Tune in Thursday, March 26 at 9pm/c as WSM remembers Kenny Rogers. The special tribute broadcast will air immediately following Opry Country Classics on 650 AM, WSMonline.com, and the WSM app.
Due to global events, country music fans can’t come to Nashville to see the Grand Ole Opry – so Circle and the Opry are bringing the Historic Saturday Night Opry to the globe with an acoustic version of the iconic show.
With a resilience based on the determination of its Opry members and other country music greats, the Grand Ole Opry will keep its traditions and music alive as it hosts its 4,916th consecutive Saturday night broadcast this Saturday, March 21 exclusively on Circle. Featuring artists include Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, Marty Stuart, and more.
Last week, amid the concerns of the COVID-19 virus, the Opry paused all shows with a live audience through April 4 but vowed to continue its nearly-100-year radio broadcast history. Nearly half a millionfans last Saturday were able to video stream or listen to Opry members Bill Anderson, Jeannie Seely, and Connie Smith, and others perform acoustically from the Opry Circle.
To watch this week’s show, tune in on Saturday, March 21 at 8 pm ET / 7 pm CT. If Circle is broadcast in your area, you can tune in on your digital antenna. Here’s how.
You can also watch live on the Circle website. The live video feed will be at the top of the homepage, so you can’t miss it!
You can also tune in on Facebook Live here and on YouTube here.
Fans around the world can also tune in to the broadcast on the Opry’s flagship radio home, 650 AM-WSM and several other outlets.
The circle will remain unbroken!
WSM is giving you the Most Country in Music City! Listen weekdays on WSM for 120 minutes of commercial-free music hosted by Mike Terry.
Request it here!
While the live Friday night Opry shows are paused, WSM is bringing you the Golden Era of the Opry each Friday at 7pm/c on 650 AM, WSMonline.com, or the WSM app! These special shows will feature classic Opry performances from the WSM archives from your favorite artists.
Stay tuned to WSM’s social media pages for announcements about what artist will be included in the show.
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| NASHVILLE, Tenn., January 8, 2020 – Circle, the new country music and lifestyle television network that went on the air January 1, has launched a three-hour live morning show that features WSM-AM’s popular Coffee, Country & Cody, hosted by Country Music Disc Jockey Hall of Fame Inductee and television personality Bill Cody.
Cody is also a regular announcer on the Grand Ole Opry. With Cody each weekday is his longtime show partner Charlie Mattos. They are joined by new entertainment correspondent Jo Smith, a Vanderbilt University graduate and former Sony recording artist. Cody and his team start every weekday off with great music—country, bluegrass, Americana, Opry cuts, live studio guests, the latest news, entertaining features, social media interaction, lively talk and some surprises. The inaugural TV broadcast featured Country Music Hall of Famer Vince Gill. “No better way to start the day than a cup of coffee and Bill Cody,” said Drew Reifenberger, Circle general manager. “Amazing things happen on that show – from artists being asked to sign to a label to hearing one of their songs on the radio for the first time – and you never know who’s going to show up. Now, we’re able to capture some of those magical moments and share them with even more country fans on-air and through social. Artists universally love Bill, and there’s no one better to do this show.” Circle is broadcast in markets covering more than 50 percent of U.S. TV households via an over-the-air digital multicast network and cable television providers. Circle’s affiliates include Gray Television stations across 56 markets throughout the country as well as on stations in markets such as New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Tampa and Detroit through a separate distribution agreement with CBS Television Stations. More distribution deals and announcements will be forthcoming. For an updated listing of Circle’s broadcast affiliates and more information about availability in your market, please visit: www.circleallaccess.com. Circle expects to launch a streaming premium service in Spring 2020. Circle features original programming centered around artists and their music; hobbies; outdoor and offstage adventures; food; family; and friends. Circle will also offer entertainment news, documentaries and movies along with licensed programming and archival content. Circle is also bringing back Hee Haw, the classic and long-running music and comedy sketch show, which aired from 1971 – 1993 and 1996 -1997 and featured hosts Buck Owens and Roy Clark along with country music artists like Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard. For a preview of shows launching on Circle, click HERE. Circle is a partnership between Opry Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. (NYSE: RHP), and Gray Television, Inc. (NYSE: GTN). For more details and to find out if Circle is available in your market, please visit www.CircleAllAccess.com. |
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GRAND OLE OPRY HOUSE TO HOST EXCLUSIVE DOLLY PARTON EXHIBIT “Dolly: My Opry Memories”
Exhibit To Run September 3 – October 31
in Celebration of Dolly Parton’s 50th Opry Anniversary
Parton Will Perform on Two Sold-Out Opry Shows Oct. 12
To Cap Off An Event-Filled DOLLY WEEK
August 20, 2019 – NASHVILLE, TN – In celebration of Dolly Parton’s 50th anniversary as a Grand Ole Opry member, the Opry House will host “Dolly: My Opry Memories”- an exclusive exhibit featuring 24 wardrobe pieces the internationally-known country music icon has worn on the Opry stage and at events held at the Ryman Auditorium over the last 50 years.
