“Anna’s song reminds us all that supporting Habitat’s mission need not be limited to swinging a hammer or laying a block.”

 – Chris Clarke, Former Sr. Vice President of Communications

View Habitat's PSA Commercial
Featuring" A House, A Home"

Anna Wilson has literally been singing the praises of the profound work of Habitat for Humanity International for nearly two decades every time she performs a song she penned that celebrates the life-changing mission of the organization. The Nashville based songstress wrote the song, “A House, A Home” in 2007 after working with Habitat for Humanity in Nashville on a project sponsored by the Whirlpool Corporation. During the event, 300 volunteers built 10 houses on one block in just 5 days.

The song became the foundation for a global PSA campaign that received over $5 million in advertising dollars to help raise awareness of Habitat’s work to eliminate substandard housing worldwide. Anna’s recording was paired with images of Habitat homeowners and volunteers building and dedicating homes. “The eloquent lyrics matched with the still images help viewers understand the impact Habitat can have in the lives of the people it touches – both homeowners and volunteers,” said Chris Clarke, former senior vice president of communications for the organization.  The campaign encouraged viewers to help those in need of simple, decent, affordable housing by partnering with Habitat and getting involved.

 “Anna joked that while it took 300 volunteers just 5 days to build 10 homes, it took her the same amount of time to write that one song,” Clarke said. “But when you think about it, the result of her labor is equally dramatic when you consider the potential of how many people will be drawn to Habitat’s mission through her efforts.”

The song may be seen as a gift to Habitat but Wilson sees it differently. “Habitat’s adoption of my song has afforded me some amazing experiences from building homes post the Katrina Hurricane to performing the song with the Mississippi Mass  Choir at the 25th Carter Work Project for founders President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter to the inclusion of the song on my Time Changes Everything and Yule Swing album, where the proceeds from the song are donated to Habitat each holiday season.

“I was just inspired by what they were doing,” Wilson said of the volunteers who helped with the project, “So I wrote a song about it because I wanted them to know that we were very appreciative of what they were doing in our community. It’s wonderful to be a part of the Habitat process, and I am honored to have the opportunity to contribute.” 

“Anna’s song reminds us all that supporting Habitat’s mission need not be limited to swinging a hammer or laying a block,” said Clarke. “While that work is and always will be vital, clearly God has provided us each with many talents. I encourage people in all walks of life to consider how they might share His gifts with those in desperate need of hope and homes throughout the world.”

To support Habitat and learn more, please visit www.habitat.org.

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Anna WilsoN - bio

Anna Wilson is a critically acclaimed recording artist with a voice that Jazz Times likens to “crème de cocoa.”  Her seven studio albums spanning a thirty-year career have garnered rave reviews and she has been hailed as the queen of the country-jazz duet for her critically acclaimed Countrypolitan Duets album that has her singing alongside Kenny Rogers, Ray Price, Connie Smith, Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts, Larry Carlton and others. Additionally, she has garnered honors as an award-winning ASCAP songwriter, penned the global theme song for Habitat for Humanity International, and has had her songs appear on over seven million RIAA certified records for artists such as Lady A, Reba McEntire, Billy Ray Cyrus, Chuck Wicks and more.

Her latest project is a documentary film in-the-making called “Canyon Angel”.  An inspirational tale that chronicles a 25-year musical journey that she didn’t even realize she was on until the dawning of her 50th decade.  A journey that took her from her hometown of Chester Springs, Pennsylvania to Nashville to Los Angeles and back.  Wilson says, “I’ve had a very diverse career that has blended genres in unique ways but at the heart of my creative soul has always been a deep connection to the musical movement of Laurel Canyon that I never got to be a part of simply because I was born too late. This film is the story of my redemptive journey to uncover, rediscover and reclaim the lost piece of my creative soul that I call the Canyon Angel.”

Her Americana duo, Troubadour 77, that she formed in 2016 with husband and hit songwriter Monty Powell was the impetus that set Wilson on the course to discover her Canyon Angel doppelganger. Although it may seem like an odd departure from her many jazz albums and country songwriting accolades, Wilson indicates that first and foremost she is a songwriter and that her songs have always been the driving force in everything she does.  “Even on my vocal jazz projects it was always about the original jazz songs I wrote way more than the standards of the genre. T77, as we sometimes call ourselves, is representative of the music I have always wanted to make. It comes from a true singer-songwriter perspective.”

This dynamic and diverse songbird has even more things to sing about as she recently co-wrote and co-stars in a two-person musical with her Troubadour 77 partner, Monty Powell, called “Songstars” that debuted with a residency at the historic Woolworth Theatre in Nashville. Wilson remarks, “The best way to describe it is, Springsteen on Broadway meets the hit movie Once meets The Bluebird Cafe on steroids!”  It’s a scripted songwriter concert-play that tells her and Powell’s personal story of chasing dreams and finding love amid the backdrop of their separate and combined Nashville pilgrimages to songwriting success.

As for giving back, Wilson is all hands on deck.  Community outreach is another important aspect of her career and she continually tries to find ways to marry her music with charities that she is passionate about. She is widely known for her Habitat for Humanity International theme song “A House, A Home” that garnered worldwide attention when it appeared in the charity’s public service announcements and received over $5 million in free advertising worldwide.  She also penned and Olympic inspired song called “Spirit” whose royalties benefited Women’s Ski Jumping USA when they made their debut in Sochi, Russia in 2014. The proceeds were given directly to the organization to help support women ski jumpers around the world and advocate for gender equality in sport.

Born and raised in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania, and a graduate of Loyola University in Maryland, Anna Wilson splits her time between Nashville, the mountains of Colorado and the Florida Keys where she enjoys golf, skiing, culinary experiences, performing live and recording innovative album projects that have appeal to wide audiences. Her music is engaging and effortless as she weaves her soulful, vulnerable and richly textured voice through everything she does.