List of Grand Ole Opry members

Publicly, once a new member is chosen, an existing member will ask the new member to join the Opry live on-air during the broadcast, usually when the new member is performing as a guest. In recent years, invitations have been delivered in other public settings. Prior to 1999, membership was effective immediately upon invitation. Currently, artists who accept the invitation will return on a later date for a scheduled performance and induction ceremony. Being invited to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry is considered one of country music's crowning achievements. Over its history, the Opry has featured a large, rotating ensemble of members ranging from all-time greats and neotraditionalists to contemporary stars. At its beginning, it featured only instrumental string bands; the show's repertoire slowly broadened to allow singers and vocal groups in the late 1930s, electric amplification by the early 1940s, and eventually drums, with the first performance featuring a full drum kit taking place in 1967. As the Opry is a running series, membership requires that the performer appear regularly on the program to remain a member of the show. It originally signed its artists to short-term contracts and required its artists to perform 26 shows per year; the program shifted to a permanent membership model in the 1960s and progressively relaxed its requirements over the next several decades. If a performer ceases appearing at the Opry altogether or runs afoul of management, they can be stripped of their membership; if the exiled performer reconciles and renews their commitment to the show, they can be reinstated. Membership expires when the performer dies; if a single member of a duo or group retires or dies, the surviving members may continue to maintain Opry membership on the group's behalf. The Opry, in general, allows performers who retire, or are no longer physically able to perform on a regular basis to stay as members. The Grand Ole Opry House maintains a member gallery backstage that contains an engraved brass nameplate for every act who has ever been a member of the Grand Ole Opry (including those whose membership has lapsed or have been asked to leave). ==Familial connections==

In addition to several family acts who've held membership over the years, two sets of siblings have been invited to join the Opry separately: • Loretta Lynn and her younger sister, Crystal Gayle • Darrin Vincent (half of Dailey & Vincent) and his older sister, Rhonda Likewise, there have been three instances of parents and their children being inducted separately: • Ernest Tubb and his son Justin • George Morgan and his daughter Lorrie • Pam Tillis and her father Mel Several Opry members over the years have been married to each other: • Kitty Wells and Johnnie Wright; Married 1937–2011 (his death) • June Carter and Carl Smith; Married 1952–1956 (divorce) • Jean Shepard and Hawkshaw Hawkins; married 1960-1963 (his death) • June Carter Cash and Johnny Cash; Married 1968–2003 (her death) • George Jones and Tammy Wynette; Married 1969–1975 (divorce) • Ricky Skaggs and Sharon White (of The Whites); Married since 1981 • Connie Smith and Marty Stuart; Married since 1997 • Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood; Married since 2005 • Karen Fairchild and Jimi Westbrook (who make up half of the quartet Little Big Town); Married since 2006 ==Current membership==

Excluding the Opry Square Dancers, who have sui generis membership status, there are currently 76 Grand Ole Opry members. • Sixty-two of the Opry's current members perform as solo musical artists. • Of those, seven have retired, but may make occasional appearances on the show in performing or non-performing roles (Barbara Mandrell, Jeanne Pruett, Randy Travis, Ricky Van Shelton, Patty Loveless, Ronnie Milsap and Alan Jackson). • Two of the members are stand-up comedians (Henry Cho and Gary Mule Deer). • Twelve duos and groups hold membership. • Among them, three have had a member die since their respective inductions (Montgomery Gentry, The Oak Ridge Boys, and The Whites). • The Oak Ridge Boys have been inducted twice, under two completely different lineups. • Two other groups have each replaced living group members since being inducted, but maintain their Opry membership (Old Crow Medicine Show and Diamond Rio). • Five living people are former Opry members who no longer hold membership: Leroy Van Dyke, Norma Jean, Doug Kershaw, Sam Wellington of the Four Guys, and Willie Nelson. Age and service of current members • The oldest living member (although retired) is Jeanne Pruett, born in 1935 • The oldest living person to have ever been a member is Leroy Van Dyke, born in 1929 (he allowed his membership to lapse but still occasionally appears in a non-member capacity) • Bill Anderson is the oldest living active member, the longest-serving current member as well as the longest-serving member in the show's history, as his membership has not lapsed since his induction in 1961. • Connie Smith, who joined in 1965, is the Opry's longest-serving female member. • The youngest member is Lauren Alaina, born in 1994. • The youngest members ever inducted were Doyle and Teddy Wilburn, child prodigies who were inducted in 1940 at ages ten and nine, respectively; after an initial run, their membership was suspended until 1956 due to child labor laws. ==All-time membership==

Acts with a † are deceased; ‡ indicates a member of the group is deceased. 1920s was the Opry's only black member until his 1941 departure; no others were inducted until 1993. 1930s , singer and publisher, was the public face of the Opry from the 1970s until his death. 1940s was an Opry member for 67 years. Sr. and the Drifting Cowboys were Opry members from 1949 to 1952. 1950s , the last member of the Carter Sisters to pass, performing at the Opry in 1999. were briefly members in 1957. They left the same year to tour with Buddy Holly, remarking in 1960 that their style no longer fit the program. performing at the Opry in 2007. 1960s and the Rocky Top X-Press playing the Opry. , the longest serving member in Opry history, performing in 2022. performing in 2007. was the first woman to host a segment of the Opry and appeared more times than any other performer—over 5,000 times in 58 years. 1970s performing at the Opry in 2007. After the death of Little Jimmy Dickens in 2015, Howard was the oldest member of the Opry cast until her death in 2020. 1980s have been Opry members and frequent performers since 1982. performing on the Opry in 2007. 1990s performing on the Opry in 2007 2000s singing at the Opry in 2018 , the Opry's longest-tenured active member as of 2021, inducts his friend Mel Tillis into the Opry in 2007. 2010s performing at their induction in 2013 was a member from 1964 to 1974, then rejoined in 2018. 2020s , the sole new member in 2020, performing on the Opry in 2007 was a member from 2022 until his death in 2026. A member of multiple songwriting halls of fame but never a touring performer, Schlitz is the only person in the show's history to hold Opry membership on the strength of songwriting alone. ==References==