WHO: Shelby Lynne
WHERE: Turner Hall, Milwaukee
WHEN: 8 p.m. Nov. 28
COST: $25
INFO: pabsttheater.org, shelbylynne.com

>>WIM: Shelby Lynne
WOMEN IN MUSIC

Shelby Lynne recorded five albums in Nashville before winning a Best New Artist Grammy in 2000 for her stunning I Am Shelby Lynne.

“I felt like it was time. Obviously, everybody else did, too,” she said. “You know what? That’s what made it feel so good. I worked hard for it. It just makes you want to dig in deeper and work even harder for the next one. And it made me known. That’s good. I can always work and I have a Grammy. I can put that on my resume, Grammy Award winner. That’s an accomplishment because it means your peers dig what you do and respect you.”

Shelby says she always knew she was going to be a musician.

“I remember singing in front of people at 3 years old and knowing then. I’m pretty sure I can guarantee you that’s what I’m here to do,” she said. “You know how you get that feeling in your whole body that you’re doing what you’re supposed to be doing? I’ve always had that feeling. I always considered myself pretty lucky because I’ve always known my entire life what I was going to do. Without knowing what path it would take to get there, I knew it was what I was going to do.”

OK, but how do you convince the rest of the world?

“Simply by dedicating your life to it,” Shelby said. “There was no doubt in my mind or anybody else’s mind. There were no issues as far as doing college or anything else. A career in music was going to be it, and that was pretty much understood in the circles I ran in.”

Being a woman breaking into the music industry made it that much harder, but Shelby says it just made her more determined to succeed.

“It’s hard being a woman in any business. It still is,” she said. “We live in a country that still pays women less no matter what. Things haven’t changed as far as that goes. I’ve never been one of those whining, crying women. I’ve always been one to kick ass and take names. There’s no time for whining and crying. It’s just time to do what you do better than anyone else.”

It’s that very attitude that has given Shelby Lynne the image of a maverick in an increasingly conformist music industry.

“The reason they don’t know what to do with people like me is they try to make everybody the same,” she said. “When somebody comes along who is different and has something to say that is not of the norm, or what they think the norm should be, they don’t know what to do. The days of musicians like Jerry Wexler and Billy Sherrill and countless others who ran records companies back in the cool days when real music was happening are over. Now it’s pencil pushers and money crunchers and accountants and lawyers. I’m not saying they’re not soulful people, but, come on, it’s different.

“I’ve never sold out because at the end of the day I like being able to buck the system a little bit,” she said. “I wouldn’t even know how to play the game I’ve done this for so long that everybody who knows me knows that I don’t know how to play the game. So they just let me play my game. It’s still working.”

Since I Am Shelby Lynne, people have been comparing her to Dusty Springfield, but it was fan Barry Manilow who suggested she do a Dusty tribute. The result is the new CD Just A Little Lovin’.

“It’s gotten a really good reception, considering the music industry these days,” Shelby said. “Nobody’s selling records these days, unless you’re so huge. Everything’s so different from just 10 years ago. People don’t have any money. Times are tough. But they’re still coming out to the show and buying the record. That says a lot. You have to be really grateful. That means a lot to me.”

She added that she finally feels at home with her new record label, Lost Highway.

“I have just about run the gamut,” she said. “I started out on CBS in Nashville. Left, and now I’m back in Nashville on the coolest label. Probably the last of a dying breed. They let me do what I want. There’s a lot of respect there. They answer the phone when you call. You’re not supposed to do that if you’re a record company, so I like those cats. They don’t work anything they don’t like because they don’t sign anything they don’t like. You have to respect that because most record companies sign everything and see what sticks. I think they’re the right place for me.”

Shelby said she hopes to have another record out next year.

“I’m really just hunkering down and writing songs,” she said. “I constantly write and try to pick the best of the best. With the career I’ve had, being fortunate to do it after over 20 years and never really having a hit record, it just gives me inspiration to do it until I die.”