How Nashville celebration will honor country

Bill Anderson, Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Combs, Barbara Mandrell, Brad Paisley discuss the power of Opry’s century of country music influence before NBC-aired 100th anniversary special.

• The Grand Ole Opry will celebrate its 100th anniversary with a special NBC broadcast on March 19, featuring country music legends and contemporary stars.
• The Opry has a rich history, having been broadcast from the Ryman Auditorium from 1943 to 1974 and featuring a diverse range of country music artists.
• The Opry continues to evolve and embrace new generations of artists while staying true to its country music roots.

The Grand Ole Opry will celebrate its centennial anniversary Wednesday evening with a star-studded lineup of performers including host Blake Shelton, members Reba McEntire and Carrie Underwood and new stars Jelly Roll and Post Malone.

Debuts, legendary tributes and surprise guests will highlight the broadcast live on NBC and Peacock from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. CT.

Tickets for the live event at the Grand Ole Opry House are available via https://www.opry.com/show/2025-03-19-opry-100-a-live-celebration-at-7-pm.

When chronicling the history and staying power of the Grand Ole Opry’s 100 years of leadership in country music and global popular culture, look to the Ryman Auditorium. The “Mother Church of Country Music” served as the legendary radio and television program’s home from 1943 to 1974.

On a recent hectic evening at the Ryman, “Whisperin'” Bill Anderson, 87, and Barbara Mandrell, 76, stand under bright lights upstairs. Pre-taped performances by Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Combs and Brad Paisley are taking place onstage downstairs.

As they embrace, Anderson and Mandrell laugh, recognizing how vital the program and venue have been to their growth and development as artists and people. Uniquely, both performers became members of its cast within about a decade of becoming Opry fans by tuning in to 650 WSM radio.

“You have to marvel at the variety of entertainers who have been Opry members or performers on the Opry stage,” Mandrel said. “(Since the program’s inception), each generation of popular artists all have a special tie to how the Opry has celebrated the art of live entertainment.”

The Opry’s country-inspired membership casts a broad net

Inducted in 1961, “Whisperin'” Bill Anderson is the Opry’s oldest living member.

He may also be one of the most vocal about the breadth and scope of the artists and stylings that the Opry must always embrace in its membership.

From Connie Smith’s induction in 1965, Steve Wariner’s 1996 induction and Jamey Johnson’s 2022 welcome, he has a long history of advocacy for preserving country music’s progressive edge in the Opry House.

“I probably shouldn’t have stuck my nose in the Opry leadership’s business as far as who gets inducted as much as I have. However, regardless of how they may look or if they could ruin what the Opry is all about (the institution should always reflect members who have passion and pride for country music).

“I don’t like fences built around things because there are two kinds of music and performers — good and bad. The Opry has maintained a history of celebrating music’s best performers and performances,” Anderson adds.

Opry 100’s global appeal

“This special event has been a once-in-a-lifetime undertaking for us,” said the event’s executive producers, Baz Halpin, Mark Bracco and Linda Gierahn, in a joint statement.

Once-in-a-lifetime undertakings are not just limited to the Opry’s modern era — they also bookend the past two decades of the Opry’s history. In Nov. 2005, Brad Paisley joined fellow Opry members Trace Adkins, Little Jimmy Dickens, Vince Gill, Alan Jackson, Martina McBride, Charley Pride, Ricky Skaggs and Trisha Yearwood at New York City’s Carnegie Hall.

Later this year, the Opry will debut at London’s Royal Albert Hall.

In a venue primarily famed for ballet and opera performances, plus showcases of classical, pop and rock music, Paisley said the Opry will get a warm reception because of its preservation of country’s roots.

“The immediate gravitas that country music inspires in listeners is why it’s so quickly respected, even in places it’s not expected to travel,” Paisley said. “You go from feeling like you have to explain who you are, what you’re doing and what they’re hearing, to, at the Opry, playing a few songs that the crowd knows are specifically meant to entertain them.”

Brad Paisley’s Opry-influenced career success

Paisley, inducted in 2001, is maybe the best current member of the Grand Ole Opry to discuss the program’s value in being the backbone of the genre’s century of global appeal.

Becoming a member in 2001 allowed him to receive the wisdom of 1950s-era Opry members and Country Music Hall of Famers who still regularly graced the stage like Little Jimmy Dickens, George Jones, Porter Wagoner, 1960s-era inducted titans like Jim Ed Brown, Loretta Lynn, Jeannie Seely and the bluegrass-beloved Osborne Brothers.

A myriad of others, including Cajun-influenced performer Jimmy C. Newman, comedic singer-songwriter Johnny Russell and often Opry-featured performer Buck Owens, answered “a million questions” he had about the history and evolution of the genre.

“On any given night, you can imagine that I was joining in with some of those names having jam sessions after playing ‘Foggy Mountain Breakdown’ with their banjos, guitars and mandolins,” said Paisley, smiling.

The Opry’s modern era remains rooted in country’s history

“Because (digital culture and social media) have shrunk the world, more people than ever are excited about the fun and healthy growth of country music,” said Paisley.

Opry members Kelsea Ballerini and Luke Combs were back-to-back 2019 inductions.

Now both in their early 30s, the tandem has achieved nearly three dozen No. 1 or top-10 singles in the past decade.

Combs, now a globally touring artist and entrepreneur with his name adorning merchandise and a downtown Nashville honky-tonk, has gained the same appreciation as 100 years of barnstorming and chart-topping country stars for reliably appearing on the Grand Ole Opry’s stage regularly.

“I’ve reached a point in my career where I love performing live, but sometimes the road will wear me down. So it’s important to be able to when I’m at home and I have to scratch that performance itch, that I can call the Opry, pop in and still have a big crowd and cool historical platform to serve as an outlet,” Paisley said.

For Ballerini, she offers a statement highlighting how, fresh from her first time headlining New York City’s iconic Madison Square Garden, performing as an Opry member keeps her rooted in country music’s traditions.

“The Opry is a force that breathes a love for country music’s history,” Ballerini said.