Who Could Be the Country Music Hall of Fame’s New Inductees in 2026
It’s the time of year to consider who might be the inductees into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2026. A secret committee commissioned by the CMA (Country Music Association) is receiving their final ballots and whittling down the names to the few who will make it into one of country music’s most hallowed institutions.
Unlike other Halls of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame tries to keep the institution distinguished by letting only a few names in each year. This way a bad name never slips through the process, hypothetically. This has also caused a glut of good names being left out in recent years, creating controversy in itself, even if this also keeps the Hall of Fame honor exclusive and distinguished.
The biggest criticism the Hall of Fame faces these days is the names who are not in the Hall. Saving Country Music has offered some potential solutions such as a bulk induction like was done 25 years ago in 2001, or perhaps adding new categories. There’s no indication that will happen in 2026 so far. So it will once again be three inductees in three primary categories as is explained below.
The Rules
The Country Music Hall of Fame inductees are selected through a committee process appointed by the CMA. Since 2010, the selection process has been split up into three categories. 1) Modern Era – Eligible for induction 20 years after they first achieve “national prominence.” 2) Veterans Era – Eligible for induction 45 years after they first achieve “national prominence.” 3) Non-Performer, Songwriter, and Recording and/or Touring Musician active prior to 1980 – Rotates every 3 years. If there is a tie in voting in any category, two names can be selected, as we saw in 2021.
With a musician James Burton selected in 2024, and a non-peerformer in Tony Brown selected in 2025, it would be a songwriter selected in 2026. This could be someone who worked primarily behind-the-scenes writing big country hits. But it also can be someone also known for performing, while also being known for writing songs for themselves and others.
Another important rule to note is that no candidate is eligible for the Hall of Fame a year after they pass away. This is to avoid sympathy votes in the aftermath of an artist dying, so check the 2025 In Memoriam List for those who would be ineligible. In recent years, this has accelerated artists being inducted before they die to avoid the one year penalty, and to honor them while they’re still living.
READ THE FULL HALL OF FAME RULES
Potential Modern Era Inductees
The Modern Era category definitely feels quite “modern” these days with performers who are still very much active in the mainstream constituting legitimate contenders for the Hall of Fame, and Kenny Chesney being inducted in 2025. Dwight Yoakam and Clint Black feel like old timers in the category. They also should be the top contenders. But Chesney’s induction might start a long list of more modern performers like Tim McGraw, Shania Twain, Keith Urban, etc. going in, and any older artists being shuffled to the Veteran’s Era.
• Last Year’s Modern Era Inductee: Kenny Chesney
• Saving Country Music Prediction: Tim McGraw, Alison Krauss, Shania Twain
• Saving Country Music’s Pick: Dwight Yoakam or Clint Black
Dwight Yoakam: You’d think with 25 million records sold, Dwight Yoakam should definitely be considered for Hall of Fame distinction. But being based in California as opposed to Nashville may put him a bit out of the purview of voters, which is always an important factor. Yoakam’s greatest contribution beyond the solid sales numbers comes is the influence he had in country music in his time, and that he still wields today over generations of performers. Dwight Yoakam made country music cool to millions, just like Hall of Famer Buck Owens and other Bakersfield legends did in their time.
Dwight’s also not showing any signs of slowing down, and has earned additional stripes as a country music ambassador through his acting career.
Alison Krauss: There may be no other single performer who did more for spreading the love and appreciation for bluegrass throughout the ’90s and 2000s than Alison Krauss. The solo albums, the work with Union Station, the collaborations with Robert Plant and others have made her one of the most critically-acclaimed artists of our generation, with enough commercial success to also make her a household name.
Krauss has won 27 Grammy Awards, putting her only behind Beyoncé, Quincy Jones and classical conductor Georg Solti as the most-awarded artist in Grammy history. She has also received 42 nominations. This includes a Grammy win for the all-genre Album of the Year Rising Sand with Robert Plant. Krauss was also critical to the O Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack, and is a National Medal of Arts winner. Krauss most certainly has the resumé to be a Hall of Famer, and no better time to finally mint the award than the year after she reunited with Union Station for a new tour and album.
Clint Black: If it wasn’t for his career’s disappearing act, his name would be a no brainier for the Hall of Fame. Instead, Clint Black’s impact is commonly overlooked, and unfairly so. Nobody was more successful in country music in the ’90s decade than Clint Black, save for Garth Brooks. A whopping thirteen #1 singles including his first four consecutively, and a total of 29 Top 10 hits puts Clint Black in an elite class in regards to stats. Clint Black also kept it (mostly) country, and was always seen as a good guy in the industry.
When Clint Black’s wife Lisa Hartman had their first child in May of 2001, he decided to take three years off to enjoy his young family. Aside from “Spend My Time” in 2003 that peaked at #16, the rest of Clint’s singles all stayed outside the Top 40 after the hiatus. “It ended up not being a smart career move, but it was a real smart dad move. … I wouldn’t go back and try to do anything for my career in exchange for that,” Black says. It shouldn’t cost him a Hall of Fame induction either. He should join his fellow “Class of ’89” member Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson in the Hall of Fame.
Tim McGraw: McGraw never had that consecutive string of years when he was the biggest thing in country music like other Hall of Fame inductees, but he has shown a longevity in his career that few others have matched. McGraw’s had 27 #1 hits in a span covering over 20 years. This includes some universally-recognized hits like “Don’t Take The Girl,” “Live Like You Were Dying,” and “Humble and Kind” written by Lori McKenna. McGraw also won the CMA’s Entertainer of the Year in 2001.
Similar to other Modern Era hopefuls, the question is if Tim McGraw is still considered a current artist, while other artists who’ve been patiently waiting their turn (i.e. Dwight Yoakam) continue to be passed over. But now that Kenny Chesney is in, if feels like a matter of “when” not “if” McGraw will get in. When very well might be 2026.
Shania Twain – Make no mistake about it, Shania Twain will be in the Country Music Hall of Fame some day. During her era, nobody was a bigger commercial success except for Garth Brooks. With over 100 million records sold, she is the best-selling woman in country music of all time, and one of the best selling music artists in all of music, period. She is the undisputed queen of country pop. And though traditionalists love to shake their angry little fists at her for ushering in the pop era of country, her influence is undeniable.
Something to always consider when talking about the Hall of Fame is proximity to voters. As a Canadian who also keeps a residence in Switzerland, Shania may not be in the best position to lobby for her spot in the rotunda. But from a purely statistical and popularity standpoint, there is not artist that is bigger that is not in the Hall of Fame than Shania.
Travis Tritt: Since two of his brethren from the “Class of ’89” are in (Garth Brooks and Alan Jackson), as well as his “No Hat” buddy in Marty Stuart, it definitely feels like Travis Tritt deserves to be in too. There’s probably still a few names ahead of him, and since his commercial career cooled off somewhat quickly, his induction ceremony may still be some years away. It also probably doesn’t help that Travis Tritt has been one to speak about the ills of the country music industry, which may draw the ire of some voters. Tritt is also divisive politically.
And why not consider Tritt, with two Grammy Awards, four CMAs, five #1 singles, and 19 Top 10’s? Travis Tritt helped put the drive into country, both sonically and commercially.
The [Dixie] Chicks – As the winner of the 2000 CMA Entertainer of the Year, Album of the Year for Fly, a four-time winner for Vocal Group of the Year, along with 10 total CMA wins, The Chicks are definitely legitimate contenders for the Hall of Fame sooner than later. Some folks forget that before their cancellation in 2003, they were the biggest act in country music. They’ve sold 33 million albums, and are the best-selling all-woman band and best-selling country group since Nielsen SoundScan began recording sales in 1991.
