Jason Boland & Flatland Cavalry Set Grand Ole Opry Debuts

A couple of deserving bands from the Texas and Red Dirt side of country are finally receiving their due with upcoming opportunities to step into the hallowed circle at the Grand Ole Opry. It’s just the latest sign things are opening up a bit under the new Opry management of Dan Rogers.

Ever since releasing their debut album Humble Folks in 2015, Flatland Cavalry have been considered one of the best new bands in the Texas and Red Dirt world. Not exactly new anymore, their 2021 album Welcome to Countryland has been well-received, and appearing on the Grand Ole Opry stage on October 22nd will only help to continue their current momentum.

Originally formed in Midland, TX and then rising to prominence in Lubbock, many of Flatland Cavalry’s members including frontman Cleto Cordero now reside in Nashville at least part time. Being managed under the same umbrella as Grand Ole Opry member Luke Combs probably didn’t hurt in locking down this bucket list moment for this deserving band.

Jason Boland has waited a bit longer for this opportunity. An early Red Dirt stalwart who always kept it more country than some of his contemporaries, Jason Boland is working on his 3rd decade of making music with his backing band The Stragglers, and playing the Opry will be a dream come true.

Jason Boland recently announced he’s releasing a concept record about being abducted by aliens called The Light Saw Me. The album follows a cowboy living in Texas in the 1890s who is beamed aboard a spaceship and ends up back in Texas in the 1990s. The album will be released on December 3rd, and the on December 7th, Jason Boland will step onto the Grand Ole Opry stage for the first time.

For years we saw Texas and Red Dirt bands sitting on the outside looking in at Grand Ole Opry debuts or opportunities since it’s such a Nashville-centric institution. But allowing some fresh, new blood from the Texoma scene on the stage can only help in the effort to keep the Grand Ole Opry vital and relevant moving forward.

If you can’t be there in person, you can tune in via WSM online for the audio broadcast.

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