Ricky Skaggs

Ricky Skaggs is a highly decorated musician whose career has spanned bluegrass, country, and gospel music. Born Rickie Lee Skaggs on July 18, 1954, in Cordell, Kentucky, he became a multi-instrumentalist proficient on mandolin, fiddle, guitar, and banjo. He began his professional career in 1971 as a member of Ralph Stanley’s band, the Clinch Mountain Boys. In 1977, he joined Emmylou Harris’s Hot Band before launching a successful solo country career in 1980.

Skaggs released the solo album Waitin’ for the Sun to Shine in 1981. Over the years, his catalog expanded to include gospel projects such as Soldier of the Cross (1999), Salt of the Earth (with The Whites, 2007), and Mosaic (2010). He also released bluegrass albums like Bluegrass Rules! (1997), Ancient Tones (1999), and Brand New Strings (2004). In 1997, he founded his own independent record label, Skaggs Family Records, and frequently performs with his bluegrass band, Kentucky Thunder.

His career has been recognized with numerous honors. Skaggs is a fifteen-time Grammy Award winner, an eight-time Country Music Association Award winner, a nine-time Academy of Country Music Award winner, and a thirteen-time International Bluegrass Music Association Award winner. He has also received a Gospel Music Association Dove Award, including one for Salt of the Earth. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2018 and into the Gospel Music Association’s Gospel Music Hall of Fame. In 2020, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts.