Celebrate the Heart of Country, Americana, and Roots Music!

Drop Us A Line, Y'all

Y'all interested in advertising, partnering up, contributing stories, joining our team, or just got a question? Well, don't be shy, drop us a line!

Follow Us

Charley Pride to Receive the 2020 Willie Nelson Life Time Achievement Award

by
  • Ryden is a Junior Country Music Journalist at Country Thang Daily, specializing in data analysis and trends within the genre.
  • Before joining Country Thang Daily, Ryden wrote for top music publications and interviewed icons like Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson.
  • Ryden has a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from Middle Tennessee State University, with a minor in Data Analytics.

Charley Pride is this year’s recipient of CMA’s Willie Nelson Life Time Achievement Award. Qualification for the award is for artists to attain established credibility in country music.

Pride has long stood as a legend in country music earning accolades for himself throughout his career which include being a Grand Ole Opry member and a Country music Hall of Fame member. The 86-year-old country legend has also produced chart-topping songs and timeless hits over the years. Charley Pride also belongs to the few numbers of Black Country artists that have risen in prominence in country music.

CMA CEO Sarah Trahern said that Charley Pride was an example of a trailblazer. Pride is one of the few artists that have help build the rich heritage of country music to what it is today. The unique voice he possessed has produced hits that would last for years to come.

Pride now joins other country legends of the past that includes Willie Nelson, whom the award was named after, Kenny Rogers (2013), Johnny Cash (2015), Dolly Parton (2016), and Kris Kristofferson (2019).

Charley Pride, a Mississippi native played baseball at the Negro League Baseball. He also served in the United States Army prior to bursting into his musical career. For the span of 21 years, from 1968 to 1989, Pride made a name for himself in the country music industry. He produced 29 number 1 hit country songs and over 50 top 10 songs, among these group includes 1971 “Kiss an Angel Good Morning,” and 1970’s “Is Anybody Goin’ to San Antone.”

Amongst all the accomplishments that Pride has obtained in his career, one of the most significant, if not the most significant, was placing black artists on the map of country music. Pride was the only and thus far is the only black American country artist to have won the CMA artist of the year Award which he won in 1971. In the same year, he won one of his two CMA Male Vocalist of the Year awards. He won the same award in 1972.

Pride also appeared as the show’s co-host with Glen Campbell in 1975. Alongside his CMA Awards, Pride also paved the way for Black Artists to join the Grand Ole Opry as he was the first one to be able to do so in 1993. He also earned a spot on the country music hall of fame in 2000 and has 3 Grammy’s below his belt.

Latest Stories

Toby Keith performs with his American flag guitar, the same patriotic spirit that fueled his song "Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue."

The Untold Truth Behind Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American)”

When Toby Keith sat down with a fantasy football stat sheet and scribbled out “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue”, he didn’t just write a song. He lit a ...

Toby Keith plays guitar with an American flag design, capturing the patriotic vibe perfect for a Fourth of July country playlist.

35 Patriotic Country Songs to Turn Your Backyard Into the Ultimate 4th of July Party

Nothing says freedom like blasting a rowdy country playlist while you torch a few burgers, keep the cooler stocked, and watch your drunk uncle light fireworks way too close to ...

Keith Urban sits next to Nicole Kidman looking serious, a moment that echoes him shutting down talk about her steamy movie scenes.

Keith Urban Shuts Down Interview When Nicole Kidman’s Scenes With Younger Men Are Mentioned

Some lines just ain’t worth crossing, especially when you’re asking Keith Urban about Nicole Kidman and Zac Efron rolling around on screen. This week, the whole thing went sideways when ...

Tim McGraw sits outdoors with Faith Hill, leaning on a cane, sparking questions about his health but showing their strong bond.

Tim McGraw Using a Cane With Faith Hill Beside Him Raises Questions About His Health

Sometimes country music’s strongest cowboys need a little help standing tall, and Tim McGraw’s latest photo has folks asking how much longer he can keep carrying that torch. It’s not ...

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood smile together at an event, standing united amid the ongoing sexual assault lawsuit drama.

Garth Brooks’ Marriage With Trisha Yearwood Reportedly Unshaken by Sexual Assault Lawsuit

Nothing tests a marriage like ugly headlines, but Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood are riding out this storm shoulder to shoulder. Since last October, Garth Brooks has been staring down ...

Country legend George Jones plays guitar under spotlight, embodying the raw heartbreak behind these 12 most depressing country songs.

These 12 Depressing Country Songs Will Have You Sobbing and Hitting Repeat All Night

Straight from the depths of Reddit’s country corner, here’s a list built by real fans who know heartbreak better than any Nashville hit machine ever could. These songs weren’t picked ...

Jimmy Swaggart preaching passionately in an undated photo, remembered now after his death at 90 from a heart attack.

Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart Dies at 90 Just Weeks After Suffering a Massive Heart Attack

There’s a hush across Pentecostal churches this week as believers remember Jimmy Swaggart, the firebrand evangelist, gospel singer, and TV preacher who spent decades filling stadiums, living rooms, and airwaves ...

Gavin Adcock onstage raising a whiskey bottle while blasting Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ as “not real country music.”

Viral Country Star Gavin Adcock Slams Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ Says ‘That S— Ain’t Country Music’

Some headlines feel like a parody of the country music circus these days, and this is one of them. Gavin Adcock, the beer-slinging viral star who built half his brand ...

George Strait beams onstage at Patriots Stadium, guitar in hand, as he brings Texas charm with “All My Ex’s Live in Texas.”

George Strait Brings Lone Star Magic to Patriots Stadium With “All My Ex’s Live in Texas”

Some legends don’t need confetti cannons or stadium-shaking pyros. They just need a guitar, a baritone voice, and a song about every ex they ever outran in a pickup truck. ...

Beyoncé points at her Buffalo Soldiers shirt during her Cowboy Carter tour, the shirt that sparked backlash for its wording.

Beyoncé Under Fire for Wearing Shirt That Calls Native Americans “Enemies of Peace”

Some controversy doesn’t fade with the stage lights. Just ask Beyoncé. The Houston-born superstar is facing backlash after wearing a T-shirt during her Cowboy Carter tour in Paris that some ...