Carly Pearce is officially the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry!
The country superstar and “Next Girl” singer was inducted to the Opry on Tuesday (Aug. 3) by her idol and Opry member Trisha Yearwood, as Yearwood’s husband Garth Brooks watched from side stage.
Pearce was introduced to the stage by longtime Opry member and friend Jeannie Seely who shared, “Carly has all the obvious wonderful traits, but she has that one extra thing, determination. She has the sincerest dedication and strongest work ethic of anyone I’ve ever known in my life. And she never strayed from her path of wanting to be a member of the Opry.”
After taking the stage Pearce performed her chart-topping, 2X Platinum hit “I Hope You’re Happy Now,” followed by a duet of “How Do I Live” alongside Yearwood. Yearwood then had the high honor, for the first-time ever, of welcoming Pearce as newest member of the Grand Ole Opry.
“This is a very special place, and when you are invited it’s an invitation to the family,” Yearwood said. “So, with much pride and joy, Carly you are now an official member of the Grand Ole Opry.”
After being inducted, Pearce said, “What makes this family something special to be a part of is you can have hit records and sell out shows, but all of that can fade and this is something I will have forever. It’s a stage to sing on, a circle to stand in and a forever family. This is super special to me. All I ever wanted to do was sing country music. This isn’t another accolade or feather in my cap but a promise that I will do my due diligence to make sure the circle is never broken.”
The evening culminated as Seely, Yearwood and Pearce blended three generations of traditional Country harmonies on their cover of the Kitty Wells classic “Making Believe.”
“Well, I thought it might be appropriate to do this and pay a nod to Kitty Wells and the generations before ours,” Seely explained of the song before performing. “So, it’s a very special one, and just for me personally, I have to tell you I’m wearing [the late] Jan Howard’s jacket, Jean Shepard’s ring and of course I sang the Donny West song earlier. So girls, this circle will not be broken, we are here.”
Watch the superstar Opry trio perform the Kitty Wells’ classic below.
Pearce was invited to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry in late June. The singer was surprised by Dolly Parton with the invite on June 17, while she thought she was filming a promotional clip for Dollywood. However, that was not the case, Parton herself shocked the singer when she appeared to give her the invite of a lifetime.
“We set this up so I can kind of walk in on you cause I wanted to surprise you,” Parton said. “First of all, I just wanted to tell you, I wanted to tell you how proud I am of you. Do you know she started singing at Dollywood when she was 16 years old. You do remember don’t you. I know that they told me that you have been on the Grand Ole Opry, eighty times, you’ve performed.”
“Oh my goodness, I’m just trying to follow in your footsteps,” Pearce gushed.
“Well you should be a member of the Grand Ole Opry. What’s wrong with them? Well, I came here to tell you that you are now an official member of the Grand Ole Opry,” Parton said as Pearce got emotional. “It’s official! It’s official!”
“Dolly! Are you guys serious?” Pearce said in disbelief.