The fact that history looks back at how their career was destroyed due to the comments of Natalie Maines about the Iraq War as a blight in country music certainly influences their chances of eventually being recognized by the Hall of Fame. It would be a way to help make it right, even if the group these days is not especially “country” anymore.
Other Potential Modern Era Inductees:
Keith Urban – With 22 No. 1 singles according to Billboard, Keith Urban is probably getting in at some point. Urban’s also been heavily involved in the “All for the Hall” fundraising events for the Hall of Fame over the years, likely earning him some champions in the ranks of voters. Urban is another guys whose prospects were raised once Kenny Chesney went in.
Trisha Yearwood: It’s the timeless songs, and how Yearwood was one of the most important women throughout the ’90s that makes her an eligible candidate for the Hall of Fame. Her debut single “She’s In Love with the Boy,” is a bonafide country music standard, and one of five #1’s she enjoyed. Her 1991 self-titled album became the first debut female country album to sell one million copies, and has since gone double platinum.
Martina McBride: With five #1 songs, and twenty Top 20 singles, Martina McBride has comparable numbers to other recent Modern Era inductees and current candidates. But it isn’t just the numbers when it comes to Martina. It’s the voice, and the emotion it carries that makes Martina McBride a viable Hall of Fame candidate.
Lorrie Morgan – With 6 millions records sold worldwide and 40 charting singles, she’s a contender for the future for sure. Morgan helped get her former husband Keith Whitley in, so she clearly has the ear of voters.
John Michael Montgomery – Few assembled as memorable of a list of hits in the ’90s as John Michael Montgomery. “I Love the Way You Love Me,” “Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident),” “I Swear,” “I Can Love You Like That,” and “Be My Baby Tonight” all hit #1, and deservedly so from one of the era’s most passionate singers. Having fought through recent health issues and officially retiring, a Hall of Fame induction would be a good send off.
Steve Wariner – With a surprising nine #1 singles throughout the 80’s, Wariner is not one of those flashy characters that immediately jumps out at you as a Hall of Fame contender, but he quietly put together a Hall of Fame-caliber career. He’s also a guy who hangs around the right places in Nashville to make sure selection committee members don’t forget about him, so don’t be surprised if his name pops up as an inductee.
Other Eligible Inductees Include:
• K.T. Oslin (1987) • Shenandoah (1987) • Lorrie Morgan (1988) • Joe Diffie (1990) • Diamond Rio (1991) • Pam Tillis (1991) • Faith Hill (1993) • Lonestar (1995) • Trace Adkins (1996) • Brad Paisley (1999) • Rascal Flatts (2000) • Blake Shelton (2001) • Josh Turner (2001) • Dierks Bentley (2003) • Gretchen Wilson (2004) • Jason Aldean (2005) • Miranda Lambert (2005) • Carrie Underwood (2005) • Eric Church (2006)
Potential Veterans Era Inductees
Last year’s pick of June Carter created a lot of criticism from the public, not because people don’t love June, but because it seemed to factor in favoritism and name-recognition above merit. As backlogged as the Modern Era is, the Veteran’s Era is multipliers worse. And to spend a year’s pick on a polarizing inductee did the Hall of Fame no favors.
Hall of Fame insiders say that the same 6 or 7 names keep coming up on the Veteran’s Era final ballot (5 total names) each year. But then whatever the new name that comes up to replace last year’s inductee tends to be who gets in. Who knows who that new name might be in 2026. But hopefully, it’s somebody most everyone can agree deserves it.
• Last Year’s Inductee: June Carter
• Saving Country Music Prediction: Vern Gosdin or The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
• Saving Country Music’s Picks: Johnny Horton, Maddox Brothers & Rose, The Stanley Brothers
The Maddox Brothers & Rose – The Maddox Brothers & Rose set the very foundations for country and rock music in America, along with The Bakersfield Sound and California Country at large. Their flamboyant stage dress inspired by the cowboys of the silver screen directly sparked the Nudie Suit craze in country music that is still en vogue today, and directly inspired Elvis Presley’s stage costumes. Rose Maddox was also one of the very first successful women in country music, and opened up the role of women as country entertainers for generations to come.
If groups like The Jordanaires and The Sons of the Pioneers are in The Hall, certainly The Maddox Brothers & Rose should be. Their worthiness for the Hall of Fame was underscored in the 2019 Ken Burns country music documentary where the group was featured prominently.
Vern Gosdin – Think of all the incredible voices that have graced country music over the decades: the intrinsic pain found in the singing of George Jones, the uncanny pentameter of John Anderson, the caramel tone of Dwight Yoakam, or Johnny Cash, who sounded like God himself. And of course, let’s not forget the angelic sounds of Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, and Dolly.
But there’s only one artist in the history of country music who is unarguably referred to simply as “The Voice.” That’s how revered the singing of Vern Gosdin is. Despite his 19 Top 10 hits and multiple #1’s—and a consensus behind the conclusion by fans and fellow artists alike that he’s one of the best singers in the history of country music—Gosdin is one of those characters who seems to be continuously overlooked in country history. Luckily though, there is finally some buzz that Vern is being seriously considered for the Hall of Fame.
Johnny Horton – Horton is one of the most recognizable country artists from the ’50s and early ’60s. But since he died in 1960 in an automobile accident, he never had the opportunity to fulfill the promise of his career. Nonetheless, many believe that what Johnny Horton contributed before he passed was Hall of Fame worthy, similar to Keith Whitley and Patsy Cline.
Horton’s greatest contributions were his historical songs that have gone on to become mainstays of the American music songbook. “The Battle of New Orleans” won the 1960 Grammy for Best Country & Western Recording, won the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2001, and was named one of the RIAA’s “Songs of the Century.” Other songs like “Sink the Bismark” and “North to Alaska” hold great historical significance. Horton is already a member of the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, and the Louisiana Hall of Fame.
Ralph Stanley / The Stanley Brothers – Ralph Stanley and The Stanley Brothers continue to be a glaring omission in the ranks of Hall of Fame members. Ralph Stanley was a seminal figure in the emergence of bluegrass in both the original era, and during its second wind after the success of O Brother Where Art Thou. Universally beloved inside Nashville and beyond, a former Grand Ole Opry member, and a powerful name to represent the bluegrass side of country, Ralph Stanley would be a strong pick few would quibble with, and is well past due.
Ralph Stanley started his musical career with his brother Carter Stanley who passed away in 1966. The two brothers spent two decades together as performers. The Stanley Brothers as a pair would probably be how they are inducted as opposed to Ralph Stanley alone. This is what the family of both Ralph and Carter have been advocating for.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – From folk rock at their inception, to bluegrass revivalists in the ’70s, to country radio hitmakers in the ’80s, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band have just about done it all, and in a way that has been revered and wildly influential throughout music. Jerry Jeff Walker may have written “Mr. Bojangles,” but it was the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band that popularized the song and had a hit with it in 1970.
The band perhaps released their pinnacle contribution to country with 1972’s Will The Circle Be Unbroken. The landmark album saw appearances by country and bluegrass legends such as Roy Acuff, Doc Watson, Earl Scruggs, Mother Maybelle Carter, Jimmy Martin, and many more. The album became like a road map for many folk and rock fans to find their way into country, as well as a bridging together of two generations of performers.
With their recent farewell tour, now would be as good a time as any to induct them into the Hall of Fame.