Among Parton’s fashions to be featured:
Also included in the exhibit in the Opry House’s historic Studio A are exclusive videos of Parton recounting some of her favorite Opry memories along with rarely seen performance clips spanning her five decades of Opry membership. The limited-time-only exhibit was curated and designed to celebrate Parton’s milestone anniversary and will tell the storied career of one of the Opry’s greatest global ambassadors.
Tickets for the “Dolly: My Opry Memories” exhibit are $12 when guests add it on to the purchase of an Opry backstage tour. Exhibit-only tickets are $17. Packages and tickets will go on sale August 21 at 10 am at www.opry.com. Please check opry.com for available tour times.
As part of Parton’s 50th Opry anniversary celebration, flagship station WSM will flip its Opry Nashville streaming channel to “Dolly Radio” to coincide with the exhibit. The 24/7 “all things Dolly stream” will feature the music legend’s many hits from her catalog of over 3000 songs, past Opry performances, archived interviews, special features from fellow artists, and much more. Fans will be able to access “Dolly Radio” 24/7 via WSMonline.com and the station’s free mobile app.
In celebration of Parton’s 50th Anniversary as an Opry member, The Opry Shop—also located at the Opry House– will feature a unique collection of eleven custom-designed items for women, men and children celebrating the milestone anniversary. A special Dolly Parton Queen of Country 50th Anniversary graphic was created by Opry Entertainment Product Development Manager Molly Brooks, who was inspired by a Parton photograph captured by longtime Opry photographer Les Leverett.
In June, the Opry premiered a new immersive film experience featuring video hosts Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood and showcasing more than 100 Opry artists, Parton included. The film shown in the Opry House’s new Circle Room opens the Opry’s daytime backstage tour.
On January 4, 1969, Dolly Parton was fresh off the release of her first solo album released on RCA Records Nashville, the now-seminal Just Because I’m A Woman, and on that date the singer-songwriter received the biggest accomplishment of her then-young career: being inducted as a Grand Ole Opry member. Fifty years later, Parton has achieved nearly every honor and accolade an entertainer can receive, and she is cemented as the female Country artist with the most Billboard Top 20 hits according to Guinness World Records.
The global superstar will perform on two sold-out shows on Saturday, October 12, 2019, capping a week-long celebration of Parton’s impact on music and the Opry, dubbed Dolly Week 2019. Additional participating artists for Dolly WeekOpry shows will be announced in the coming weeks. Tickets are on sale now at www.opry.com, with every ticket purchaser having the option to buy Parton’s Dumplin’ Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.
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WSM RADIO TO OFFER EXCLUSIVE RADIO SPECIAL FOR LABOR DAY
Opry Labor Day Radio Special Features Luke Combs, Kelsea Ballerini, and More!
Available now for download, Nashville’s iconic WSM Radio has produced an Opry Labor Day Radio Special hosted by WSM personality and Grand Ole Opry announcer, Bill Cody. The end of summer themed holiday program features a runtime of two hours and will be available to stations for free to air throughout Labor Day Weekend 2019.
The Opry Labor Day Radio Special features six minutes per hour of national inventory and twelve minutes per hour of affiliate inventory (all inventory is inside the show). To receive direct download information for the free program and promotional assets, contact J. Patrick via email at jpatrick@wsmradio.com.
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CHUCK MEAD RELEASES NEW ALBUM, CLOSE TO HOME, ON JUNE 21,
AND LAUNCHES NEW WSM RADIO PROGRAM, FACE THE MUSIC
Carlene Carter appearance inaugurates new show
on country music’s most famous radio station, June 14
Mead celebrates Close to Home with unconventional tour of Nashville honky-tonks.
