Your daily look at this day in country history, from classic Opry nights to the newest No. 1 hits.
On May 13, 2015, Carrie Underwood led the CMT Music Awards nominations with five. In 1950, Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters joined the Grand Ole Opry. Darius Rucker and Morgan Wallen share this birthday.
Carrie Underwood led the CMT Music Awards nominations with five. Her nods came for "Something in the Water," "Little Toy Guns" and "Somethin' Bad," her duet with Miranda Lambert.
Johnnie Wright was born in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. He sang in the duo Johnnie & Jack, then scored a 1965 No. 1 on his own with "Hello Vietnam." He died in 2011.
Terry Fell was born in Dora, Alabama. At his first RCA session he cut "Truck Drivin' Man" as a B-side, and it became a trucker favorite that many artists have recorded since.
Songwriter Allen Shamblin was born in Tennessee. Randy Travis, George Strait and Bonnie Raitt have cut his songs, and he co-wrote Miranda Lambert's "The House That Built Me" with Tom Douglas.
Lari White was born in Dunedin, Florida. She had Top 10 hits with "That's My Baby," "Now I Know" and "That's How You Know (When You're in Love)." She died in 2018 at 52.
Darius Rucker was born in Charleston, South Carolina. The Hootie & the Blowfish singer reached No. 1 in country with "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" in 2008 and won the CMA New Artist award in 2009.
Ilse DeLange was born in Almelo, Netherlands. The Dutch singer cut her first album, World of Hurt, in Nashville in 1998. In 2020 the CMA gave her its Jeff Walker Global Achievement Award.
Morgan Wallen was born in Sneedville, Tennessee. His 2021 album Dangerous: The Double Album opened with a long run at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, a rare feat for a country record.
Rascal Flatts held the top spot on Billboard's country albums chart with Me and My Gang. The album went double platinum in its first month and gave fans the No. 1 hit "What Hurts the Most."
Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters joined the Grand Ole Opry. The group was later billed as the Carter Family.
Heartworn Highways, a documentary by James Szalapski, was released. Filmed in 1975 and 1976, it caught Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, a young Steve Earle and Rodney Crowell, David Allan Coe and The Charlie Daniels Band.
Bob Wills, the King of Western Swing, died in Fort Worth, Texas. He led the Texas Playboys for decades. His last album session came in late 1973 with Merle Haggard on hand, but Wills fell ill after the first day.
Cajun accordion great Nathan Abshire died in Louisiana at 67. Fans still treasure his 1949 recording of "Pine Grove Blues."
Johnnie Wright (1914), Terry Fell (1921), Lari White (1965), Darius Rucker (1966), Ilse DeLange (1977) and Morgan Wallen (1993) were all born on this date.
It depends on the year. In 2006, Rascal Flatts held the top spot on Billboard's country albums chart with Me and My Gang.
Every entry is checked by the Country Thang Daily editors. Spot something we got wrong? Let us know and we’ll fix it and note the change.