Country Music Hall Of Fame and Museum

This weekend, the Museum featured classically trained violist Kristin Wilkinson for its in-depth interview series "Nashville Cats." The series showcases musicians and session singers who have played important roles in support of artists in either the recording studio or on concert tours. The program was moderated by Museum writer-editor Jon Freeman and was accompanied by vintage photos, film, and recordings. Following the interview, Jake Kiszka, Bill Miller, and Larry Paxton joined Wilkinson onstage for a brief performance. Wilkinson is one of Nashville’s most in-demand string arrangers. She has accumulated hundreds of high-profile credits on country, rock, and pop projects since the 1980s. As an arranger, Wilkinson has contributed to recordings with a wide swath of musicians, including Kenny Chesney, Steve Earle, Trisha Yearwood, and Country Music Hall of Fame member Willie Nelson. For live performances, she has worked with artists such as Brandi Carlile, Regina Spektor and Chris Stapleton. In 2024, she collaborated with Greta Van Fleet to arrange the overture for the band’s world tour. Country Music Hall of Fame member Marty Stuart has long worked with Wilkinson, employing her to arrange strings on his albums and for special events, including his 2019 residency at the Museum. She earned a Golden Globe nomination for composing the score to the film "All the Pretty Horses" (2000) alongside Stuart and Larry Paxton. Wilkinson has also done an extensive amount of work for television, including arrangements for the Country Music Association Awards, the annual CMA Country Christmas television special, and CMT’s Artists of the Year events.   The program was filmed and will premiere at a later date as part of the Museum’s "Live at the Hall" series.

Follow the trail of the singing cowboy and step inside the circle of outsiders who helped shape the modern country sound with these two titles from CMF Press—available in person at The Museum Store and online. A singing cowboy himself, Ranger Doug Green has written “Singing in the Saddle: The History of the Singing Cowboy,” which traces the history of America’s musical heroes from the early days of vaudeville and radio through the heyday of movie westerns to the current revival. With “In-Law Country: How Emmylou Harris, Rosanne Cash, and Their Circle Fashioned a New Kind of Country Music, 1968-1985,” Geoffrey Himes explores a previously unnamed movement—In-Law Country. Weaving together biography and music analysis, Himes shows how the movement of country outsiders—like Harris, Cash, Rodney Crowell, Ricky Skaggs, Guy Clark—who became country insiders, deeply influenced the modern country sound.

This weekend, the Museum hosted a conversation and performance that explored the creation of "Shucked" and its success ahead of the musical’s stop at Nashville’s Tennessee Performing Arts Center. The program included a panel discussion with Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally, who wrote the musical’s lyrics and music, producer Mike Bosner, and Robert Horn, who wrote the musical’s book. Clark and McAnally also performed.

This weekend, the Museum hosted a concert and conversation with Rosie Flores. The program was led by the Museum’s Associate Director of Editorial Michael McCall.   Rosie Flores is a 2024 National Heritage Fellow, an honor recognizing her six decades of devotion to exploring and performing American roots-rock music and how it intersects with her Latina heritage. Born in San Antonio, Texas, Flores moved with her family to San Diego, California, where she began leading bands as a guitarist and singer while still in high school. A key member of the Los Angeles cowpunk scene in the 1980s, Flores led the bands Penelope’s Children and Rosie & the Screamers, joined the flamboyant Screamin’ Sirens, then signed with Reprise Records as a solo artist in 1987. Over the decades, she brought attention to rockabilly pioneers Wanda Jackson and Janis Martin while exploring Americana, blues, country, rockabilly, and Tejano music.   The program was offered in support of the exhibition "Western Edge: The Roots and Reverberations of Los Angeles Country-Rock," presented by City National Bank and made possible in part by the Academy of Country Music.

This weekend, the Museum featured songwriter Hillary Lindsey in a program for its in-depth interview series "Poets and Prophets." The series highlights songwriters who made significant contributions to country music. The program was moderated by Museum writer-editor Angela Stefano Zimmer and was accompanied by vintage photos, film, and recordings.   Lindsey grew up in Washington, Georgia, and arrived in Nashville in 1994 after enrolling at Belmont University. She signed her first song-publishing deal as a college senior and earned her first #1 song in 2002 with Martina McBride’s "Blessed." In 2007, she won her first of three Grammys for "Jesus, Take the Wheel," which is one of more than four dozen of Lindsey’s compositions recorded by Carrie Underwood. Lindsey’s songs have been recorded by Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, Michelle Branch, Florida Georgia Line, HARDY, Parker McCollum, Tim McGraw, Kacey Musgraves, Rascal Flatts, Taylor Swift, and Keith Urban, among others. She wrote songs performed on the television drama "Nashville" and in the 2018 film "A Star Is Born" starring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. Lindsey also worked with Lady Gaga on the pop star’s 2016 album, "Joanne," writing four songs and singing background vocals.

