Country Music Hall of Fame honors broadest set of artists yet in American Currents exhibit

Three dozen modern and timeless country stars will be honored for the next 12 months as part of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum's just-opened exhibition "American Currents: State of the Music."

For the past eight years, the annual feature has "[taken] a broad view of the genre over the past year to explore musical developments, artist achievements and notable events, as determined by the museum's curators and editorial staff," the museum said in a news release.

The exhibit, included in the cost of a museum ticket, runs until February 2025 in the museum's ACM Gallery.

This year's exhibition features Oliver Anthony, Kelsea Ballerini, Sam Bush, Tyler Childers, Luke Combs, S.G. Goodman, Nat Myers, Nickel Creek, Joy Oladokun, Jelly Roll, Allison Russell, "Shucked" (the Broadway musical scored by Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally), SistaStrings, Billy Strings, Taylor Swift, Molly Tuttle, Morgan Wallen, Kelsey Waldon, The War And Treaty, Lucinda Williams and Lainey Wilson.

A section of the exhibit titled "Unbroken Circle" will highlight the musical connections of artists, including those who have influenced them or share musical perspectives. Featured pairings include Jessie Jo Dillon and Cindy Walker, C.J. Lewandowski and Bobby Osborne, Megan Moroney and Kacey Musgraves, Hailey Whitters and Martina McBride.

For six months, a team of curators, including Angela Stefano Zimmer, a writer and editor at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, engaged in what she called a "heartfelt and passionate" process to "spotlight artists representing all ends of country music's spectrum."

Country's crossover stars highlighted

If a tourist headed to Music City in 2024, six of the past year's 15 Billboard radio and sales chart-toppers in country's mainstream (Luke Combs, Jelly Roll, Musgraves, Anthony, Wallen and Wilson) have pieces representing their 2023 success.

Of that group, note that an original, 1990-era gold single for Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car" (which Luke Combs covered to award-winning acclaim), the actual Country Music Association Best New Artist award Jelly Roll won (and not the one he accidentally broke backstage at the ceremony), Musgraves' "Pageant Material" sash, the green t-shirt Christopher Lunsford wore in his Oliver Anthony clip for "Rich Men North of Richmond," the outfit Wallen wore in his CMA Awards performance of "Man Made A Bar" with Eric Church and various pieces of Wilson's 2023 award show couture are present.

As well, as it feels will forever be the case, numerous pieces celebrating Taylor Swift's continued country-to-pop-to-worldwide superstardom are featured.

"In the same year that Taylor [Swift] had her awesome, epic tour, Tracy Chapman received her flowers from the country audience for 'Fast Car.' We're lucky to have them -- and all of the artists present -- reflected there together," adds Zimmer.

Country and Americana's rootsy, soulful favorites also present

Alongside Allison Russell and her frequent collaborators SistaStrings, The War and Treaty also joined Tuttle, Nickel Creek and Strings -- 2023's Americana Music Association Artist of the Year -- in being featured. Strings recalled bringing his parents to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum a decade ago. Being enshrined alongside bluegrass icons like Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, plus genre godfather Bill Monroe, continues to inspire his growth as an artist, craftsman and touring dynamo.

African-American artists' representation in the American Currents exhibition moved The War and Treaty's Michael Trotter to tears.

"Spotlighting artists like us, while honoring the [creative and spiritual] return of artists like Beyoncé to their authentic roots alongside performers like BRELAND, Blanco Brown, Mickey Guyton, Willie Jones, Rissi Palmer, Reyna Roberts, Darius Rucker, Brittney Spencer, even back to DeFord Bailey, Linda Martell, Charley Pride and Frankie Staton is important," he said. "We'll improve [country music] together."

Bluegrass, folk in abundance at American Currents

Close your eyes while walking through the 2024 American Currents. The influence of bluegrass and folk is a palpable feeling.

Yes, Strings is present. Recently deceased bluegrass legend Osborne and Lewandowski -- an East Tennessee-born star in his own right -- are also present.

Lewandowski moved, like many were, to tears by being included.

All walks of Kentucky life -- life that is important to bluegrass and folk's roots and evolution -- are also present.

The highlighting of Childers and Goodman's metaphorical handshake extending from Eastern to Western Kentucky is notable.

Impressively, a scene similar to the cover of Childers' 2023 album "Rustin' in the Rain" is featured in the exhibition.

Profound, too, is the inclusion of other Kentuckians: mandolinist Bush, longtime Americana favorite Waldron and upstart Korean-American performer Nat Myers also contributed pieces to American Currents.

About that handshake, Goodman, laughing, offered a parental-taught corollary:

"My dad taught me to shake people's hands like I meant it. [The work Tyler Childers and I have done] feels a little something like that. We're painting a picture of our state, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, as a [unified whole]. I'm proud of that and I think Kentucky is, too."

More spotlights ahead for the genre

"[Just like the genre right now] I like sparkling when there's a lot of lights," says Moroney. True to her ascendant stardom, she has a rhinestone epaulet-adorned "Tennessee Orange" jacket and white, knee-high rhinestone boots in 2024's exhibition.

About being spotlighted next to pieces mirroring her rise to that of Musgraves a decade ago, Moroney recalls her super-fandom of country music leading her to meet the "Deeper Well" vocalist outside her tour bus in 2015.

"I went from wanting to be an account in college and meeting [Kacey] to seeing our pieces together, behind glass -- that's crazy."

American Currents also includes a video compilation of important country music moments from 2023. In addition, the exhibit recaps the year's chart-topping country albums, singles and highest-grossing tours.In support of the exhibition's opening, the museum will host related programming, including a Songwriter Session with Waldon on March 2 and a Musician Spotlight with Lewandowski on March 3.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Country Music Hall of Fame honors broadest set of artists yet in American Currents exhibit