Diversity in Nashville

100+ Nashville Women

Today, we acknowledge the women who blazed the trail for so many incredible Nashville women over the past century.

Nashville Women Making History
  1. Abby Crawford Milton
    A suffragist and supercentenarian who led a campaign with others in Tennessee to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The last president of the Tennessee Equal Suffrage Association.
  2. Adrienne Battle
    Adrienne Battle is the first woman appointed as the Superintendent of Metro Nashville Public Schools.
  3. Ali Harnell
    Global Live Entertainment Executive and Board Director, where she leads the advancement and support of women in the live music business. She is also a co-creator of the UK-based Country2Country music festival.
  4. Alice Randall
    Author, songwriter, producer, and lecturer who founded her own music production company in Nashville called Midsummer Music. She also holds the distinction of being the first African American woman to co-write a number-one country hit.
  5. Agenia Clark
    After serving as CEO of Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee, Angenia now serves as the president of Fisk University.
  6. Amy Adams Strunk
    One of the few female National Football League (NFL) team owners and has controlling ownership of the Tennessee Titans.
  7. Amy Grant
    A singer and songwriter who is famous for performing contemporary Christian music. She is known as "The Queen of Christian Pop" due to her successful cross-over to pop music in the 1980s and 1990s.
  8. Amy Kurland
    Founder of The Bluebird Cafe, an intimate listening room for Nashville's songwriter scene.
  9. Ann Patchett
    Author and Co-Owner of the independent bookstore Parnassus Books.
  10. Anna Cherrie Epps
    Former President/CEO of Meharry Medical College, the first woman and only African American woman with a Ph.D. to become Dean of a US medical school.
  11. Anne Dallas Dudley
    An activist in the women’s suffrage movement who led a campaign with others in Tennessee to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
  12. Anne Holt
    A former WKRN-TV News Anchor, the first woman, first African American, and first news anchor to receive the Donald G. Hileman Distinguished Alumni Award from the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters.
  13. Ashley Howell
    Executive Director of the Tennessee State Museum and oversaw the new museum opening in 2018.
  14. Barbara Mandrell
    Country Music Artist and Actress, the first performer to win the Country Music Association Award for Entertainer of the Year twice in 1980 and 1981.
  15. Becca Stevens
    Founder of Thistle Farms, a social enterprise and residency program to benefit women survivors of trafficking, addiction, and prostitution.
  16. Becky Gardenhire
    Partner and Co-Head of Nashville WME Office, making her the highest-ranking female executive at a music agency in Nashville.
  17. Belle Kinney Scholz
    The Sculptor who created the Victory statue in front of the War Memorial Auditorium.
  18. Beth Harwell
    Member of the board of directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority and formerly elected as the first woman Speaker of Tennessee's House of Representatives.
  19. Beth Slater Whitson
    One of the first successful songwriters in Nashville, many songs became some of the largest selling in sheet music.
  20. Bettie Page
    The Pinup Model is internationally known and often called the "Queen of Pinups."
  21. Brenda (Lee) Mae Tarpley
    Country Music Artist, the first woman to be inducted into both the Rock and Roll and Country Music Halls of Fame.
  22. Brooke Worthington
    Nashville native, owner, designer, and jeweler of Brooke Worthington Jewelry, a studio for custom designs and fine jewelry.
  23. Candice Storey Lee
    Vanderbilt University Vice Chancellor for Athletics and University Affairs and Athletics Director, Vanderbilt University's first female athletic director, and the first African American woman to head an SEC (Southeastern Conference) athletics program.
  24. Carol Gardner Transou
    Educator and Community Activist, she became the National Endowment for Humanities’ first Tennessee Teacher-Scholar in 1990, winning a yearlong sabbatical for studying the Vietnam War and how to include the war in high school curricula.
  25. Caroline Randall Williams
    Author, Poet, and Activist, her book of poetry, Lucy Negro Redux, has been adapted as a ballet by the Nashville Ballet in 2019; she’s a National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Image Award recipient for her co-authored volume, Soul Food Love.
  26. Carrie Chapman Catt
    A suffragist who founded The League of Women Voters, which aided in ratifying the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in Tennessee in 1920.
