Her love for Johnny Cash has propelled Roaring Spring native Angela Dodson Daeger into a career that any die hard fan of the man in black would envy.

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It all started when she fell in  love with music when she was eleven years old.  She says that she always loved country.  She grew up listening to Leann Rimes and Bryan White.  Her parents took her to concerts including one at The Bryce Jordan Center in State College to see them play.  "I just loved what they were doing."

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Her grandparents also had an influence by raising her on Johnny Cash, Johnny Horton, Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn.

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She realized that she could sing at the age of eleven.  Living in a small town, she tried to figure out outlets and ways to perform and get better and grow that talent.  "I was really lucky that my family was very supportive."

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They went to an event at St. Patricks in Newry where Dennie Huber was holding a karaoke night.  She sang Leann Rimes' "One Way Ticket" and "Blue".  She said that Dennie helped get her started.  " He opened things up for me and introduced me as the pride of Roaring Spring, Pennsylvania.  That made me so happy and so proud."  He helped her gain confidence and helped her play some places including Crazyfest.

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As she got older, she continued playing shows anywhere and everywhere around town which allowed her to get to know people.

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She says that she also got to know Jack Servello and went into the studio with him and recorded a couple of tracks, so she could have a CD to sell at her shows.  She also worked with Steve Aungst, who, she says, "was amazing". He put her on a circuit, where they would go from town to town, playing community events and for nursing homes.

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Wanting to sing as much as possible, Angela performed many benefits including Toys for Tots, Make-A-Wish and Relay for Life events...and even some unique place like grocery stores and gun shows! She said that she even sang at a motorcycle rally where you couldn't hear her because they were revving up so loud.  "I was still just happy to have a place to play."

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Then, she was off to college at Mount Aloysius, where she attended from 2005 until 2009.  During this time, she joined a band called The Country Outlaws.  They toured around Altoona, Huntingdon, Bellefonte, Mt Union and all throughout Pennsylvania.  "We were weekend warriors with our music."

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In 2009, the band decided to go their separate ways and Angela graduated from college.  That was when she realized that this was her opportunity to move to Nashville, which was a huge step.  "My mom thought it was far when I moved thirty minutes away to school.  Now I was moving over ten hours away!" .....

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**To read Angela's complete interview, check out an upcoming edition of They Came From  Blair County

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**Information for this article was taken from a phone interview with Angela Dodson Daeger

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**Photos are courtesy of Angela Dodson Daeger.