Faith Hill and Tim McGraw took the stage to speak about Loretta Lynn during CMT’s Coal Miner’s Daughter: A Celebration of the Life & Music of Loretta Lynn on Oct. 30. Less than one month after Loretta’s death on Oct. 4, Tim and Faith joined her loved ones and fellow country music stars at the Opry to pay tribute to the iconic country singer. Faith recalled meeting Loretta for the first time while backstage at the Opry thirty years ago. “It is our honor and privilege to be here close to where our dear friendship began,” Faith said. “And to celebrate this extraordinary woman and her remarkable life.”
Faith and Tim both gushed about how Loretta was known for writing songs about women and FOR women. “Loretta was unabashedly honest about hardships and joys of being a wife and mother, a woman loving life — loving, lying ,cheating, having babies, not having babies…she sang about it all,” Faith said. “She was fierce and proud of who she was, where she came from and how she lived her life.
Tim called Loretta a “trailblazer” and thanked her for paving the way for his wife and daughters. Faith continued, “She didn’t push boundaries for women in country music, she shredded them. She gave us this bold new space to find our own way to dream and soar into the music we make, the careers and lives we have. She was always good, kind and supportive of all of us. Every single person in this room has a story they could share. She was so dang wise and funny.
At that point, Faith had to pause for a moment as she choked back her tears. “I am honored to have been in your presence, Loretta,” she ocncluded. “I am grateful to have had so many memories with you. I am proud to be a woman in country music, proud to be a mom, I am proud to have the privilege of following you down the musical path you blazed for all of us.” Loretta died at the age of 90 on Oct. 4.