Valerie June grew up in the small town of Humboldt, Tennessee before moving to Memphis. She spent years honing a distinctive sound that shifts between eras and genres, with a voice that has been described as somewhere between Dolly Parton and Billie Holiday. June wrote or co-wrote all but one of the 11 tracks on her debut album, Pushin' Against A Stone, with a blend of rural roots, country, rock and blues styles.