Lainey Wilson, Reba Among 'Variety' Honorees

Country superstars, including Lainey Wilson and Reba McEntire, will be front and center as Variety hosts the first-ever Power of Women: Nashville event on Thursday, May 1, coinciding with the accompanying issue release on Tuesday, April 29.

The event, presented by Lifetime, will celebrate the inaugural Power of Women: Nashville honorees. Each honoree will appear on four separate covers of the issue and be profiled in the annual Women’s Impact Report: Nashville, which highlights the industry’s most philanthropic women who have made a significant impact through their work.

In line with Variety‘s Power of Women celebrations in Los Angeles and New York, each honoree will highlight a charity of their choosing, to which Variety will make a donation as part of the event.

This year’s Power of Women honorees include Wilson. She is raising awareness for her Heart Like a Truck Fund, which supports many causes focused on changing lives for the better and celebrating triumph.

Other honorees include Kelsea Ballerini, who is the newest judge on NBC’s hit competition series The Voice. Ballerini recently released her critically acclaimed studio album, Patterns, and is recognizing her Feel Your Way Through Foundation, which raises money for nonprofits centered around mental health.

Reba, whose NBC sitcom Happy’s Place was recently renewed for a second season, will also be honored. Her charity of choice was not revealed at the time of publishing.

Mickey Guyton is the fourth honoree. She will highlight the Loveland Foundation, which focuses on bringing opportunity and healing to communities of color, especially to Black women and nonbinary individuals.

The Power of Women: Nashville event will be hosted by Sheryl Crow, who was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2023.

Ashley Judd will also attend the event to introduce the upcoming four-part documentary event The Judd Family: Truth Be Told, premiering May 10 and 11 on Lifetime. The doc examines Naomi Judd’s complicated bond with her daughters, Wynonna and Ashley, that both tied them together and drove them apart.

Kelsea Balleirni Lainey Wilson Mickey Guyton Reba

Nancy Brooks // Country Writer, Beasley Media GroupWriter

Nancy Brooks has been working in the country music industry for almost 30 years. She has interviewed pretty much any country star you can think of. In the late 1990s, she started working with Dolly Parton. And yes, Nancy reports that Parton is as sweet as you would think. She loves her life in country music and has been backstage at every CMA Awards show since the late 1990s. Many of her stories are from her one-on-one interviews. She was there at the beginning of the incredible careers of many music superstars today, including Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, and Blake Shelton, and has interviewed them multiple times throughout the years.