GARLAND, Texas — Music has always been a source of therapy for North Texas native and Grammy Award-winning musician LeAnn Rimes.
"Music was definitely an outlet for me to be able to express what was underneath, y'know?" she said. "[It offered] what I don't know as a child that I could verbally express."
Indeed, LeAnn Rimes was just a kid from Garland when she burst onto the national scene -- a supremely talented kid on the verge of winning a 1997 Grammy for Best New Artist thanks to the success of her smash debut single "Blue," but a kid nonetheless.
Almost three decades later the Garland native has a whole new perspective on life -- a perspective she shared while in town recently to perform as part of a celebration of her hometown re-opening its downtown square.
Rimes was also in Dallas for the Baylor Scott & White Foundation's annual Celebrating Women Luncheon on Oct. 30.
It was an emotional return home for the performer. While in town, she visited the apartments she grew up in, and even stopped by her old elementary school, Club Hill Elementary.
"[It was] a lot of nostalgia and, to be honest, a little bit of pain," she said. "I didn't have the easiest childhood."
By the time she was 13 years old, Rimes had skipped the 7th and 8th grade, was getting home-schooled and found herself growing up on a tour bus.
"It was four hours of school everyday," she said. "Then a ton of interviews -- and the shows."
One of those interviews was an exclusive sit-down with WFAA in 1995. She was 12 at the time, but already making an impact in the country music industry as the next big thing.
In that almost 30-year-old interview, she seemed ready for all the attention that was about to come her way.
"Y'know, I really don't get nervous," the then-preteen told us. "I get excited."
In that interview, she showed audiences her room, awards, and told us she didn't miss school.
"I had a lot of trouble at school with the kids," the 12-year-old Rimes said. "Jealousy. Talking. They hurt my feelings."
Back home in North Texas, Rimes couldn't help but recall some of that hurt.
"It all kinda comes flooding back when you visit home," she said late last month while in town for another visit, this time as the keynote at the 2023 Celebrating Women Luncheon in Dallas, where she also sang. "There's just so many layers of different emotions."
Looking back on her younger years, the country music great -- who started singing at about the same time she started walking -- is thankful for the Garland ISD teachers who helped her during a stressful childhood.
"My second grade teacher Mrs. Troutman was the coolest teacher," Rimes said. "She loved shoes -- so she taught with shoes. Her math was done around shoes. It was a great way to embed it in your mind."
The now-retired Nancy Troutman, hearing Rimes go on about how she helped her as a child, was taken aback at how she remained an inspiration in the life of a student she was so impressed with all those years ago.
"She was a beautiful child in second grade," Troutman said earlier this week. "Very smart. Very poised."
Rimes said Troutman taught the soon-to-be-superstar lessons about humanity.
Influences like those, Rimes said, helped her navigate the difficult waters of being a child star.
These days, Rimes hopes she can be a similar rock for others. On social media, she regularly opens up about her own struggles with anxiety, depression and psoriasis. On Instagram, she's even posted pictures of bad psoriasis breakouts she's endured.
"I wanted people to see it wasn't actually B.S.," she said. "I actually have it. And I did not expect the amount of response from people, whether they had it or didn't have it. [They] just thanked me for being so real."
Ever the performer, though, Rimes also likes to act like a bit of a cut-up in front of her assistant's social media-ready smartphone camera -- be it by showing her followers how to jump without bending their knees or rating rocking chairs whenever she comes across one.
"I just love rocking chairs!" Rimes said with a laugh. "Who doesn't?"
A doting stepmom to 20-year-old and 16-year-old sons she cherishes, Rimes also speaks openly to her audiences now about the challenges of parenting.
"In the past, patience has not been my thing," she said. "And I think my stepchildren and working with that blended family unit has taught me a lot about patience and respect for other people, and other people's trauma's and drama's and feelings."
It's not just her stepsons, her fans and her social media audience that she's had influence over, either. A young Taylor Swift used to come out to see Rimes perform -- and take notes on how to navigate the country music world as a teen.
"She used to come to my shows when she was really young -- with signs," Rimes said. "I was her inspiration growing up! It's wild to see what she's done. It's been amazing to see that."
Supporting other women is always near and dear to Rimes' heart.
Since her mother-in-law battled breast cancer, Rimes has regularly shined a light onto that cause, singing songs about mammograms in public service announcements and posing topless on Instagram for "No Bra Day" to raise awareness.
To others dealing with breast cancer, or who know someone who is, Rimes has a direct message.
"Know that there is a possibility of a different story," she said. "Know that there is the possibility of healing. Remember that in your darkest moments. Know that we're all here supporting you and we love you."