Grand Ole Opry To Travel To Bonnaroo

John Davisson – Bobby Bare
“Marty Stuart’s Late Night Jam,” Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, Tenn.

Although it rarely travels outside of its Nashville stomping grounds, Country music’s Grand Ole Opry has Bonnaroo in its sites.

Dubbed “Opry At Bonnaroo 2018,” the June 10 show and broadcast will include Bobby Bare, Del McCoury Band, Old Crow Medicine Show, Riders In The Sky, Brothers Osborne, LANCO, Nikki Lane, Lucie Silvas and others.

And it goes without saying that “Opry at Bonnaroo“ is a first for the country music show as well as for the mammoth music festival. Past Opry destinations have included New York’s Carnegie Hall and Washington’s Kennedy Center.

“Celebrating the rich cultural legacy of Tennessee and the region has been an important part of the Bonnaroo experience from the beginning,” AC Entertainment president Ashley Capps said in a statement.  “It’s hard to imagine anything more iconic and exciting in that regard than the Grand Ole Opry … it’s like the ultimate … profoundly historic moment for all of us at Bonnaroo and something we’ll be talking about – and building upon – for years to come.”

The June 10 show at Bonnaroo will conclude one of the busiest weeks for the Opry since it’s 1925 founding.  Carrie Underwood, Terri Clark and Ashley McBryde are among the artists performing  on the Opry’s Nashville stage June 5, and Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Oak Ridge Boys, Charley Pride, Maggie Rose and Josh Turner will fill the Opry with music June 7.  The Opry will also host shows June 8-9, plus the Ryman Auditorium will host an “Opry Country Classics” performance June 9.

Of course, at its core the Grand Ole Opry is a radio show that began on Nashville station WSM in 1925.  “Grand Ole Opry At Bonnaroo” will air on 650 AM-WSM and will stream on Opry.com and WSMOnline.com as well as via Opry and WSM mobile apps.  WSM’s Bill Cody serves as the program’s announcer.

“We’re really excited about this incredible opportunity to take the Grand Ole Opry to Bonnaroo,” said Opry Entertainment Group senior VP of programming and artists relations, Sally Williams, in a statement.  “In Nashville we host up to six Opry performances a week.  Each one showcases eight to 12 artists ranging from straight ahead country to bluegrass to Americana.  I think the diverse, multi-generational shows that we create on a regular basis will really resonate with the Bonnaroo aficionados.”