Mae Estes made her long-awaited Grand Ole Opry debut over the weekend. The rising star was lauded by Opry member Jeannie Seely, who praised Estes on social media for her performance.

“Last night Arkansas native Mae Estes made her debut on the Grand Ole Opry and Jeannie was proud to welcome the traditional country singer with open arms,” a representative for Seely shared on social media. “Jeannie met Mae last year at the Arkansas Country Music Awards where Mae has been named Female Vocalist for the past two years. Congratulations Mae on your outstanding Opry debut!”

 

Ahead of her first Grand Ole Opry performance, Estes spoke to Everything Nash about how much the invitaiton meant to her.

“I feel like an imposter,” Estes admitted. “I feel like I don’t know how to process it. How in the world could I be given this honor and opportunity? And no one in the world respects country music more than I do, I’ll say that. I genuinely grew up from a super young age diving into classics that I had no business knowing or singing. At age seven, I was singing ‘Don’t Come Home a Drinkin’ (Withh Lovin; on Your Mind)’ and things like that. And so, I truly have just idolized what the Grand Ole Opry stands for, for my entire life, almost 30 years. I cried hysterically when they surprised me with the ask.”

Estes might have been emotional when she found out about her Grand Ole Opry debut, but she also fet a surprising peace about the monumental moment.

“Honestly, lately I felt a peace come over me,” Estes shared. “I feel like that’s just kind of the confidence in my ability that I have, that I think comes from my faith in God, and the ability that I have. I feel like I’m just a vessel for the music God has given me, and the perspective in life God has given me. But it’s unbelievable. I don’t even have the words to describe it, but I have a peace now that I think I was meant to be on that stage. I’ve worked real, real hard to be prepared for it.”

Estes just released Before the Record, her debut album, which pays homage to her deep country roots.

“I get really dramatic about it,” Estes told Everything Nash. “I think it’s just my first project release, which means a lot to me as an artist. When I was growing up, it was artists that I bought into, like the Martina McBride records, I would listen to forward and backward. Lee Ann Womack records, I would listen to forward and backward, and Keith Whitley‘s records. And so, I think I bought into the artists more than single songs.

“This kind of feels like an actual introduction to me as an artist, where you can sit down with a project for the first time and dive into six songs and feel like you really know who I am, what I’m trying to say, and get a better grasp on how I view the world,” she added. “That’s what I hope for.”

Find Before the Record and a list of all of Estes’ upcoming shows at MaeEstes.com.