Darryl Worley was born Oct. 31, 1964, in Pyburn, Tenn. As a child, he had both musicians and moonshiners in his family. When Worley was a child, his father quit his job of 25 years to join the ministry, hauling the family away from home. Moving from town to town, Worley began to excel in sports but broke his back playing basketball in high school. While in college, he took on some odd jobs, including diving for mussels, commercial fishing on the Tennessee River and working in the local paper mill. He earned a degree in biology from Northern Alabama University with a minor in organic chemistry and then taught seventh and eighth grade biology.

Later, Worley left a lucrative business to pursue a career in music. He signed a publishing deal for $150 a week at Fame in Muscle Shoals and often commuted to Nashville, playing bars. His traditional country music caught the attention of DreamWorks Nashville, which released his debut single in 2000. Although the album Hard Rain Don’t Last earned rave reviews for its hard country sound, its first three singles stalled just outside the Top 10.

However, the title track to his follow-up album, I Miss My Friend, climbed to No. 1 in 2002. Shortly thereafter, Worley visited American troops in Afghanistan and wrote a song about the experience titled “Have You Forgotten?” Capturing the anger and frustration of many Americans regarding the war, the song catapulted to No. 1, and Worley quickly released the album Have You Forgotten? (including material from previous albums) in 2003. He has since become an outspoken advocate of the military.