NASHVILLE, Tenn., Feb. 22, 2017—The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum will feature Grammy-winning songwriter Mike Reid in the latest installment of the museum’s special series Poets and Prophets on Saturday, March 4, at 2:00 p.m. in the museum’s Ford Theater. Hosted by Museum Editor Michael Gray, Reid’s in-depth interview will include stories of his career as an All-Pro football player as well as tales behind many of his hit songs. The discussion will be illustrated with vintage photos, film footage, and recordings. In addition to the interview, Reid will offer a short performance.

Following a football career with Penn State University and then the Cincinnati Bengals, songwriter Mike Reid became a force as dominant in country music as he had been on the gridiron. He wrote thirteen #1 hits, including one (“Walk on Faith”) he recorded himself. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005.

A Pennsylvania native, Reid moved to Nashville in 1980 to pursue his career as a songwriter. Reid experienced quick success, writing a string of hits for Ronnie Milsap, including “Stranger in My House,” the 1983 Grammy winner for Best Country Song, and “Lost in the Fifties Tonight,” ASCAP’s Country Song of the Year in 1986.

Reid’s songwriting reached beyond country music in the 1990s, when Bonnie Raitt had a Top Twenty pop hit with “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” Raitt’s recording was inducted recently into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Adele, George Michael, Prince, and many others have recorded “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” 

Other hits written by Reid include #1 country songs for Alabama (“Forever’s as Far as I’ll Go”), Tim McGraw (“Everywhere”), Collin Raye (“In This Life”), and Wynonna (“To Be Loved by You”). Reid also penned Willie Nelson’s recent single “A Woman’s Love.”

Poets and Prophets is included with museum admission and free to museum members. Seating is limited, and passes are required for admittance. Museum members can reserve program passes in advance by phone (615-416-2050) or via e-mail (reservations@countrymusichalloffame.org). The program will be streamed live at countrymusichalloffame.org/streaming. Following the program, Reid will sign a commemorative Hatch Show Print poster, available for purchase in the Museum Store.

For 10 years, the Poets and Prophets series has honored songwriters who have made significant contributions to country music history. Previous subjects include Al Anderson, Bill Anderson, Matraca Berg, Bobby Braddock, Wayne Carson, Buzz Cason, Jerry Chesnut, Hank Cochran, Roger Cook, Sonny Curtis, Dean Dillon, Bob DiPiero, Tom Douglas, Kye Fleming, Jerry Foster, Dallas Frazier, Red Lane, Dickey Lee, John D. Loudermilk, Shane McAnally, Bob McDill, Roger Murrah, Paul Overstreet, Dan Penn, Gretchen Peters, Curly Putman, Allen Reynolds, Mark D. Sanders, Don Schlitz, Whitey Shafer, Red Simpson, Jeffrey Steele, Sonny Throckmorton, Billy Edd Wheeler, Norro Wilson and Craig Wiseman. Additional information about Poets and Prophets can be found at countrymusichalloffame.org.

Poets and Prophets is made possible, in part, by grants from the Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission and the Tennessee Arts Commission.

###

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 in 2016 welcomed nearly 1.2 million patrons, placing it among the ten 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 by the Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission and the 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.

The Museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums