Brothers Virgil and Teddy Wilburn started their careers as children singing with their siblings as the Wilburn Family. They went on to play local radio stations and in 1940, after a reference from Roy Acuff, were invited to join the Grand Ole Opry. In 1953, after a discharge from the Army, they began to work as a duo and scored their first hit in 1955 with "I Wanna Wanna Wanna." A string of hits followed throughout the '50s and '60s. Although their final chart success came in 1972, they remained popular and appeared on the Opry throughout the end of the '70s.