George Strait

Early life George Harvey Strait was born on May 18, 1952, in Poteet, Texas, to John Byron Strait Sr. (January 11, 1922 – June 4, 2013),

He grew up in nearby Pearsall, in Frio County, where his father was a junior high school mathematics teacher and the owner of a cattle ranch outside of Big Wells, Texas. The family worked at the ranch on the weekends and in the summers. When George was in the fourth grade, his father and mother were divorced, and his mother moved away with his sister, Pency. George and his brother John "Buddy" Jr. (1950–2009) grew up with their father.

Strait began his musical career while attending Pearsall High School, where he performed in a rock and roll garage band, known as the Stoics, taking most of their influence and inspiration from the Beatles and other British Invasion-era rock groups. On October 6, 1972, while still in Hawaii, George and Norma had their first child, Jenifer. He served in the United States Army from 1971 to 1975 and ultimately attained the rank of corporal.

Higher education After George Strait was honorably discharged from the Army in 1975, he enrolled at Southwest Texas State University (now Texas State University) in San Marcos. He graduated with a degree in agriculture. He was also presented an honorary doctoral degree by his alma mater, Texas State University in San Marcos, in a private ceremony on May 26, 2006. During his college years, Strait joined the country band Stoney Ridge, answering a flyer the band posted around campus looking for a new lead vocalist. Strait renamed the group the Ace in the Hole Band, and quickly became the lead; they began to perform at honky-tonks and bars around south and central Texas, traveling as far east as Huntsville and Houston. Soon his band was given the opportunity to record several Strait-penned singles, including "That Don't Change The Way I Feel About You" and "I Can't Go On Dying Like This" for the Houston-based D Records independent label. However, the songs never achieved wide recognition, and Strait continued to manage his family cattle ranch during the day to make some extra cash. He was offered a job designing cattle pens and decided to take it. He gave the band notice that he was leaving, but after a discussion with his wife, she convinced him to give pursuing music one more year. Not long afterward, a major label, MCA, signed Strait to a recording contract in February 1981. The initial deal was for one song. If the single did well, the label would consider doing an album.

Strait Country was hailed by critics as being a "new-traditionalist" breakthrough that broke the trend of pop-influenced country prevalent at the time. In 1983, Strait made his first appearance at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, when the headlining star, Eddie Rabbitt became sick with the flu. Performing at that rodeo has since become a mainstay throughout his career. He has made more than 20 appearances at the rodeo and played for more than one million fans.

Strait recorded 17 number ones during the decade, including a string of five that lasted from 1983 to 1984

George Strait's grief did not hinder his performance, however, or his output; as he released 11 straight number-one hits, starting with "Nobody in His Right Mind Would've Left Her" in 1986 and ending with "Ace in the Hole" in 1989.

Strait completed the decade with the album Always Never the Same in 1999, which peaked at number two on country charts and matched the cross-over success of Pure Country by reaching number six on the Billboard 200. The record produced the hits "What Do You Say to That", "Meanwhile", and the number-one "Write This Down". Reviews of the album's material were generally mixed, but Entertainment Weekly observed that at this point in his career, Strait could record the "most lightweight" material and "make it soar" on the radio with his "grace".

His next album, Honkytonkville was described as "a fiery set of hard country", and was praised "for its mixture of the old Strait with his modern, superstar self."

In 2018, Strait released a single called "Codigo", after a brand of tequila produced by a company in which he had invested.

The Cowboy Rides Away Tour

On September 26, 2012, Strait announced that he was retiring from touring, and that his Cowboy Rides Away Tour would be his last. The show also set a new record for Texas A&M's Kyle Field for most fans at a single event. The previous record was on October 11, 2014, with 110,633 fans, for a Texas A&M football game against Ole Miss. In total, the concert raised $6.25M.

Musical style and influences Strait's style of country music has been largely labeled as neotraditional country, which relies on traditional instrumentation in country music, i.e. fiddle and pedal steel guitar. His style has also been labeled as Texas country, Western swing,

Legacy George Strait has been cited as an influence by country artists such as Clint Black, Rick Trevino, Lee Ann Womack, Alan Jackson, Mark Chesnutt, Evan Felker of the Turnpike Troubadours, Parker McCollum, Charley Crockett, Zach Top, and Kacey Musgraves.

Personal life

Strait eloped in Mexico with his high school sweetheart Norma in December 1971. Their first child, Jenifer, was born on October 6, 1972. Their son, George Harvey Strait Jr., known as "Bubba", was born in 1981.

Jenifer was killed in an automobile accident in San Marcos on June 25, 1986, at age 13. The family set up the Jenifer Lyn Strait Foundation, which donates money to children's charities in the San Antonio area.

On April 10, 2009, John Byron "Buddy" Strait, who was George's older brother, died at the age of 58.

Since 2010, Strait has served as spokesman for the Wrangler National Patriot program, a campaign designed to raise awareness and funds for America's wounded and fallen military veterans and their families.

In February 2012, Strait became a grandfather when George Strait Jr. and his wife Tamara had their first child, a son, George Harvey Strait III.

Strait owns a Gulfstream G450 business jet; its tail number is N518GS. His personal aircraft is housed at the Landmark Aviation facility in San Antonio. He teamed up with Texas Governor Greg Abbott to help with disaster relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Harvey which devastated coastal areas of Texas.

Strait along with long-time friend and business partner Tom Cusick created the Vaqueros Del Mar (Cowboys of the Sea) Invitational Golf Tournament and Concert held annually at Strait and Cusick's Texas Hill Country resort Tapatio Springs Resort near Boerne, Texas. The Invitational raises money for David Feherty's Troops First Foundation, benefiting wounded servicemen, servicewomen and their families. Since its beginning in 2012, more than US$5 million have been raised by the events. In January 2018, George Strait was named the 2018 Texan of the Year by the Texas Legislative Conference, a statewide group of business and political leaders. Strait was honored for his fundraising efforts in the wake of the widespread flooding following Hurricane Harvey.

Discography

In more than 30 years of recording, all of which have been spent with MCA Records, George Strait has garnered 60 number-one songs on all country charts (including Mediabase 24/7, the former Radio & Records chart, and the now-defunct Gavin Report chart), and has more number-one hits than any other artist in a single genre. His 44 Billboard country number-one hits are a record, four more than Conway Twitty's total that includes several duets with Loretta Lynn.

Strait holds the record for most number-one albums and singles, gold albums, platinum albums, and multiplatinum albums in the history of country music, and is 11th in the most number-one albums in all other genres. Strait is third only to Elvis Presley and The Beatles with the most gold and platinum albums in the history of music.

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Honoree for Lifetime Artistic Achievement presented in December 2025 at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.