# Lari White
**Lari White** (Lari Michele White, May 13, 1965 – January 23, 2018) was an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress who rose to prominence in the mid-1990s with a string of RCA albums and later became the first woman to produce a platinum-selling album by a male country star.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) • [2](https://thebluegrasssituation.com/read/the-producers-lari-white/) Her music earned three [Grammy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/grammy-awards) through gospel and soundtrack projects, and she appeared in the film *Cast Away* and on Broadway.[3](https://lariwhite.com/about)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | 1965, Dunedin, Florida; January 23, 2018, Nashville, Tennessee, after a short battle with cancer, at age 52[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) • [4](https://www.sagaftra.org/sag-aftra-remembers-nashville-singer-songwriter-lari-white) |
| Breakthrough | *Wishes* (1994), RIAA Gold, with three Top Ten Billboard country singles: "That's My Baby", "Now I Know", and "That's How You Know (When You're in Love)"[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) • [5](https://lariwhite.org/) |
| Production landmark | Produced Toby Keith's platinum album *White Trash with Money* (2006), becoming the first woman to produce a platinum-selling album by a male country star[2](https://thebluegrasssituation.com/read/the-producers-lari-white/) |
| Grammy Awards | Three, for *The Apostle* soundtrack and *Amazing Grace 1 and 2: A Country Tribute*[3](https://lariwhite.com/about) |
| Studio albums | *Lead Me Not* (1993), *Wishes* (1994), *Don't Fence Me In* (1996), *Stepping Stone* (1998), *Green Eyed Soul* (2004), *My First Affair* (2007)[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) |
| Acting | Bettina Peterson in *Cast Away* (2000); Broadway debut originating June Carter in *Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash*[6](https://static.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/lari-white) • [3](https://lariwhite.com/about) |
| Family | Married singer-songwriter Chuck Cannon on April 23, 1994; three children[7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0925096/) |
## Early life and start in music
White grew up in [Dunedin, Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/dunedin-florida), performing as a child in a family gospel group, the White Family Singers, with her parents and brother at local churches and community events; the act gradually added pop material, particularly [Elvis Presley](https://www.edgepedia.org/elvis-presley) songs.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) As a teenager she sang show tunes at talent contests and fronted a local rock and roll band.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) A scholarship took her to the [University of Miami](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-miami), where she studied vocals and music engineering, wrote her own songs, and performed in local clubs.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742)
After graduating she toured the United States to observe regional music scenes, then moved to Nashville in 1988.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) Later that year she won first prize on the Nashville Network talent show *You Can Be a Star*, which led to a record contract with Capitol and a single, "Flying Above the Rain", that became a regional Southern hit without reaching the national charts.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) She joined [Ronnie Milsap](https://www.edgepedia.org/ronnie-milsap)'s publishing house and took acting lessons while singing in local dinner theaters.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742)
## Recording career
**RCA years.** An ASCAP showcase in 1991 revived industry interest, and [Rodney Crowell](https://www.edgepedia.org/rodney-crowell) invited her to sing backup vocals in his touring band.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) White signed with RCA in 1992, and Crowell produced her debut album *Lead Me Not*, released in 1993.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) The album drew strong reviews and an Academy of Country Music nomination for best new female vocalist, but its three singles ("What a Woman Wants", "Lead Me Not", and "Lay Around and Love on You") did not break the [Top 40](https://www.edgepedia.org/top-40).[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) • [8](https://www.allmusic.com/album/lead-me-not-mw0000618616)
*Wishes*, released in June 1994, was her breakthrough.[9](https://www.allmusic.com/album/wishes-mw0000113934) It was certified RIAA Gold and produced three Top Ten Billboard Hot Country Songs singles: "That's My Baby", "Now I Know", and "That's How You Know (When You're in Love)".[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) "Now I Know", at number 5, was her best chart position.[10](https://www.country.de/2012/05/13/lari-white/) Her third album, *Don't Fence Me In* (1996), continued her success without matching its predecessor, and she released a compilation, *The Best of Lari White*, in 1997 before her RCA contract ended that year.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) • [10](https://www.country.de/2012/05/13/lari-white/)