Lynn Anderson – Lynn Anderson was the singer of 12 country music #1’s, and known as the “Great Lady of Country Music.” Anderson also performed on over 40 albums over her career which resulted in over 50 Top 40 hits. Beyond the chart hits and awards, she also helped break down barriers for women in country. “(I Never Promised You a) Rose Garden” was a huge crossover success, and in 1974 Lynn was the first country female to sell out Madison Square Garden.
Though the hits began to slow down for Lynn Anderson later in life, she never did, continuing to perform and make appearances as a country music legend. Though she was never inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, her name always seemed to be in the mix when the finalists were being considered, and it deserves to be.
Jimmy Buffett – Though Jimmy Buffett only ever scored one official #1 hit, this is a significantly misleading stat compared to the host of signature songs Buffett accrued over his career, and the ultimate success and impact he had with them. Despite the lack of radio play beyond “Margaritaville,” or a proper genre to call his home, Jimmy Buffett scored nine Certified Platinum albums over his career, and an additional eight Certified Gold albums. This includes the whopping 7X Platinum Songs You Know By Heart Greatest Hits compilation, which as the name implies, includes songs that many people in the United States know front to back.
Perhaps the stat that’s the best summation of Jimmy Buffett’s career is that he was one of music’s few billionaires. Sure, a lion’s share of that billion was built off of his Margaritaville resorts, restaurants, and licensing deals. But you don’t make that happen unless a song you wrote resonates so wide that it becomes an indelible part of American culture. This is what Jimmy Buffett did.
Johnny PayCheck: Johnny PayCheck (real name Donald Eugene Lytle) was never a hit machine. He only had one #1, but it was a massive one in “Take This Job and Shove It”—which might be one of the most recognized country songs of all time. “She’s All I Got” was also a big hit. But similar to inductees like Keith Whitley and Marty Stuart, it is the intangibles, and the work with others that make PayCheck Hall of Fame worthy.
While playing bass and steel guitar for George Jones, it’s said that Paycheck helped influence George’s singing (though some dispute this). Johnny also played steel guitar for Buck Owens on tour, and played with Ray Price, Ernest Tubb, and recorded as a session artist with others like Willie Nelson and Roger Miller. Johnny PayCheck is synonymous with country music, and seems like a glaring omission in the Hall of Fame.
As other guys with checkered pasts have seen their musical legacies supersede these concerns and finally see induction, it has moved PayCheck further up in contention to the point now where he’s been rumored to have made it as one of the finalists for consideration over the last few years. If Jerry Lee Lewis can get in, so can PayCheck.
Linda Ronstadt: It could be easy to cast off Linda Ronstadt as a legitimate candidate for being a country artist who eventually crossed over into pop and rock. But few paid their dues as much as Linda did early in her career, including her years in the Stone Poneys, her debut solo album in 1969, Hand Sown…Home Grown, 1970’s Silk Purse that included cover songs of “Lovesick Blues” and “Mental Revenge,” and her 1972 self-titled album where she recorded “Crazy Arms” and “I Fall To Pieces.” Even when she achieved her breakout pop rock success, Linda Ronstadt was always honest about the genre and approach of her music, and then returned to country in the groundbreaking “Trio” project with Hall of Famers Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris.
Other Veterans Era-eligible artists may deserve an induction more than Ronstadt at the moment due to the crowded backlog. But with the wild way the Veterans Era is picked, don’t be surprised if she ends up as an inductee in the coming years. She has been rumored to have made it onto the final ballot recently.
Eddie Rabbitt: Aside from maybe Gary Stewart, the case could be made that Eddie Rabbitt is the most wrongfully overlooked star in country music history. Gary Stewart only had one #1 song in his career though. Eddie Rabbitt had 20 of them, and 34 total Top 10 hits, most of which he wrote himself. And all 34 of Rabbitt’s Top 10 hits came in a row, one after another, between 1976’s “Drinkin’ My Baby (Off My Mind)” and 1990 “Runnin’ With The Wind.”
Eddie Rabbitt’s career wasn’t just accomplished, it was downright Hall of Fame worthy. But you never hear Eddie Rabbitt’s name brought up in the context of the Hall of Fame. Actually, you barely ever hear his name at all, in part because he passed away at the relatively young age of 56. But Eddie Rabbitt definitely deserves to be in the Hall of Fame discussion.
Larry Gatlin & The Gatlin Brothers: With 33 Top 40 singles, 15 Top 5’s and three #1’s, Larry Gatlin likely accrued the numbers throughout the 70’s and the 80’s to be a Hall of Fame contender, not to speak of the influence he wielded in country music through that period, both as a solo artist, and with brothers Steve and Rudy. But also bolstering Larry Gatlin’s case is he’s one of these “men about town” types that seems to be at every function and gala in the country music realm, is active in the community, and is willing to help keep the legacy of country music alive, which the Hall of Fame selection committee often rewards. Larry Gatlin is a name that is hard to forget, and rumors have had his name on the final ballot over the last few years.
Gram Parsons: Gram’s inclusion in Hall of Fame consideration is always a topic of great discussion. In 2013 there was a greater push than ever to induct him, with influential country music writer Chet Flippo personally making the case for Parsons. But it wasn’t meant to be, and it may be many years before it is, especially with the current backlog in the Veterans Era. But his name is always in the field for this accolade, and looking at the influence Gram had turning on millions of rock and roll fans to the importance and coolness of country music, it always should be.
Other Potential Veterans Era Inductees:
- Earl Thomas Conley (Petition) – It’s easy to forget just how big Conley was in the ’80s. He had 18 #1 hit songs, and a string where 19 consecutive songs either went #1 or #2. Songs Conley wrote were also recorded by Conway Twitty, Mel Street, and others.
- Rosanne Cash- Folks sometimes forget just how big Rosanne Cash got in the ’80s with ten #1 hits, and a huge influence on the genre at the time. She’s not just Johnny Cash’s daughter, or an Americana icon. Rosanne Cash could be a legitimate Hall of Famer in her own right.
- Mickey Gilley – With 42 Top 40 singles and the role he played during the Urban Cowboy era, Mickey should be considered a contender.
- Gene Watson – With five #1’s across country and Gospel and 76 total charted singles, Gene Watson was an understated superstar, and the fact that he continues to remain active in trying to keep both is own legacy and the legacy of country music alive makes him a name worth considering.
- Crystal Gayle – Loretta Lynn’s sister and “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” singer has fans and allies in the industry, and expect her name to be bandied about for the Hall of Fame in the coming years.
- Jimmy Martin – You might have to put Ralph Stanley and the Stanley Brothers in before Jimmy Martin gets considered. His personal antics might also hold him back as well. But the “King of Bluegrass” should be put in eventually.
- Tompall Glaser & The Glaser Brothers: Perhaps a long shot, or at least until the Veteran’s Era backlog is cleared, brothers-in-Outlaw-country-arms Bobby Bare and “Cowboy” Jack Clement were inducted over the last decade, so many the proprietor of Hillbilly Central will get his due in the coming years.
