Charley Pride statue to be placed at Ryman Auditorium, unveiling is open to public

Update: The Charley Pride statue unveiling has been postponed. We will update this story with the new date when it is announced.

Nashville's Ryman Auditorium will honor late country legend Charley Pride with a statue on its outdoor "Icon Walk," and the public can attend the big unveiling.

Pride's wife, Rozene, and son Dion will both be in attendance.

Pride — a trailblazer who became country music's first Black superstar, with "Kiss An Angel Good Mornin" among his 29 chart-topping hits — died in 2020 due to complications from COVID-19.

His statue will join likenesses of Loretta Lynn, Bill Monroe and Little Jimmy Dickens on the "Icon Walk," which runs along the exterior of the famed venue.

The Ryman says the statues take one year to create, and are sculpted by artist Ben Watts. Dickens and Monroe's statues were unveiled in 2017 as part of the Ryman's 125th anniversary celebration. Lynn's likeness followed in 2020.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Charley Pride statue to be placed at Ryman Auditorium, unveiling is open to public