Interviews
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum regularly hosts illuminating interviews with country artists, songwriters, and industry players, both in its Nashville home and on location.
The Museum’s regular interview series include Poets and Prophets, which spotlights the artistry and achievements of songwriters who have made significant contributions to American music, and Nashville Cats, which showcases musicians and singers who have played important roles in support of hit artists in either the studio or on tour.
The Museum's collection also offers thousands of video and audio interviews with country legends, mainstays, and rising stars, spanning from the 1920s to today.
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Memories of Buck Owens, Bonnie Owens, and Merle Haggard • Panel Discussion, 2012
Buck Owens, Bonnie Owens, and Merle Haggard continue to be revered for their role in the country music history of Bakersfield, California. This panel discussion—held November 12, 2012, in conjunction with the 2012 – 2014 exhibition “The Bakersfield Sound: Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, and California...
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Elizabeth Cook, Mary Gauthier, and Abigail Washburn • ‘Right By Her Roots’
Elizabeth Cook, Mary Gauthier, and Abigail Washburn explore their musical roots and their approach to songwriting in this September 8, 2010, program at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, hosted by author Jewly Hight. The panelists—all of whom are featured in Hight’s 2011 book, “Right By H...
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Ronnie Milsap • Interview, 2015
Ronnie Milsap remembers his experiences growing up in North Carolina and his winding path to Nashville during this interview, recorded February 7, 2015, to coincide with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum exhibition “Ronnie Milsap: A Legend in My Time.”
Raised in a loving environment by ...
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Amythyst Kiah • Live at the Hall, 2021
Amythyst Kiah discusses her career trajectory as she evolved from traditional acoustic music performer to contemporary Americana artist, and performs three songs—“Wild Turkey,” “Black Myself,” and “Hangover Blues”—from her acclaimed 2021 album, "Wary + Strange." Part of the Museum's "Live at the ...
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West Coast Steel Players • Panel Discussion, 2023
Pedal steel players Dan Dugmore, Steve Fishell, JayDee Maness, and Al Perkins, all influential musicians in the Los Angeles country-rock scene, join this panel discussion. This program was recorded on October 2, 2022, and is presented in support of the exhibition “Western Edge: The Roots and Reve...
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Keb’ Mo’ • Live at the Hall, 2021
Five-time Grammy Award winner Keb’ Mo’ joins the Museum’s Peter Cooper for a wide-ranging, intimate conversation and performance, recorded on August 19, 2021, as part of the “Live at the Hall” series.
“I thought I’d be an architect, but music kept luring me over,” he reveals of his inexorable gr...
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Steve Forbert • Live at the Hall, 2021
Steve Forbert performs solo and discusses his forty-year career as a folk-rock singer and songwriter during this 2021 episode of the Museum's series “Live at the Hall.” Forbert traces his journey from his hometown of Meridien, Mississippi, where he fronted a rock band, to living in New York City,...
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Bill Anderson • Poets & Prophets, 2009
In an interview for the Museum’s Poets & Prophets series, Bill Anderson, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, talks about his approach to songwriting, his formative years, some of his biggest hits as a songwriter (many recorded by other artists), and his comeback as a songwriter beginning ...
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John Hiatt and Jerry Douglas • Live at the Hall, 2021
John Hiatt and Jerry Douglas, masters of American music, sit down for a conversation with the Museum’s Peter Cooper about their collaborative 2021 album, "Leftover Feelings," recorded with the Jerry Douglas Band at Historic RCA Studio B, which is operated by the Country Music Hall of Fame and Mus...
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Allison Russell • Live at the Hall, 2021
As part of the Museum’s series “Live at the Hall,” singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Allison Russell discusses the circumstances that led to her first solo album, “Outside Child,” and performs “Nightflyer” and “Persephone” with accompaniment from cellist Larissa Maestro.
Russell’s so...
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Shannon McNally and Fred Newell • Live at the Hall, 2021
For this 2021 episode of the Museum's "Live at the Hall," singer-songwriter Shannon McNally and pedal steel guitarist Fred Newell perform three songs together and discuss their individual careers and their collaborations on McNally’s 2021 album, “The Waylon Sessions.” They open the program with a...
