A Kansas native who sang with power and tenderness, Martina McBride started out in a more traditional country vein in the early '90s, then kicked up the beat and the tempo as her career progressed. Born and raised Martina Mariea Schiff in Sharon, Kansas, as a child she became infatuated with traditional country music. She began singing and playing keyboards at local clubs and barn dances with her father's band, the Schifters. After graduating from high school, she began touring Kansas with a variety of country bands. She later married soundman John McBride and in 1990 moved with him to Nashville, where he worked for such stars as Charlie Daniels and Ricky Van Shelton while she waited tables and sang demos. John then produced a demo tape of her work and they tried sell it to several record labels. This led to a contract with RCA at the end of 1991. Around the same time, John became Garth Brooks' production manager, and Martina became the singer's opening act. She released her debut album, The Time Has Come, in 1992. It spent six months in the country album Top 50. The title track was released as her first single and it stayed on the charts for five months, while her next two, "That's Me" and "Cheap Whiskey," nearly cracked the Top 40. The Way That I Am, McBride's second album, was released in 1993, and became her breakthrough. The record's first single, "My Baby Loves Me," reached number two and "Life #9" also became a Top 10 hit. Her third album, Wild Angels, was released in the fall of 1995; the title track later became her first number one hit. Evolution followed in 1997, and a year later she released White Christmas.