- Charlie Poole
- Anne Murray
- John Hartford
- The Bellamy Brothers
- Johnny Rodriguez
- John Denver
- David Allan Coe
- Lulu Bell and Scotty Wiseman
- Gary Stewart
- Jack Greene
- Skeeter Davis
- Donna Fargo
- Slim Whitman
- Wanda Jackson
- Wynn Stewart – (Petition)
- Jimmy C. Newman
- Sammi Smith
- Jeannie Seely
- George Hamilton IV
- The Wilburn Brothers
- Leroy Van Dyke
- Stonewall Jackson
- Asleep at the Wheel
- Boxcar Willie
Potential Songwriter Inductees
Though some fans would love to see this award go to songwriting performers who loom large in their world like Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, or Billy Joe Shaver, it often goes to more behind-the-scenes folks who nonetheless contributed greatly to country music. This is the reason dedicated songwriters have their own category. However, this tends to lock songwriters who are also performers out of the process. Hopefully in the coming years, some of these more well-known songwriters can find favor from the Hall of Fame.
• Last Songwriter Inducted: Bob McDill (2023)
• Saving Country Music’s Prediction: Paul Overstreet or Rodney Crowell
• Saving Country Music’s Picks: Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, Billy Joe Shaver
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Townes Van Zandt: There is no more revered and mythical name in songwriting than Townes Van Zandt. His life was like a song itself—so touching yet so fleeting. No other songwriter has made people feel as much emotion as Townes Van Zandt. The question is will the Hall of Fame committee consider Van Zandt more of a performer than a pure songwriter?
Rodney Crowell – A big success as a performer in the late 80s with five consecutive #1 singles, the performing legacy of Rodney Crowell still probably isn’t solid enough to go in as a Modern or Veterans era candidate, even if his career has been Hall of Fame worthy. That is why his name as been rumored to be considered in the songwriting category since he also wrote so many great hits for others.
Guy Clark – Even though to many, Guy Clark will always be an original performer, his catalog of works recorded by superstars like George Strait, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Kenny Chesney, Jerry Jeff Walker, and so many more means that even as a pure songwriter, he deserves his shot at Hall of Fame recognition.
Billy Joe Shaver – An absolute legend in the Outlaw realm for writing all but one song on the Waylon Jennings album Honky Tonk Heroes, Billy Joe Shaver is a classic case of a performer/songwriter that should be in the Hall of Fame, and will never go in as a performer exclusively.
John D. Loudermilk – A cousin to The Louvin Brothers that had great commercial success as a songwriter in the 60’s and 70’s, he was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1976, and certainly deserves consideration for this distinction.
Shel Silverstein – That’s right, he didn’t just write the children’s books A Light in the Attic and Where the Sidewalk Ends. He also wrote “A Boy Named Sue” and other strong country offerings, making Shel one of the quintessential behind-the-scenes songwriting stars.
Larry Cordle – The writer of “Against The Grain,” “Highway 40 Blues,” and hits for George Strait, Kathy Mattea, and Trisha Yearwood. But Larry Cordle really made his biggest mark when he penned “Murder on Music Row” with Larry Shell. The song went on to be the 2001 CMA Song of the Year.
Paul Overstreet – Writer of “Forever and Ever, Amen” and “When You Say Nothing At All” with Don Schlitz, and performer/writer of “Daddy’s Come Around.” Discounted slightly because he’s also the writer of “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy” and other unfortunate hits, but still a significant songwriter in country history.
Lucinda Williams – Along with being a landmark songwriter/performer of our generation, Williams was responsible for writing memorable songs like Mary Chapin Carpenter’s “Passionate Kisses,” “The Night’s Too Long” by Patty Loveless, “Sweet Old World” by Emmylou Harris, and even Tom Petty’s “Changed The Locks.”
Max D. Barnes – Writer of “Who’s Gonna Fill Their Shoes,” “Drinkin’ & Dreamin” (Waylon), “Look At Us” (Vince Gill), and many more. He won a total of 42 songwriter awards during his decorated career.
Curly Putman– Wrote songs for Roger Miller, Elvis Presley, Kenny Rogers, Don Williams, Johnny Paycheck, Johnny Cash, George Jones, Merle Haggard, Bobby Bare, Charley Pride, Tom Jones, and many more. Best known as the writer of “Green Green Grass of Home.”
Sonny Throckmorton – Wrote more than 1,000 songs that were recorded by performing artists, including songs for Merle Haggard, The Oak Ridge Boys, John Conlee, and others. Sonny was named Songwriter of the Year by the Nashville Songwriters Association in 1978, 1979, and 1980.
Jimmy Webb – Songwriter for “Wichita Lineman,” “Galveston,” “MacArthur Park,” and many more, including many non-country songs for artists such as Frank Sinatra, James Taylor, and R.E.M. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1990.
Kostas – Greek-born songwriter for Dwight Yoakam, George Strait, Travis Tritt, The Dixie Chicks, Marty Stuart, and many more.
John Prine
Jerry Jeff Walker
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January 8, 2026 @ 8:59 am
Dwight Yoakam for the Modern era and The People’s Choice, Gene Watson, for the Veterans era.
January 8, 2026 @ 3:55 pm
Agreed
January 13, 2026 @ 8:04 pm
Do I hear something like the bottom of a barrel gettin scraped, or is that only JellyRoll lighting farts in his dressing room again?
AND THE WINNER IS…….!!!!!
January 18, 2026 @ 5:51 pm
For the sake of preventing the future generation of artists from sounding even worse, how ’bout we put all them names in an envelope and then light it up, on stage, ala Charlie Rich. ??
January 8, 2026 @ 9:20 am
I actually think you could consider Buffett for songwriter as well; when Dylan says you’re one of his favorite songwriters, that means something. And there’s a whole lot of straight hard country in his pre-Margaritaville stuff.
January 8, 2026 @ 9:41 am
Early Buffett was definitely a songwriter in the same vein as other performer/songwriters in the category. But I just don’t see him going in via the songwriting category, and not sure that would be fair to songwriters to see a billionaire who was selling out arenas go in like that. To me, Buffett should be a major contender in the Veterans Era, though I’m not sure they’re even considering him.
January 8, 2026 @ 4:01 pm
Songwriter category is clearly for persons whose fame and reputation is for being the writer behind the songs that fuel the success of country music’s top performing artists: Harlan Howard, Dallas Frazier, Bob McDill, Dean Dillon, etc. Buffet’s fame is as singer (who wrote his own songs) and a major touring artist. A snippet of a quote from Dylan–Who knows what the context was–does not alter that.
I’d like to see Buffet go in as an aritst, but the Country Music H-o-F–unlike the Rock and Roll one–does not seem to generally induct artists who are on the edges of the genre. It was like pulling teeth to get Ray Charles!!! inducted.
January 8, 2026 @ 7:35 pm
I don’t know about Buffet, at all.
I was a big fan back in the day and listened the hell out of “Living and Dying in 3/4 Time”, which had a country sound I wish he would have stuck more to, or at least come back to from time to time. I still don’t see him more worthy for major consideration (or even minor, really) than so many others listed in your article. I’d be curious to know more about your justification.
Does the Hall need to go to those hip and inclusive lengths to gain relevance? At what cost? To put Buffet in over someone like Gene Watson would cause the Hall to lose legitimacy, in my eyes. What good is relevance without legitimacy?
January 8, 2026 @ 9:26 am
Rodney Crowell should be ahead of a lot of those mentioned above based on his hits/recording career, songwriting, and producing. Although he doesn’t fit neatly into any of the increasingly dumb categories.
January 8, 2026 @ 9:44 am
I would not be surprised if Rodney Crowell goes in this year as a songwriter. It kind of knocks out two birds with one stone. No songwriter will grumble with him going in, but he also is someone who could go in as a Veteran’s Era performer. You induct him as a songwriter, then you can save your Veterans Era induction for someone who’s been waiting 30 years for it. Crowell is also still very active, which keeps him top of mind for voters.
