Getting To Know Jody Brooks

Jody Brooks isn’t your average Cowboy-gal, she goes above and beyond in every aspect of her life. She is a World Champion, a Wife, a Mother, and a successful business owner of JW Brooks Hat Company. She also has a personality that can fill the room and has wild stories to tell. 

Jody grew up in Georgia, from a young age she showed horses. “My dad always had a horse or two he would show in Western Pleasure when I was growing up,” says Brooks. Later in life she attended University of Georgia and got a degree in Political Science with an associates degree in Paralegal Studies. From there, she went and worked in downtown Atlanta as a paralegal for fifteen years. But she decided to trade in her high heels and suits for blue jeans and a cowboy hat.

Jody’s love for the horse has gone all over, from Mounted Shooting, to Reined Cowhorse, Halter, and Pleasure classes. But now she finds herself showing in Versatility Ranch Horse classes and has had a high rate of success at it. “As a horsewoman, I am proud that the last three horses I’ve owned, including the buckskin I’m currently showing, have all been World Champions and Reserve World Champions at five years old or younger. I know that some people can wait a lifetime or may never see their horse in the winner’s circle so I consider myself extremely fortunate, and blessed for this achievement,” says Brooks.

However, you might know her best as being the face behind JW Brooks Custom Hat Company. Jody meet her now-husband JW while in Vegas during the NFR. “JW was singing outside the Thomas and Mack Arena every night of the rodeo and he invited me to come listen. I walked in and he dedicated a song to me and the rest was history,” says Brooks. Together, they have grown and created a beautiful company that supplies cowboy hats for the real working cowboy/cowboy-gal’s of the Western industry. 

What sets them apart from other hat company is simple… “We actually live the lifestyle every day. We ride, we show, we have livestock. We understand why the fit and shape of a hat is important because it’s important to us as well. When JW comes up with a new design, I can go try it out at a show and give him honest and educated feedback as a rider. That is so important,” says Brooks. 

Jody just loves to live her life with a smile on her face and a goal in mind, “I had to sell my classic Corvette in order to buy a Pale Face Dunnit yearling colt that I wanted. I missed that car, but six months later I sold a different horse and had enough money to buy a C7 Corvette Stingray and still be able to put the [Pale Face] colt in training. Where there is a will, there is a way!”

Today Jody gets her smiles from her fourteen year old son Caden and her four legged animals around her and JW’s funny farm in Texas.