Longtime Chair Steve Turner Honored as Chairman Emeritus

NASHVILLE, Tenn., – Aug. 26, 2021 – Entertainment and music business visionary Mary Ann McCready was recently elected as the new chair of the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum’s Board of Officers and Trustees. She will serve a one-year term. McCready joined the board in 2006 and has guided the institution as a finance committee member and investment committee chair.

Steve Turner, cultural arts activist and longtime museum board chair, was honored as chairman emeritus. Turner has served as board chair since 2008, steering the institution to its position as one of the most-visited history museums in the United States while safeguarding its educational mission and solidifying its long-term success.

In addition, all board officers were reelected, as well as returning trustees Mark Bloom, David Conrad, Bill Denny and David Ross. Board trustees are elected for three-year terms, and officers are elected annually.

“The strength, consistency and fortitude of our board guides and inspires us as we continue to navigate the uncertainties of the pandemic,” said Kyle Young, CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. “We’re fortunate to have such engaged and accessible community leaders invested in the heart of our institution.

“Steve Turner has been our pillar of valor for the past 13 years as board chair, and we can’t possibly thank him enough for his immeasurable contributions to the museum and the greater community,” said Young. “We look forward to beginning the next bright chapter with Mary Ann — a true visionary, a unifier and a formidable force for good.”

Turner’s longtime service caps two decades of steady leadership, with retired Gaylord Entertainment CEO and Country Music Hall of Fame Member E. W. “Bud” Wendell as his predecessor. Wendell, who also retains the chairman emeritus title, served seven consecutive terms from 2001 to 2008.

Steve Turner

Widely known for his philanthropy and civic leadership, Turner successfully negotiated an unprecedented public-private partnership between the museum, the city of Nashville and Omni Hotels & Resorts. The partnership more than doubled the museum's size and attendance, demonstrated and cemented country music's value to the city of Nashville, bridged long-standing barriers between the music industry and the business community, and ensured the museum's future.

Turner's philanthropy toward the museum has been significant through the years, including an all-important leadership gift to the capital campaign to fund the museum’s expansion, which was completed in 2014. Above all, his steadfast enthusiasm, his devotion of countless hours, and his expansive, far-sighted vision have secured the museum's future without compromising its mission of preserving and interpreting country music.

Cementing his legacy, Turner founded the institution’s Circle Guard, an honorary group of individuals whose extraordinary gifts of time, talent and treasure safeguard the preservation of country music’s history and its Hall of Fame, making both accessible to global audiences through the museum. He is also the founder of MarketStreet Equities, an investment company credited with the neighborhood-centric revitalization of the Gulch in downtown Nashville.

Mary Ann McCready

With a talent and passion for connecting the music community with Nashville’s business world, McCready, co-founder of Flood, Bumstead, McCready & McCarthy, is a highly respected music industry executive and national leader in entertainment business management. She has contributed to the success of a host of top artists responsible for shaping the city’s musical legacy. Widely recognized for both her business and philanthropic endeavors, she was honored in 2018 with Variety’s Business Managers Elite Award — the first person outside of Los Angeles and New York to be honored as a recipient.

She has been a steadfast advocate for the museum, including unifying and activating artists who are moved to support its All for the Hall fundraising initiatives. She also serves as an inaugural member of the museum’s Circle Guard, which honors all current Country Music Hall of Fame members and their enduring contributions in advance of each new class’s induction.

In addition to her devotion to her clients and the museum, she is known for her commitment to giving back to the community. In recognition of her leadership and mentoring of young professionals, she received the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce’s 2017 Impact Award. McCready also dedicates her time as an Advisory Council member for the W.O. Smith Community Music School and is a founding co-chair and member of the Music City Music Council.  

Visit the museum’s website to view a full list of the museum’s Board of Officers and Trustees.

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About the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum:

The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum collects, preserves and interprets country music and its history for the education and entertainment of diverse audiences. In exhibits, publications and educational programs, the museum explores the cultural importance and enduring beauty of the art form. The museum is operated by the Country Music Foundation, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) educational organization chartered by the state of Tennessee in 1964. The museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, and is among the 10 most-visited history museums in the U.S. The Country Music Foundation operates Historic RCA Studio B®, Hatch Show Print® poster shop, CMF Records, the Frist Library and Archive and CMF Press. Museum programs are supported in part by Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission and Tennessee Arts Commission.

More information about the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum is available at www.countrymusichalloffame.org or by calling (615) 416-2001.