The galaxy of Mandy Barnett‘s career is full of gleaming stars; her teenage years began with performing at the iconic Dollywood as a pre-teen and and bookended with her portrayal of Patsy Cline in Always….Patsy Cline at the Ryman Auditorium as well as her Opry Debut. Over the next thirty years, Mandy has released nine studio albums that ranged from her original material to the incredible The Nashville Songbook to her latest Jazz inspired Every Star Above. She’s become a very intricate thread in the quilt of Music City, as her professional relationships and personal friendships have included some of Country’s largest and most historic names. Now, after gracing the Opry stage more than 500 times, Mandy is set to light one more star in her sky as she becomes an official member of the Grand Ole Opry tomorrow, November 2.
We caught up with Mandy to talk about the night of her Opry Invite and upcoming Opry Induction, her album Every Star Above, and more.
CN: First, we want to congratulate you on your invitation to join the Grand Ole Opry! What a birthday gift! What was going through your mind that night?
MB: Thank you! It’s been a lifelong dream to be an Opry member, and now my dream becomes a reality. I’m still on cloud nine about receiving the invitation. That evening at the Opry was already wonderful. Everyone backstage was wishing me a happy birthday, and then during my performance segment, Connie Smith walked on to lead the audience in “Happy Birthday.” So, I’m standing next to the amazing Connie thinking, she is actually singing directly to me along with all of the audience members—what an incredible birthday present! Then Connie started to read a birthday card to me recounting the many years that I’ve played on the Opry and in my mind, I was remembering my very first Opry appearance. When Connie got to the words “You’ve felt like family since we first met, and on this, your special day, we’re honored…” and her voice started to break a bit, I hoped that what I imagined might be coming next was really happening. Then Connie continued, “…on this, your special day, we’re honored to invite you to become an official member of the Grand Ole Opry.” I was totally flabbergasted, and all I could do was cry with joy. The Opry’s press release described me as being “visibly shaken,” and I truly was—in the best way possible!
CN: And to have THE Connie Smith be the one to welcome you!!
MB: THE Connie Smith is right! Country Music Hall of Fame member, Grand Ole Opry member, and my dear friend. Before I ever personally knew Connie, I was a huge fan. Her vocal style influenced me. There’s such a purity to Connie’s tone, and her phrasing and emotional delivery were always so artistic and impactful. Then when I met Connie, I became a huge fan of her as a person as well, not just as an artist. She is sincere, encouraging, delightful, and just plain nice. I’m so fortunate to have Connie in my life, and I’m absolutely thrilled that she was the one to deliver my Opry invitation.
CN: You have graced the Opry stage more than 500 times over the past three decades. Do you still get goosebumps when you walk onto that legendary stage?
MB: Of course! Performing on the Opry is a great honor that I’ve never taken for granted. Every time I walk onto the Opry stage—whether standing in the circle at the Opry House or on the Ryman stage—I feel so privileged to be there. Even after more than 500 times, it never gets old. Each time feels like the first performance, goosebumps and all. And like Connie read in my membership invitation, the Opry definitely feels like family.
CN: This may not be a fair question, but what is your all-time favorite Opry memory?
MB: Hmm, pinning down just one all-time favorite Opry memory is a challenge. Over the long stretch of time that I’ve played the Opry, there are so many memories that are special. Joking around backstage with Little Jimmy Dickens, hanging out in dressing rooms with Jan Howard, Jeannie Seely, Jean Shepard, and Connie Smith, and waiting in the wings with Jim Ed Brown and George Hamilton IV…along with watching these folks and others perform. These are just a few favorite memories that come to mind.
I also loved being on the Opry segment that Porter Wagoner hosted, which happened quite often. When he introduced me as a “terrific girl singer,” I always smiled. He and I became good friends. I recorded his song “Trademark” on my I’ve Got A Right To Cry album, which Nashville Sound pioneer Owen Bradley produced. Right before Porter passed away in 2007, he and I talked about recording some duets.
My most unique memory probably happened on Saturday, March 14, 2020, when due to a change in Opry format after things started closing up in Nashville because of the coronavirus, Connie Smith, Jeannie Seely, Bill Anderson, Sam Williams, Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper, and I played acoustically to an empty Opry House. This show was the first Saturday Night Grand Ole Opry livestream and the first time in decades that the Opry had gone on without a live audience. As part of its “16 eerie images” published during the early days of the pandemic, USA Today included a long-shot photograph of me walking out onto the Opry House stage that night in front of empty seats. And when the Opry opened up to a limited audience months later on October 17, 2020, I performed on that first show back.
CN: November 2nd is getting close! Feeling any butterflies?
MB: It’s very close! Feeling some butterflies, but mainly joy, excitement, and gratitude. I can’t wait to celebrate with colleagues, friends, and the audience.
CN: How has the Mandy who made her career debut in 1994 differ from the artist today? How has she stayed the same?
MB: I moved to Nashville as a teenager and got the role of Patsy Cline in the “jukebox” musical Always…Patsy Cline at the Ryman Auditorium in 1994, which was a hit, and I also made my Opry debut that same year. But I had already had some performance and recording experience. As a kid, I won a singing contest at Dollywood and worked on some recordings with producer and label head Jimmy Bowen. When Always…Patsy Cline raised my profile in Nashville and nationally, I was able to start working on albums consistently—first with producers Kyle Lehning and Bill Schnee and then producer Owen Bradley for the iconic Seymour Stein’s Sire label. I started singing from a young age, but the performance and recording experiences that I had as a teenager and young adult really helped hone who I was as an artist. I was always considered a bit of a throwback to classic voices and styles, and sometimes I felt unsure sticking to my vision as to who I was as an artist. Today, though, I’m quite comfortable being sort of a musical chameleon and stylist, trying a variety of genres depending on what I’m feeling at any given time. I like being able to move from classic country to the Americana, bluesy vibe of my recent Strange Conversation album to this year’s big, sweeping orchestral sound of my Every Star Above Great American Songbook album. What’s stayed the same about me as an artist? Basically, my commitment to doing the best work that I can and seeking out songs with memorable, strong melodies combined with lyrics that speak to me—that hopefully speak to the listener, too.
