Country hitmaker Bryan White is getting an unexpected gift for his 50th birthday.
The Lawton native will be inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame on Saturday, Feb. 17, the same day he reaches the half-century mark.
"It's not where I thought I would be: I didn't think I would be receiving something so prestigious on the day of my 50th birthday. ... It's a pretty amazing birthday present," White told The Oklahoman.
"I'm completely blown away and honored to be in such good company with all the other amazing, talented Okies. ... It's always awesome to have a great excuse to come home. But for something like this, man, it's just not something I would have anticipated this early in my career."
A multiplatinum-selling singer-songwriter, White is among the 2023 inductees who will be ushered into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame during its ceremony and concert at the Muskogee Civic Center.
"There's seven people that we're honoring, and five are going to be playing live. So, it should be a fun night," said Tony Corbell, the executive director of the Muskogee-based Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame.
Who are newest inductees into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame?
Joining the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame at Saturday's event are:
● Bryan White, whose career accolades include winning the 1996 Country Music Association Horizon Award and the 1996 Academy of Country Music top male vocalist title.
●Oklahoma-based country band Ricochet — Heath Wright, lead vocals, lead guitar and fiddle; Chris Hempfling, drums and vocals; Larry Hight, steel guitar, electric and acoustic guitar, saxophone and vocals; Bruce Bennett, bass and vocals; and Rick Toops, keyboards and vocals — won the ACM Award for top new vocal duo or group in 1997. The group's 1996 self-titled debut album spun off three top 10 hits — "What Do I Know," chart-topper "Daddy's Money" and "Love Is Stronger Than Pride" — and went gold.
● Timothy Long is a pianist, conductor and composer, as well as the artistic and music director of opera at the Eastman School of Music, the music school of the University of Rochester in New York. A Muscogee Nation citizen from the Thlophlocco Tribal Town who is also half Choctaw, Long made his piano concerto debut at age 16 with the OKC Symphony Orchestra, and he has since traveled the world as a performer and conductor.
● Nashville troubadour and guitarist Verlon Thompson, who hails from Binger, has written songs for Kenny Rogers, Trisha Yearwood, Randy Travis, Dierks Bentley and fellow Oklahoma Music Hall of Famer the late Joe Diffie. He spent many years co-writing and recording with his Grammy-winning friend the late Guy Clark.
● Tulsa musician, composer, teacher and recording artist Shelby Eicher was inducted into the National Fiddle Hall of Fame in 2019. A member of Country Music Hall of Famer Roy Clark's band for 15 years, Eicher recorded five albums with Clark and appeared numerous times on "The Tonight Show" and "Hee Haw."
● Jerry Huffer will receive the Educator Award in honor of his more than 50-year career as an Oklahoma music educator. The Muskogee teacher and administrator also served as the longtime executive director of the Oklahoma Music Educators Association, retiring last year.
● Governor's Award recipient David Webb started his multifaceted career in the music business in 1963 when legendary Tulsa music impresario Jim Halsey hired him to put up show posters. Since, Webb has worked with many top artists, record companies and artist management companies, served on the Chicago Grammy board and produced shows.
"For me, the best thing about this class of inductees is the immense diversity," Corbell said. "This class of inductees will long be remembered for what they have contributed to the world of music."
Influential Tulsa singer-songwriter Dwight Twilley also was chosen for the 2023 Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame class, but he died suddenly last October at age 72. Corbell said the hall of fame will honor Twilley separately at a later date.
How is the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame remembering 2005 honoree Toby Keith?
Inductees Eicher, Long, Thompson, White and Ricochet are expected to perform at this year's ceremony, Corbell said. Ricochet will be joined on stage by members of the country band Restless Heart, who were inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2015.
"These are just the best guys ... and I'm finding that with all Oklahoma musicians. These guys are just nice guys. They're normal guys. They're down to earth. They don't put on any airs," Corbell said.
He said the ceremony will include a musical tribute to 2005 Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame inductee Toby Keith, who died Feb. 5 at the age of 62 after a multiyear battle with stomach cancer.
Which Oklahoma country hitmaker is welcoming Bryan White into his home state's music hall of fame?
If 50 seems young to join his home state's music hall of fame, it's important to remember that White started making music young, too.
Growing up in a musical family in Oklahoma City, he moved to Nashville three weeks after graduating from Putnam City West High School in 1992. He released his self-titled debut album in 1994.
The following year, the singles "Someone Else's Star" and "Rebecca Lynn" zipped to No. 1 on the charts, and his sophomore album, "Between Now and Forever," included two more chart-toppers with "I'm Not Supposed to Love You Anymore" and "So Much for Pretending."
He soon notched two more No. 1 hits, earned two platinum and two gold records and joined Shania Twain on her smash "From This Moment On."
After achieving so much success and fame so young, the longtime Nashville resident admitted that he struggled when his star, which had risen so quickly in the 1990s, started to fall in the early 2000s.
"I don't think a lot of people enjoy talking about their career like that. But that is inevitably the case: That's why they call 'em stars, and you only hope that you made a big enough impact that you will continue to be able to do it," White said, adding that he plans to record an EP of hymns.
"I've been blessed to come off of that high and see resurgences with different songs overseas and in the Philippines. ... I had a pretty good handful of songs that made an impact and continue to get played on the radio and take me all over the world. It sounds funny, but my phone is still ringing. And I'm so grateful for that."
Along with traveling to perform at theaters, festivals and churches, White continues to write songs, along with mentoring other recording artists and producing their projects. Plus, he and his wife, actress Erika Page White, have two sons: Justin, 20, is a sophomore at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Jackson, 18, a high school senior who has earned a track scholarship to Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, and has co-written and recorded some songs with his dad's help.
"I'm very proud of my family and where I come from. ... I still have aunts and uncles and cousins in Oklahoma. My dad is no longer with us, but my mom is still there ... out near Davis," White said.
"I don't think she'd missed this one, so she's going to be there. My brother is going to be there ... and I think I've just about coaxed my brother into singing harmony with me."
Plus, fellow '90s country hitmaker and 2022 Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame inductee Wade Hayes will be there to usher White into the hall.
"Wade is one of my favorite people, and I consider him one of my very close friends. Our journey is a neat story of ... how we came up together," White said. "So, it should be an awesome night."
OKLAHOMA MUSIC HALL OF FAME INDUCTION
- When: 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 17.
- Where: Muskogee Civic Center, 425 Boston St.
- Tickets: https://ticketstorm.com.
- Information: https://www.facebook.com/OklahomaMusicHallofFame.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Country hitmaker Bryan White going into Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame: What you need to know
