from Memphis Commercial Appeal on commercialappeal.com

Over the course of three major-label albums, singer Miranda Lambert has forged a persona as the tough-talking, maybe-crazy single white female of country music.

It's a character that has won her millions of fans and fueled the rise of songs like "Kerosene" and "Gunpowder & Lead" toward the top of the charts.

"That is definitely part of me," Lambert said by e-mail. "I am a Texas-born, true country girl. Not surprising, we all have a bit of a fiery personality as part of our heritage. I've learned to stand up for myself and not take any crap, so I suppose that self-assertiveness holds true on and off the stage."

But now the reigning Lambert, who will perform Thursday at Southaven's Snowden Grove, is showing a more tender side to her personality. Last week the normally hard-rocking honky-tonker performed a set of intimate acoustic renditions of her best-known songs on an episode of County Music Television's series "Invitation Only."

Next month she will release her first concert DVD, Revolution: Live by Candlelight, featuring acoustic versions of six songs from last year's Revolution CD. Lambert says both projects are designed to showcase her more contemplative side.

"I have this rowdy, fun, head-banging, rock-star-girl side that is full of energy and makes performing for the fans so much fun. But songwriting is a big part of what I do and one of things that I enjoy most about what I do," she says. "One of my favorite ways to see songwriters perform is in an acoustic setting, so I like to do an acoustic set during the show. I feel like it brings an up-close-and-personal element to the fans and allows songs to speak for themselves through the lyrics."

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