Eddie Stubbs, longtime Grand Ole Opry announcer and WSM Radio deejay, announced his retirement Tuesday (July 21). Once dubbed “the most recognizable voice in country music,” Stubbs will end his 25-year run at the end of this month.
This evening Eddie Stubbs announced his retirement from WSM Radio and the Grand Ole @opry. Eddie has been a part of our airwaves for more than 25 years, and we’re so grateful for his knowledge, wisdom and passion for country music. pic.twitter.com/0YmBenYWc9
— WSM Radio – The Home of the Opry! (@WSMradio) July 22, 2020
Stubbs grew up in Maryland where he learned to play the fiddle. In 1978, at just 16-years-old, Eddie made his debut with the Grammy nominated bluegrass band, The Johnson Mountain Boys. In 1983, Stubbs scored his first job as a deejay, meanwhile developing friendships with some of country music’s biggest stars.
He eventually left The Johnson Mountain boys and his job to relocate to Nashville in 1995 to play in Kitty Well’s band full-time.
“I heard it said once, years ago, if you want groceries, you’ve got to go to the store,” Stubbs recalled in the Ken Burns-produced PBS documentary. “Nashville is the store where the groceries are if you want to be in the country music industry.”
Less than a month after his move to Music City, Stubbs was hired by legendary Nashville radio station, WSM Radio, and was hired as the announcer for the Grand Ole Opry. To date, Stubbs is WSM’s longest-serving broadcaster in the 7 p.m. to midnight slot and is one of the Opry’s longest-running announcers.
Stubbs is not only has one of the most recognizable voices on radio, but is one of the most respected men in the country music industry. He is an avid country and bluegrass music historian and has an unrivaled catalogue of stories about some of the genres’ biggest stars. He has shared many of those stories in the eulogies he’s had the honor of delivering for more than 40 country music artists. In 2012, he became one of the youngest living inductees into the Country Radio Hall of Fame.
Eddie Stubbs and his iconic voice will be greatly missed on the radio and on the Grand Ole Opry. We wish him the best during his retirement.