Kathy Mattea invited to join Grand Ole Opry cast

On Aug. 9, Grammy and Country Award-winning singer-songwriter Kathy Mattea was stunned upon being invited to be the newest cast member of the Grand Ole Opry.

The West Virginia native, “18 Wheels and A Dozen Roses” vocalist and “Mountain Stage” radio host, received her legendary invitation from longtime Opry member, fellow Mountaineer State native and legendary multi-instrumentalist Charlie McCoy.

Mattea’s official induction will occur on October 11.

Tickets for that event are available at http://www.opry.com.

The value of Kathy Mattea being added to the cast of the Grand Ole Opry

Mattea was surprised when McCoy appeared to turn off one of her speakers onstage accidentally.

“Oh…Charlie, you just turned my speaker off!” McCoy replied, “I’m so sorry to interrupt” as he presented her with a dozen roses.

McCoy continued with a question:

“How would you like to be the next member of the Grand Ole Opry?” An emotional Mattea immediately answered, “Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, and thank you!”

The Opry’s executive producer, Dan Rogers, added that Mattea had brought “great songs, artistic integrity and sheer joy to the Opry stage.”

Regarding performing at the Opry, Mattea offered the following via a press statement:

“When you play the Opry, you’re entering history, right there. There’s a wonderful sense of community, family really, that’s inter-generational. From the welcoming presence of a long-timer stepping into the dressing room saying, ‘Glad to have you back!’ to the spontaneous backstage jam sessions, to catching up with old friends, there’s just no place like it.”

Who is Kathy Mattea? Her career-in-brief

For five decades, Kathy Mattea has established a peerless standard as a folk-inspired performer.

The 1980s saw her grow into one of the mainstream country industry’s leading vocalists, earning back-to-back Female Vocalist of the Year honors from the CMA in 1989 and 1990.

Of note as well, her 1986 album “Walk the Way the Wind Blows” featured four major hits, including a cover of Nanci Griffith’s “Love at the Five and Dime.” She followed up that effort with her 1987 album “Untasted Honey,” which yielded the chart-toppers “Goin’ Gone” and “Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses.”

Her 1989 album “Willow in the Wind” netted Grammy-winning success for the album’s track “Where’ve You Been.”

Undaunted by success, over the past three decades, Mattea’s made inroads into the global folk and roots communities.

“To be a complete novice at something after you’ve been singing for three or four decades, to feel that humility of ‘I don’t even know if I’m going to be able to pull this off again,’ it’s a great gift. Often, people go through their whole lives and never get to that place,” the singer-songwriter said.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Kathy Mattea invited to join Grand Ole Opry cast