Banks and Canadian country artist Deric Ruttan both went to high school in Bracebridge, Ontario where they performed in a band together. She went on to complete a degree in Zoology/Anthropology at the University of Toronto before moving to Nashville, Tennessee in 1998, where she signed her first publishing deal. From 1998-2002 she was a staff songwriter for Fame Music (aka House of Fame), from 2002-2007 she was a writer for Full Circle Music (Circle C Songs), from 2008-2010 she wrote for Nashville's Sony/ATV Publishing, from 2011-2013 for Chrysalis Music (subsequently BMG Chrysalis), and from 2013-2019 for Nashville's RareSpark Media Group.