These 7 Country Music Legends Have Never Received A Grammy Award – Find Out Who They Are
For decades, the Grammy Awards have been regarded as the most important awards show in the music industry. Because of this, artists who win a Grammy consider it to be one of the greatest achievements of their career.
Country music has an impressive roster of Grammy-winning artists, from Merle Haggard, to Dolly Parton, to Reba McEntire.
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But believe it or not, there are many country legends who have never won a Grammy. Some of these artists have been nominated for a Grammy before, but have always come home empty-handed.
Of course, these aren’t the only country legends who have never received a Grammy before, they’re just some of the most surprising. Look below to see who they are!
1. Jimmy Dickens
Before Little Jimmy Dickens died on January 2, 2015, he had been the oldest-living member of the Grand Ole Opry, which he joined in 1948. He was later inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and was honored during the ACM Awards with the Cliffie Stone Pioneer Award.
However, Dickens surprisingly never received a Grammy. In fact, he was never even nominated for one!
While Dickens was active in the industry long before the first Grammy Awards in 1959, he scored some of his biggest hits after the Grammys started. We think “May the Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose” is prime Grammy material, don’t you?
2. Jean Shepard
After Little Jimmy Dickens died, Jean Shepard became the longest-living member of the Opry until her own death on September 25, 2016. When she was inducted into the Opry in 1955, Shepard was one of few female artists to find success in country music.
Despite her immense influence and impressive total of 73 charted singles, Shepard never received a Grammy. Like Dickens, she was never nominated for one.
Granted, Shepard’s biggest hit “A Dear John Letter,” was released six years before the Grammys started. Still, we think that all of Shepard’s music was award-worthy!
3. David Allan Coe
In 1973, Tanya Tucker released a song called “Would You Lay With Me,” which was written by a man named David Allan Coe. That song went to the top of the country charts, and established Coe as one of the go-to songwriters in Nashville. He scored another chart-topper four years later after Johnny Paycheck cut his song “Take This Job and Shove It.”
Despite his success as a singer and songwriter, Coe has a surprisingly empty list of honors to his name. He’s never been nominated for a Grammy, CMA, or ACM Award.
4. Skeeter Davis
Skeeter Davis was one of country music’s biggest stars for multiple decades. 1959 was one of the most eventful years of her career, marked by her hit song “Set Him Free” and her induction into the Grand Ole Opry.
That same year, Davis made music awards history when she became the first female country artist to be nominated for a Grammy. More Grammy nominations followed in 1964, 1965, and 1967, but she never took home an award.
Davis was nominated for another Grammy in 1972 for her performance of her song “One Tin Soldier,” which received little attention from radio. Although Davis didn’t win that award either, at least the Grammys recognized her talent when others didn’t!
5. Connie Smith
With 20 top ten hits and three number one albums, you can bet that Connie Smith has been nominated for her fair share of awards. Often regarded as one of the best female country singers of all time, Smith has earned awards from Billboard, Cash Box, CMT, and more.
Over the course of her career, Smith has been nominated for an impressive total of 11 Grammys. Her most recent nomination was in 2010 for her collaboration with Marty Stuart on “I Run to You.” But believe it or not, she’s never won a single one.
Although she doesn’t have a Grammy, Smith has a long list of other honors to her name. She’s a Grand Ole Opry member and a Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, just for starters!
6. Bill Anderson
Known by his nickname Whisperin’ Bill, Bill Anderson is one of the most highly-respected artists in country music right now. His career has been decorated with one hit single after another, both as a singer and a songwriter.
Anderson’s work hasn’t gone unrecognized by the Grammys. While he’s never been nominated as an artist, he has been nominated as a songwriter. He’s been nominated for songs such as “Once a Day,” “Two Teardrops,” and “Give it Away,” recorded by Connie Smith, Steve Wariner, and George Strait, respectively.
Despite all of his nominations, Anderson has never won a Grammy. That came as a huge surprise to us, because all of the above mentioned songs were major hits!
7. Holly Dunn
Prior to her retirement in 2003, Holly Dunn had seen 19 of her singles make their way on the charts. Two of those singles reached number one, titled “Are You Ever Gonna Love Me” and “You Really Had Me Going.” Although it wasn’t a chart-topper, her single “Daddy’s Hands” was one of her most recognizable songs.
The Grammys recognized Dunn and the success of “Daddy’s Hands” during its 1987 ceremony. The song was nominated for two awards, the first for Best Country Song and the second for Best Country Female Vocal Performance.
The recognition for Best Country Song award goes to the songwriter(s) instead of the artist, unless the artist is the writer as well. That was the case for Dunn and “Daddy’s Hands,” since she served as the sole writer on the track.
While Dunn didn’t win either of the two awards she was nominated for, it’s remarkable that she was nominated as both a singer and songwriter. It goes to show just how talented she truly was.
She earned another nomination in 1988 for “A Face in the Crowd,” but didn’t win that award either.
All of these artists are winners in our book! Who were you most surprised to see on this list?