Loretta Lynn Couldn’t Remember The 1st Time She Sang At The Opry

Sharing This Article

Tennessean / YouTube

Loretta Lynn & The Grand Ole Opry Share A History

Loretta Lynn was member of the Grand Ole Opry for over half a century. She celebrated her 60th Opry anniversary just days before she passed away on October 4, 2022 at the age of 90.

Although the “Coal Miner’s Daughter” singer became a legendary figure in country music, she had to work her way up the ladder to earn that status

Loretta Lynn
Loretta Lynn / Facebook

Loretta made her first Opry appearance, on October 15, 1960, about two years before she became a member. In a clip from an old interview, she recalled her memory of that momentous performance.

Turns out, she was overwhelmed with the weight of the moment…and blocked everything out!

I remember patting my foot and that’s it. I don’t remember even singing,” she said.

Loretta Shared An Opry Memory With Her Husband

Loretta said that before her first performance at the Opry, she and her husband Doo had come to Nashville to record her first record. They had to sleep in their car overnight because they didn’t have enough money for a hotel.

As chances would be, Doo had parked the car across from the Opry itself. Loretta fondly recalled that even though they didn’t have much money, Doo went and bought them some doughnuts and they ate them in the car.

Over the course of her career, Loretta sold over 48 million albums worldwide. She came a long way from the night she spent sleeping in her car with only enough money to afford a few doughnuts.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Grand Ole Opry (@opry)

Enjoy watching Loretta talk about her early Opry memories in the clip below. We’re glad she shared these stories with us before she passed away.

Loretta was a legend, and she is so dearly missed…

Sharing This Article

Save this article!
Get this sent to your inbox, plus get new articles & videos from us every week!
Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

About the Author

Miranda Raye

Hello, I'm Miranda, a lifelong country music fan! There are old home videos of me in my baby swing, swinging along to Dolly Parton and Ricky Van Sheltonโ€™s โ€œRockinโ€™ Years.โ€ Being able to unite my passions for storytelling, researching, and music into my work has been a dream come true.

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.