Scotty McCreery Officially Inducted Into The Grand Ole Opry

“I’m just extremely grateful, thankful, blessed to be able to have this opportunity."

Saturday night, April 20, Scotty McCreery’s biggest lifelong dream  finally came true. He is now the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry. The native of Garner, North Carolina, was welcomed into the fold by his mentor-turned-friend, Opry Member Josh Turner, and special surprise guest, Country Music Hall of Fame Member, Randy Travis. The crowd leapt to their feet and the applause rumbled in the rafters. Turner, who had joked earlier in the evening about how McCreery fumbled the lyrics to one of Turner’s famous tunes when he competed on American Idol as a teenager, spoke about how humbled he felt when he learned that he had been one of the young singer’s musical inspirations. He reflected on how Randy Travis had been that voice for him.

“I stand here tonight proud of the fact that I bridged the gap between the generation of Randy Travis and Scotty McCreery… Only time will tell who will be inspired by Scotty,” he told the crowd.

Towards the end of his speech, which he said he wrote himself and had printed out on two pages, Turner became momentarily choked up as he spoke about the person he has come to know and call a friend. “He’s a great person, a great husband and now a father. I’m proud to know him and proud that he is now filling the shoes of those who came before him. With an artist like him, country music is in great shape.”

He then declared McCreery the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry with Travis beaming beside him.

Turner spoke with us after the show and said, “Tonight was pretty fun. Obviously it was pretty emotional for everybody involved but it was an interesting spot for me to be in, seeing my hero Randy Travis there and my protege Scotty McCreery there and just knowing that I was that link in that chain that like I said in my speech, the passing on of tradition. And I feel good about the Opry and country music. You know when guys like Scotty come along and take their craft seriously. And don’t forget who they are and where they came from and just focus on the right things in life. So it was a fun night to be a part of. I’m glad I was asked.”

Earlier in the evening, before the crowd filed into their seats, McCreery sat down with Southern Living backstage in the Opry’s green room. He admitted to being extremely nervous. “I’m just extremely grateful, thankful, blessed to be able to have this opportunity. It’s all the emotions. My head is going a mile a minute right now and I’m thrilled to be here,” he said.

He shared that his earliest memories about the Opry were from his childhood. His mother had attended a show when she was younger and often talked about it with her children. He said she played him and his sister the music of Opry members around the house. “I think Whispering Bill Anderson was playing that night and she was talking about him. At an early age, I understood the Opry was a big deal. But once I got to Nashville, I understood, oh wow, this is the pinnacle.”

Being a member of the Grand Ole Opry is more than just one night of celebration and a trophy. Those few selected for membership, and it is few, only a couple or so artists a year are invited to join. For those few fortunate enough to be selected, they aren’t there just because of a few hit songs. They are chosen for the lifetime commitment of being a steward of country music.

“It’s a responsibility you know? And I want to hold my end of the bargain and continue to make country music that I’m proud to sing and proud to play on the Opry. All my heroes have played this stage and a lot of them are members here so I take it as a responsibility. I’m very proud of it, I’m very humbled by it but I do want to keep on carrying the torch for country music and the Grand Ole Opry,” he told us.

As Turner announced that his membership was official, he handed the mic over to his friend. McCreery, smiling from ear to ear, took a moment to take in the roar of the crowd, the gravitas of the moment. He echoed a sentiment he had shared earlier that night with us before the show noting that, “If you’ve listened to any of my interviews over the last 13 years of doing this, they’d say, ‘what is your biggest goal?’ and I’d always say, ‘One day I wanna be a member of the Grand Ole Opry. I gotta go home and start writing a new bucket list.”

And then just as Turner's had, McCreery's voice began to wobble and the tears formed in the corners of his eyes as he spoke about his 18-month-old son Avery. “He might not understand tonight but one day I’ll be able to tell him, ‘Hey buddy, this was your daddy’s dream and it came true.’”

Opry announcer Bill Cody then cued McCreery to give the crowd one more song to end the show. The familiar music to McCreery’s hit “5 More Minutes” began as he looked up to the sky for a moment and said that he wished his grandfathers were alive to see this moment. The singer’s normally smooth-toned, deep voice wavered as he shakily began to sing. The crowd stepped in as the emotions momentarily overcame him.

Family was very much on McCreery’s mind before the show as well as he reflected on how much his parents have helped him get to this point. “They pushed me at a young age to do this. I had a guitar in my room that I’d be playing at 2 in the morning and annoying the heck out of my sister. I didn’t want to play for strangers you know. I didn’t want to go out there and get on stage but I knew I loved to sing and I loved to play the guitar. So they were like let’s go get you out there. And they pushed me to my first competition, first time doing country music showcases at Johnston Community College. Little by little I started getting that confidence to get out there and do it. But it wouldn’t have been without their help and them encouraging me along the way.”

He also gives credit to another member of the McCreery family. “My sister gave me confidence. She was never ashamed to have her little brother tagging along which meant a lot to me.”

Judy McCreery absolutely beamed with pride after watching her son welcomed into the prestigious Opry Family. She told Southern Living, “So many things this Mama’s heart pondered as I watched my 30 year old son tonight…Doing school and church solos as a little boy, a paper he wrote in 4th grade saying he dreamed he was Elvis…the music chats we shared as we drove home from guitar lessons…Sitting in the Idol finale audience-trying not to have a meltdown as I watched my 17 year old perform LIVE in front of 30 million!  But  bottom line, this could not have happened without a solid team surrounding him…band, management, label. And the best part to me, as a mom, is not the talent but the character. He’s humbly handled this fame with no bragging, no arrogance. He’s still ‘just Scotty.’ That’s a life you can hang your hat on.”

The “Cab in a Solo” singer also now has a family of his own and in a press conference just ahead of the show, McCreery became emotional as he spoke about his wife, Gabi, and her steadfast support throughout the ups and downs of his career. “She’s unreal. She’s the rock to our family and does so much. I feel like a lot of times the spotlight is always on me and she’s taking care of things in the background…I’m lucky to have her by my side…She lifted me up when I was going through bad times and she kept me grounded when I was going through good times,” he told the group of reporters as he exclaimed, “whew, got me!” wiping a tear away.

The induction was the main event for Saturday night’s live broadcast and show from the Opry House in Nashville. Before McCreery took the stage, the audience was treated to performances by the Opry Square Dancers, Craig Morgan, Jeannie Seely, Sierra Hull, Riders In The Sky (a special request from McCreery as son Avery loves them and their connection to his favorite movie, Toy Story), Charlie McCoy, Bill Anderson–yes, the very same musician McCreery heard all about as a child, and Josh Turner.

The newest member of the Grand Ole Opry won’t have much time to pause and reflect. His newest album, Rise and Fall comes out May 10. He told us, “I’ve honestly never been more proud of a project top to bottom.”

Congratulations, Scotty McCreery!

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