Rest in Peace Charlie Pride
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Country Legend Charley Pride Dies of COVID-19 Complications at 86
Charley Pride was the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the first Black person to host the Country Music Association Awards.
Country Legend Charley Pride Dies of COVID-19 Complications at 86
Charley Pride was the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the first Black person to host the Country Music Association Awards.
Country legend Charley Pride — a pioneer for Black musicians in country music — died on Saturday in Dallas, Texas, at the age of 86 due to complications from COVID-19, a statement on his website confirmed.
With top hits including “Kiss an Angel Good Morning” and “Is Anybody Goin' to San Antone,” Pride became the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2000.
He was born in Mississippi in 1934 as the son of a sharecropper. After a brief time serving in the Army and some unsuccessful attempts at becoming a professional baseball player, Pride headed to Nashville in 1963.
He recorded songs immediately but it wasn’t until Pride’s manager, Jack Johnson, met with late producer Jack Clement that Pride’s career took off. Clement offered songs for Pride to learn and in 1965, RCA Record's Chet Atkins signed him to a recording contract.
Pride quit his day job as a smelter when his 1967 recording of Clement’s “Just Between You and Me” broke into country’s top ten — and the rest is history.
Charley Pride.
In addition to earning three Grammy Awards during his career, Pride took home the entertainer of the year award at the 1971 Country Music Awards and won male vocalist of the year both that year and in 1972. In 1975, he became the first Black man to host the Country Music Association Awards.
“We’re not color blind yet, but we’ve advanced a few paces along the path and I like to think I’ve contributed something to that process,” Pride wrote in his 1994 memoir.
His final performance was just last month when he was given the Lifetime Achievement Award at the CMAs, which drew controversy for being held indoors despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read more >>> https://people.com/country/charley-pride-dies-of-coronavirus-complications/
Charley Pride was the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the first Black person to host the Country Music Association Awards.
Country Legend Charley Pride Dies of COVID-19 Complications at 86
Charley Pride was the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the first Black person to host the Country Music Association Awards.
Country legend Charley Pride — a pioneer for Black musicians in country music — died on Saturday in Dallas, Texas, at the age of 86 due to complications from COVID-19, a statement on his website confirmed.
With top hits including “Kiss an Angel Good Morning” and “Is Anybody Goin' to San Antone,” Pride became the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2000.
He was born in Mississippi in 1934 as the son of a sharecropper. After a brief time serving in the Army and some unsuccessful attempts at becoming a professional baseball player, Pride headed to Nashville in 1963.
He recorded songs immediately but it wasn’t until Pride’s manager, Jack Johnson, met with late producer Jack Clement that Pride’s career took off. Clement offered songs for Pride to learn and in 1965, RCA Record's Chet Atkins signed him to a recording contract.
Pride quit his day job as a smelter when his 1967 recording of Clement’s “Just Between You and Me” broke into country’s top ten — and the rest is history.
Charley Pride.
In addition to earning three Grammy Awards during his career, Pride took home the entertainer of the year award at the 1971 Country Music Awards and won male vocalist of the year both that year and in 1972. In 1975, he became the first Black man to host the Country Music Association Awards.
“We’re not color blind yet, but we’ve advanced a few paces along the path and I like to think I’ve contributed something to that process,” Pride wrote in his 1994 memoir.
His final performance was just last month when he was given the Lifetime Achievement Award at the CMAs, which drew controversy for being held indoors despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read more >>> https://people.com/country/charley-pride-dies-of-coronavirus-complications/
