Dierks Bentley discusses his musical influences, recounts his early days in Nashville, and performs some of his hit songs with co-writers during this in-depth 2016 interview at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Bentley remembers growing up in Phoenix and listening to country stars inclu...

During this 2015 program, Grammy-winning singer and songwriter Kim Carnes performs some of her best-known songs—including the biggest hit of 1981, “Bette Davis Eyes”—and details her journey from a Pasadena, California, childhood to a place as a much-lauded Nashville songwriter.

Carnes wrote her ...

Singer-songwriters Alex Hall and Tenille Townes joined the Museum remotely for a Songwriter Session in February 2021, sharing live performances and thoughts about the art and craft of songwriting. Hall's debut EP, "Six Strings," features a collection of well-known collaborators, including Vince G...

On October 29, 2016, the day after Charlie Daniels’s eightieth birthday and two weeks after his induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame, he sat down for an in-depth interview in front of a full house in the Museum’s CMA Theater. With characteristic candor, the singer, songwriter, guitarist,...

During this 2015 panel discussion, Ron Cornelius, Charlie Daniels, Sylvie Simmons, and Bob Wilson talk about Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen, as part of a series of educational events held in support of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s exhibition “Dylan, Cash, and the Nashville Cats: A New...

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band members Bob Carpenter, Jimmie Fadden, Jeff Hanna, and John McEuen come together here to discuss their “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” albums, and talk about encounters with their heroes and peers, during a July 2, 2015 program at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

In...

Ricky Skaggs traces his journey from child mandolin prodigy to country and bluegrass stardom during this interview, hosted on May 13, 2017, at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

The program begins with a video of Skaggs, at age seven, performing on Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs' televis...

Jerry Bradley, who headed RCA Records’ Nashville office from 1973 to 1982, shares some of his best stories in this career-spanning interview held April 28, 2012, to coincide with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum exhibition "Chet Atkins: Certified Guitar Player."

During the program, Brad...

Kinky Friedman, a songwriter and author with ties to Austin, Texas, as well as Nashville, explains the inspiration for songs including “Ride ’Em Jewboy” and “Sold American” in this unconventional interview and performance, held June 3, 2018, at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Alongsid...

A celebrated proponent of the Texas songwriting tradition, Robert Earl Keen Jr. speaks here with the Museum’s Michael McCall about his four-decade career.

Emerging from his native Houston in the 1980s, the master songsmith followed in the provocative, distinctly personal artistic paths of fellow...

Luke Bryan traces his career milestones and creative inspirations—many of which were detailed in the exhibition “Luke Bryan: Dirt Road Diary”—during a 2015 interview with “Rolling Stone Country” senior editor Joseph Hudak, held at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

The singer, songwriter...

During his 2017 Poets and Prophets program, songwriter Mike Reid—whose catalog includes hits for Ronnie Milsap, Bonnie Raitt, Wynonna, Tim McGraw, and many others—talks about his life and music, interspersing a handful of performances, including “Everywhere,” “Stranger in My House,” “Walk on Fait...

Shelby Lynne and Allison Moorer discuss and perform songs from their collaborative album “Not Dark Yet” in this 2017 program, hosted by NPR music critic Ann Powers. The conversation delves into the song selections for the record and the process of creating arrangements that highlight their harmon...

Producer Mark Bright gives insight into his working relationship with Carrie Underwood and explores achievements with BlackHawk, Rascal Flatts, Reba McEntire, and others on stage at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

The program—held July 27, 2013, in conjunction with the “Carrie Underwo...

Multi-instrumentalist Booker T. Jones recalls milestones in his music career—including scoring a massive hit in 1962 with the organ-driven “Green Onions”—in this interview with Memphis-based music historian Robert Gordon. Jones shares stories of recording with Soul music legends as part of the re...

Terri Clark recounts her early experiences in Nashville, her 1990s breakout, and new music during an interview held at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum on October 12, 2013 (in support of the exhibit “Terri Clark: Canadian Country Star”). She also performs several hits and classic songs b...

Four-time Grammy winner Lyle Lovett sits down with Elizabeth Cook to discuss his new album, 12th of June, his first album in ten years. Lovett explains how growing up in Houston, Texas, and fatherhood affect his music, and performs songs including “Pants Is Overrated,” “12th of June,” and “Pig Me...

One of the prominent figures to rise from the Greenwich Village contemporary folk scene in the 1960s, Eric Andersen performs and discusses his career here, in a program hosted by steel guitarist Pete Finney, co-curator of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s exhibition “Dylan, Cash, and th...

Multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, photographer, historian, and five-time Grammy winner Marty Stuart sits down with Scott Goldman—vice president of the GRAMMY Foundation and the MusiCares Foundation—to discuss his life and career during the 2014 Americana Fest.

Over the course of the nea...

During this conversation and performance with Mac Wiseman—recorded when Wiseman was ninety, three years and five months prior to his 2019 death—the Country Music Hall of Fame and Bluegrass Hall of Fame member talks with the Museum’s Peter Cooper about a remarkable life in music.

Raised in povert...

Indigo Girls bandmates Amy Ray and Emily Saliers explore their musical approach in a conversation with journalist Jewly Hight and producer Jordan Brooke Hamlin, recording at the Museum on September 23, 2015. A two-song performance follows the interview.

Ray and Saliers, friends since elementary ...

Ry Cooder offers insight on his wide-ranging musical influences and his extensive catalog of albums during this September 19, 2014, interview at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, held during the Americana Music Association conference.

After a sample of Cooder’s recording of “Goodnight, ...

In this wide-ranging conversation, master songwriter John Prine offers unique windows into his classic creations, speaking with journalist Peter Cooper about his rise from Maywood, Illinois, mailman to beloved icon of American music.

During the 2014 interview—the first held at the Museum’s CMA T...

Songwriter, musician, and founding member of the Eagles Don Henley sits down for an interview at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, sharing stories from his career and insights into his 2015 album, “Cass County.” The album, named for the northeastern Texas county from which Henley hails, ...