Stacker compiled a list of noteworthy milestones from each year of country music history, using a variety of news articles, historical resources, and more.
1922: Eck Robertson makes one of the first commercial country recordings
Updated1923: Ralph Peer makes the first ‘hillbilly’ record
Updated1924: “The Prisoner’s Song” becomes the first country record to sell 1 million copies
Updated1925: The Grand Ole Opry begins
Updated1927: Country music has its “Big Bang”
Updated1928: The Carters meet Lesley Riddle
Updated1929: Gene Autry records his first records
Updated1930: Ken Maynard becomes the first singing cowboy in the film ‘Sons of the Saddle’
Updated1931: Ed Crain records “Bandit Cole Younger”
Updated1932: Patsy Cline is born
Updated1933: Willie Nelson is born
Updated1934: Gene Autry stars in his first movie, ‘In Old Santa Fe’
Updated1935: Bob Wills makes his first recordings
Updated1936: ‘Mid-Day Merry-Go-Round’ begins
Updated1937: The ‘Renfro Valley Barn Dance’ begins
Updated1938: “Wabash Cannonball” becomes the top country record
Updated1939: Billboard begins publishing its ‘Hillbilly Hits’ chart
Updated1940: Minnie Pearl joins the Grand Ole Opry
Updated1941: ‘Walking the Floor Over You’ launches honky tonk music into the mainstream
Updated1942: Fred Rose and Roy Acuff found the first Nashville music publisher
Updated1943: The Carter Family disbands
Updated1945: “Bluegrass” becomes a genre
Updated1946: Nashville’s first independent label, Bullet Records, is launched
Updated1947: Hank Williams earns his first national hit
Updated1948: Eddy Arnold releases 5 of the year’s new #1 songs
Updated1950: Hank Snow’s ‘I’m Movin’ On’ sits at #1 for 21 weeks
Updated1951: Carl Smith makes his chart debut
Updated1952: Kitty Wells’ ‘It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels’ becomes a hit
Updated1953: Hank Williams dies at 29
Updated1955: Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley tour together
Updated1956: Carl Perkins’ ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ becomes a hit
Updated1957: Jerry Lee Lewis records ‘Great Balls of Fire’
Updated1958: The Country Music Association is formed
Updated1959: The first Best Country and Western Performance Grammy Award is presented
Updated1961: The Country Music Hall of Fame is established
Updated1963: Patsy Cline dies
Updated1964: Willie Nelson first appears on the Grand Ole Opry
Updated1965: Loretta Lynn records ‘You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)’
Updated1966: Dolly Parton releases her first record
Updated1969: The ‘Johnny Cash Show’ debuts on ABC
Updated1970: Dolly Parton records her first Top 10 single
Updated1971: Southern Rock begins in Nashville
Updated1973: Willie Nelson hosts his first Fourth of July picnic
Updated1974: Dolly Parton’s ‘I Will Always Love You’ is released
Updated1975: Willie Nelson releases ‘Red Headed Stranger’
Updated1976: ‘Wanted! The Outlaws’ is released
Updated1977: Elvis Presley dies
Updated1979: Kenny Rogers cements his reputation as a crossover country star with ‘Coward of the County’
Updated1980: ‘Urban Cowboy’ is released
Updated1981: Rosanne Cash releases her song ‘Seven Year Ache’
Updated1982: Amy Kurland opens The Bluebird Cafe
Updated1983: Two major country TV networks launch
Updated1984: The Judds release their debut album, ‘Why Not Me’
Updated1985: The New York Times’ Robert Palmer claims that country music is dying
Updated1986: Columbia Records drops Johnny Cash
Updated1987: Reba McEntire is named the CMA’s ‘Female Vocalist of the Year’ for the fourth year in a row
Updated1988: Garth Brooks is discovered at the Bluebird Cafe
Updated1989: Garth Brooks releases ‘If Tomorrow Never Comes’
Updated1990: Uncle Tupelo releases ‘No Depression’
Updated1992: Line dancing surges in popularity
Updated1993: Toby Keith makes his debut
Updated1994: Johnny Cash has his comeback
Updated1995: Vince Gill releases ‘Go Rest High on That Mountain’
Updated1998: The Chicks make their major-label debut
Updated1999: The Americana Music Association is formed
Updated2000: ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?’ is released
Updated2001: The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum opens
Updated2002: Shania Twain makes her comeback
Updated2004: ‘The Grand Ole Opry’ star Skeeter Davis dies
Updated2005: ‘Walk the Line’ is released
Updated2006: Taylor Swift releases her first album
Updated2007: Country music sweeps the Grammy Awards
Updated2008: Reba leaves her label
Updated2009: Kanye West interrupts Taylor Swift at the MTV Video Music Awards
Updated2010: CMT hosts its first CMT Artists of the Year event
Updated2012: Billboard changes its Hot Country Songs chart criteria
Updated2013: Jody Rosen coins the term ‘bro-country’
Updated2014: Ty Herndon and Billy Gilman come out as gay
Updated2015: Kelsea Ballerini’s ‘Love Me Like You Mean It’ reaches #1
Updated2016: ‘Forever Country’ is released
Updated2017: Luke Bryan makes history with his album ‘Crash My Party’
Updated2018: Lil Nas X releases ‘Old Town Road’
Updated2019: Kacey Musgraves wins Album of the Year at the Grammys
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