GAC & WSM Take Fans Inside White House

On Tuesday, July 21, 2009 Brad Paisley along with Alison Krauss + Union Station performed for the President, First Lady and family, members of Congress and White House staff in the historic East Room of the White House. Photo credit Ben Enos.
Country at the White House, featuring Brad Paisley, premieres on Saturday, Aug. 15 at 9p ET! More details and times »

August 12, 2009 — If you want to know what it’s like inside the White House, tune in this weekend to Country At The White House, a GAC special premiering Saturday, August 15 at 9 p.m. Eastern. Brad Paisley, Alison Krauss & Union Station, and Charley Pride received an invitation to perform a special concert for the President, First Lady, and invited guests in the White House — and GAC cameras were there to capture the performances and the stories from three of the Grand Ole Opry’s groundbreaking members.

Click here to watch a sneak peek!

Two days before the GAC special, 650 AM WSM’s Opry announcer Eddie Stubbs will give listeners a look inside the White House in the radio special, "Mr. Stubbs Goes To Washington." The two-hour program highlights Stubbs’ July visit to the Capital with Alison Krauss, Brad Paisley and Charley Pride as they performed for the President and First Lady, their family and various government VIPs. It premieres Thursday, August 13 at 9 p.m. Central.

"That was a truly anointed day for country music," Stubbs said. "I am excited to be able to share the magic of the day—the impeccable musicianship and the emotion felt by everyone who played a part in it—for listeners. I hope that by tuning in Thursday night, they’ll feel the pride in our genre of music and in our country we all felt that night."

Prior to the special, wsmonline.com will debut online pages containing exclusive photos and video content from the day as well as written reflections on the occasion by Stubbs, Brad Paisley and Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen.

Among the highlights of Stubbs’ reflections is his account of a conversation with the President as he was preparing to exit toward the White House’s Green Room. "I’ve got to stop and talk to you," Stubbs recalls the President having said. "I promise you that I will be coming down to Nashville and to the Grand Ole Opry." Stubbs recalls "the President was genuinely sincere in all that he said to me, and I feel every confidence that he will in fact be coming to Nashville. I also got a strong sense from what I observed and what he said that there will be more country music shows taking place at The White House during his administration."