NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Hank Williams Jr., Marty Stuart and songwriter Dean Dillon have been selected as the Country Music Hall of Fame's class of 2020.
The Country Music Association revealed this year's inductees Wednesday morning.
DRUMROLL! We are honored to announce this year's Country Music Hall of Fame inductees. Join us in congratulating @DeanDillon17, @MartyStuartHQ and @HankJr!! See and read their reactions here: https://t.co/C9j2YbvPrq #HonorThyMusic pic.twitter.com/Y0lfZyRGBj
— CMA Country Music (@CountryMusic) August 12, 2020
Dillon will be inducted in the “Songwriter” category, which is rotates every third year with the “Recording and/or Touring Musician” and “Non-Performer” categories. Stuart will be inducted as the “Modern Era Artist” and Williams will be inducted in the “Veterans Era Artist” category.
“Bocephus has been eyeing this one for awhile. It’s a bright spot during a difficult year,” said Williams. “I have been making Top 10 records for 56 years. I fell off a mountain and tried to reinvent myself as a truly individual artist and one who stepped out of the shadows of a very famous man...one of the greatest. I’ve got to thank all those rowdy friends who, year after year, still show up for me. It’s an honor to carry on this family tradition. It is much appreciated.”
In years past, the inductees have been announced in the rotunda of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CMA traveled to Dillon and Stuart to get their reaction.
"It is the ultimate honor in Country Music,” said Stuart. “I’m so honored to be included in this class and I’m honored to be included alongside Hank Jr. and Dean Dillon. I love those people. To be officially inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame is beyond words. I’m usually not at a loss for words.”
“I was just speechless,” said Dillon. “Trying to soak in the words that I had just heard. My life flashed before my eyes. You could’ve knocked me over with a feather.”
Dillon has written hits for George Strait and many other artists ranging from Jim Ed Brown and Helen Cornelius to Kenny Chesney, Vern Gosdin, Toby Keith and Keith Whitley.
Stuart, who joined Lester Flatt’s band when he was just 13-years-old, has had four Gold albums and six Top 10 singles. He became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 1992 and earned a Golden Globe nomination for the score he wrote for the 2000 film “All the Pretty Horses.”
In a career spanning more than 60 years, Williams Jr. has released more than 50 albums and multiple compilations -- charting more than 100 singles, with 10 of those records going to No. 1 on the Billboard Country singles chart. He was named CMA Entertainer of the Year twice -- in 1987 and 1988 -- and has also won four Emmy Awards. His father, Hank Williams Sr., was one of the Country Music Hall of Fame’s first inductees.
