Jo Dee Messina proves she has staying power

Jo Dee Messina may not have been born in country music territory, but the native New Englander’s life since hitting the big time in Nashville has contained all the elements of her chosen genre.

She has seen plenty of highs – eight No. 1 hits, four successful studio albums and a greatest-hits compilation – as well as Country Music Association award nominations and solid standing among the newer wave of country divas.

But the 35-year-old singer – who will play in a 7 p.m. concert Saturday, Aug. 5, at the Bangor State Fair also has experienced plenty of heartbreak both professional and personal.

Some bad business decisions once left her on the brink of bankruptcy. She was dropped by one label, RCA, after a change in management. Her current label, Curb Records, later rejected a proposed studio album in 2003 – which resulted in the release that year of “Jo Dee Messina’s Greatest Hits” as a replacement.

And in early 2004, she spent 30 days in an alcohol treatment facility in Sundance, Utah, just after a broken engagement with longtime road manager Don Muzquiz.

Indeed, it has been a battle of passion and pain for Messina, who first broke through in 1996 with “Heads Carolina, Tails California,” but these days the passion is at the forefront.

She?s still riding the 2005 release of “Delicious Surprise,” in which she takes on her demons head-on with an optimistic message of learning from the hardships to build a better life through such singles as “It Gets Better,” “Life is Good,” and the tongue-in-cheek “My Give A Damn’s Busted.”

“Managing relationships in today’s world is so hard,” she said in a biography related to the release of “Delicious Surprise.” “It’s funny in fact. We all spend so much time and energy chasing what we think matters at the time, but the truth is that what really matters are the simple things – our family, friends and loved ones. Amazing when you realize that just living to see another day is the ultimate gift.”

Perhaps Messina’s penultimate gifts were her powerful voice and energy.

Raised in Holliston, Mass., Messina quickly discovered country music through the works of Alabama, Hank Williams Jr., the Judds and Reba McIntire.

By age 6, she already was performing publicly. By 13, she was in her first band. By 19, it was time to move to Nashville to pursue her dream.

With the help of another fledgling country performer, Tim McGraw, and noted producer Byron Gallimore, Messina released a self-titled debut album in 1996 that followed up the single “Heads Carolina, Tails California” with “You’re Not in Kansas Anymore” while setting the stage for her breakthrough album, 1998’s “I’m Alright,” which produced three No. 1 hits in “Bye Bye,” “I’m Alright,” and “Stand Beside Me,” as well as a No. 2 in “Lesson in Leavin’.”

The country world embraced Messina in a big way, as she was named 1998’s top new female vocalist by the Academy of Country Music and also won that year’s Country Music Association’s Horizon Award symbolic of the industry’s top newcomer.

She followed up “I’m Alright” with 2000’s “Burn,” where she discovered crossover appeal through such hits as the title track, “Bring on the Rain,” and “That’s the Way.”

Messina was unable to maintain that momentum in the aftermath of personal and business travails, though she did release a Christmas album, “A Joyful Noise,” in 2002.

But the success of her “Greatest Hits,” which hit No. 1 on the charts, suggested there was life after heartbreak, and “Delicious Surprise” has confirmed her sustained popularity.

In fact, that release is creating ample inventory for her next greatest hits effort, including the newly released “Too Late to Worry.”

That title seems indicative of Messina’s presence in the country music world these days, and of her general philosophy of life: full steam ahead. She has recently appeared on NBC’s “Today,” and at the Grand Ole Opry, and she also has taken on the role of spokesperson for the Special Olympics Team USA.

“It’s all life – and you can’t take anything for granted,” said Messina recently, reflecting on some of her darker days. “All you can do is keep working, keep believing and be grateful that you can use those trials to put back into the music.”

For tickets to the Jo Dee Messina concert, call the Bass Park ticket office at 990-4444 or Ticketmaster at 775-3331.