Most people think Nashville was always “Music City.” The truth is, it started with one radio show and a wooden circle on a stage.
On November 28, 2025, the Grand Ole Opry turns 100. A full century ago it was just the WSM Barn Dance. Today, it is the beating heart that pulled Nashville into its orbit and turned it into the country music capital of the world. Historians say the Opry had a “gravitational pull.” First came the stars. Then the studios. Then the labels, publishers, and tour buses. Out of that pull, Music Row was born.
Carrie Underwood felt it when she sang “Wasted” on the Opry stage during the centennial celebration, standing on that six foot circle of light wood cut from the old Ryman Auditorium. Every artist who steps into that circle stands where Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline, and so many others once stood.
Recording deals are signed a short drive away. The Country Music Hall of Fame’s “Opry at 100” exhibit runs until 2027, with Minnie Pearl’s hat and Uncle Dave Macon’s banjo on display. Visitors fly into BNA, take a tour of the backstage halls, then walk over to honky-tonks like the Nashville Palace, where Randy Travis once washed dishes before his break.
Grand Ole Opry celebrates 100th anniversary this Friday with tribute to legends
Carrie Underwood’s now legendary take on “How Great Thou Art” at the Grand Ole Opry shows the circle, the hall, and the crowd working together as one living organism. You can see the inlaid wood at her feet, the packed 4,400 seat room around her, and hear the kind of voice that convinced a whole industry to orbit this stage.
Carrie Underwood – How Great Thou Art (Official Performance Video)
This short feature from the Grand Ole Opry walks you through how a single piece of floor from the old Ryman stage was lifted, carried, and set into the new Opry House, keeping the “unbroken circle” alive. You will see rare footage, hear artists describe what it feels like to stand there, and understand why that small patch of stage holds up an entire city’s music dreams.
A Century in the Circle: The Grand Ole Opry’s timeless legacy in country music
