Dwight David Yoakam (23 October 1956-) was an American country singer-songwriter. Born in Pikeville, Kentucky, he was raised in Columbus, Ohio, and, after failing to market his "honky tonk" brand of country music in Nashville (where country pop was gaining traction), he moved to Los Angeles and performed Appalachian "hillbilly" music. He released his debut EP in 1986, self-financing its release, and it became the first of three consecutive number-one Billboard Country Albums for him. Yoakam went on to record more than 20 albums and compilations, including more than 30 singles which charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts.
In a 1999 interview with the New York Post, Yoakam said that the "pure Jeffersonian ideal" of libertarianism was always appealing to him, and he said that, while he was not an active member of the Libertarian Party, he supported including its ideals in America's democratic experiment.