Country singer Gretchen Wilson was born poor, raised in poverty, and with only an eighth-grade education, began cooking and tending bar alongside her mom. Wilson and her mom moved from trailer park to trailer park, many times finding it hard to pay the monthly rent.

Born in Pocahontas, Ill., the 34-year-old single mom hit it big in 2004 with the release of "Redneck Woman," and now lives in a sprawling ranch house situated on 400 acres just 35 miles outside of Nashville, Tenn. Her debut album, "Here For the Party," topped the U.S. country charts in 2004 and reached No. 2 on the Billboard charts, garnering her a Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. Since then, Wilson has released "All Jacked Up" and this past May's "One of the Boys." Yet with all this acclaim and popularity, she sees her career and life as a work in progress.

Bankrate: Did you always want to be a professional singer?

Gretchen Wilson: I always wanted to be a singer. I think I was singing full Loretta Lynn songs before I could put together a full sentence on my own. I would say probably by the time I was 6 or 7 years old, that was what I wanted to be. I had no intention of going to college, so I'm glad it worked out. That's what I have to say to kids sometimes when they ask me what my biggest regret is -- it's not finishing school, because it's important to have something to fall back on. This was a one in a million thing.

Bankrate: What was the first time you knew you could be successful at this?

Gretchen Wilson: I started playing gigs when I was 14 years old and bringing home about $400 a week.

Bankrate: Was the release of the single "Redneck Woman" in 2004 your introduction to success?

Gretchen Wilson: Absolutely. I struggled up until that time. I was a struggling musician from the time I started working at 14 until I signed that record deal -- even after I signed that record deal -- because you end up getting yourself in a lot of debt trying to come out there and look like the big star you want to be. You end up spending a lot of money on production, on a band and touring to try and go out there and support it. I don't think I really felt successful at it until I got that first money in the mailbox -- that first big check where I could pay off my old debt that had been hanging on to me since I was a little kid and get in the clear. It was the first time that weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

Bankrate: When was that first big check?

Gretchen Wilson: About 10 months after "Redneck Woman" was released to radio. My truck was repossessed the day I signed my record deal.