Joey Martin Feek was born Joey Marie Martin on September 9, 1975 in Alexandria, Indiana, to Jack and June Martin. She was the middle child of five children: 3 sisters (Jody, Julie, Jessie) and 1 younger brother, Justin, who in 1994 died in a car accident very close to the Martin family farm. She was encouraged by her father, who played guitar, to start singing and performing at an early age She moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 1998 to pursue a career as a Veterinarian, and established connections with LeAnn Rimes's father, Wilbur, and Kix Brooks of Brooks & Dunn. At a Songwriter night, she met Songwriter Rory Lee Feek, whom she married in June 2002. She sang backing vocals on Blaine Larsen's 2004 album Off to Join the World, which her husband co-produced. Joey was signed to Sony Nashville and recorded an unreleased solo album in 2005 titled Strong Enough to Cry, but due to change in management and restructuring at Sony, her album was shelved. The album, retitled If Not For You, was eventually released by Farmhouse Recordings on April 7, 2017.