Who is Lainey Wilson on ‘Yellowstone?’

Yellowstone is one of those shows everyone tells us we absolutely must watch, like The Bear and Ted Lasso. Now is the time to catch up on the addicting cowboy drama as we prepare for Yellowstone season 5 part 2, which includes catching up on the lives of the characters, namely Lainey Wilson’s.

Whether fans started watching because of Kevin Costner or stayed because they were drawn into the extreme Dutton family drama, no one can argue with how popular Yellowstone has become. Let’s learn more about Lainey Wilson, who joined the cast in season 5.

Who does Lainey Wilson play on Yellowstone?

There are a lot of memorable characters who hang out at the massive ranch in Yellowstone, and Lainey Wilson, who plays a singer named Abby, is no exception. Abby wants to be a successful country music artist, and it’s fun to watch her since she has a different career than the rest of the characters.

Abby also has a compelling arc because she and Ryan (Ian Bohen) are romantically involved. Nothing about their relationship is smooth, of course, which just makes it juicier to watch.

As Lainey Wilson told USA Today, showrunner Taylor Sheridan gave her very few details about Abby, simply sharing that she would have a love story and would be a singer. When she and Ian Bohen had to kiss for the first time, Wilson joked that she told her parents “You might not want to watch this show” because “I was going to give people their money’s worth.”

What should we know about Lainey Wilson?

Lainey Wilson is a country music singer in real life so it makes total sense that she would play a singer on Yellowstone. Wilson recently released the single “Hang Tight Honey” and her latest album, Whirlwind comes out Aug. 23, 2024. Since she has an incredible 2.5 million followers on Instagram, it’s no wonder she was cast in Yellowstone. Many country artists have appeared on TV shows — like when Luke Bryan and Kelsea Ballerini were on Nashville — but they tend to perform or appear as themselves; it’s refreshing to see Wilson in a dramatic role.

It’s not just fans who love her, though. Lainey Wilson has cleaned up at many awards shows, too, winning New Female Artist of the Year at the 2021 Academy of Country Music Awards and Best Country Album at the 2024 Grammy Award… to name just a few. She has also done really well at the CMAs.

In 2014, Wilson released her first, self-titled album, Lainey Wilson. Her other albums include Tougher (2016), Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’ (2021), Bell Botton Country (2022), and Whirlwind (2024). She’s a beloved performer and recently sang at the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular. If we want to learn even more about her, we can watch Wilson in the Hulu documentary Lainey Wilson: Bell Botton Country.

According to NBC, Lainey Wilson wanted to be on both American Idol and The Voice. It didn’t work out, but as we can tell, that didn’t hold her back. She’s forged her own path in the country music industry. When she was a kid she discovered how much she loved singing and even sang as Hannah Montana in various concert venues in the Southern U.S. Wilson even penned a song while she was still in elementary school, which is super impressive. While we were trading lunches with classmates and daydreaming about recess she was on her way to becoming a massive country star… no big deal.

Wilson seems close to her family and often talks about her parents in interviews. In May 2024, she told Fox News Digital, “They’re the ones to blame for all of this” because they always believed in her. She also says she’s “hardheaded” and that the roadblocks she ran into when she was starting out only served as fuel to keep going. We’re taking notes.

We always hear the career advice that you need to believe in yourself and that you get a lot of no’s before you hear a yes. Wilson is totally proof of that. After she graduated high school, she headed to Nashville and slept in a recording studio’s parking lot in a trailer. (Her family knew the people who owned it so it was cool.) Now that’s dedication.

Will Lainey Wilson appear in Yellowstone season 5 part 2?

Of course we’d love to see Abby in Yellowstone season 5, but as of now, there’s no news that Lainey Wilson will star in the second half of the final season. Yes, we’re bummed about that, but we can hold out hope.

In an interview with Country Living in May 2023, Wilson said she would be happy to play Abby again if Taylor Sheridan said she could. She said,  “I’m realizing that the TV business is just as crazy, if not crazier, than the music business.” Since then, there’s been no update. Wilson said to Fox News in April 2024, “I’m still waiting to find out what’s happening” and added, “I have absolutely no clue.”

Although at this point, it seems unlikely Lainey Wilson will play Abby again, we’re holding onto hope that Yellowstone will tell us that Ryan and Abby are in love and going strong.