Stewart Ransom "Rhett" Miller II (born September 6, 1970)[1][2] is the lead singer of the alternative country rock band Old 97's.

[5][6] Rhett's paternal grandfather, Giles E. Miller, was a young millionaire scion of a successful textile family who, in 1952 owned the first NFL football team in the south, the Dallas Texans.

Miller has said that his time at St. Mark's was very difficult, and that he was ostracized and bullied, leading to depression which culminated in a suicide attempt at the age of 14.

[6] Through high school Miller played in bands, becoming a local folk performer and headlining small venues and opening for such nationally touring artists as Rosanne Cash, Chris Isaak, and The Lords of the New Church.

[1] He briefly attended Sarah Lawrence College on a creative writing scholarship before deciding to move back to Texas to pursue a music career.

[1] In 1993, Miller and Hammond formed Old 97's as a three piece acoustic act along with their neighbor at Dallas' Marquita Court Apartments, guitarist Ken Bethea.

It was during a Killbilly tour that Miller met Nan Warshaw, owner of Chicago's Bloodshot Records, the label which released Old 97’s second album, Wreck Your Life.

[11] It includes a cover of Brion's "I Believe She's Lying" and "Fireflies", a duet with Rachael Yamagata.

[13] The record, a Maximum Sunshine release which Miller self-produced,[14] included collaborations with Rosanne Cash and Ben Kweller.

[16] The album was a notable shift for Miller, as he recorded it with a Portland, Oregon-based bluegrass band called Black Prairie, which includes members of The Decemberists.

[18] Miller has written short stories, essays and articles that have appeared in Rolling Stone, The Baffler, Bookforum, Sports Illustrated, McSweeney's,[19] The Atlantic, and Salon.

Miller and his then-fiancée, Erica Iahn, lived three blocks south of the World Trade Center and were at home on 9/11.

Iahn found out she was pregnant with their first child, Max, while Miller was on tour with Tori Amos to promote the album.