Lainey Wilson says the teenage habit that once helped her sing at birthday parties is now part of the story she is taking to Netflix. The country star said the upcoming documentary Keepin’ Country Cool will include moments from the years when she impersonated Hannah Montana, a performance she now sees as a clue to how hard she would have to push if she wanted to make music as herself.
Wilson spoke on April 16, 2026, about the film, which is scheduled to arrive on Netflix on April 22, 2026, after recently premiering in Nashville with a Q&A session. She also recalled seeing Miley Cyrus in March 2026 at the Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special premiere in Los Angeles, saying Cyrus knows everything about how she copied the character while growing up. Wilson said she sang at many birthday parties in the role, and that she was still too young to drive when she was traveling to Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana to play in front of anyone who would listen.
That is the edge to Wilson’s rise. Long before she had five albums behind her, starting with her self-titled debut in 2014 and followed by Tougher, Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’, Bell Bottom Country and Whirlwind, she was learning the distance between pretending to be a star and becoming one. She has also built a screen career, appearing as Abby in the fifth season of Yellowstone and as Amy in Reminders of Him, but the documentary centers on the road that led her from imitation to her own voice.
Wilson said that lesson still drives her now. She said she tries to pick and choose what motivates her, and that sometimes being angry helps, while at other times she wants to prove wrong the people who watched her journey and doubted it. She also said she has fans now who believe in her, show up and sacrifice to buy tickets, which gives her a reason to keep going beyond the old teenage instinct to chase any stage she could find. The film’s release next week makes that early grind part of the record rather than just a memory.
