Ronnie was playing a gig at the iconic LA venue and unbeknownst to him, country music legend Charley Pride happened to be in the crowd.
Charley was blown away with Ronnie’s vocal talent, and given he was born in North Carolina and raised on old school country music, sought him out after the performance and tried to convince him to move away from the R&B and go back to his roots with a more country appeal.
Well, if Charley Pride thinks you should make country music, you make country music, so Milsap moved to Nashville in December of 1972, where he began working with Pride’s manager Jack D. Johnson.
He released his first country single in 1973, “I Hate You”, which peaked at Number 10 and lead to him opening for Pride on his 1974 tour, a year in which he got his first 2 Number One singles with “Pure Love” and “Please Don’t Tell Me How The Story Ends”, the later earning him his first Grammy, and the 1974 CMA Male Vocalist of the Year award.
His country music success continued for decades, racking up a total of 35 Number One’s, 6 Grammy’s, 8 CMA Awards (Including the 1977 Entertainer of the Year), 4 ACM Awards, over 35 million records sold, a membership to the Grand Ole Opry and a place in the Country Music Hall of Fame.
So yeah, safe to say that random run-in with Charley Pride worked out in his favor.
Can you believe that?
If it wasn’t for the great Charley Pride happening to be in the right place at the right time, the country music world may have never gotten to hear the talent of Ronnie Milsap and he would have been just another musician with all the talent that never quite got there.
RIP to the phenomenal Charley Pride.
Thank you not only the music you made throughout your career, but the music you allowed others like Ronnie to make.