  27. Carrie Gentry
    Civil Rights Activist, influential in the effort to desegregate Nashville, and one of the first African American members of the Davidson County Democratic Party’s Women Club.
  28. Carrie Underwood
    Country Music Artist, ranked the highest-certified country album artist to debut in the twenty-first century, she is the youngest inductee to the Grand Ole Opry.
  29. Catherine Talty Kenny
    Suffragist who led a campaign with others in Tennessee to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the second president of the Tennessee League of Women Voters.
  30. CeCe Winans
    Gospel Music Artist, the best-selling female gospel artist of all time.
  31. Connie Bradley
    Country Music Industry Luminary and former head of the American Society of Composers and Publishers (ASCAP) Nashville Office.
  32. Cordia Harrington
    Owner and Founder of The Crown Bakeries has received dozens of awards for her dedication to furthering female entrepreneurship.
  33. Cornelia Fort
    Pilot, one of the first women in the Woman's Auxiliary Ferry Service and the first American woman to die on active military duty.
  34. Danielle Whitworth Barnes
    As the President and CEO of the Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee, she leads one of the nation's fastest-growing and most innovative councils, serving 15,800 girls across 39 counties.
  35. Deana Ivey
    The first woman CEO of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp (NCVC).
  36. Deb Paquette
    Chef and Community Advocate, the first woman in Tennessee to be a certified executive chef.
  37. Demetria Kalodimos
    A former reporter and longest-serving nightly news anchor for WSMV-TV with over 16 Regional Emmys and 1 National Emmy.
  38. Diane Nash
    Civil Rights Leader and Student Leader of the Nashville Sit-ins Movement, fostering the desegregation movement in Nashville.
  39. Diane Neighbors
    First Woman Elected as Vice Mayor of Nashville has won many awards for her dedication and hard work for the Human Rights Campaign.
  40. Dolly Parton
    Country Music Artist, Songwriter, and Actress, one of the most-honored female country performers of all time, she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, has 44 career Top 10 country albums (a record for any artist) and 110 career-charted singles over the past 40 years.
  41. Donna Hilley
    Music Industry Veteran and former Sony/ATV Music Publishing CEO, winner of “Woman of the Year” from the Business and Professional Women’s Club.
  42. Dorothy L. Brown
    First African American Surgeon in the South and the first African American woman elected to Tennessee's State legislation.
  43. Dottie Rambo
    Gospel Artist and Songwriter, she wrote more than 2,500 songs, and her music is known for its poetic lyrics and cross-genre-reaching melodies.
  44. Ellen Lehman
    Founder of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee received the Outstanding Nashvillian of the Year Award in 2010 for leading flood relief efforts.
  45. Emily Reynolds
    Former Secretary of the U.S. Senate. Co-chair of the Tennessee Chapter of Women Corporate Directors.
  46. Emmylou Harris
    Country Music Artist and Songwriter recognized as an activist and vocal feminist in music.
  47. Faith Hill
    Country Music Artist, one of the most successful of all time, has sold over 50 million albums worldwide.
  48. Felice Bryant
    Country Music and Pop Songwriter is best known for writing "Rocky Top" among the more than 6,000 songs by her husband, Boudleaux.
  49. Frances Preston
    Music Industry pioneer, former Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) Nashville office CEO, and then the first full-time performing rights organization representative in the South.
  50. Glenda Baskin Glover
    Tennessee State University President, she is a certified public accountant and an attorney and is one of two African American women to hold the Ph.D.-CPA-JD combination in the nation.
  51. Hazel Smith
    Country Music Journalist, Publicist, Singer-Songwriter, and TV Host known for giving "Outlaw Country" its name.
  52. Higgins Bond
    Freelance Illustrator and Fine Artist, the first African American woman ever to illustrate a stamp for the U.S. Postal Service.
  53. Inez Crutchfield
    The first African American woman to serve as a Representative for Tennessee on the Democratic National Committee and the first African American woman to serve as president of the Democratic Women's Club of Davidson County.
  54. J. Frankie Pierce
    Suffragist who led a campaign with others in Tennessee to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Opened the Tennessee Vocational School for Colored Girls and served as its superintendent for 16 years.
  55. Jackie Patillo
    President & Executive Director, Gospel Music Association and Stellar Gospel Music Hall of Fame inductee.
