Danni Leigh

{{short description|American country singer and businesswoman (born 1970)}}

{{Distinguish|DaniLeigh}}

{{Infobox person

| image =

| caption =

| birth_name = Michelle Sheetz

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1970|02|09}}

| birth_place = Strasburg, Virginia, US

| occupation = {{Hlist|Singer|businesswoman}}

| years_active = 1998–present

| spouse = Mike McKenzie

| children = 1

| module = {{Infobox musical artist|embed=yes

| origin = Nashville, Tennessee, US

| instrument = Vocals

| genre = Country

| label = {{Hlist|Decca|Monument|Audium Entertainment}}

| associated_acts =

}}

}}

Michelle Sheetz{{cite news |title=Country musician singing a new tune, opens downtown business |url=https://www.winchesterstar.com/arts_and_entertainment/country-musician-singing-a-new-tune-opens-downtown-business/article_57ca8b83-161e-5e23-b764-f68a5dbeaf05.html |accessdate=September 2, 2020 |work=The Winchester Star |date=August 23, 2018}} (born February 9, 1970), better known as Danni Leigh, is an American country music singer.{{Cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/danni-leigh-mn0000670807/biography|title=Danni Leigh|website=AllMusic|access-date=December 16, 2016}} At age 19, she relocated to Orlando, Florida, intending to audition as a singer at Disney World, but ended up moving to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1994.{{Cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/leigh_danni/bio.jhtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040315014004/http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/leigh_danni/bio.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 15, 2004|title=Danni Leigh: Biography|accessdate=February 3, 2008|publisher=CMT}}

She was signed with Audium Records,{{Cite web|url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:82478|title=One More For Her|accessdate=February 3, 2008|date=July 21, 2001|author=Jerry Renshaw|work=The Austin Chronicle}} after changing labels several times,{{Cite web|url=http://www.countrystandardtime.com/d/article.asp?xid=567|title=Danni Leigh No Worries with a 'Shot of Whiskey and a Prayer'|accessdate=February 3, 2008|date=March 2001|author=Joel Bernstein|work=Country Standard Time}} following Decca's closure, and her by Sony's Monument label.{{Cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/artists/news/1443645/20010513/leigh_danni.jhtml|title=Sony Deals Danni Leigh a Parting 'Shot'|accessdate=February 3, 2008|date=April 2, 2001|author=Michael Gray|work=CMT}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} Although she has limited success in the US, she has had more success in Europe due to the different methods consumers learn about new music. Over time, she has also developed a following in Korea, Brazil, and Japan.{{Cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/artists/news/1472770/20030617/leigh_danni.jhtml|title=Danni Leigh Is Off to a Second Start|accessdate=February 3, 2008|date=April 4, 2000|author=Edward Morris|work=CMT}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} In 1999, she was nominated for the Rising Star Trophy, a British Country Music Award.{{Cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/artists/news/1474602/20030723/leigh_danni.jhtml|title=British Country Music Awards|accessdate=February 3, 2008|date=February 24, 1999|work=CMT}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} In 2001, she released A Shot of Whiskey and a Prayer.{{Cite news|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1121719/danni-leigh-takes-shot-at-country-big-time/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220125312/http://www.mtv.com/news/1121719/danni-leigh-takes-shot-at-country-big-time/|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 20, 2016|title=Danni Leigh Takes Shot At Country Big Time|newspaper=MTV News|access-date=December 16, 2016|date=July 2, 2000}}

Leigh has also performed a number of small gigs in the Austin, Texas, area,{{Cite web|url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/column?oid=oid%3A226212|title=Bombs Over Baghdad|accessdate=February 3, 2008|date=August 27, 2004|author=Christopher Gray|work=The Austin Chronicle}} where she moved in 2002.{{Cite web|url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:104026|title=Immigrant Song|accessdate=February 3, 2008|date=October 4, 2002|author=John T. Davis|work=The Austin Chronicle}}

As her career declined in the US, Leigh later moved again, this time to Spain, many years later and performed elsewhere in Europe and Asia. She even reached the rest of South America. During the tours, she met and eventually married her bandmate Mike McKenzie. The couple returned to Nashville in order to restart her career, but the birth of her only child, a son, in 2010 led her to emphasize both motherhood and becoming a businessperson. Leigh then moved with her husband back to Strasburg, Virginia, her birthplace, where she started her boutique-cum-fitness studio in 2018 and opened another in Winchester.