April 5, 2017
Country superstar Alan Jackson joins hit songwriter Don Schlitz and “Guitar Man” Jerry Reed as the 2017 inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Hall of Fame member Vince Gill hosted this morning’s announcement and fans can watch the entire event in the video above.
Alan Jackson
Jackson is the second most-nominated artist in CMA Awards history with 81 nominations, following only close friend and fellow Hall of Fame member George Strait. The Georgia native owns the record for most nominations in a single year with 10, set in 2002, the year he swept Song and Single of the Year with his poignant 9/11 tribute “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning).” See photos from his life and career.
Jerry Reed
Reed’s best-known hits included “When You’re Hot, You’re Hot,” which won a Grammy Award (Reed would win two more for instrumental recordings “Me & Jerry” and “Sneakin’ Around,” both made with Chet Atkins), “Guitar Man,” “Amos Moses,” “Alabama Wild Man,” “U.S. Male,” “A Thing Called Love,” and “She Got the Gold Mine (I Got the Shaft).” See photos from his life and career.
Don Schlitz
One of the most influential and beloved songwriters in the history of Country Music, Schlitz’s hit songs have provided a soundtrack for America for decades. Fans around the world know some of his biggest hits such as “The Gambler” by Kenny Rogers, “Forever and Ever, Amen” by Randy Travis, “When You Say Nothing At All” by Keith Whitley, Alison Krauss, Ronan Keating, “I Feel Lucky” by Mary Chapin Carpenter, “Rockin’ with the Rhythm of the Rain” by The Judds, “Forty Hour Week” by Alabama and hundreds more. See photos from his life and career.
The Class of 2017 marks the 57th group of Country Music legends to be inducted into the prestigious Country Music Hall of Fame, which was created in 1961 by the Country Music Association. The Hall of Fame Medallion ceremony will take place in October.