It took 100 years, but it finally happened, and for two deserving women of country music. As part of the Grand Ole Opry’s year-long 100th Anniversary celebration, it saw its first induction/invitation.
A festival that was founded to cater to the resurgent interest in ’90s country picked up on something important: the ’90s weren’t just the last time popular country sounded country, it was also the last time when country women played a major role.
The 2nd Annual Key Western Fest is going all women, bringing country legends and Hall of Famers like Wynonna Judd, Tanya Tucker, Jo Dee Messina, Pam Tillis, Terri Clark, and more to paradise for a 4-day excursion.
You know it to be true. The 90s era in country music is quite hot at the moment, and everyone is looking to take advantage of the renewed interest in this classic era of country. Now that includes the Grand Ole Opry. So what will “Opry Loves The 90s” entail?
I know what you’re going to say. “NeW yOrK CiTY!” like that guy in the old Pace Picante Sauce commercial. Or if you pride yourself in having any sort of semblance of taste, maybe you’re wondering why anyone in 2021 would still be listening to mainstream country radio at all.
The Grand Ole Opry will begin celebrating its 95th Anniversary on Saturday, October 3rd, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, gathering for the country music institution’s 4,944th consecutive Saturday night broadcast with Dierks Bentley, Vince Gill, Terri Clark, and Lorrie Morgan.
When the COVID-19 shutdowns began in mid March, the Grand Ole Opry was one of the only live music institutions that endured, with the first non-audience show transpiring on March 14th with the evening’s regular scheduled slate of performers.
Scheduled to appear on the hallowed Grand Ole Opry stage Saturday night (4-4) will be Ashley McBryde, who just released a critically-acclaimed new album ‘Never Will,’ Canadian country artist and Opry member Terri Clark, as well as former American Idol contestant turned country star Lauren Alaina.
Jan Howard’s death was marked with obituaries enumerating her many accomplishments in country music, including her hits, her collaborations with John Anderson, and her long tenure at the Grand Ole Opry. But when it comes to Jan Howard, it was just as much about the work she did off the stage, and out of the spotlight.
Not since Keith Urban have we witnessed an artist trying so transparently to defy their age, and grasp for radio relevancy. “Young As We Are Tonight” is just bad all around, from the writing to the production. And “Young As We Are Tonight” will not go anywhere.
Envision a day where all the current Top 40 country that classic country fans are incensed over is segregated into its own autonomous format, with its own radio stations, and potentially even its own awards, special events and festivals. And the same could happen for classic country. It could have it’s own place to not forget the past, and respect the roots of the genre.
In hopes of aligning themselves as the antithesis to the whole “bro-country” phenomenon gripping popular country music with its laundry list, truck and beer, mud-splashed and moonshine-soaked stereotyping, a couple of female artists have decided to adopt the new “bra-country” term to help separate the women from the bros.