This Day in Country History: March 21

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 2006: Earl Scruggs played at the Kennedy Center with his Family and Friends band as part of the Kennedy Center's Country: A Celebration of America's Music.
• 2014: Dolly Parton sang Jerry Lee Lewis's "Great Balls of Fire" at the opening of a new ride, the FireChaser Express, at her Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. During the opening, Parton wore a rhinestone-encrusted fire hat and expressed how she wanted families to have fun at her park.
• 2014: George Strait performed at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena for The Cowboy Rides Away Tour. Strait, who has sold over 120 million records, stated this was his last concert tour.
• 2024: The Steel Wheels, Sloppy Joe, and Town Mountain performed at Suwannee Spring Reunion in Live Oak, Florida.

Cultural Milestones

• 2018: Trace Adkins sang at the Jammin' to Beat the Blues benefit for mental health awareness in Nashville, Tennessee. Adkins performed alongside Blake Shelton, MercyMe, Craig Morgan, and High Valley.
• 2018: The Library of Congress added Kenny Rogers' "The Gambler" to the National Recording Registry. Other honors went to Merle Travis' 1947 album Folk Songs of the Hills.
• 2021: Actor Matthew McConaughey hosted a virtual fundraiser on his YouTube channel for those affected by a devastating winter storm in Texas. The fundraiser featured country music stars from Texas, including George Strait, Willie Nelson, Miranda Lambert, and Kelly Clarkson.

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 2006: Tim McGraw's album Greatest Hits Vol. 1 received a 4x Platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In addition, Live Like You Were Dying earned a 4x Platinum certification.
• 2013: The RIAA gave Florida Georgia Line's "Get Your Shine On" a Gold certification, and on December 12, 2018, certified the song 3x Platinum.
• 2014: Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan's "This Is How We Roll" received a Gold certification from the RIAA. On November 20, 2022, this song received a 6x Platinum certification.
• 2017: Country music vocal group Little Big Town performed in Australia for the first time at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney. By 2017, Little Big Town had already won two GRAMMY Awards.
• 2018: New Zealand-born Australian country music singer Keith Urban released his song "Coming Home," which he recorded with pop star Julia Michaels. 
• 2025: Morgan Wallen released two new tracks from his I'm the Problem album. The tracks were "Just in Case" and "I'm a Little Crazy."

Industry Changes and Challenges

• 1991: The founder of Fender Musical Instruments, Leo Fender, died at the age of 81. Country music stars like Waylon Jennings, Buck Owens, Vince Gill, Brad Paisley, and Marty Stuart were known for playing Fender Telecaster guitars. 
• 2015: The "Let Your Boys Be Country" singer Jason Aldean married his sweetheart, Brittany Kerr, while vacationing in Mexico. Kerr was a former American Idol contestant and a professional dancer.
• 2015: Randy Travis married his long-term fiancée, Mary Davis. The couple had known each other for decades before getting married, and Mary is committed to taking care of Travis after a stroke left him unable to speak or sing.

Country Music Moments

• 2016: LoCash singer Chris Lucas and his wife Kaitlyn welcomed their second child on March 21 at the Williamson Medical Center in Franklin, Tennessee. They named their daughter Remi McKenna Lucas.
• 2018: Darius Rucker, known as the singer of the rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, performed with Luke Combs at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney, Australia. Rucker started a career in country music in 2008.