Editor’s note: Northern Quest announced Thursday afternoon that the LeAnn Rimes concert on Sunday has been postponed due to a vocal cord injury. She will perform at Northern Quest on April 14. Tickets for this weekend’s show will be honored on the new date; refunds are available by request until March 3, at TicketsWest.com or at the Northern Quest Box Office at (509) 481-2800 or (877) 871-6772.

Tough isn’t the first adjective that comes to mind when describing LeAnn Rimes. Stylish, charismatic and altruistic are good fits when trying to nail down the singer-songwriter.

However, Rimes recently postponed a number of dates of her “Joy: The Holiday Tour” earlier in the month due to a vocal issue.

“While sick with the flu, my doctor discovered a bleed on my vocal cord, caused by the violent cough that came along with being sick,” Rimes said. “I am getting better.”

It would be easy for Rimes to scrap the few remaining dates of her holiday jaunt but apparently the show must go on for the versatile entertainer, who will perform Sunday at Northern Quest Resort and Casino.

Rimes is surprising fans by having enough grit to bounce back from a tough injury but it’s even more difficult to comprehend that the seemingly forever young vocalist turned 40 in August. To put it in perspective, the prolific Rimes’ latest project, “god’s work,” which dropped in September, is her 19th album. But folks forget that Rimes was just 9 years old when she recorded her first album.

Rimes’ initial release, 1991’s “Everybody’s Sweetheart,” scored attention in the Southwest; Rimes’ career took off after she signed with Curb Records and released her third album, “Blue,” in 1996.

Rimes has enjoyed extraordinary success by selling over 48 million albums worldwide. Billboard ranked her No. 17 in terms of sales success between 1990 and 2000. And it all started for Rimes at a point when the norm for children is play dates and youth sports.

“It was a dream come true since this is what I always wanted to do,” Rimes said. “Kids dream of making music and having hits.”

Rimes was just a child when she was calling the shots. “When you think of it like that, it really is something,” Rimes said while calling from Nashville. “I signed my deal at 11. The next year I was responsible for paying 67 people. Most kids just get to be kids at that age and that’s a good thing. But I had an opportunity and I went as far as I could go.”

“Blue” made Rimes a bonafide country star at 14. The title track went top 10. Her follow up record, “You Light Up My Life: Inspirational Songs,” veered toward country-pop and became an even bigger success.

Country, pop and contemporary Christian are some of the genres Rimes has embraced. But the Jackson, Mississippi native has a special fondness for Christmas. Rimes has released a number of holiday albums, such as 2004’s “What a Wonderful World,” 2015’s “This is Christmas” and 2018’s “It’s Christmas Eve.”

But Rimes’ quirky EP, “One Christmas: Chapter One,” which was released in 2014, is a must experience since it’s so left of center and light-hearted. The project features a fun cover of the holiday rarity, “I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas.”

“I’m crazy about Christmas,” Rimes said. “What can I say?”

Rimes says it all onstage with an entertaining yuletide concert.

“I’ve been incredibly fortunate,” Rimes said. “I’ve also worked hard. It’s not easy doing this for all of these years. Look at how much the industry has changed since I started. Back then there was no Internet or cellphones. All that is good but what was good then, artist development, just doesn’t exist anymore. I came up during that era and I’m still here in a very different music world.”

Rimes loves spending time with her family but she can’t sit still. In her spare time, she has written two novels, a pair of children’s books and also acts. Rimes also has raised funds for cancer research.

“I like to stay busy,” Rimes said. “That’s just my nature. I’m always doing something. I love to create and I’ve always been crazy about performing in front of an audience.”

Some recording artists are on nostalgia tours when they’ve recorded as many albums as Rimes. However, Rimes has hit another creative peak with “god’s work,” which is an eclectic album with stylish, reverent songs that are occasionally wistful. The album kicks off with the stunning and powerful ballad “spaceship,” and is bolstered by a number of talented guest artists, such as singer-songwriter Ben Harper, guitar hero Robert Randolph and reggae legend Ziggy Marley.

“It’s been such an amazing career” Rimes said. “I’ve been incredibly fortunate since I was a child and it just continues at this point in my life. I can’t express how thankful I am.”