The number of country artists from Illinois is not as large as the number of country artists from Missouri, but it includes some good ones.

Gretchen Wilson kicks off our list. Gretchen was born and raised in the tiny town of Pocahontas. Born to a poor family Gretchen started making her way in music by playing small bars in St. Louis and Springfield, Missouri before moving to Nashville.

Gretchen has put out 6 original albums, the first 3 of which all went to #1 on the albums chart, and 2 hits compilations. She hit #1 on the country singles chart with her very first release 'Redneck Woman' in 2004 and then made top 10 songs a habit for the next couple of years.

Gretchen Wilson has won 4 awards from the Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association and even has a grammy to her credit.

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Newcomer Brett Eldridge comes from Paris, Illinois. He debuted in 2010 with the top ten hit 'Raymond' and has since charted additional top tens like 'Don't Ya,' 'Beat of the Music,' 'Mean to Me' and 'Lose My Mind.'

Alison Krauss is undeniably one of the most beloved and most awarded musicians of any genre. The bluegrass and country queen was born in Decatur Illinois. Aside from her illustrious musical career, Alison has lent her voice to two movies, 'Annabelle's Wish' in 1997 and Adam Sandlers 'Eight Crazy Nights' in 2002.  She's also recorded songs for the soundtracks of 5 other films.

Alison holds the record for most grammy awards won with 27.

Suzy Bogguss comes from Aledo, Illinois. Suzy has recorded 16 full length albums and has released 36 singles including 'Drive South,' 'Someday Soon,' 'Aces,' and 'Outbound Plane.'

David Lee Murphy hails from Herrin, Illinois. David's smash hit 'Dust On The Bottle' was one of the biggest hits of the 90's and still gets radio play today. The song went to #1 in 1995. David has also written several hits for other artists including the #1 hits "Living in Fast Forward" for Kenny Chesney, "Big Green Tractor" for Jason Aldean and "Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not" for Thompson Square.

Joshua Scott Jones of Steel Magnolia is from Charleston. The duo, made up of Josh and Meghan Linsey were featured on televisions  'Can You Duet,' and scored a #4 hit in 2009 with 'Keep On Lovin You.'

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