Happy 90th Birthday to the Home of Country Music!
This month The Grand Ole Opry is celebrating ninety years of showcasing the finest country music in the world! The Grand Ole Opry is a legendary country music venuen that is located in Nashville, Tennessee. It was first founded back in 1925 and still exists today, hosting concerts for numerous country music artists every year. The Opry is dedicated to preserving and honoring country music and its history. They are well-known for having a variety of legends and contemporary chart toppers performing country, bluegrass, folk, and gospel songs during concerts as well as featuring comedic skit performances. The Grand Ole Opry attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors from all around the world every year. They also garner millions of radio and internet listeners.
The Opry’s current slogan is “The Show that Made Country Music Famous.” Country music legends as Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Marty Robbins, Roy Acuff, the Carter family, Bill Monroe, Ernest Tubb, Johnny Cash and June Carter, Kitty Wells and Minnie Pearl became regulars on the Opry’s stage. In recent decades, the Opry has hosted such contemporary country stars as Dolly Parton, Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Josh Turner, Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Dierks Bentley, Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert, Taylor Swift and the Dixie Chicks. Becoming a “member” of the Opry is the greatest achievement a country music artist can earn.
In honor of the 90th anniversary, the Grand Ole Opry released a book titled, “Family Album.” The book features amazing photographs throughout the history of the Opry. There are also pictures of Opry members and their personal stories. To help commemorate the anniversary, various country music artists made appearances on stage that night and will continue to do so all year. They share stories behind the scenes of the Opry, showcasing instruments and artifacts that have been a part of the Grand Ole Opry for the past nine decades. These artifacts are on display backstage at the Opry House. Tours are held at the Grand Ole Opry for visitors to experience the elite world of country music and to see for themselves where it all began, still goes on today, and will live on forever.
Just like the songs go, “Nothin’ But Country!” and “Country Folks Can Survive!”