For over thirty years, the "Nashville Scene" has compiled its annual Best of Nashville issue, a comprehensive list of the city's best offerings, as voted by its residents through readers' choice polls as well as the publication's writers. Both the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and Hatch Show Print are honored to be included in this year's issue. Thank you to all who participated. Discover the best of Nashville for yourself. Plan your visit: https://lnkd.in/e_heCGS4

The Museum was awarded the prestigious National Medal of Arts by President Joe Biden during a special ceremony at the White House yesterday. Established by Congress in 1984, the Medal is the highest award given to artists and arts institutions by the United States government. It is awarded to individuals or groups who are “deserving of special recognition by reason of their outstanding contributions to the excellence, growth, support and availability of the arts in the United States.” The ceremony recognized 20 National Medal of Arts recipients representing the past two years. Primarily awarded to individuals, the Museum was the only institution included among the new recipients. Kyle Young, chief executive officer of the Museum, accepted the Medal on behalf of the institution. Young has worked at the Museum for more than 45 years, leading its move from Nashville’s Music Row to the city’s downtown in 2001 and major expansion in 2014. “Our Museum and country music itself were both born of humble beginnings — an origin that made it common for many to dismiss the artform or any careful study of it,” said Young. “The National Medal of Arts is a treasured validation of our longtime commitment to country music’s cultural significance, even when our work was not considered a serious endeavor. For more than a century, this music has given voice to the thoughts, feelings, hardships, triumphs and values of our country’s people. This prestigious recognition, to me, says that our institution is on the right track — collecting, studying and cherishing country music while holding to a broad approach including all forms of American vernacular music in its narrative. The institution’s achievements have not come without a fair share of challenges and risks, but resilience was born out of humble beginnings — for both the music and its Museum. And the story is still being written. With country music now recognized and received globally, our role has not changed. We will continue to preserve and interpret its past, present and future, while holding it carefully in the public trust for future generations.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/g6j4sS2c

This weekend, the Museum hosted a free concert and conversation that looked at the evolution of the city’s Black music scene through the point of view of musicians from different generations. The program, “Night Train to Lovenoise: A Generational Journey of Black Music in Nashville,” included a panel discussion with music journalist and Nashville Public Radio’s “Making Noise" series host Jewly Hight; Lovenoise founder Eric Holt, JD; and musicians Frank Howard, Regina McCrary, Joey Richey and Bryant Taylorr. Following the conversation, Levert Allison, Ca$h K, William Davenport, Howard, the McCrary Sisters and Richey performed with a house band led by Elijah “DD” Holt. The program was presented in support of the exhibition "Night Train to Nashville: Music City Rhythm & Blues Revisited" and in partnership with Lovenoise and the National Museum of African American Music, with support from WNXP.

Interested in becoming a paid intern at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum? Wednesday, October 16, at 12:30PM CT, join the Museum's McKayla Kinnaird (Internship Programs Manager) for a virtual information session. Learn about available internship opportunities for spring 2025, important dates and application deadlines, and the application process and criteria used in evaluation. As a paid intern, enjoy benefits such as free 24/7 downtown parking or a WeGo bus pass; complimentary admission to the Museum; free or discounted entry to local attractions like the Frist Art Museum, the National Museum of African American Music, and Dollywood; discounts at Museum stores and restaurants; and more. Spring 2025 internship areas include: ➡️ Events ➡️ Marketing ➡️ Museum Education ➡️ Operations and Sustainability ➡️ Public Programs ➡️ Public Relations Register for the session today: https://lnkd.in/e39E8CXR

The Museum has named Jay Orr and Jody Williams as the newest initiates to the Museum’s Circle Guard in recognition of their significant contributions to the institution. Country Music Hall of Fame member Emmylou Harris announced the news during an intimate luncheon yesterday on the Museum’s CMA Theater stage. Orr is a former senior leader, editor, and music historian of the Museum who served across nearly three decades, and Williams, a music publisher, is a longtime member of the Museum’s Board of Officers and Trustees and currently serves as Board chair.   The Circle Guard unites and celebrates individuals whose highest-level contributions of time, talent, and treasure to the Museum safeguard the integrity of country music and make it accessible to a global audience. The Circle Guard recognition ranks as the grandest distinction afforded those benefactors who exhibit an unwavering commitment to the Museum and its educational mission. This is the fourth year in which the Circle Guard’s ranks have expanded since the designation was introduced by Circle Guard Founder Steve Turner in 2018.   Read more at: https://lnkd.in/gh78BYF2