Your daily look at this day in country history, from classic Opry nights to the newest No. 1 hits.
On April 3, 2011, Taylor Swift was named Entertainer of the Year at the 46th ACM Awards in Las Vegas, with Reba McEntire and Blake Shelton as hosts. In 2023, the Country Music Association named Patty Loveless, Tanya Tucker and songwriter Bob McDill as the newest members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Don Gibson and Billy Joe Royal share this birthday.
Taylor Swift was named Entertainer of the Year at the 46th ACM Awards in Las Vegas, with Reba McEntire and Blake Shelton as hosts. Miranda Lambert's "The House That Built Me" won Single, Song and Video of the Year.
Don Gibson was born in Shelby, North Carolina. Called the Sad Poet for his heartache songs, he wrote "Sweet Dreams," "Oh Lonesome Me" and "I Can't Stop Loving You," which Ray Charles made a hit in 1962. He died in 2003.
Billy Joe Royal was born in Valdosta, Georgia. He is best known for the 1965 pop hit "Down in the Boondocks." He crossed into country in 1985 with "Burned Like a Rocket."
Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty had the No. 1 country song with "After the Fire Is Gone." Written by L.E. White, it was their first chart-topper as a duo.
Hank Williams Jr. held No. 1 on the country chart with "Texas Women." It was his third No. 1 and his first since 1972.
Clint Black was No. 1 on the country chart with "Loving Blind," the second single from Put Yourself in My Shoes. It was his fifth No. 1.
Miranda Lambert's Kerosene, her debut on Epic Nashville, sat at No. 1 on Billboard's country albums chart. The Texas singer had finished third on Nashville Star in 2003. The title song became the record's biggest hit, reaching No. 15.
Luke Bryan's "Fast" climbed to No. 1 on Billboard's Country Airplay chart. It made him the first artist ever to land six No. 1 airplay hits from one album, 2015's Kill the Lights.
Source: billboard.comChris Stapleton swept the top country prizes at the 64th Grammy Awards in Las Vegas. Starting Over won Best Country Album, "Cold" took Best Country Song, and "You Should Probably Leave" won Best Country Solo Performance.
The Country Music Association named Patty Loveless, Tanya Tucker and songwriter Bob McDill as the newest members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. The three were formally inducted that fall.
Source: hawaiinewsnow.comThe Louisiana Hayride first went on the air over KWKH from the Municipal Auditorium in Shreveport. Kitty Wells and Johnnie and Jack were on that first show. For years it ranked just behind the Grand Ole Opry.
Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith died at 93 at his home in Charlotte, North Carolina. His 1955 tune "Feudin' Banjos" became "Dueling Banjos" in the 1972 movie Deliverance. He went to court and won songwriting credit.
Don Gibson (1928) and Billy Joe Royal (1942) were all born on this date.
It depends on the year. In 1971, Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty had the No. 1 country song with "After the Fire Is Gone." In 1981, Hank Williams Jr. held No. 1 on the country chart with "Texas Women."
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