NASHVILLE, Tenn.— Iconic Nashville-based station WSM Radio, heard on 650 AM and around the world at wsmradio.com, today announced that recording artist Chuck Mead will launch a new monthly radio program called Face the Music.
Mead and his studio guests — country legends, Americana stalwarts, cosmic cowboys, music business impresarios and hillbilly hellraisers — will spin records and swap intimate behind-the-scenes stories that only seem to come out when it’s artist to artist.
Face the Music will debut on both WSM AND wsmradio.com on Friday, June 14, with special guest Carlene Carter. The show is sponsored by legendary Nashville honky-tonk Robert’s Western World and will air the second Friday of every month from 6-7 PM|CT.
The WSM debut comes a week prior to the release of Close to Home, due for release on June 21, 2019. The 11-track collection, on Nashville independent label Plowboy Records, is the follow-up to Mead’s first Plowboy release, 2015’s Free State Serenade. Recorded at the historic Sam Phillips Recording Studios in Memphis, Tenn., the album was produced by acclaimed Memphis recording engineer and producer Matt Ross-Spang.
The album will be celebrated with not with a single “album release show” but rather a multi-date “Honky-Tonk Tour of Nashville.” The week will kick off on Honky-Tonk Tuesday at the American Legion Hall on June 18, The 5 Spot on June 19, Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge June 20, The Nashville Palace June 21, and Robert’s Western World June 22. (Mead has a long history with Robert’s: the first BR-549 release was a live EP recorded there, which not only helped to launch the band’s career, it also brought droves of artists, fans and industry types down to the gritty side of town. Nashville’s lower Broadway has exploded in the last decade.) Also on June 22, prior to the Robert’s show, Mead will make a guest appearance on the Grand Ole Opry — his 139th!
According to Mead, “It’s extremely exciting to me to delve into radio and I’m honored to be a part of the long WSM history. With Face the Music, I get talk to people artist-to-artist about the records that influenced them and shaped their own work. Of course we have a little fun along the way. The fact that the show premieres the week I have a record coming out and I’m playing all my favorite honky-tonks in Nashville makes it all that much sweeter.”
“We’re constantly looking for new ways to stay engaged in an ever-changing listening environment, and we believe adding Chuck Mead’s Face the Music to our programming line-up on both 650 AM and WSMonline.com feels like a natural fit. Chuck and his guests will provide audiences both near and far with engaging conversation, industry insight, and those much sought-after artist stories from the road. We can’t wait to hear Chuck’s voice and style on WSM,” said J. Patrick Tinnell, WSM Program Director.
*Face the Music with Chuck Mead airs the second Friday of every month from 6-7 PM|CT!
GRAND OLE OPRY, WSMONLINE.COM TO SALUTE RANDY TRAVIS IN HONOR OF THE LEGENDARY ENTERTAINER’S 60th BIRTHDAY
New Memoir ‘Forever and Ever, Amen’ to be Released on May 14
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (April 25, 2019) — Legendary country superstar Randy Travis will make a special appearance on the Grand Ole Opry stage Saturday, May 4 to celebrate his 60th birthday. The Opry’s flagship radio station 650 AM WSM and its digital counterpart have named Travis their Artist of the Month and will mark the Opry and Country Music Hall of Fame member’s 60th with a week of special promotions and programming, including Travis’ Opry birthday appearance, beginning Monday, April 29. Forever and Ever, Amen: A Memoir of Music, Faith and Braving the Storms of Life will be released on May 14 and is available for preorder now at foreverandeveramenbook.com.
Randy Travis fans Charles Esten, Josh Turner and Charlie Worsham are all scheduled to appear on the Opry on Travis’ birthday, as is his fellow Country Music Hall of Famer Don Schlitz, who wrote or co-wrote a number of Travis’ biggest hits, including “Deeper Than The Holler,” “Forever And Ever, Amen,” “Heroes And Friends,” “On the Other Hand” and “Point Of Light.”
Travis signed a Nashville record deal in 1985, became a country music sensation with the release of his landmark album Storms Of Life, and joined the Opry in 1986. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2016.
Opry ticket information for the special May 4 show found HERE!
On-air listening accessible HERE!
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