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Rascal Flatts Invited To Join The Grand Ole Opry, To Be Inducted October 8th
September 28, 2011 at 6:12 AM (PT)
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BIG MACHINE group RASCAL FLATTS was invited to join the GRAND OLE OPRY in NASHVILLE last night (9/27) by OPRY member VINCE GILL. The group, GARY LEVOX, JAY DEMARCUS and JOE DON ROONEY, will be formally inducted into the OPRY family during the OPRY’S 86th birthday weekend, on SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8th. The show will air live at 8p (CT) on GAC-TV.
After RASCAL FLATTS concluded a performance of their song “Bless The Broken Road,” GILL surprised them on stage, sharing that the three members of the group owed him $500 from a golf game bet last week. “You would think that after hit record after hit record and millions of records sold, they’d come up with the five hundred bucks, but nooooooo!” GILL joked and then added, “I am here gratefully and gladly to invite you guys to be the next members of the GRAND OLE OPRY.”
LEVOX said, “You know, we’ve gotten to do a lot of amazing things in our career like going to IRAQ and visiting our soldiers, selling out arenas, and doing a lot of magnificent things that … you can’t even dream that big. But all three of us grew up listening to the OPRY: JAY with his grandfather, me with my grandmother, and JOE DON with his entire family. You can’t even put into words what this means to us. When we first signed our record deal in 1999, our main goal was to play the GRAND OLE OPRY and someday be members of the GRAND OLE OPRY. Thank you so much for being here.”
“My hero is VINCE GILL, and for him to come out here… man, what a surprise!” ROONEY said. DEMARCUS then invited the GILL to join the group for a spontaneous collaboration of GILL’s “Whenever You Come Around.”
Footage of tonight’s invitation can be seen at www.opry.com, along with ticket information for upcoming OPRY performances.