  56. Jane Eskind
    Activist and Politician, the first woman to win an election to a statewide office in Tennessee.
  57. Jane MacLeod
    President and CEO of Cheekwood Estate & Gardens since 2010.
  58. Janice Holder
    Served as the first female Chief Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court.
  59. Dr. Jean Litterer
    Under her leadership as President of Hillsboro High School, the school was named a United States Blue Ribbon School of Excellence by the US Department of Education; she is also one of the first females on the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association’s (TSSAA) Legislative Council.
  60. Jo Walker-Meador
    Music Industry Veteran created the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, developed the CMA (Country Music Association) Awards, and launched the Fan Fair (now CMA Fest).
  61. Judith Bright
    Founder, CEO, and Jewelry Designer of Judith Bright, a jewelry design studio and retail business that launched in Nashville in 2005.
  62. Dr. Judy Cummings
    Pastor and North Nashville Advocate, first female president of the Interdenominational Ministers Fellowship, and founding director of the Nashville Chapter of the National Consortium of Black Women in Ministry.
  63. Julie Carell Stadler
    Owner and CEO of Skyway Studios, Tennessee's only full-service, state-of-the-art broadcast and production campus.
  64. June Carter Cash
    Member of the Carter family, a Country Music Artist and 5-time GRAMMY winner, wrote "Ring of Fire," performed by her husband, Johnny Cash.
  65. Karen Springer
    President and CEO of Saint Thomas Health.
  66. Kasar Abdulla
    Kurdish native and Founding Member of the Welcome Tennessee Initiative (WTI), a movement focused on welcoming and celebrating the diversity immigrants bring to our state.
  67. Katherine "Kitty" Moon Emery
    Civic Leader and former Chairwoman of Metro Sports Authority during the era that brought football and hockey to Nashville.
  68. Kitty Wells
    Country Music Artist, first female country singer to top the U.S. Country charts.
  69. Kristin Cavallari
    Founded and creatively directs Uncommon James, a sophisticated jewelry collection for women on the go.
  70. Leslie Fram
    Senior Vice President of Music Strategy at Country Music Television (CMT) and Co-Founder of Change The Conversation, an organization that fights gender inequality in the music industry by providing support, education, and community for female artists and executives.
  71. Lindsay Cox
    President and CEO of Launch Tennessee, a public-private entrepreneurship organization.
  72. Loretta Lynn
    Country Music Artist is the most awarded female country recording artist and the only female ACM Artist of the Decade (1970s).
  73. Lula C. Naff
    Ryman Auditorium Theatre Manager for over 40 years who helped launch the Ryman name onto the national stage by bringing the Grand Ole Opry radio show through its doors in 1943.
  74. Maneet Chauhan
    Chef, award-winning author, TV personality, and community advocate received recognition for "Distinguished Service to the Foodservice and Hospitality Industry" as the Culinary Institute of America Ambassador.
  75. Margaret (Rhea) Seddon
    First Tennessean in space and one of the first women to enter the U.S. Astronaut Program.
  76. Marilyn Robinson
    Longtime Director of the Nashville Minority Business Center, president of the local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Nashville Coalition of 100 Black Women Inc.
  77. Marion James
    Nashville native, considered Nashville's "Queen of the Blues," prioritized honoring and preserving Jefferson Street's musical legacy.
  78. Martha Daughtrey
    First woman Assistant U.S. Attorney, the first woman to teach as a faculty member at Vanderbilt Law School, and the first woman to serve on the Tennessee Supreme Court.
  79. Martha Ingram
    Former Chairman and CEO of Ingram Industries and advocate for the performing arts in Nashville.
  80. Maybelle Carter
    Country Music Musician and originator of the "Carter scratch," she and her bandmate Sara Carter became the first female performers to be inducted (simultaneously) into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
  81. Michelle Kennedy
    President, COO, and Alternate Governor for the Nashville Predators.
  82. Nancy Shapiro
    Music Industry Veteran and a key player in the development of Music Makes Us, tasked with including music education in Metro Nashville Public Schools.
  83. Nancy VanReece
    Served District 8 on the Nashville and Davidson County Metro Council and was the first openly out lesbian elected to a legislative body in the State of Tennessee; founding member of Nashville LGBT Chamber of Commerce and Tennessee Equality Project.
