72-year-old American musician/singer and bassist of country band Alabama, Teddy Gentry has an estimated net worth of $5 million. He made the fortune from his flourishing music career with the band which sold more than 75 million records globally, and also from his cattle breeding business.
Gentry who was born on January 22, 1952, in Fort Payne, Alabama, founded the Alabama band which was first known as Wildcounty in 1965 alongside his two cousins, Randy Owen and Jeff Cook. They released several hit singles, including Tennessee River, Why Lady Why, Feels So Right, and The Closer You Get.
How The Alabama-Born Singer And Bassist Earned From His Music Career With The Band
As pointed out, the net worth of Teddy Gentry is currently evaluated at $5 million. The fortune emanated from his 56 years old music career with the Alabama band.
Gentry began to earn from the days of humble beginning in Fort Payne when he formed the band with his cousins Randy Owens and Jeff Cook, who died due to Parkinson’s disease complications on November 7, 2022, at the age of 73. The band first operated under the name Wildcounty in 1969 and changed to Alabama in 1977.
Apparently, Teddy and the band gained popularity by the 1980s after having more than 27 number-one hits, accompanied by seven multi-platinum albums and several awards.
However, the popularity waned down over the next decade, and by 2004, they disbanded. Six years later, they reunited and continued recording and touring the world together.
In addition to the numerous awards the band won, Gentry and his band members sold more than 75 million records globally.
Below are some of the band’s songs written by Teddy:
- My Home’s in Alabama (1980)
- Why Lady Why (1980)
- Fallin’ Again (1988)
- Pass It On Down (1990)
- I Got You (1991)
- Give Me On More Shot (1995)
- Lead On (1995)
- Dancin’, Shaggin’ on the Boulevard (1997)
- Sad Lookin’ Moon (1997)
- How Do You Fall in Love (1998)
- She’s Got That Look in Her Eyes (1998)
- Keeping Up (1998)
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Teddy Gentry Has A Lucrative Cattle Breeding Business
Beyond what the Alabama native earns from his music career, he also makes money from a profitable cattle breeding business, his Bent Tree Cattle Company, which he has been investing in for more than three decades. Gentry went into the business some 45 years ago with 20 Polled Herefords on a 60-acre cotton farm he bought for $1000 from his grandfather near his native town of Fort Payne, Alabama.
Over the next two decades, the farm progressed to having more than 1,500 mamma cows, and hundreds of acres in Alabama and Georgia. Currently, these figures should double.
The 72-Year-Old Bassist Has Donated To Charity Through The Alabama Band
Teddy Gentry is not directly involved in philanthropy as an individual, but he has raised and donated millions of dollars for various charitable causes in the United States through the Alabama band.
In 1982, the band started hosting June Jam, a music festival in Fort Payne until 1997. The festival which at some point attracted about 60,000 fans, raised millions of dollars for local charities and schools. Additionally, the group also gathered money through the “Fan Appreciation Days” at weekends for charities in Fort Payne. They were also at the forefront of raising over $70 million for “County Cares for Kids”, a yearly fundraising for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.
Recently, Owen and Gentry donated $25,000 to The Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, for the victims of the floods in Eastern Kentucky.
What Has Teddy Gentry Been Up To?
At 72, Gentry has gained massively from his music career. Even though there is not much activity with the band, he was part of a live concert held by the group after the Covi-19 pandemic. Moreover, they last organized a concert in October 2020 for Camping World/ Gander mountain.
In August 2021, Alabama sold its interest in its recorded music rights catalog to Reservoir Media. This means the band will no longer earn from the catalog which includes 20 albums released on RCA Nashville from 1980 to 2007 and over two dozen number-one hits.
Away from music, Teddy Gentry currently lives in his native town of Fort Payne with his wife Linda Gentry whom he has been married to for over 3 three decades. He has two children; Josh and Sally Gentry and five grandchildren.
Furthermore, he was arrested in September 2022 for illegal possession of marijuana and was booked into the Cherokee County Jail, where he spent less than 30 minutes before he was released.