January 8, 2026 @ 4:39 pm
I’d certainly be satisfied with Rodney Crowell (or any other artist who deserves consideration for achievements in multiple disciplines), but it still seems better to me if someone like him could officially be acknowledged by the hall of fame for ALL that they have contributed to country music.
January 8, 2026 @ 6:51 pm
PS I just learned, via this comment section that Dallas Frazier isn’t in the hall of fame. Shocking to me. Disgraceful to the hall to me, he died recently and could have been inducted in his lifetime.
Just another reason to get rid of the dumb (I’m being super thoughtful with the word choice) categories and allow for a world where Rodney and Dallas count get in the same year. Huzzah!
January 8, 2026 @ 9:09 pm
If Rodney Crowell is elected, it would be the third year in a row that a member of Emmylou Harris’s Hot Band became a CMHOF member. Of course, James Burton, Tony Brown, and Rodney Crowell all have extraordinary accomplishments in their own right, but having all three inducted in back-to-back years further demonstrates how special Emmylou’s original backing band was, and how impressive the quality of musicians and musical talent has been with which she has surrounded herself.
January 8, 2026 @ 9:35 am
If any CMA voting members are reading this… please put in The Stanley Brothers (both of them) not just Ralph individually. Carter and Ralph both deserve to go it.
January 8, 2026 @ 11:21 am
I agree Danny. Carter’s brilliance as a songwriter speaks for itself. He wrote a big chunk of what we regard as the definitive bluegrass canon. Ask Bob Dylan about the influence the elder brother had on him. I think a viable option would be to induct Ralph and the Brothers in a similar fashion to that of the Browns. After the family group split in the mid-1960s, Jim Ed established himself as a solid country solo act — he was jockeying for chart success alongside the likes of Buck, Merle, Waylon, Charley Pride, Jones, et. al. His solo career was decent with some highs and lows (including his duet success with Helen Cornelius) but it likely would not have been enough for solo HoF standing but worthy of some acknowledgement. To get around this and having JE possibly be a double inductee, the decision was made to induct the Browns and Jim Ed together. Given Ralph’s solo career was longer than the brothers’, this might be an option, especially since a dozen current Hall of Famers worked with and/or recorded with Ralph and were major fans.
January 8, 2026 @ 9:54 am
I’m surprised Curtly Putman isn’t in already. That feels like it should have happened decades ago.
January 8, 2026 @ 10:18 am
Definitely. He wrote Green Green Grass of Home, D-I-V-O-R-C-E, and He Stopped Loving Her Today. That alone should have been plenty to get him inducted.
January 8, 2026 @ 8:36 pm
Agreed. I read the post and thought, “He’s not in there already?” the same way I thought when Cowboy Jack Clement was elected.
January 11, 2026 @ 12:50 am
Agreed. If Bobby Braddock–Curly’s co-writer on “He Stopped Loving Her Today” and “D-I-V-O-R-C-E”–is in the hall of fame, it feels like Curly should be in there too. And as well as the classic songs he co-wrote with Bobby, Curly also wrote “Green, Green Grass of Home” by himself.
January 8, 2026 @ 10:12 am
Clint Black and Johnny Horton are the only acceptable options.
January 8, 2026 @ 10:15 am
Honestly, there’s a huge songwriters backlog (maybe more so than performers) that there’s a bunch of people I’d be perfectly happy to see get in. With Don Schlitz already being in it feels like Paul Overstreet will be joining him shortly and deservedly so.
Also, Trigger, you still have June Carter listed as a potential inductee for the veterans era.
January 8, 2026 @ 10:47 am
It seems beyond ridiculous that Eddie Rabbitt isn’t already in, and doesn’t even seem to be in consideration. There was no one bigger for a decade leading up to the class of ‘89.
January 8, 2026 @ 8:45 pm
Agreed. It feels like Eddie was wickedly popular but for whatever reason, wasn’t respected in the same fashion. He was a good-looking dude from Jersey, but he was far from being a lightweight, pretty boy. He wrote most of hits to boot.
Eddie had a lot of terrific singles that weren’t just clones of one another. “Rainy Night” isn’t anything like “Driving my Life Away” or “Suspicions” punctuated by a damned flute solo. All of them are bangers.
January 9, 2026 @ 3:31 pm
And “Rocky Mountain Music”, which has the same opening riff as “I’d Love To Change The World” by Ten Years After.
January 9, 2026 @ 4:06 pm
Didn’t know that bit of trivia. Further proves how Eddie had a broad sonic pallate. Rocky Mountain Music was absolutely a country record.
In my opinion, he had a bucket of hits with a lot of really good records. Not a handful of quality tunes mixed in with other stuff that coasted in on momentum from other work.
His was a strange career – wicked chart success with a lot of quality work that became an afterthought in short order. He wasn’t off-putting or controversial. He was likeable and appealing enough for Miller brewing to use him in national advertising and he headlined in Vegas. His excellence seems to have been taken for granted for decades.
Give his his plaque in the HOF already.
January 8, 2026 @ 11:17 am
I would be annoyed if Johnny Paycheck got in before David Allan Coe. How do you induct the performer and ignore the artist who actually wrote the song? It’s not like Johnny Paycheck has a good reputation, so using that as the excuse to exclude DAC wouldn’t hold water in my opinion.
January 8, 2026 @ 3:14 pm
There’s more to both of those men’s careers than that one song. In Paycheck’s case, it’s a lot more, which is why he’s more deserving. I don’t think either one gets there, though, unless they create a category for the great characters of country music.
January 8, 2026 @ 5:40 pm
@Nato– You don’t need to worry about that. Neither Coe nor Paycheck are getting in. They have their merits–as do all of the artists and writers mentioned in all the comments above–but their extracurricular activities do in therr candacies from the get-go.
January 8, 2026 @ 5:44 pm
Rumor is that PayCheck has made it onto the final ballot in the Veterans Era before. I think there is at least a chance he gets in.
January 8, 2026 @ 8:07 pm
Johnny Paycheck was specifically mentioned in the article. That’s why I made the comment I did. But I totally agree that there is a long list of people ahead of both of them as far as being hall of fame worthy. Still stand by my point though. DAC is more deserving if it’s a race between the two of them.
January 10, 2026 @ 8:10 am
Nobody’s a bigger Paycheck fan than me, at least in terms of music. (Personal life, not so much) But it’s fair to mention that after his prison release, Paycheck was invited to be an Opry member and he gladly played it as often as he could, though his health was deteriorating. So, in many ways I do think the industry was accepting of him again. Though he lacked lots of hits, he was extremely popular.
January 9, 2026 @ 8:15 am
DAC is too outaw, redneck, politically incorrect for either the left or right and exhibits too much ASPD for Nashville to accept him.
January 9, 2026 @ 1:24 pm
And that’s probably why he’d be my first pick. And yes David, we will remember you.
January 8, 2026 @ 11:25 am
Having been a nice round 25 years since the last time it was done, this could be a good opportunity to do a mass induction in the backlog of Modern Era performers.
My pick for modern era would be Tim McGraw, Dwight Yoakam, or, ideally, a mass induction.
For veteran era, I’d love to see Earl Thomas Conley, however, it almost seems a bit unrealistic of a choice. I’m predicting Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Songwriter, I want to see either TVZ or JJW
January 8, 2026 @ 11:29 am
Clint or Dwight or we riot
January 8, 2026 @ 11:41 am
I can’t believe Ralph Stanley isn’t in the HOF!
