Reba McEntire Invites Lainey Wilson To Join The Grand Ole Opry

On Tuesday night’s finale of The Voice (21 May), coach Reba McEntire delivered a shock for special guest Lainey Wilson, inviting her to join the prestigious Grand Ole Opry – one of country music’s crowning achievements.

Wilson was invited to join the Grand Ole Opry after performing her new single, Hang Tight Honey, from her forthcoming LP Whirlwind, on The Voice stage.

Standing beside Wilson after her performance, McEntire began, “Lainey, I’m so proud of you. You did a wonderful job, and I have heard that I’ve inspired you and what you’ve done so far. I am thrilled if I had anything to do with your career because you are blowing it up!”

Calling McEntire “so sweet”, Wilson was presented with the official invitation to join the Grand Ole Opry.

In a tear-jerking moment for Wilson (and anyone who watches the footage), McEntire continued, “I was so proud of you at the ACMs the other night, and I couldn’t be more proud to be the one that helps you continue to bridge the gap between our generations. I’d like to be the person to invite you to be an official member of the Grand Ole Opry.”

Reacting to the invitation, Wilson said that her family was in the audience for her performance on The Voice and commented that she knew she wanted to join the Grand Ole Opry one day.

“I wanted to do it, and it was so crazy that you were asking me to be a member because I look up to you so much,” Wilson told McEntire. “I’m not talking about just musically, but the way that you carry yourself and your work ethic. You inspire me every day.”

Wilson will be inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry on Friday, 7 June. You can watch McEntire give Wilson her invitation and watch her performance of Hang Tight Honey on The Voice below.

The dreams keep coming true for Wilson, who won three awards at this year’s ACM Awards, is about to open her own Nashville bar, recently collaborated with Keith Urban, joined The Black Crowes on stage and won big at this year’s iHeart Radio Music Awards – and that’s all in the last month.

Countrytown caught up with Wilson after she won Billboard’s Rulebreaker Award last year. To Wilson, winning that award meant she went “against the grain” and did things the way she wanted. She added, “I didn't even realise that I was breaking the rules, but I guess we were. And it feels like all that hard work starts to pay off.”