freezing journey<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
Wilson credits her fianc\u00e9 Devlin \u201cDuck\u201d Hodges for being her anchor<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
On a sunny Los Angeles day in late March, Lainey Wilson<\/a> is commanding the set of her People cover shoot.<\/p>\n One minute she\u2019s dolled up, posing on a bar in her signature cowboy hat and bell-bottoms. The next she\u2019s dressed down in a trucker hat, her golden waves tucked into an oversize bomber jacket, as she heads out to catch a flight home to Nashville.<\/p>\n The switch from country superstar to incognito face in the crowd feels Hannah Montana<\/a>-coded \u2014 fitting for a singer who impersonated the Disney icon at parties before finding fame herself.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like I have the best of both worlds,\u201d Wilson tells PEOPLE in this week’s cover story, lyrical reference intended. \u201cI get to be the songwriter and businesswoman, and then I get to take the hat off every now and then and be Lainey the sister, the friend, the daughter, the fianc\u00e9e.\u201d<\/p>\n Lainey Wilson for PEOPLE Despite her success, Wilson, 33, feels she can still \u201cgo undercover pretty easily\u201d in her daily life. Until she speaks.<\/p>\n \u201cI could be at Walgreens or Walmart, and as soon as I\u2019m checking out at the counter, the cashier will kind of look at me weird,\u201d she says in her unmistakable Louisiana drawl. \u201cThere\u2019s no hiding the voice.\u201d<\/p>\n Since her 2019 breakout hit \u201cThings a Man Oughta Know\u201d introduced the world to that voice, Wilson has become one of country\u2019s brightest stars, earning a Grammy, notching nine country radio No. 1s and landing a recurring role on the blockbuster Paramount series Yellowstone.<\/p>\n \u201cEven 15 years in Nashville could not prepare me for the way my career exploded,\u201d says Wilson, who will headline the Stagecoach music festival<\/a> in Indio, Calif., the last weekend of April. \u201cI mean, this is all I could have ever wanted and more.\u201d<\/p>\n Now Wilson is giving fans a peek behind the scenes of her breakneck rise in the new Netflix documentary Lainey Wilson: Keepin\u2019 Country Cool, streaming April 22. It covers both her professional and her personal triumphs \u2014 including her engagement to former NFL player Devlin \u201cDuck\u201d Hodges<\/a>, 30, who proposed in February 2025<\/a> \u2014 as well as her struggles with mental health.<\/p>\n Lainey Wilson for PEOPLE Wilson was raised in Baskin, La. (population approximately 200), by her dad, Brian, a fifth-generation farmer, and mom, Michelle, a schoolteacher<\/a>.<\/p>\n After writing her first song at 9, she spent her teen years impersonating Hannah Montana, the fictional pop star played by Miley Cyrus.<\/a> \u201cI didn\u2019t have the Malibu mansion, but I did have a little portable sound system,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Lainey Wilson with her parents in a 2017 Instagram At 19, Wilson moved to Nashville in a camper trailer, then spent nearly a decade grinding before landing her major-label deal in 2018.<\/p>\n As her career took off, Wilson struggled with anxiety and depression, and a relentless schedule pushed her to her breaking point.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
Credit: Alex G. Harper<\/i><\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
Credit: Alex G. Harper<\/i><\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
Credit: Lainey Wilson\/Instagram<\/i><\/p>\n