CN: Much like the decades before, music in general has changed so much over the past thirty years. Which artists have influenced you both personally and as an artist when you first started your career?
MB: I’ve always had eclectic tastes in music, so I have a bunch of influences from different musical genres. As a child, I spent a lot of time with adult relatives, who listened to classic country, traditional pop, gospel, and R&B; and I ate it all up. Female stylists like Tammy Wynette, Patsy Cline, Brenda Lee, Connie Francis, Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Washington, and Sarah Vaughan…along with Billie Holiday, of course…are some of my biggest influences. I learned from them how to focus on phrasing and find the emotional core of songs. And Linda Ronstadt has always been a model of variety and versatility for me.
CN: Which artists impress you today?
MB: I’m always impressed with Adele. Lately, I’ve been listening to her new ballad “Easy On Me.” A great singer and song with beautiful piano—no frills. I’m looking forward to hearing the rest of her upcoming album. Yola is terrific, too. Her current release, Stand For Myself produced by Dan Auerbach, is such a cool project. I also think that there’s a dynamic group of young female country artists whose songwriting and delivery pack power.
CN: Earlier this year you released your 8th studio album, Every Star Above, an incredible project dedicated to Jazz legend Billie Holiday and her album Lady In Satin which inspired you as a young artist. You also worked alongside arranger Sammy Nestico who has a resume that includes a Hall of Fame list of artists such as Count Basie, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand and more. What was the process like in creating your homage to such a personally important album and to also work with Sammy?
MB: When I was in my early 20s, my good friend Harold Bradley [legendary guitarist, Country Music Hall of Fame member, and brother of Owen Bradley] gave me Lady in Satin. He thought that I’d appreciate it in terms of the passion of both the songs and Billie Holiday’s voice. Billie revealed her heart and soul every time she sang, and she inspired me to become a torch singer and do the same throughout my career. When producer Fred Mollin approached me about making a “concept” album, he asked me, by chance, if I ever thought about reworking the songs from Lady in Satin. Fred brought jazz maestro Sammy Nestico onboard to do the orchestral arrangements. We wanted to honor, but not imitate Billie and her approach to the album’s standards, some of which Frank Sinatra had recorded before her. Sammy’s arrangements were paramount in achieving that. Sammy intimately knew these songs through artists he worked with over his career, so he definitely knew what he wanted to bring out in them. Sammy was so sweet and encouraging. Here’s me, an artist from Crossville, Tennessee known largely for singing classic country and one of the most fabulous arrangers of all time coming together in tribute to Songbook gems. I studied his arrangements carefully, so that I could vocally match their beauty. Sammy wasn’t able to come to the studio, but he watched some of the recording sessions via Skype from his California home, and he was thrilled. Soon after the sessions, I traveled to meet Sammy finally and his wife, Shirley. He said “you done good, kiddo!” and that he wanted to work with me again—that I’d made him so happy. As it turned out, though, Every Star Above was Sammy’s final project, as he passed away at age 96 earlier this year. I’m thankful for having worked with him.
CN: You were also accompanied by a 60 piece orchestra!
MB: Conductor Scott Lavender and the orchestral musicians, many of whom I already knew and had worked with before, made shivers go up my spine. Their work on Every Star Above is stunning. It was both exhilarating and challenging to be in the studio with them all. When Sammy Nestico sent me the audio of his arrangements initially, they were electronically recorded—on a computer. The recording sessions for the album were the first time that I heard the arrangements in their full orchestral glory—and there was nothing like that vast, beautiful sound enveloping me as I sang!
CN: Every Star Above went to #1 within 24 hour of release. What did that mean to you given how personal this album was?
MB: I’ve been overjoyed at how well Every Star Above has been received. Hitting number one on the iTunes jazz charts, and then being named one of the best albums of 2021 by Variety magazine… It’s really been special to see the response to this labor of love where I stepped out of my usual style.
CN: You have collaborated with many artists over your career. Is there anyone you haven’t worked with that you’d love to have the opportunity to?
MB: I think it would be so much fun to sing with Tom Jones!
CN: A bit of a flashback – what was the first concert you ever attended?
MB: The first real music concert that I attended was Dolly Parton at Dollywood when I was around twelve. I worked at Dollywood for a couple of years performing with a band. Suzy Bogguss worked there as well at that time, and we shared a dressing room. Dolly was larger than life to me then, and even now. I looked up to both Dolly and Suzy. Love them both still!
CN: If you could describe yourself in one word, what would it be and why?
MB: Just one word? I mean, can you really sum up a person in one word? I’ll try! I’ve been called intense, and I think that’s OK—in the sense of feeling things passionately and deeply. That quality definitely describes me as an artist. I’ve also been called silly, or goofy—in the sense of sometimes having childlike wonder about things. But maybe I can be described, too, as an onion, because I’m multilayered and as the years go by, I discover new layers. So, there you go…an intense, goofy onion!
Congratulations again to Mandy Barnett on becoming a member of the Grand Ole Opry family! For tickets to tomorrow’s Opry Induction, click here.
For more information on Mandy Barnett, visit her website at www.mandybarnett.com and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.