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March 19 (UPI) -- Duo Brooks & Dunn, Ray Stevens and Jerry Bradley have been named to the Country Music Hall of Fame class of 2019. The Country Music Association made the announcement on Monday during a special event. Brooks & Dunn, Stevens and Bradley will be formally inducted during a medallion ceremony in the fall.
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The total number of Country Music Hall of Fame members will rise to 139. Dottie West, Ricky Skaggs and Johnny Gimble made the cut in 2018.
Brooks & Dunn, consisting of Ronnie Dunn and Kix Brooks, will be inducted into the Modern Era Artist category. The group have sold 30 million albums and are best known for hit songs such as "Brand New Man," "Boot Scootin' Boogie," "My Maria" and "Believe."
Stevens is a singer and songwriter known for his country comedy records. His song "Everything is Beautiful" was a No. 1 hit and his album The Streak went five-times platinum. Stevens also hosted a variety television series in 1970.
Bradley headed RCA Records' Nashville division the 70s and 80s and oversaw the first country platinum album, Wanted: The Outlaws.
"These visionaries have transformed the genre in obvious and intangible ways," Bill Cody, who hosted the event said. "They not only impacted the world of country music, but their work has created art that implores people to laugh, to cry and to ponder the range of emotions in between."