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Kay West • Louise Scruggs Memorial Forum • Live at the Hall, 2023
Kay West discusses her wide-ranging career in music and media as the 2022 honoree in the annual Louise Scruggs Memorial Forum series at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. In looking back over her multi-faceted career, West emphasizes that she considers herself an author and journalist, fi...
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Sam Williams • Live at the Hall, 2021
During this “Live at the Hall” episode, filmed July 2, 2021, Sam Williams discusses the misperceptions that come with being a member of one of country music’s most famous families, and how he overcame his hesitancy to become a musician once he discovered the therapeutic qualities of songwriting. ...
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Elizabeth Cook • Live at the Hall, 2021
Singer-songwriter Elizabeth Cook talks about her “hardcore honky-tonk” family background, singing onstage and recording as a precocious child performer in rural Florida, and the twists and turns in her career in this interview and performance, taped July 29, 2021 as part of the Museum's "Live at ...
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Maddie & Tae • Words & Music at Home
Madison Font and Taylor Kerr, also known as country music duo Maddie & Tae, join the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum to kick off season two of "Words & Music at Home," a digital series designed to help aspiring songwriters of all ages learn the art and craft of writing songs.
The ACM- and... -
Emily West’s Winter Wonderland • Live at the Hall
Emily West and the band Whiskey Wolves of the West visit Historic RCA Studio B for a special holiday concert, performing a selection of original compositions, holiday favorites, and songs originally recorded in Studio B—including “The End of the World” by Skeeter Davis and “If Every Day Was Like ...
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BRELAND • Words & Music at Home
BRELAND joins the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum for an episode of "Words & Music at Home," a learning-focused digital series designed to connect with aspiring songwriters of all ages. Filmed June 16, 2021, the singer, songwriter, and producer's episode includes a conversation about his pe...
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Charlie Worsham • Words & Music at Home
Singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Charlie Worsham joins the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum for an episode of "Words & Music at Home," a digital series designed to help inspire and inform aspiring songwriters of all ages. Worsham finds inspiration everywhere—from books to a phon...
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Memories of Waylon Jennings • Live at the Hall
Family, friends, collaborators, and admirers share stories and performances centering around Country Music Hall of Fame member Waylon Jennings in this “Live at the Hall” video compilation. Included: Jennings’s wife and fellow singer-songwriter Jessi Colter, his bandleader Richie Albright, produce...
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Dan Penn • Songwriter Session, 2020
Dan Penn, whose soulful songwriting made a mark in the musical history of Muscle Shoals and Memphis, shares a conversation and performs live during a Songwriter Session at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, recorded August 25, 2020.
In conversation with the Museum’s Michael Gray, Penn ta...
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Robby Turner • Nashville Cats, 2019
Steel guitar master Robby Turner looks back on his musical journey and a storied career in country music during this 2019 program, presented as part of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Nashville Cats series, in support of the major exhibition “Outlaws & Armadillos: Country’s Roaring ʼ7...
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‘Groundbreaking Sounds Of Muscle Shoals’ • Reunion and Panel Discussion
Producers, songwriters, engineers, and musicians who played a key part in “The Groundbreaking Sounds Of Muscle Shoals” gathered at the Museum in 2011, exploring the fertile creativity and hit songs coming out of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, in the 1960s and early seventies. Panelists include David Bri...
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John Prine • 'Beyond Words' Book Talk, 2017
John Prine performs and talks about his 2017 songbook, “Beyond Words,” during this intimate interview at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
For “Beyond Words,” Prine collected of some of his favorite songs, stories, and photographs, and during this book talk around its release, he delves...
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Hargus ‘Pig’ Robbins • Nashville Cats, 2007
Piano great Hargus “Pig” Robbins shares his life story in music during this 2007 program, part of the “Nashville Cats” series at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, designed to showcase musicians who have played important roles in country music history. Pig Robbins’s piano playing has been...