Always exuding confidence with sharp Texas wit, Kacey Musgraves couldn’t help but get slightly emotional at Monday’s (July 1) private preview of her new Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum exhibit, Kacey Musgraves: All of the Colors.
Musgraves’ first fans in life, her immediate family, including grandparents Barbara Musgraves and Darrell Gene, were seated in the front row smiling back at her as she gave her remarks. They saw her exhibit together for the first time in what is the largest display of stage wear and awards show outfits the Hall of Fame has ever hosted. There are also three school detention slips citing Musgraves for insubordination and excessive talking, her six Grammys, merch from her childhood band, the Texas Two Bits, and interesting folk art created by her family.
“That lady right there was my first booking agent,” Musgraves said, pointing out her grandmother, Barbara. “She was ready with a press kit on her person at all times and would sling it to anyone who would care to hear. And even if they didn’t care to hear, she was going to give it to you. She would pick up the phone [with] gigantic balls of steel, and she’d say, ’Now, I have an entertainer for your event: it’s my granddaughter.’ And nine times out of 10 it worked. So, it took a lot of fearlessness on her part, but my entire family was involved.
“My grandfather is sitting right there,” she added. “I guess I was in middle school, and he thought it would be cool if he set me up a turntable, and I would come home after school, I would be bored, and I’d dig through all the vinyl. I didn’t really know what I was picking out or what I was looking at … I would like the cover, and I would just listen to it to see what it would sound like. One of those things was The Byrds’ Sweethearts of the Rodeo. I loved the cowgirl on the front, and I grew up singing a lot of country and western music. But also in moments like that, I fell in love with music way before my time.
“None of this would be possible without them also carting me around in all the minivans to all the crazy situations that we gotten ourselves in and would continue to go back to.”
Musgraves’ voice cracked with emotion one more time when she started thanking the music business professionals who oversee her career and recalling the memories she’s made with her band.
“Something I really try hard to work at is being present in the moment, and there are so many beautiful things happening all the time,” she said when she started her speech. “I don’t think a human really knows how to do that and how to be good at that. I didn’t think it would make me super emotional. I think it takes a lot for me to feel that way, but to see everything laid out in a physical sense in a timeline, it’s really a healthy and beautiful thing for me because there’s so much that you forget.
“I’m somebody who gets really excited about what’s in front of me, and I check it off, and I move onto the next thing. It’s fun for me to do that. There’s a lot that gets lost in the blur and all the busy-ness. But there’s a lot to be celebrated and a lot to be remembered.”
The exhibit runs through June 7, 2020. Musgraves will give an in-depth Q&A at the Hall of Fame’s CMA Theater Saturday (July 6).
