LORENA, Texas — Kimberly Kelly has been trying to "make it" in the country music world for years.
On May 10, she took a massive step in the right direction by signing with Show Dog Nashville, the Toby Keith-led music label.
"It didn’t really hit me until the signing day and I took the photo," Kelly said. "He said this girl is country, let’s make some country music."
Her old-country sound and affinity for Central Texas has made Kelly quite popular in places like Lorena, Waco, McLennan County, and well, all over Texas, really.
She has fond memories of playing at Papa Joe's, Gruene Hall, Hog Creek Ice House and Backyard Bar and Grill. She realized she could really sing when she was a junior in high school. She told her mom she thought she could and made her turn around to give the performance.
“I just said Kimberly sing a song for me," Cindy Laughlin, Kimberly's mother, said. "And she goes 'Okay but you’re gonna have to turn around and not face me.'”
The performance crushed and it led Kelly to pursue music at McLennan Community College which then led to her playing multiple venues around town. Her biggest break came when she got the big stage at the Heart of Texas Fair and Rodeo.
“One time I was comparing another gig and I was like, 'It’s not like I was playing the Heart of Texas Fair and Rodeo or the Grammy's,'" she joked. "And that person was like 'You put the Heart and Texas Fair and Rodeo as the same level as the Grammy’s' and I was like 'For me it was.'”
She moved to Nashville eight years ago to sing with her sister, Kristin, who has made a name for herself in country music too. But, Kimberly struggled to break out like she wanted, releasing different music and albums.
“She would say 'Oh Mom, I think I need to quit' and I would say no. Just keep trying, trying, trying, don’t give up," Laughlin said.
She decided to release a last-ditch effort EP. It found it's way to a company called Thirty Tigers marketing which passed it along to Show Dog Nashville. After a year of talking, they put pen to paper earlier this month.
Kelly cut her album last week which will come out in February 2021, and it will be done exactly how she wants it to be.
She has climbed to the top, but still has lofty goals, and some of them include coming home.
"My goals are like the [Grand Ole] Opry, Austin City Limits, sell out Greune Hall, you know those kinds of [things], Billy Bobs," she said. "It's funny that I'm here but now I just want to go back and play those big shows."
You can hear her music on streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music.