Miranda Lambert walked out of a Nashville studio at 16 rather than accept a generic pop sound, then went home to Texas, learned guitar from her father and built a record-breaking country empire on her own terms. Raised in Lindale by parents who were private detectives and later ran a shelter for domestic violence victims, she carried a gritty, grounded perspective into her music.

This episode follows her path from a third-place finish on Nashville Star, which freed her from a restrictive winner's contract, through the self-penned debut Kerosene, to becoming the most awarded artist in ACM history. It also charts her boundary-pushing projects and a business empire built on her foundational values.

• How her childhood in a family safe house shaped her rejection of a polished pop image
• Balancing outlaw anthems like Gunpowder an ...