  84. Nera White
    Basketball Player who led the United States National Women's Basketball team to win the World Championship in 1957.
  85. Nicole Kidman
    Actress, Philanthropist, and Producer, the first Australian actress to win the Academy Award for Best Actress.
  86. Oprah Winfrey
    In addition to being a Tennessee State University graduate and the first African American anchor at News Channel 5 in Nashville, Oprah is also an Actress, Producer, and Philanthropist best known for her Emmy-Award-winning talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, the highest-rated television program of its kind in history and ran in national syndication for 25 years.
  87. Patsy Cline
    Country Music Artist, one of the first country music artists to successfully cross over into pop music and the first solo female artist inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
  88. Reba McEntire
    Country Music Artist and Actress, highly credited for remaining one of the country's most popular female artists for four decades.
  89. Reese Witherspoon
    Nashville native, Actress, Producer, and Entrepreneur, co-founder of Hello Sunshine, a media firm focused on female-led stories, has produced several films and television series. Part of the Nashville SC ownership group that helped bring professional soccer to Nashville.
  90. Renata Soto
    Previously co-founded Conexion Americas, an Immigrant Advocacy Organization that helps immigrants adjust to life in the Nashville community. Currently resides as co-founder of Mosaic Changemakers, a leadership program that brings together changemakers of color in the U.S. South.
  91. Rosetta Miller-Perry
    Founder of the Greater Nashville Black Chamber of Commerce and Tennessee Tribune.
  92. Sandra Sepulveda
    Nashville Council Member and the first Latina woman ever to serve as a council member in Nashville.
  93. Sarah Cannon (Minnie Pearl)
    Cancer Research Advocate and name of the Cancer Institute of HCA Healthcare, and also a Country Comedian who appeared at the Grand Ole Opry for over 50 years.
  94. Sarah Trahern
    CEO of the Country Music Association since 2014.
  95. Sharon Roberson
    YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee's President and CEO.
  96. Shelia Shipley Biddy
    The first woman to head a Nashville record label, Decca Records, and co-founder of SOURCE, a nonprofit organization supporting women executives and professionals who work in all facets of the Nashville music industry.
  97. Sue Shelton White
    Suffragist who led a campaign with others in TN to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
  98. Tammy Wynette
    Country Music Artist; her song, "Stand by Your Man", is one of the best-selling hit singles by a woman in the history of country music.
  99. Taylor Swift
    One of the best-selling music artists of all time, she is the first artist to have four studio albums sell one million copies in their first week in the U.S. and has received the most day-one streams of an album on Spotify by a female artist. She has expanded her record-breaking legacy by becoming the first artist to win four Album of the Year Grammys and setting a new benchmark with her Eras Tour as the highest-grossing music tour ever.
  100. Thelma Harper
    First African American woman elected to the Tennessee Senate.
  101. Theresa Phillips
    Former Tennessee State University Director of Athletics and the first woman to coach the NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball team. Inducted into the Vanderbilt Hall of Fame in 2017 and the OVC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2021.
  102. Tiffany Wilmot
    President of Wilmot Inc. & Co-Founder of Tennessee Women in Green (TWIG), a nonprofit organization that empowers, inspires, and connects women in the sustainability industry.
  103. Tootsie Bess
    Legendary former owner of Tootsie's Orchid Lounge on Lower Broadway.
  104. Tracy Caulkins Stockwell
    Three-time Olympic gold medalist, five-time world champion, and former world record-holder in three events for swimming.
  105. Trisha Yearwood
    Country Music Artist and Author of three cookbooks on The New York Times Best Seller list.
  106. Veronica Mallett
    Executive Director of the Center for Women's Health Research at Meharry Medical College, one of the nation's first research centers devoted exclusively to understanding why women of color are at greater risk of certain diseases and how biology, race, and economics contribute to women's health disparities.
  107. Willa McCord Blake Eslick
    The first woman to represent Tennessee in the United States Congress.
  108. Wilma Rudolph
    World-record-holding Olympic champion and international sports icon in track and field.
  109. Zulfat Suara
    The first Muslim woman elected in the State of Tennessee as Metro Council At-Large and the first Nigerian woman elected to any office in the United States.