January 8, 2026 @ 11:43 am
Dwight
Vern
BJS
And lmao DAC isn’t going in, like ever, Little Susie Shallow Throat told me that… at least I think that’s what she said 😕
Still a fan, “The whole world called me Hank” couldn’t be better delivered, even if Santa was real and brought it in the sleigh.
January 9, 2026 @ 3:34 pm
“It’s enough to make a man throw up…..” will probably keep DAC out of the Hall of Fame forever.
January 8, 2026 @ 11:59 am
Dwight Yoakam would be high on my list. I would also be more than happy if it went to Clint Black or Travis Tritt. For the veterans, my first choice would be Gene Watson who is a great country singer, followed by NGDB.
January 8, 2026 @ 12:01 pm
Every time this comes around, I forget that Johnny Horton isn’t already inducted. It’s crazy to me that so many of the people I associated with the 2000s country (regardless of when their careers technically started) and coming up for eligibility. I like a lot of them, but I’m afraid that once people like Keith Urban and Rascal Flatts start getting serious consideration, that might negatively affect the Veterans era somehow. Maddox Brothers & Rose should probably have gone in before June Carter.
January 8, 2026 @ 12:51 pm
Tyler Chidlers
Biting List
January 8, 2026 @ 1:06 pm
Are you forgetting the monster on the hill being eligible this year? Ms. Swift herself.
January 8, 2026 @ 1:52 pm
Debut album released in October 2006. Is that too late in the year for her to be eligible this year? I know there are arcane rules that apply to the various awards, not sure about the Hall of Fame. Seems to me Trigger would have included Taylor if she was qualified, far too big a name to ignore.
January 8, 2026 @ 3:03 pm
I don’t believe Taylor Swift would be considered eligible this year because the ballots get sent out early in the year and she wouldn’t reach the 20 year mark until later in the year at the earliest. And even then, it’s not necessarily when your debut album was released, but when you first reached “prominence.”
Even if she was eligible, I wouldn’t consider Taylor Swift is legitimate contender for about a decade at least. Too much of a backlog. But she did plop $4 million on the table of the Hall of Fame when she left town. I’m sure that investment will pay off at some point in the future.
January 9, 2026 @ 9:25 am
Burn the place down if Swift is inducted.
January 9, 2026 @ 3:36 pm
Before or after she buys the place?
January 8, 2026 @ 3:01 pm
I really hope Shania Twain isn’t inevitable. I’d be much more comfortable with McGraw, who started out with the stomach-turning “Indian Outlaw” but grew on me over the years with some of the songs you mentioned, along with “Just to See You Smile” and “My Old Friend.” I’d really like to see Alison Krauss selected, but I think this is Tim’s year.
Vern Gosdin is my pick for Veterans, Max D. Barnes for Songwriters. I have the sneaking suspicion that Overstreet is going to get that second one, though,
January 9, 2026 @ 6:36 am
Indian Outlaw is hilarious considering he turned out to be rather liberal IRL. But I have no negativity toward that song. It is arguably something that Johnny Horton or Lefty Frizzell could have released three or four decades earlier.
January 9, 2026 @ 9:27 am
I ran into a McGraw co-authored book on American music. It looked interesting until I flipped through it and saw his case of White guilt bleeding through the pages.
January 10, 2026 @ 2:46 am
I wouldn’t have a problem with McGraw either. But please for the love of God not Shania.
January 12, 2026 @ 6:03 pm
IMHO, Shania and Tim are both inevitable, even though I don’t particularly care for either of them. Also in my opinion, Dwight and Clint Black got shafted last year seeing Mr. No Shirt, No Shoes get the nod. He was inevitable but don’t induct him before Dwight and Clint.
Dwight has been a great recording artist who kept the Bakersfield sound alive as well as becoming a legit actor. Clint has done a great job hosting Talking in Circles this decade along with touring.
January 13, 2026 @ 9:53 am
Tim also had the most played song on country radio for the 00’s decade with “something like that” although it was released in ’99. Keith Urban “Somebody Like You” is the most played in the decade that was released in that timeframe.
January 8, 2026 @ 3:05 pm
I’d vote Dwight Yoakam and Gene Watson.
I do think Eddie Rabbit should get in someway, somehow. He’d be justified as a songwriter since he wrote a lot of his own hits and wrote Elvis’s best country song.
There should be a bluegrass/roots category (lane) too. Ralph Stanley/The Stanley Bros. deserve recognition.
January 8, 2026 @ 3:19 pm
Put Shel Silverstein in if for no other reason than “Long Time Ago ” by Waylon
January 8, 2026 @ 3:32 pm
Dwight Yoakam should be an absolute shoe in. Clint Black should get in.
Basically most of the other people on this list should take the stance that they would dribble a basketball through a minefield just to hear John Hartford through a walkie-talkie.
January 8, 2026 @ 4:12 pm
Dwight Yoakam
Maddox Bros & Rose
Rodney Crowell
January 8, 2026 @ 4:50 pm
I’m 100% with you on all three. Regarding Dwight though, even under the best of circumstances I don’t think he’ll get in for quite a while, too much of a Nashville outsider.
January 8, 2026 @ 8:48 pm
If it remains just three inductees, I’d be very happy with all of these three. We’re either like-minded or similarly afflicted.
January 8, 2026 @ 4:45 pm
Repeating myself from last year, but…Porter and Dolly . 100% deserved and Dolly is kinda famous, would also garner media and fan attention.
January 8, 2026 @ 4:58 pm
Porter and Dolly are both in.
January 8, 2026 @ 5:02 pm
Once. They should be in twice each (second time as a duo).
But I guess we could start by getting Rose Maddox in at least once.
I’m not saying Porter and Dolly are at the top of my list, just that they deserve it and should be seriously considered every year until they’re in,
January 11, 2026 @ 10:53 am
Are Waylon and Willie in as a duo? Conway and Loretta? How would you feel about a separate induction as a solo artist for Wynonna Judd instead of one of the solo artists from her era mentioned in this article?
Unless it changes its restrictive “one per year” policy, the Hall would just be slowing down the process for other deserving artists to get in even more if it were to start handing out duplicate membership for singers already in the Hall just because they happened to have hits as a duo.
January 11, 2026 @ 10:56 am
Duos made of solo artists are not going in, probably ever. Brooks & Dunn, Montgomery Gentry, etc., okay. But they’re not going to induct people twice in this environment.
January 12, 2026 @ 5:59 pm
I don’t care if it isn’t happening any time soon and don’t wanna hear about any other examples of duos who are already in as solo artists. Porter and Dolly are far away in my opinion the greatest duo of their kind not in the hall of fame…hence why I gave my opinion.
January 8, 2026 @ 4:59 pm
I’m sure it’s not considered, but I wish they would look at the ages of some of the folks who have been on the bubble the last few years. Gene Watson, Leroy Van Dyke, Asleep at the Wheel, the Bellamy Brothers, Ann Murrey. They’re not getting any younger. We know there is a giant back log of country stars who have passed on, who should have been in the hall years ago. But will another few years till their inductions matter at this point?
I was watching on YouTube last night a video of CMHOF inductees of the past. In the 70’s they had a deceased artist category. Maybe that’s the bulk induction they should do.
January 8, 2026 @ 5:26 pm
Could be yoakam, could be clint. My personal pick would be Jeremy Pinnell.
January 8, 2026 @ 5:40 pm
I’d kinda like to see Horton and Yoakam go in together just because Dwight got his start with Honky Tonk Ma
January 8, 2026 @ 6:46 pm
Dwight and the Stanleys would be an even better set. Dwight wrote “Miner’s Prayer” with Ralph in mind and the two were friends and collaborators.
