The Opry Makes Room in December for Country's Next Arrivals

Before the year is out, the Grand Ole Opry will give a single evening to the artists it has picked as the ones to watch. The show is called "Opry NextStage Live," and its lineup is the 2026 NextStage group, a set of newcomers the Opry has named as country music's most promising. In Nashville that circle is the one the industry keeps an eye on, because it tends to show where the business is heading. On a December night the Opry will put all of them on its stage together, which is how this town tells people to learn a name early.

With reporting from MusicRow.