![\"Country](\"https:\/\/www.thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/Kellile-Pickler-concert-1-25-14.jpg\")
<\/a>Pickler joked with the crowd and thanked those in attendance for the \u201cwarm\u201d welcome to northwest Ohio, while she put in a request for a potential future return visit. \u201cWe\u2019ll come back anytime ya\u2019ll will have us,\u201d Pickler said, adding \u201calthough I\u2019d prefer to have a little more sun next time. I mean, I guess this is normal for ya\u2019ll. I hate to break it to ya, but this ain\u2019t normal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite the dreary weather outside, Pickler was every bit her sunny, personable self during the show, during which she belted out a medley of songs from her new album The Woman I Am<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Known for her \u201cwhat you see is what you get\u201d attitude and quirky personality, Pickler burst onto the country music stage after a top-10 finish in Season 5 of \u201cAmerican Idol\u201d. Pickler was a fresh-faced 19-year-old when she auditioned for \u201cIdol\u201d, the show she said launched the rocket of her wildly-successful career in country music.<\/p>\n
Blowing away \u201cIdol\u201d judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul with her rendition of Kelly Clarkson\u2019s \u201cSince U Been Gone,\u201d the small-town girl with the big heart and even bigger pipes quickly gained a huge fan base that has followed her throughout her career.<\/p>\n
After \u201cIdol\u201d, Pickler began to experience life in the fast lane, and life outside the small mobile home she called home in Albemarle, N.C.<\/p>\n
Today, Pickler is a long way from the shy 19-year-old who captured America\u2019s heart on the \u201cIdol\u201d stage. With a list of honors and accomplishments dotting her resume and a recent first-place finish on ABC\u2019s \u201cDancing with the Stars\u201d, Pickler appears to be at the top of her game.<\/p>\n
Reflecting on her first-place \u201cDWTS\u201d finish, Pickler said during a pre-show interview with The Van Wert independent<\/i> that she had gained a newfound respect for dancers, as well as a passion for ballroom dancing.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet me tell you, anyone who studies dance is tough,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is definitely harder than it looks. Never in a million years did I think I would enjoy ballroom dancing, but the show definitely helped me discover a passion for dance.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not her only passion. The petite blonde singer has been vocal about her desire to give back, and one way she does that is through her involvement with the United Service Organization (USO) and her numerous trips overseas to entertain troops.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love that I get to be a part of something so special,\u201d Pickler said, adding that she and her husband, singer-producer Kyle Jacobs, recently spent Christmas in Afghanistan. \u201cEvery trip is different and we\u2019ve just been all over the place, but from each trip we bring back different memories and we\u2019re blessed to meet some pretty incredible people.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hear their stories about where they come from, who they are and why they joined and it\u2019s those little conversations in-between the shows where I\u2019m just sitting in the cafeteria and mingling that are the really special moments,\u201d she added. \u201cI have the opportunity to connect with people on a personal level.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pickler more than connected with the audience Saturday evening, sharing humorous stories and anecdotes about her childhood, as well as life on the open road touring with her band.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first started out, we all shared one tour bus together and I very quickly realized that I needed to be able to go to the bathroom and not fall in the commode,\u201d she said, drawing laughs from the audience. \u201cPlus, I really didn\u2019t want to be stepping in disgusting things. When I\u2019m on the band\u2019s bus, there\u2019s one rule and that\u2019s when you\u2019re in your bunk, nobody can mess with you. Outside the bunk, it\u2019s free game.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd this one right here is the ringleader,\u201d she added emphatically, pointing out band member Jay Gorman. \u201cI don\u2019t know if you know this or not, but he\u2019s from ya\u2019ll\u2019s neck of the woods. I think like about 10 minutes from here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gorman, who plays bass in Pickler\u2019s band, is from Delphos and is a graduate of Delphos Jefferson High School. Pickler noted that Gorman was welcomed back to the area with a party Friday evening, and she joked \u201clet me just say that I\u2019m thankful that everyone showed up for work today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Work they did, playing song after song from Pickler\u2019s new album, as well as a few fan favorites from the early years of her career. Opening up the show with \u201cTough,\u201d a song with a little bit of country, a little bit of bluegrass and a whole lot of attitude, Pickler went on to relate the story behind \u201cSelma Drye,\u201d a song near and dear to the singer\u2019s heart.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy grandma and grandpa had a big part in raising me and my grandma was the woman I called mom,\u201d Pickler said, adding that her grandparents have played a huge role in her life. \u201cSo my mom\u2019s mom was Selma Drye and she was a spitfire.<\/p>\n
\u2018You know the grandma on \u2018Beverly Hillbillies\u2019?\u201d Pickler asked the audience. \u201cWell, that was my great-grandma. She had one tooth hanging on for dear life and she always kept two things in her apron \u2026 a .38 Special and a can of snuff. So you can see, I get my crazy honest.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pickler added that the song was about the women of her great-grandmother\u2019s generation, who were self-sufficient and independent and never owned a washing machine in their lives.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe never had a bank account and she kept all of her money in canning jars right next to her peaches,\u201d Pickler said of her grandmother. \u201cYep, she was a spitfire and I love her for it and I wrote this song especially for her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pickler finished out the show with fan favorites such as \u201cI Wonder,\u201d and \u201cLittle Bit Gypsy\u201d and she thanked the crowd again for allowing her to do what she loves.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wouldn\u2019t be up here if ya\u2019ll weren\u2019t out there; the thing I love about country music is that there are stories behind each song about people\u2019s lives and where they come from,\u201d Pickler said, adding, \u201ccountry music allows you to celebrate the good times and it\u2019s also there when you need to have your own little pity party. But all in all, it\u2019s about a story, and thank you for allowing me to share my story with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pickler\u2019s show was the latest in a string of upcoming performances and events at the NPAC. Next up will be the Broadway show The Addams Family<\/i> on January 31, followed by \u201cThe \u2018Not So\u2019 Newlywed Game\u201d, featuring host Bob Eubanks, on February 15. Tickets are available at the NPAC box office or by visiting the Niswonger website at www.npacvw.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" CINDY WOOD\/independent feature writer Blowing snow and bitter cold temperatures be damned. The blustery weather didn\u2019t stop music fans from filling the Niswonger Performing Arts Center Saturday evening to see country music superstar Kellie Pickler take the stage in front of a sold-out crowd. Pickler joked with the crowd and thanked those in attendance for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-07-31 13:49:39","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47842"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47842\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}