January 8, 2026 @ 5:50 pm
I don’t see how they can induct Chesney and not McGraw very soon after. I’d bet money on it.
Veterans, they inducted June Carter Cash last year so risky to bet on another woman, but I’m going with Crystal Gayle.
Songwriter Rodney Crowell, possibly a Rodney/Rosanne double because who wouldn’t want that?
January 8, 2026 @ 6:00 pm
Modern Era: Clint Black, Trisha Yearwood, Dwight Yoakam
Veteran Era: Rosanne Cash, Gatlins, Linda Ronstadt
Songwriter: Dallas Frazier, Kostas, Guy Clark
January 8, 2026 @ 6:35 pm
Wait wait wait…Dallas Frazier isn’t in already?
I’m kinda shocked. As much as I love Maddox Brothers and Rose, Johnny Paycheck, etc…that to me seems to be the biggest oversight to rally around.
And to think he just passed away a within the past couple years. For shame.
January 8, 2026 @ 6:30 pm
There are way too many deserving artists that are long overdue getting in. I’d love to see Ricky Van Shelton get mentioned at some point.
January 9, 2026 @ 9:47 am
Ricky Van Shelton has the same problem that Clint Black has: a disappearing act. Only difference is that he dropped off the map going on 20+ years ago, no touring or new music, whereas Clint was gone a relatively short three and has played shows pretty consistently. Ricky was pretty big in his day, but he’s been so successful at stepping away that he’s mostly forgotten. Even his website (which was still up not too long ago) looks like it came straight out of the ‘90s.
January 8, 2026 @ 6:58 pm
Lot of big names there for sure. That said looking at who is omitted and from my recollections visiting, despite Country being a true tapestry of genres, from Roots, to Country Blues to Folk to Americanna to swing based all over the country (and into canada) the CMA hall of fame is mostly dedicated to honoring those who play nicest in the Nashville Machine, plus a few of the titans of Austin and Bakersfield, etc that would be ridiculous to omit.
All this leading to I dont see this being the year that the tightly controlled conservative Nashville machine recognizes the Dixie Chicks or even acknowledges it was wrong, given all thats happening right now in the world.
January 8, 2026 @ 7:50 pm
I see lots of people that should already be be in, stanley brothers, wilburn brothers, johnny horton, eddie rabbit,joe diffie,nitty gritty dirt band. People say it makes it more prestigious and meaningful by keeping numbers low but no it just makes it all a sham. I can find reasons all the people i listed shouldnt be in but i can find more for some that are already in. Im not saying some of those in shouldnt be in, im just saying its sad these others arent in as well. Instead of celebrating being the hall of the snobby few, make it be the hall of the many performers who were someones radio hero . Trust me putting eddie rabbitt or johnny horton in isnt going to make hank williams or merle haggard less great.
January 8, 2026 @ 9:00 pm
I still stand by the idea they need to broaden the induction categories to include nominations from what I like to call the pioneer category. Given the 20 year gap between the modern and veteran eras, this one could be 60 years since rising to national prominence. Effectively anyone prior to 1966. This would allow for additional nominations to clear out the backlog of well deserving performers.
January 8, 2026 @ 9:29 pm
You think Townes will ever get in under any category? Kinda hard to place him both in terms of which lane he’s in and when he reached “national prominence.”
January 8, 2026 @ 9:47 pm
The only way Townes Van Zandt gets in is via the Songwriting category that comes up every three years. Same goes for performer/songwriters like Billy Joe Shaver, Guy Clark, Lucinda Williams, John Prine, Jerry Jeff Walker, etc. I think the Hall of Fame needs to have a performer/songwriter category, and maybe induct one every three years, and leave the songwriter category for pure songwriters. That might be the only way these performing songwriters get in.
January 9, 2026 @ 9:52 am
It was old be great if the Hall pulled something of a technicality for Billy Joe and inducted “Shaver” so Eddy could get in as well (though I don’t know how pressing a concern that would be these days). Mickey Newbury should absolutely get in at some point, but has the same issue a lot of the forgotten figures have. The sheer amount of people who have recorded his songs is staggering, and he didn’t get name-dropped by Waylon for no reason.
January 8, 2026 @ 10:30 pm
I’m curious on your thoughts about the chances of some of the groups of the late ’80s/early-mid ’90s, especially with the three biggest groups (Alabama, Statler Brothers and Oak Ridge Boys) safely enshrined. What are the odds of Shenandoah, Diamond Rio and/or Lonestar getting inducted at some point? Sawyer Brown? Any others that will be in or have a chance?
On a somewhat similar note, do you see an unofficial minimum bar on career accomplishments for induction, and if so, approximately where is that bar? I read in another of your articles that John Michael Montgomery is a no-brainer. What about someone like Tracy Byrd or (gulp) Billy Ray Cyrus?
January 8, 2026 @ 11:37 pm
I think that for Shenandoah, Diamond Rio and/or Lonestar to get in, you’d have to see a lot of other names get in first. All three had their runs, but they also feel like creatures of their time as opposed to putting together long, legacy runs.
I don’t really know if there’s a minimum bar when you have folks like Marty Stuart and Kris Kristofferson getting in even though they never really had any big hits. The Hall of Fame is more like a feel than a stats competition. You can be highly revered and influential and get in, or you can be a superstar like Shania Twain, and still not be in because there wasn’t much substance behind your career.
Just like the bands, Tracy Byrd would have to see a lot more folks get in before you start seeing his name. Billy Ray would be really tough. Fair or not, he’s seen as a one hit wonder to many.
January 9, 2026 @ 5:49 am
No mention of Sawyer Brown and 40 + years .
January 9, 2026 @ 8:10 am
The Country Music HOF has not inducted Townes Van Zandt. This fact alone is ‘peering through the looking glass’ – no one should clamor to be in an organization that gets it that wrong. Sorry, but the guy could be considered the greatest American song writer the last half of the last Century. Future society could literally study his songs and understand what much of life was like in the old, middle and modern 1900’s America. Buy hey, he performed on stage poorly. Sheesh.
January 9, 2026 @ 11:26 am
Oh, bosh.
Townes Van Zandt wrote maybe three songs that achieved any significance in mainstream country music. And, truth-be-told, his most prominent song, “Pancho and Lefty,” is something of a lyrical mess, though Willie did a masterful job with it. [Hag did a nice job, too, though it sounds like he and Willie weren’t in the same time zone when it was tacked on.]
The CM HoF inducts so few songwriters that there’s no way that Van Zandt should be going in ahead of writers like Dallas Frazier, Curley Putman, Sanger D. Shafer, Sonny Throckmorton Jimmy Webb, et al, who wrote that put country music’s top recording artists into the Hall of Fame. Certainly, Rodney Crowell and Guy Clark wrote more great songs, but they and a few others deserve to go in under a category for writer performers, as they are accomplished performers, in their own right.
January 9, 2026 @ 1:18 pm
Agree with Lucky. Townes was great in his own way, but he had little impact on the mainstream of Country music at the time. He was on the fringes and while he was a gifted songwriter, so many other songwriters have written bedrock hits that had major impact on the industry. Townes was INFLUENTIAL for sure, and perhaps on that basis, one day he could get in theoretically. But certainly not before a lot of others. (Lucky, above has a decent short list)
January 9, 2026 @ 8:36 am
I think it’s ludicrous that they don’t induct at least one songwriter or musician a year. The roster of people who aren’t in is astounding.
