Brett Eldredge’s Opry Wait Is Over

Playing the Grand Ole Opry for the first time is a magical experience for any artist, and it will be no different for Brett Eldredge when he takes the historic stage Friday, October 29. The newcomer, whose debut single 'Raymond' has just broke onto the charts, feels like it's taken a lifetime to get to this point.

"I've been waiting forever to have the day when I could call my grandpa and say, 'I just got offered to play the Grand Ole Opry and I want you to sit up in the crowd and watch me,'" Brett tells The Boot. "It came and it was a really special moment. I cannot wait to get up there and do that. It will be a cool moment in my life for sure."

Brett's grandfather, who's been a big supporter of his career, is the person he wants most to share the moment with. "My grandpa is a huge country and gospel fan, everything the Opry's all about," Brett explains. "He loves those old time singers, who perform the classics, and are on the Opry. Bill Anderson and those are guys are the ones he grew up around."

While this will mark Brett's first actual performance on the Opry, he's had the opportunity to hang backstage with the stars a time or two. He may even know a few of those singers his grandfather admires.

"I got to go to the Opry a couple nights ago," Brett admits. "I with my producer Byron Gallimore, who's first gig when he moved to Nashville was working for Charley Pride, who became his mentor. Charley was playing the Opry and he invited Byron to come out, so I got to hang out all night with Charley Pride. I sat backstage and watched him perform and heard stories from Charley."

But that's not where the legendary sightings end. "Then I ran into my buddy Bill Anderson," Brett says nonchalantly. "He said, 'I heard you're getting to play on my segment of the show and I'm going to introduce you.' Bill and I have written quite a few songs and he's been a real help and supporter of me and my career. It's going to be a real special moment to have Bill introduce me. I'm really looking forward to it."

There's also no better time to make your debut, than after the Opry's fresh renovation. "It's so well done and looks awesome," Brett recalls. "They've still preserved the history of it and all the pictures. You might have new flooring and new walls but you can never replace the feeling you get when you walk back there. You still have the legends walking around, and Little Jimmy Dickens still hanging out in that same dressing room. Country music is all about that place and it's still not lost that feeling. They make you feel welcomed and it's a cool thing."

Brett, who was inspired to write 'Raymond' by his grandmother's own fight with Alzheimer's, performed the heart-wrenching song at California First Lady Maria Shriver's March On Alzheimer's event October 24.