By Katrina Maddox, Marketing and Sales Assistant for the Opry
Put a little love in your heart! In honor of Valentine’s Day, here’s a list of my all-time favorite Opry love connections. Enjoy, and watch out for Cupid’s arrow!
10. Music City Millennium Marryathon
More than 100 country music fan couples were wed on Valentine’s Day 2000 during the Music City Millennium Marryathon on the Opry stage. The couples were serenaded by the Opry’s Connie Smith plus Bryan White and John Berry, who offered his signature “Your Love Amazes Me.”
8. Jimmy and Mona Dickens
My favorite Opry member is also Mona Dickens’ favorite, her husband, Jimmy. Mona was a big fan of Jimmy’s music when they first met after a show on one of his tours. Years later, the couple celebrated their 25th Wedding Anniversary on the Opry stage. The two marked 40 years of marriage last December.
8. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert
The Opry’s newest addition, Blake Shelton, has on occasion surprised Opry audiences by inviting fiancé Miranda Lambert out for a song. Following Blake’s Opry induction, Miranda posted on Twitter, “I’m engaged to an official Opry member!!!!”
7. Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood
Opry members and power couple Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood have collaborated on dozens of songs including “In Another’s Eyes.” In September of 1997 he shocked fans when he joined Trisha on the Opry stage unannounced during a performance of that very song.
6. Vince Gill and Amy Grant
Vince Gill wed Amy Grant during a quiet ceremony in Nashville. Six weeks later, Vince brought Amy to the Grand Ole Opry and joined her on stage for her debut performance, singing “How Great Thou Art.”
5. Ricky Skaggs and Sharon White
For Ricky Skaggs and Sharon White (of The Whites), it was their love of bluegrass that brought them together. The two were wed in 1981, and both became members of the Grand Ole Opry within the next five years.
4. George Jones and Tammy Wynette
As with many other country artists, Tammy Wynette idolized Opry artists such as Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, and George Jones. Little did she know that she would one day marry Jones or that she’d earn the title “The First Lady of Country Music.” Though the Jones/Wynette marriage didn’t last, their recorded collaborations can still be heard nearly everyday on 650 WSM. One of my favorites is “Golden Ring.”
3. Trace Adkins and Rhonda Forlaw
After his debut performance on the Grand Ole Opry, Trace Adkins got down on one knee and proposed to then-girlfriend Rhonda Forlaw who was sitting in the audience. She accepted.
2. Marty Stuart and Connie Smith
Marty Stuart met Connie Smith when he was 12 years old and proclaimed to his mother later in the night that he was going to marry Ms. Smith someday. In July of 1997 he proved this to be true when the two were wed. The couple continues to wow fans with frequent duet performances on the nights they both appear on the Opry.
1. Johnny Cash and June Carter
Johnny Cash met the love of his life June Carter backstage at the Grand Ole Opry. 13 years later during a live performance in Ontario, Canada, Johnny asked June to marry him. The rest is history.
Tags: Amy Grant, Blake Shelton, Bryan White, Connie Smith, Garth Brooks, George Jones, Jimmy Dickens, John Berry, Johnny Cash, June Carter Cash, Marty Stuart, Miranda Lambert, Ricky Skaggs, Sharon White, Tammy Wynette, Trace Adkins, Trisha Yearwood, Vince Gill
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