The pride of West Virginia, Kathy Mattea, is getting her flowers, alright.
Specifically, a dozen red roses from Charlie McCoy as she accepted his invitation to become the next member of the Grand Ole Opry during her performance over the weekend (Aug. 9).
It was a perfectly fitting moment for the “Eighteen Wheels and A Dozen Roses” singer and songwriter, whose journey in Country, Americana, and Folk music has seen her consistently all over the charts and the world with her music for the last 30-plus years. Mattea is a fixture in these communities and a pioneer for women in songwriting and in music business longevity, which is a rarity in today’s climate.
As an institution, the Opry has become even more vital to the preservation of country music and all of its sister genres in the last several years. Celebrating its 100th Anniversary in 2025, the extension of invitations to artists has become even more carefully curated and deliberated—after all, they’re writing history here, folks.
Which makes a choice like Mattea an obvious one on many levels. In the 90s, Mattea shone as one of the hit “it girls” that dominated the mainstream country charts, with songs like the aforementioned “Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses,” “455 Rocket,” the remake of the Nanci Griffith classic “Love at the Five and Dime,” “Walkin’ Away A Winner,” and the Grammy-winning heartbreaker “Where’ve You Been.”
In later years, Mattea leaned into her folk and bluegrass origins, torch bearing the traditions of American Roots music that helped grow country into the full-fledged genre of storytelling the world recognizes it to be. And Mattea, for her part, is still the consummate storyteller. In addition to her ever-evolving songwriting and plethora of thoughtful albums, Mattea also travels the world as a renowned speaker and passionate educator on a variety of issues, ranging from arts education to finding your creative path to global climate change. Often interweaving her message with musical selections, Kathy’s presentations seek to provide her audience with “spiritual nourishment: food not only for thought, but also for the soul,” according to her mission statement on her website.
Earlier this year, the Opry welcomed Americana iconoclast Steve Earle into the family, with an emotional invitation from his longtime buddy Vince Gill. A date for Mattea’s induction ceremony will be announced at a later date.
And just for fun, here’s a throwback of Mattea alongside her peers Pam Tillis and Mary Chapin Carpenter co-starring in the music video for Dolly Parton’s radio hit “Romeo.” (And yes, that is a young Billy Ray Cyrus.)