Jeannie Seely, the Grammy Award-winning country singer and Grand Ole Opry star, has died. She was 85.
Seely died in Nashville on Friday of complications from an intestinal infection.
She found success as an artist in 1996 with her breakout hit “Don’t Touch Me,” which was written by Hank Cochran. The song earned Seely her first Grammy nomination and win for best female country vocal performance at the ninth awards ceremony, and she went on to earn two additional nods.
One year later, the singer became a member of the Grand Ole Opry, making her the first woman to regularly host and emcee segments on the legendary stage. In total, Seely performed at the Grand Ole Opry over 5,000 times, making her one of the most-performed artists at the music venue.
She was born on July 6, 1940, in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Her interest in music began at a young age when she would appear on local radio and TV stations. After a brief career in banking in California, Seely pivoted to writing music and signed with Challenge Records, which led her to move to Nashville.
In Nashville, her country music career took off with the arrival of 1996’s “Don’t Touch Me” via Monument Records. The track landed at No. 2 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, and additionally earned her sole appearance on the Hot 100, peaking at No. 85.
From there, she went on to have over two dozen singles on the country charts, including tracks like “Can I Sleep in Your Arms,” which went on to be recorded by Willie Nelson, and “Lucky Ladies.” Aside from her own efforts as an artist, Seely found further success penning hits for other musicians, including “Leavin’ and Sayin’ Goodbye,” for Faron Young.
Towards the end of the 1960s and early 1970s, Seely’s began collaborating with Jack Greene. The two musicians toured together performing their duets, including “Wish I Didn’t Have to Miss You,” which went to No. 2 on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart.
Throughout her career, she released a total of 17 studio albums, including her most recent 2020 record, An American Classic. The project featured duets with Nelson, Ray Stevens and Lorrie Morgan.
In 2018, she also kicked off her SiriusXM show Sundays with Seely. Most recently, Seely played her final show at the Grand Ole Opry this February.
“It doesn’t seem possible to know a world without Seely in it,” singer Tim Atwood said in a statement. “And as good as the Opry show is, the Opry spotlight will never shine as brightly without Jeannie in the center circle.”
Dolly Parton, a friend of Seely’s, shared an additional statement on Instagram: “I have known Jeanie Seely since we were early on in Nashville. She was one of my dearest friends. I think she was one of the greater singers in Nashville and she had a wonderful sense of humor. We had many wonderful laughs together, cried over certain things together and she will be missed.”
Seely’s husband, Gene Ward, died in December of cancer.
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