2025 in country music

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This is a list of notable events in country music that will take place in 2025.

• January 20 – Carrie Underwood performs "America the Beautiful" during the swearing-in ceremony at the second inauguration of Donald Trump.^[1]
• March 19 – The Grand Ole Opry celebrated its 100th birthday with a concert special hosted by Blake Shelton which featured over 50 of the Opry's living members in attendance.^[2]
• March 31 – Canadian country singer Orville Peck makes his Broadway debut in Cabaret, taking over the role of the Emcee from Adam Lambert for a limited sixteen-show run at the August Wilson Theatre. Peck starred alongside two-time Tony Award nominee Eva Noblezada as Sally Bowles.^[3]
• April 25–27 – The 2025 edition of Stagecoach Festival takes place at Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, featuring headline performances from Zach Bryan, Choya Partridge, Jelly Roll and Luke Combs. The festival also featured a special country set from Lana Del Rey, who had notably headlined Stagecoach's sister festival Coachella a year prior. Conversely, Post Malone, who performed his own special country set at Stagecoach in 2024, went on to headline Coachella in 2025. Shaboozey is unique in that he performed at both Coachella 2025 and Stagecoach 2025.^[4]
• April 26 – Steve Earle is invited to become the next member of the Grand Ole Opry by Vince Gill.^[5] He was inducted on September 17 by Emmylou Harris.^[6]
• May 7 – Gretchen Wilson wins season thirteen of The Masked Singer as "Pearl". Fellow country singer Brian Kelley, who appeared as "Mad Scientist Monster" came fourth. Wilson became the second country singer to win the show following LeAnn Rimes as "Sun" during season four.^[7]
• June 8 – Conner Smith is involved in a car accident during which he struck Dorothy Dobbins, a 77-year-old woman who was crossing the sidewalk, and later died at the hospital.^[8]
• July 4 – Pat Green announces that his younger brother John, the latter's wife Julia, and their two youngest children were swept away during the Central Texas floods.^[9]
• August 9 – Kathy Mattea is invited to become the next member of the Grand Ole Opry by Charlie McCoy.^[10] She was officially inducted on October 11 by Terri Clark.
• August 11 – Jim Asker steps down as the senior editor of the Billboard country, gospel, and Christian music charts after holding the position for ten years.^[11]
• August 13 – George Strait is announced as one of the recipients of the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors.^[12]
• August 17 – Miranda Lambert and Parker McCollum's Band Together Texas concert raises over $8.5 million for flood relief. Alongside Lambert and McCollum, the event featured performances from Wade Bowen, Lyle Lovett, Ronnie Dunn, Cody Johnson, Lukas Nelson, Pat Green, Jon Randall, Jack Ingram, Randy Rogers, Ryan Bingham, and Jason Aldean, and appearances by Matthew McConaughey, Dennis Quaid, Mack Brown, Emmanuel Acho, Colt McCoy, Vince Young, Roger Clemens, Chris Harrison, and Kendra Scott.^[13]
• August 21 – Connie Smith celebrates her 60th anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry
• August 26 – Chapel Hart announces that they will be breaking up.^[14]
• September 18 – Hit songwriter Brett James is killed in a plane crash in North Carolina.^[15]
• September 30 - Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman announce their divorce after 19 years of marriage.^[16]
• October 7 – Vince Gill signs a lifetime record deal with long-time label MCA Records.^[17]
• October 8 - Alan Jackson announces his final concert at Nissan Stadium, scheduled for June 27, 2026. Special guests will include Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, Jon Pardi, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Riley Green, Cody Johnson and Lee Ann Womack.^[18]
• October 11 – Moments after her own induction, Kathy Mattea, alongside Terri Clark and Trisha Yearwood invites Suzy Bogguss to be become the next member of the Grand Ole Opry. The quartet were performing Mattea's "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" when she interrupted her own song to surprise Bogguss with the invitation. It is the first time in Opry history than an induction and invitation have occurred in the same evening.^[19]
• October 13 – Reid Perry announces his departure from The Band Perry, leaving sister Kimberly Perry as the only original member remaining.^[20]

The following songs placed within the Top 20 on the Hot Country Songs, Country Airplay, or Canada Country charts in 2025:

(announced on March 25, 2025)^[122]

• Tony Brown (born 1946)
• June Carter Cash (1929–2003)
• Kenny Chesney (born 1968)

(announced on June 3, 2025)^[123]

• Lisa Brokop (born 1973)
• Joe Wood

(announced on July 16, 2025)^[124]

• Hot Rize
• Bluegrass Cardinals
• Arnold Shultz

Stars who were honored in 2025

• Trisha Yearwood

• George Strait

• January 1 – Chad Morgan, 91, Australian country singer and guitarist^[125]
• January 13 – Buck White, 94, American bluegrass instrumentalist, member of The Whites^[126]
• January 15 – Melba Montgomery, 86, American country singer ("No Charge")^[127]
• January 24 – Buddy Brock, 72, American songwriter ("You've Got to Stand for Something", "Watermelon Crawl")^[128]
• March 6 – Troy Seals, 86, American songwriter ("Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes", "Seven Spanish Angels")^[129]
• March 20 – Eddie Adcock, 86, American bluegrass banjo player (The Country Gentlemen)^[130]
• March 29 – Dick Damron, 91, Canadian singer and songwriter^[131]
• April 1 – Johnny Tillotson, 86, American singer-songwriter of the 1960s ("It Keeps Right On a-Hurtin'")^[132]
• April 16 – Mac Gayden, 83, American guitarist and songwriter^[133]
• April 22 – David Briggs, 82, American country keyboardist^[134]
• April 23 – Lulu Roman, 78, American comedian and singer (Hee Haw)^[135]
• May 9 – Johnny Rodriguez, 73, American country singer ("Pass Me By (If You're Only Passing Through)", "Ridin' My Thumb to Mexico")^[136]
• May 13 – Billy Earheart, 71, American country keyboardist (The Amazing Rhythm Aces, The Bama Band)^[137]
• June 19 – Gailard Sartain, 81, comedian and longtime cast member of Hee Haw^{[138][139][140]}
• July 18 – Helen Cornelius, 83, American country singer best known for the Jim Ed Brown duet "I Don't Want to Have to Marry You"^[141]
• July 26 – Sandy Pinkard, 78, songwriter ("Coca-Cola Cowboy") and one-half of duo Pinkard & Bowden^[142]
• July 31 – Flaco Jiménez, 86, American musician (Texas Tornados, Los Super Seven).^[143]
• August 1 – Jeannie Seely, 85, American singer ("Don't Touch Me")^[144]
• September 4 – Robby Turner, 62, American pedal steel guitarist.^[145]
• September 18 – Brett James, 57, American songwriter ("Jesus, Take the Wheel", "I Hold On") (airplane crash)^[146]
• September 19 – Sonny Curtis, 88, American musician and songwriter ("Walk Right Back", I'm No Stranger to the Rain") and member of The Crickets ^[147]