TORONTO - Country singer Dean Brody knows all about hard times and big gambles.

Today, he has a combined 11 trophies from the Canadian Country Music Association and the Junos, and he's in the running for five more at this weekend's CCMA Awards in London, Ont.

But it didn't come easy for Brody, one of Canada's biggest country stars.

About a decade ago, the Jaffray, B.C., native uprooted his family and hit the road in a rented U-Haul truck destined for Nashville, with few connections in the epicentre of country music.

He was an admittedly shy musician not quite convinced of his own charisma and star potential. And so he focused on writing music for other artists, hoping one of country's superstars would connect with his message and buy the rights to a few songs.

Brody quickly found the industry wasn't so eager to get on board with his lyrics. Songs went unsold, the bills started piling up and it wasn't long before his car broke down.

"It was a nightmare the first couple months," Brody says.

"(My wife) used to walk through the grocery store with a calculator and have to put stuff back."

But he kept writing and built up an arsenal of songs. A friend encouraged him to record his own demos and at least take an honest swing at his own singing career.

The songs clicked, he says, and soon after the labels started circling.

Then after finally securing a record deal and preparing for the launch of his big debut, he was struck by a horrible setback.

While on a break one afternoon from his U.S. radio tour, he slipped on a pair of water skis and hit the open water for some fun. A wipeout smashed Brody's head into a ski and crushed his facial structure. He was rushed to hospital and reconstructive surgery on his face required a lengthy healing process. His music career was indefinitely put on hold.

"I've been reflecting on that lately," says Brody while kicking back in a hotel lobby near Toronto's Pearson airport.

"Just the journey and how I ended up so far away from where I started."

Brody, 41, can now appreciate how his perseverance helped him find success.

He has two platinum singles ("Bring Down The House" and "Canadian Girls" each sold more than 100,000 digital copies), collected a Juno for best country album this year, and counts nine CCMA Awards on his mantel.

At Sunday's awards show, where Alberta-born Brett Kissel will also compete in five categories, Brody is up for the fans' choice prize and male artist of the year, songwriter of the year, single of the year and video of the year honours.

The show airs live from London's Budweiser Gardens at 8 p.m. ET on CBC and is hosted by Jessi Cruickshank of "Canada's Smartest Person."

Among the presenters are Jonny Harris from "Murdoch Mysteries" and "Heartland" actress Alisha Newton, while artists handing out awards include George Canyon, nominated for album of the year, and Meghan Patrick, up for the songwriter award.

Musicians Terri Clark and Cold Creek County will perform.

Since recovering from the accident, Brody has hardly stopped, pumping out a new album every 18 months or so.

"It's probably a great business approach. Creatively it's a challenge," he says.

"But I think I like the pressure. I write just for the records ... I don't write two songs a day. I've got friends that will write a song a day. I just write as we need them."

His next album is due in late October and Brody says after that release he might finally slow down for a bit to spend more time with his family.

He's just happy his wife doesn't have to carry the calculator to the store anymore.

"If she sees a dress she can buy it - that didn't happen before," he says.

"It's just a really cool time in my life, and our life, to look back on where we came from. To be able to enjoy the success."