Roberta Lee Streeter (b July 27 1944, Chickasaw County, Mississippi), professionally known as Bobbie Gentry, is an American singer-songwriter. Bobbie Gentry was one of the first female country artists to write and produce her own material. She forged her own idiosyncratic, pop-inspired sound, with a unique guitar sound and her own singing and phrasing style. That was supported by her glamorous, bombshell image. She wrote much of her own material, drawing on her Mississippi roots to compose revealing vignettes that typically explored the lifestyles and values of the Southern United States culture. Favoring more soulful and rootsy arrangements over the lavish countrypolitan style in vogue in Nashville, Tennessee at the time, Bobbie Gentry's albums Ode to Billie Joe, The Delta Sweete, Local Gentry, Touch'Em With Love and Fancy sounded quite unlike anything on either the country or pop charts at her time. Her smoky, sensuous voice adapted easily to a variety of musical contexts. Her songs cut the path for more country story-songs . Her act anticipated the rise of latter-day crossover country artists Shania Twain and Faith Hill.
With her US #1 album "Ode to Billie Joe" and its Southern Gothic storytelling title track, she won the Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance Grammy awards in 1968. The song "Ode to Billie Joe" was the #4 most popular track in USA, according to Billboard Hot 100 year-end chart of 1967. Bobbie Gentry charted 9 singles in Billboard Hot 100 and 4 singles in UK Top 40. After her first albums, she turned towards the variety show genre. After losing her popularity in the seventies, she quit performing and started to live reclusively in Los Angeles.
