List of Belmont University alumni

Belmont University is a Christian university in Nashville, Tennessee. The university was called Belmont College for Young Women from 1890 to 1913; Ward-Belmont College from 1913 to 1951, and Belmont College from 1951 to 1991. Following are some of its notable alumni.

Business

• Damon T. Hininger, MBA, chief executive officer of the Corrections Corporation of America ^[1]
• R. Milton Johnson, chairman and CEO of Hospital Corporation of America ^[2]

Entertainment

• McKinley Belcher III, actor ^[3]
• Blair Fowler, former YouTuber and now interior designer
• Sean Hetherington, reality television producer and pundit
• DJ Qualls, actor
• Rachel Smith, Miss Tennessee Teen USA 2002, Miss Tennessee USA 2007, and Miss USA 2007 ^[4]
• Tony Vincent, actor

Literature and journalism

• Elizabeth P. Farrington, publisher of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and Congressional Delegate ^[5]
• H. L. Hix, poet and academic
• Michael Jackman, columnist, poet, essayist, fiction writer, and college professor
• Clare Boothe Luce, editor and playwright
• Masood Ashraf Raja, writer and associate professor University of North Texas ^{[ citation needed ]}
• Lila Acheson Wallace, co-founder of Reader's Digest ^[6]
• Lisa Williams, poet ^[7]

Music

• Greg Bates, country music singer-songwriter
• Didi Benami, American Idol finalist
• Denver Bierman, bandleader and trumpet player with Denver and the Mile High Orchestra ^{[8] [9]}
• Jimmy Bowen, record producer and former pop music performer ^[10]
• Becca Bradley, CCM musician and cellist
• Logan Brill, singer/songwriter
• Celeste Buckingham, Slovak singer-songwriter and pop musician
• Sarah Buxton, country music artist ^[11]
• Chuck Cannon, songwriter ^[12]
• Steven Curtis Chapman, Grammy Award-winning Christian artist ^[13]
• Brandy Clark, country music artist
• Travis Cottrell, Christian artist ^[14]
• Cowboy Crush, country music band; all five members are alumnae
• Devin Dawson, country music artist
• Denver and the Mile High Orchestra, "big band" composed entirely of Belmont University alumni, was a finalist on The Next Great American Band ^{[8] [9]}
• Russell Dickerson, country music artist
• Melinda Doolittle, American Idol finalist
• Jace Everett, recording artist ^[15]
• Sharon Gilchrist, bluegrass musician and singer ^[16]
• Andrew Greer, singer-songwriter ^[17]
• Ashley Gorley, songwriter and producer ^[18]
• Ben Johnson, songwriter and producer ^[19]
• Jake Goss, member of the three-piece alternative band LANY ^[20]
• Mike Grayson, member of the Christian band Mikeschair ^[21]
• Helen Hemphill, author ^[22]
• Tyler Hubbard, half of country music group Florida Georgia Line
• Ashlyne Huff, singer-songwriter ^[23]
• Jeff Irwin, musician
• Julienne Irwin, America's Got Talent finalist ^[24]
• Tamara "Taj" Johnson-George, member of R&B group SWV, author, and Survivor: Tocantins contestant ^[25]
• Brian Kelley, half of the country music group Florida Georgia Line
• Gordon Kennedy, co-writer of Eric Clapton's song "Change the World" and Grammy Award winner for 1996 Song of the Year in 1996 and 2006 Best Pop Instrumental Album in 2006
• Hannah Kerr, CCM Singer
• Katy Kirby, musician
• Paul Jason Klein, member of the three-piece alternative band LANY ^[20]
• Levi Kreis, Tony Award-winning music artist ^[26]
• Lara Landon, CCM recording artist
• Chase Lawrence, member of the alternative band Coin ^[27]
• Jesse Lee, country music singer ^[28]
• Jim Lill, country musician ^[29]
• Liza Anne, musician
• Kimberley Locke, American Idol finalist, music star, and plus-size model ^[30]
• Kelley Lovelace, songwriter
• Willie Mack, singer-songwriter ^[31]
• Mary Virginia Martin, actress, singer and Broadway star ^[32]
• Sandra McCracken, 1999, singer-songwriter. ^[33]
• Joe Memmel, member of the alternative band Coin ^[27]
• Moon Taxi, indie-alternative rock band; all five members are alumnae^{[ citation needed ]}
• Grace Moore, operatic soprano and actress in musical theatre and film
• Ginny Owens, Christian music artist ^[34]
• John Mark Painter, musician and songwriter, member of rock-and-roll duo Fleming and John ^[35]
• Brad Paisley, country music artist
• Minnie Pearl (real name Sarah Cannon) of Grand Ole Opry and Hee Haw fame; attended Belmont's predecessor, the Ward–Belmont School
• Jill Phillips, Christian music artist ^[36]
• Les Priest, member of the three-piece alternative band LANY ^[20]
• Julie Roberts, country music artist
• Frank Rogers, record producer ^[37]
• Jake Wesley Rogers, musician
• Mackenzie Scott, performs as TORRES
• Harold "FYÜTCH" Simmons, rapper, singer, songwriter, producer
• Canaan Smith, country music singer-songwriter
• Todd Smith, Christian artist, lead singer of Selah ^[38]
• Ric Steel, vocalist and instrumentalist
• Larry Stewart, country music artist, lead singer of Restless Heart ^[39]
• Pam Tillis, country music artist
• Josh Turner, country music artist
• Troy Verges, songwriter ^[40]
• Lee Ann Womack, country music artist
• Trisha Yearwood, country music artist
• Julianna Zobrist, Christian singer
• Ashley Cooke, country music artist

Politics

• Diane Black, U.S. Representative from Tennessee ^[41]
• Elizabeth P. Farrington, publisher of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and Congressional Delegate ^[5]
• Samuel Atta Mills, Member of Parliament (Ghana)

Sports

• Ben Sheppard, American Basketball Player for the Indiana Pacers
• Jay Ayres, professional soccer player^{[ citation needed ]}
• Matt Beaty, Major League Baseball player for the Los Angeles Dodgers
• Brian Baker, professional tennis player ^[42]
• Kayla Braxton, WWE broadcaster
• Alysha Clark (born 1987), American-Israeli basketball player for the Israeli team Elitzur Ramla and the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
• Ian Clark, NBA player ^[43]
• Stu Grimson, former NHL enforcer ^[44]
• J.J. Mann, professional basketball player
• Joshua McAdams, track and field athlete ^[45]
• Nico Olsak, Argentinian-born American-Israeli soccer player who plays in the Israeli Premier League
• Ricardo Patton, head basketball coach at Central High School ^[46]
• Alex Renfroe, professional basketball player
• J. P. Rodrigues, professional soccer player^{[ citation needed ]}
• Evan Bradds, assistant basketball coach
• Dylan Windler, professional basketball player

Other

• Jean MacArthur, supporter of the Metropolitan Opera and other charities, wife of U.S. Army General of the Army Douglas MacArthur

References

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