Get to know the 2019 Country Music Hall of Fame inductees

Leon “Kix” Brooks, a Louisiana native, moved to Nashville in the 1980s to pursue a career as a songwriter. After recording a solo album and writing a No. 1 hit for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Brooks joined forces with fellow solo artist Ronnie Dunn after the two were approached by label executives about teaming up. Born in Texas and raised in Oklahoma, Ronnie Dunn also pursued solo success before forming one of country’s most iconic duos.

In 1991 Brooks & Dunn stormed onto the scene with "Brand New Man," the duo’s first and arguably most memorable album. The 10-track effort, which includes “Neon Moon” and “Boot Scootin’ Boogie,” is credited in part with inspiring a brief American obsession with country-western line dancing and has since sold more than 6 million copies.

Following their debut, Brooks & Dunn spent the ‘90s charting No. 1 hits and winning armfuls of awards from the Country Music Association, Academy of Country Music and Recording Academy. Between 1991 and 2006, the duo won the CMA’s Top Vocal Duo Award every year with one single exception: In 2000 Montgomery Gentry took home the trophy. In addition to all those CMA Awards, Brooks & Dunn have also won a whopping 26 Academy of Country Music Awards and two Grammys. 

Though they’ve been close friends for decades now, Ronnie Dunn and Kix Brooks have spoken publicly about their creative differences as musicians. In 2009, more than 20 years after they first started working together, Brooks and Dunn abruptly called it quits but headed out on one last world tour. In 2013 Dunn blamed the downfall on Brooks' new gig as a syndicated radio host, and both got to work on solo albums. The duo put aside their differences in 2015 to reunite for a concert residency in Las Vegas alongside Reba McEntire. 

In 2019, Brooks & Dunn brought their biggest ‘90s hits into the 21st century with "Reboot," which features their tracks recorded by some of country’s brightest stars of the current era. Released earlier this year, it features Kacey Musgraves’ cover of “Neon Moon” and Luke Combs’ take on “Brand New Man.”

Before he became one of the most influential industry figures in Nashville, Jerry Bradley was assistant to his legendary predecessor, Chet Atkins, who helmed RCA Records. In 1973, following Atkins’ diagnosis of colon cancer, Bradley took over RCA and continued to pursue Atkins’ goal of making country music more friendly to audiences that preferred pop. 

Bradley was all but destined to be in the Country Music Hall of Fame. His father, Owen Bradley (pictured), was inducted into the Hall in 1974, just one year after Jerry began his time at RCA Records. His uncles were noted Nashville studio musicians, including Harold Bradley, a member of the “A-Team” of session musicians who played on country music’s biggest albums between 1950 and 1980. Later his wife, Connie, would lead the ASCAP Nashville office for more than two decades, and his son Clay would grow up to be a manager who’s worked with artists like Kenny Chesney, George Strait and Trisha Yearwood. 

As a label executive, Bradley oversaw one of RCA Records’ most successful eras in country music. He’s credited with signing country-pop crossover Ronnie Milsap to the label, subsequently scoring massive hits with 1974’s “Pure Love” and 1975’s “Daydreams About Night Things.” Bradley also had a major hand in the crossover successes of Jerry Reed and Dolly Parton, and he oversaw Elvis Presley’s return to country music. 

Bradley continued to show a keen eye for talent when he signed then-unknown and now iconic country group Alabama to RCA Records in 1980. In the years following, Alabama hit its stride with singles like "Why Lady Why" and "Mountain Music," both No. 1 hits. The band would eventually go on to sell more than 75 million records. 

While helping Dolly Parton and Jerry Reed find success with pop audiences, Bradley didn’t ignore the growing interest in “outlaw” country in the 1970s. In 1976, Bradley oversaw the production of "Wanted! The Outlaws," country music’s first album to sell a million copies. Bringing together Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Jessi Colter and Tompall Glaser, the album produced enduring outlaw favorites like “Good Hearted Woman” and the iconic “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys.” 

Every year, thousands of country music fans flood into Nashville for the CMA Music Festival, formerly known as Fan Fair. As a board member of the Country Music Association and later its president in 1975, Bradley was instrumental in developing Fan Fair, which debuted in 1972 with 5,000 attendees. Now, more than 40 years later, the renamed festival attracts nearly 100,000 fans every single year. 

Born Harold Ray Ragsdale in Clarksdale, Georgia in 1939, Ray Stevens got his big break in the music industry after meeting Atlanta radio personality Bill Lowery. Lowery encouraged Stevens to write songs, introducing him to an executive at Capitol Records who would eventually sign Stevens to his first deal with Prep Records. He made fast friends in Nashville with RCA executive and producer Chet Atkins and scored his first hit in 1961 with the bizarrely named “Jeremiah Peabody’s Poly Unsaturated Quick-Dissolving Fast-Acting Pleasant-Tasting Green and Purple Pills.” 

Most people remember Ray Stevens for his hilarious novelty tunes. In 1969, he riffed on the Tarzan story with “Gitarzan,” about a jungle-dwelling band, and he commented on the “streaking” phenomenon, when people ran through major sporting events buck naked, in 1973 with “The Streak.” Fans may also remember “Santa Claus is Watching You,” his joke-packed holiday classic. 

In addition to his joke-packed novelty songs, Stevens also found moderate success with serious tunes. He was the first artist to record “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” made famous by Johnny Cash, and his recording of jazz tune “Misty” scored him a Grammy award in 1975 for Music Arrangement of the Year. 

Ray Stevens’ most iconic track isn’t a joke at all. In 1970, he released the gospel-inspired “Everything Is Beautiful,” which encourages listeners to find the beauty in all people, places and things. The uplifting anthem was an instant success, hitting No. 1 on country and pop charts in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom. Later it was turned into a popular children’s book. 

Stevens was much more than just a recording artist. In addition to writing and recording his own songs, Stevens worked in A&R and as a producer, writer and arranger for artists like Brenda Lee, Dolly Parton and Patti Page. He also opened his own dinner theaters in Branson, Missouri, and Nashville and continues to write and record silly tunes to this day, like “Taylor Swift Is Stalking Me."