Glen Travis Campbell (22 April 1936-8 August 2017) was an American singer-songwriter, television host, and actor from Billstown, Arkansas. He began his professional career as a studio musician in Los Angeles, California in 1958, and he embarked on a solo career in 1965 and spawned 80 hits, including "Gentle on My Mind" in 1967, "Wichita Lineman" in 1968, and "Southern Nights" in 1977. He won four Grammys in 1967, and he was nominated for a Golden Globe in 1969 for his role in True Grit. From 1969 to 1972, he hosted The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour on CBS. He went on to win Grammy Hall of Fame Awards in 2000, 2004, and 2008 and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012, and he retired in 2013 and died in Nashville in 2017 at the age of 81.
Campbell was a registered Democrat who voted for both Democratic and Republican candidates, and he performed the National Anthem at the 1980 Republican National Convention and continued to make campaign appearances for Republican candidates in the 1980s and 1990s.