Every star at the 1992 CMA Awards wore the industry-approved green ribbon — Kathy Mattea walked out wearing three red ones for AIDS awareness, honoring three friends she had lost. In the deeply conservative world of early-90s country music, that quiet gesture risked her record sales, her reputation, and her entire career. It remains the defining image of a singer who built her name on conviction as much as on hit records.

Mattea's late-80s run — from Untasted Honey through Willow in the Wind — made her one of country music's most decorated voices, praised for honest, humble storytelling instead of vocal gymnastics. But the deeper story is what came after the peak: industry pressure, backlash over her activism, a midlife vocal crisis, and a hard-won return as her completely authentic self.

• Wore three red AIDS-awareness  ...