Little Big Town, Lula C. Naff, Tom Ryman To Music City Walk Of Fame

Pictured (Top): Little Big Town. (Bottom, L-R): Lula C. Naff, Tom Ryman

Little Big Town, the late Lula C. Naff and Tom Ryman will be honored with stars on the Music City Walk of Fame, during an induction ceremony to be held Thursday, Sept. 14 at Nashville’s Music City Walk of Fame Park.

Little Big Town, Naff, and Ryman will receive the 77th, 78th and 79th stars on the Music City Walk of Fame, which recognizes inductees for their significant contributions to preserving the musical heritage of Nashville and for contributing to the world through song or other industry collaboration.

The Music City Walk of Fame will honor the Ryman Auditorium in celebration of the historic venue’s 125th anniversary with the induction and presentation of stars to Little Big Town, which currently has a sold-out residency at the Ryman Auditorium, as well as to two of the Ryman’s most influential figures: Tom Ryman, the riverboat captain who was inspired by a revival preacher to build the Union Gospel Tabernacle, and Lula C. Naff, the theater manager who helmed the Auditorium for more than 40 years and booked the Grand Ole Opry there.

The induction ceremony will take place on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017 at 1 p.m. in Music City Walk of Fame Park. The event is free and open to the public.

“Tom Ryman had a vision. Lula Naff had a plan. And their tenacity and skill created one of Nashville’s most beautiful and iconic buildings – and one of the greatest music venues the world has ever seen,” Mayor Megan Barry said. “Now Little Big Town is adding a new chapter to the story of the Mother Church of Country Music with its unprecedented Ryman residency. The induction of each of these legends into the Music City Walk of Fame couldn’t be more appropriate as the Ryman celebrates 125 years of gorgeous music and amazing history.”

Colin Reed, Chairman and CEO of Ryman Hospitality Properties, said, “As the stewards of Ryman Auditorium, it is a great honor for our company to accept this recognition on behalf of Tom Ryman and Lula Naff, two people who helped lay the foundation for Nashville’s cultural identity as Music City. In this milestone anniversary year for the Ryman, we are particularly pleased to see these figures from its past recognized alongside members of our Opry family who are carrying forward the rich traditions that made the Mother Church the world-renown venue it is today.”

The Music City Walk of Fame was created in 2006 on Nashville’s Music Mile, a roughly one-mile stretch that connects downtown to Music Row. Permanent sidewalk medallions with the names of the inductees are displayed in a star-and-guitar design.