Brenda Brown

I remember it all very well looking back, It was the summer I turned eighteen. We lived in a one room, rundown shack on the outskirts of New Orleans We didn't have money for food or rent to say the least we were hard pressed then Mama spent every last penny we had to buy me a dancing dress. No that’s not right… Who is Brenda Brown? I was told not to be too existential…in other words “Keep it short and sweet.” A Maine native, I was born in Skowhegan. My parents owned a small dairy farm on Brown Rd in Madison. What are the chances? Apparently, the next owners of the farm decided it was bad luck and changed the name of the road. My father sold the farm in the early 70’s and became a truck driver. I would take several trips across the country with my father in his semi. It’s from him that inherited my gypsy soul and love of the open road. My parents also passed on to me their love of music. Growing up, my house was filled with music and singing whether it was my mother singing as she kept house, my father playing his guitar and singing or my sister and I singing into hairbrushes. Were there radio stations that played anything other than country? If there were I never knew until the 80’s. That, combined with my grandmother’s extensive vinyl collection that included Elvis, Loretta Lynn, Hank Snow, Dolly Parton, Jim Reeves and Patsy Cline are the foundation for my love of country music. I spent my formative years in Poland Spring and graduated from Edward Little High School in Auburn. Somewhere between then and now I married, had four children, worked in radio, owned a few businesses, broke into the freight industry as a freight broker, divorced, traveled with the kid and came back to settle in Maine. Today finds me with only one teenager left in the nest and a lot of free time on my hands. You can usually find me on a trail with my mismatched pair of dogs or behind the wheel getting my wanderlust fix on the open road. Like a bad penny, you just never know where I’ll turn up. Right now, I’m making my home at B98.5 and I couldn’t be happier. For picture of my latest meals, silly dog photos and crazy adventures find me on Instagram at brenda.brown6923