Blake Shelton surprised Team Blake alumni Worth The Wait with an invitation to make their Grand Ole Opry debut during their Sunday evening (Dec. 11) concert at Ole Red in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
In the midst of the trio’s performance at Ole Red Gatlinburg, Shelton called in on the red phone, which was designed exclusively for the “No Body” singer to dial into the establishment on video chat.
After Worth The Wait picked up the phone, Shelton greeted The Voice alum with a smile on the giant screen behind them.
“What’s up? I know it’s your old coach calling in to say ‘hi, how you guys doing?’ Well, I just wanted to bump my head in and say hi to you guys. Haven’t seen you since… I don’t even know when… I think I saw you one time since you were on the show and it just makes me happy to know that you’re still out there hammering away,” Shelton shared.
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“I just wanted to call in and say hi to you three and tell you that I missed you and I’m really proud of you and oh yeah, I almost forgot I’d like to invite you to play at the Grand Ole Opry next year.”
The Alabama trio, consisting of sisters Mia Makana and Jacy Leilani Matthews as well as their mother Tara Matthews, paused and stood there in awe of the invitation.
“I mean if you don’t want to that’s fine,” Shelton added after Worth The Wait were left speechless.
“I think we’ll pass,” they joked, before accepting the invitation, “not yeah, but hell yeah!”
Our friends @worththewaittrio were surprised by the boss man, @blakeshelton during the middle of their pop up show last night!
He invited the mother-daughter trio to make their Grand Ole @opry Debut early next year! Congratulations y’all! pic.twitter.com/TenIWbAw8z
— Ole Red (@OleRed) December 12, 2022
Following the monumental moment, Worth The Wait shared their excitement on social media.
“GRAND OLE OPRY 2023✨got a call from the big man, @blakeshelton , tonight!!! and he invited us to make our OPRY DEBUT!😭 our hearts are exploding. wow. wow. Wow,” they wrote.
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They continued to share their excitement over the opportunity via Instagram stories.
“We are OVER. THE. MOON. THANK YOU @blakeshelton! THANK YOU @olered! and THANK YOU @opry! Words can’t even express the gratitude and excitement in our hearts right now. Wow,” they wrote.
The trio later added, “We love you uncle Blake! Thank you for showing us so much love over the last couple years. So grateful for all you’ve done and continue to do for us. We promise to make you proud! #TeamBlake FOREVER!”
Worth The Wait finished out their time on NBC’s The Voice just before making the Top 9. Throughout the show, the family trio allowed their harmonies to shine vibrantly with performances of songs like The Judds’ “Love Is Alive,” Tanya Tucker’s “Delta Dawn,” and Martina McBride’s “I’m Gonna Love You Through It.”
“I think it’s time that a trio makes it to the finale in this show and I think it’s gonna be Worth The Wait,” Shelton proclaimed during The Voice following their performance of the Tanya Tucker classic.
Since departing The Voice, Worth The Wait has been playing shows across the United States. They often update fans on their concert schedule via social media.
Worth The Wait’s pop-up concert served as a celebration of the upcoming two-hour finale of The Voice, which airs on Tuesday (Dec. 13) at 8/7c. The Season 22 finale of The Voice will feature performances from Shelton, Kane Brown, Kelly Clarkson, Maluma, OneRepublic, Adam Lambert, BRELAND and Girl Named Tom.