January 9, 2026 @ 8:39 am
*songwriter AND musician
January 9, 2026 @ 9:13 am
I am pulling, as I have been for the last two years, for Martina in the Modern Era. Given the backlog in the Veteran category, she will likely never get in that way.
January 9, 2026 @ 12:54 pm
A two for one “ladies night” that caught Jeannie Seeley and Martina would make my world spin a lot closer to right, for real.
January 9, 2026 @ 10:25 am
It is terrifying to me that we’re at the point where Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood are now HOF eligible. I think both will get in eventually (and probably deserve to), but it just makes me realize how old I am since I remember them both being new artists!
I’ll continue banging the Wanda Jackson drum until she finally gets inducted. Obviously her career wasn’t on the same level as Elvis’ was, but I think she needs to be seriously considered for being one of the only major women to have any success in rockabilly. Plus there’s all her country and gospel hits and her unmistakably raspy voice.
Other favourites for me are Dwight Yoakam, Alison Krauss, Linda Ronstadt, Rodney Crowell, Lucinda Williams, and Crystal Gayle. Again, it seems a bit too early for Tim McGraw, but I would like to see it. I have no beef with Shania getting in, those three albums from 1995 to 2002 were full of bangers.
January 9, 2026 @ 10:51 am
Trigger,
There have been some changes to the Veterans Era Artist category criteria, An artist now becomes eligible in the Veterans category 45 years after first achieving national prominence, not 40 years. so Dwight Yoakam still has 5 more years left in the Modern category until 2031. So please fix it ASAP. Thank You.
What do you think?.
January 9, 2026 @ 10:23 pm
I guess they just changed that this year. Wasn’t it still 40 last year? Not sure what I think about it. I guess that gives artists like Dwight Yoakam a few more years to get in via the Modern Era, but I’m not sure it really solves any fundamental issues with the backlog. Maybe the idea is giving five more to Modern Era nominees means less of each time an candidate goes from Modern to Veteran, getting in almost immediately.
January 9, 2026 @ 10:27 pm
Trigger,
No, They changed it in 2024 (The year that John Anderson and Toby Keith were elected).
What do you think?.
January 9, 2026 @ 12:26 pm
They REALLY need to do a mass induction at this point. There are way too many people waiting already. Paisley, Lambert, and Underwood all deserve to be honored, but it will be years for them. The fact that Dwight and Clint have been waiting so long is an embarrassment.
And don’t even get me started on Steve Wariner. Really burns me up that Chesney got in before him and so many other worthy candidates.
January 9, 2026 @ 5:40 pm
I have always maintained that all the true stalwarts of the genre that have not gotten in yet need to be recognized in what I would call the Pioneer/Legacy category, because there are so many of them that contributed to the growth of country music, especially in the years between the end of World War II and the beginning of the rock and roll era in the 1950’s. Too many of them are no longer alive, so I think it’s their time once and for all.
I will still advocate for Linda Ronstadt for induction on the basis of how enormously influential she has been on her fellow female singers over the last fifty-plus years, and how many albums she has sold (between seventy and one hundred million). I don’t know that it will happen while she is still alive (she is, after all, no longer in the best of health and she is nearing 80), but there are many female artists out there who’d love to see her get in, including Linda’s TRIO pals Dolly and Emmylou, and Trisha Yearwood.
January 9, 2026 @ 7:14 pm
Yep. Ronstadt transcends genres, sort of like Elvis. Country music is where she got her start and she never totally left it during her run of commercial success. Regardless of what genre she tackled, it was all high quality music and will continue to get airplay for decades to come.
January 10, 2026 @ 1:40 pm
The selection process & selections in recent years raise question marks.
Let’s take a look at some numbers via Joel Whitburn’s Top Country Singles (1944 to 2001). Three artists who are not in the Hall were bumped from the previous edition’s top 50 (Mickey Gilley, Lynn Anderson & Eddie Rabbitt). Three artists who are not in the Hall were in the top 50 – Crystal Gayle, Steve Wariner & David Houston. (The rest of the top 50 from the 1944 to 1997 and the 1944 to 2001 editions are in.)
As for Steve Wariner, his first top ten hit “Your Memory” debuted on the Top Country Singles Chart on November 15, 1980 so he might be considered to be a veteran era candidate. (Candidates become eligible for the veteran’s era category forty-five years after they first achieved national prominence.)
As for Eddie Rabbitt, he had 32 consecutive top 10 hits between 1976 & 1988 which was the 11th longest run at the time when it ended.
Both Rabbitt & Wariner had a hand in writing multiple #1 hits which they recorded..
Of the six, Rabbitt & Wariner appear to have the strongest cases.
In a Vintage Guitar magazine interview from a few years back, Marty Stuart was asked who he would like to see in the Hall & replied “How about the Maddox Brothers and Rose, Johnny Horton, the Stanley Brothers, the Osborne Brothers, Jimmy Martin, Tanya Tucker, John Anderson, Dwight Yoakam, Dallas Frazier, Lloyd Green, Ralph Mooney, and Tommy Jackson for starters.” Anderson and Tucker entered the Hall after the interview was published.
As for the veteran’s era, my pick would be either the Maddox Brothers & Rose or Johnny Horton.
As for the songwriter, my pick would be Dallas Frazier.
As for the modern era, my pick would be Dwight Yoakam.
January 10, 2026 @ 3:25 pm
Can’t disagree with anything you say: The numbers are the numbers–that’s pretty factual. I’m not familiar with the Maddox Brothers & Rose (apart frm them being on the H-o-F radar in all of the discussions for the past 5 years) but Horton is a unique character with an instantly recognizable voice–and a throwback to the era when American History was popular and worth celebrating, for it’s own sake.
Dwight Yoakam is great and also deserves kudos for reviving interest in the prior era stars: (the aforementiond) Horton and also Buck Owens: Recorded the #1 duet “Bakersfield” and also prompted Owens to launch a brief comeback–which gave is a Buck and Ringo duet and cool video on “Act Naturally.”
January 10, 2026 @ 5:29 pm
My predictions for the 2026 Hall of Fame inductees are:
Veterans Era: Lynn Anderson, Johnny Paycheck, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band or Vern Gosdin (This one is up in the air, I’m leaning towards either Lynn, Paycheck or the Dirt Band).
Modern Era: Tim McGraw (I really think that it’s finally his time following the inductions of Toby Keith and Kenny Chesney the last two years).
Songwriter: Dallas Frazier or Curly Putman (If it’s anyone other than two, I’ll be shocked).
January 11, 2026 @ 11:42 am
I will never understand, never, why Stonewall Jackson isn’t in the Hall of Fame. And the Maddox Bros. & Rose should be also.
January 13, 2026 @ 10:58 am
Thank you for mentioning Eddie Rabbitt. I agree that he is wildly overlooked as a commercial powerhouse in the 70s/80s. Plus, he had the best (and maybe only?) disco country album of all time in Loveline – which, all joking aside, is a fantastic album. Jewelry Store and It’s Always Like the First Time are both incredible tracks, if you haven’t heard then.
January 14, 2026 @ 4:24 pm
I think it should be Wendy Holcombe and anyone who really knows their country music would probably agree
January 17, 2026 @ 8:24 am
True country music fans should know the Wendy Holcombe story.
January 20, 2026 @ 11:26 pm
I think Modern is probably either Tim or Dwight. Veteran seems a lot more difficult to figure out: could be Nitty Gritty, Vern, Maddox or Lynn. Or someone else, but I feel like those might be the top 4.