NASHVILLE, Tenn. —Alumni from Middle Tennessee State University’s Scott Borchetta College of Media and Entertainment will be front and center on the Grand Ole Opry stage Thursday, Nov. 5, as part of a special show that will highlight the partnership between MTSU and the iconic country music venue.

Thursday’s show, set for 7 p.m. at the Grand Ole Opry House, has been branded as “MTSU Night at the Opry” and will feature six performances by artists with True Blue ties:

• Jessi Alexander
• HARDY
• HunterGirl
• LANCO (three members are MTSU alumni)
• Eric Paslay
• The Secret Sisters, featuring alumna Laura Rogers

University Provost and Chief Academic Officer Mark Byrnes said the special night will be a new element to the yearslong collaboration between MTSU and the Opry, which was launched to promote the work by the Charlie and Hazel Daniels Veterans and Military Family Center. 

“The Opry has been a great partner and big supporter of our talented students and alumni in the Borchetta College, as well as our efforts to support veterans and military-connected family members attending our institution,” he said.

Said college Dean Beverly Keel, “The Opry is known as one big family, and MTSU is a family, so Thursday night will be a family reunion. There will be so much talent on the stage — and a few surprises — so I can’t wait for everybody to enjoy the show.”

Alexander, a former MTSU student whose full name is Jessica Leigh Alexander-Stewart, is a four-time Grammy Award nominee. She won both the Country Music Association Award for Song of the Year and the Academy of Country Music Award for Song of the Year for co-writing Lee Brice’s 2012 single “I Drive Your Truck.” She was named an honorary professor at MTSU in 2025.

HARDY, whose full name is Michael Hardy (Class of 2013), is a multiple Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association award winner. He was named the 2022 BMI Country Songwriter of the Year and is a three-time Association for Independent Music Publishers Songwriter of the Year. He also was one of the commencement speakers for MTSU’s Spring 2024 graduation ceremonies.

HunterGirl, whose full name is Hunter Wolkonowski (Class of 2020), finished as the runner-up on season 20 of “American Idol” in 2022. Following her Idol run, she was named an honorary professor at MTSU and, in 2024, had her Opry debut. She has worked to promote the Daniels Center as an undergraduate and during her professional career.

Paslay (Class of 2005) found mainstream success in 2011 with “Barefoot Blue Jean Night,” a song he co-penned for Jake Owen. He struck gold on his own with his 2014 self-titled debut. He earned a Grammy nomination the following year for his appearance (with Dierks Bentley) on Charles Kelley’s “The Driver.”

Rogers (Class of 2019) is one half of the Americana duo The Secret Sisters, along with sister Lydia (Rogers) Slagle. The duo produced a pair of Grammy-nominated LPs produced by Brandi Carlile, “You Don’t Own Me Anymore” (2017) and “Saturn Return” (2020).

Three alumni, Chandler Baldwin (Class of 2014), Jared Hampton (Class of 2014) and Eric Steedly (Class of 2013), are members of the country group LANCO. Their debut album, “Hallelujah Nights,” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and featured the two-time Platinum hit “Greatest Love Story” and the Platinum-certified “Born to Love You.” 

The Opry, founded in 1925, is the world’s longest-running live radio broadcast and is credited with initiating and promoting the creation of Nashville as the center of country music. For more information about the Opry, as well as a link to purchase tickets to Thursday’s show, visit www.opry.com.

— Andrew Oppmann ([email protected])