**Later labels and independence.** After a hiatus spent building a home studio, The Holler, on the property she shared with her husband outside Nashville, she released the self-produced *Green Eyed Soul* in 2004 on her own Skinny WhiteGirl Records; The Times of London named it the best soul album of the year.[11](https://www.yamaha.com/allaccess/artists/issue8-white_lari.asp?issue=issue8) • [3](https://lariwhite.com/about) *My First Affair* followed in 2007, and in 2017 the double-disc project *Old Friends, New Loves*, marking her 25th anniversary as a recording artist, featured appearances by [Delbert McClinton](https://www.edgepedia.org/delbert-mcclinton), Suzy Bogguss, Lee Roy Parnell, and [BeBe Winans](https://www.edgepedia.org/bebe-winans).[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742) • [3](https://lariwhite.com/about) • [12](https://cdnc.heyzine.com/files/uploaded/v3/0f8157d2baf6db2840ac50c4b463533e384e1f0c-3.pdf)
## Producing and songwriting
White produced [Toby Keith](https://www.edgepedia.org/toby-keith)'s 2006 album *White Trash with Money*, which went platinum; in doing so she became the first woman to produce a platinum-selling album by a male country star.[2](https://thebluegrasssituation.com/read/the-producers-lari-white/) • [3](https://lariwhite.com/about) Her production of Shawn Mullins' album *My Stupid Heart* drew wide praise.[3](https://lariwhite.com/about) She worked from The Holler, where she described a song-first method: every song has "bones", and the producer's job is to remove what does not belong, a comparison she drew to Michelangelo's approach to sculpture.[2](https://thebluegrasssituation.com/read/the-producers-lari-white/)
As a songwriter her credits include recordings by [Tammy Wynette](https://www.edgepedia.org/tammy-wynette), Toby Keith, Lonestar, Danny Gokey, and Pat Green.[3](https://lariwhite.com/about) Her three Grammy Awards came through gospel and soundtrack work: *The Apostle* soundtrack and *Amazing Grace 1 and 2: A Country Tribute*.[3](https://lariwhite.com/about) In June 2025 she was inducted posthumously into the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame.[12](https://cdnc.heyzine.com/files/uploaded/v3/0f8157d2baf6db2840ac50c4b463533e384e1f0c-3.pdf)
## Acting and stage work
White appeared opposite [Tom Hanks](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-hanks) in *Cast Away* (2000) as Bettina Peterson, and her film credits also include *No Regrets* (2004) and *[Country Strong](https://www.edgepedia.org/country-strong)* (2010).[6](https://static.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/lari-white) She made her Broadway debut originating the role of June Carter in *Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash*, to critical acclaim.[3](https://lariwhite.com/about) As a vocalist she performed with The New York Pops, the Boston Pops, and the Atlanta and Nashville Symphonies, and in 2016 she launched an online vocal course through ArtistWorks.[3](https://lariwhite.com/about)
## Death and legacy
White died on January 23, 2018, in Nashville after a short battle with cancer, at age 52.[4](https://www.sagaftra.org/sag-aftra-remembers-nashville-singer-songwriter-lari-white) She was survived by her husband, Chuck Cannon, and children M'Kenzy Rayne, Kyra, and Jaxon.[4](https://www.sagaftra.org/sag-aftra-remembers-nashville-singer-songwriter-lari-white) A member of the SAG-AFTRA Nashville local for nearly thirty years, she was remembered there as a passionate advocate for humanitarian causes in the Nashville community.[4](https://www.sagaftra.org/sag-aftra-remembers-nashville-singer-songwriter-lari-white) The independent Lari White Legacy Project, launched to spotlight her life and music, is developing a documentary about her career.[5](https://lariwhite.org/)
## References
1. [Lari White – Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lari-white-mn0000104742)
2. [The Producers: Lari White, The Bluegrass Situation](https://thebluegrasssituation.com/read/the-producers-lari-white/)
3. [About — Lari White, lariwhite.com](https://lariwhite.com/about)
4. [SAG-AFTRA Remembers Nashville Singer-Songwriter Lari White](https://www.sagaftra.org/sag-aftra-remembers-nashville-singer-songwriter-lari-white)
5. [Lari White Legacy Project, lariwhite.org](https://lariwhite.org/)
6. [Lari White Movies List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://static.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/lari-white)
7. [Lari White, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0925096/)
8. [Lari White: Lead Me Not Tracks & Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/lead-me-not-mw0000618616)
9. [Lari White: Wishes Tracks & Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/album/wishes-mw0000113934)
10. [Lari White, Country.de](https://www.country.de/2012/05/13/lari-white/)
11. [Lari White, Yamaha All Access Magazine](https://www.yamaha.com/allaccess/artists/issue8-white_lari.asp?issue=issue8)
12. [2025 5th Annual WSHOF Award Show Program Booklet](https://cdnc.heyzine.com/files/uploaded/v3/0f8157d2baf6db2840ac50c4b463533e384e1f0c-3.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Country, gospel, and western singers › Country pop and crossover singers › 1980s and 1990s crossover singers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license