1985 in country music

Events

No dates

• A story published in The New York Times declares that country music is "dead." However, a number of new acts – Randy Travis and Dwight Yoakam among them – are working behind the scenes to change the trend.
• The Country Music Association Awards introduced a new award, Music Video of the Year. The first recipient was Hank Williams Jr.'s video for "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight."

  Top hits of the year

Singles released by American artists

Singles released by Canadian artists

Top new album releases

Other top albums

On television

Regular series

• Hee Haw
• That Nashville Music

  Specials

Births

• January 20 – Brantley Gilbert, singer of the 2010s best known for "Country Must Be Country Wide" and "You Don't Know Her Like I Do"
• May 20 – Jon Pardi, country singer of the 2010s
• June 12 – Chris Young, winner on the fourth season of Nashville Star
• August 26 – Brian Kelley, member of Florida Georgia Line, a duo of the 2010s.
• September 1 — Charlie Worsham, singer/multi-instrumentalist honored by the Mississippi state senate
• September 19 — Chase Rice, country singer of the 2010s

  Deaths

• July 17 – Wynn Stewart, 51, key progenitor of the Bakersfield sound, known for hits such as "It's Such a Pretty World Today"
• August 8 – Benny Barnes, 51, former rhythm guitarist for George Jones, best known for his 1956 hit "Poor Man's Riches"
• October 11 -- Tex Williams, 68, Western swing and talking blues performer best known for "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! "

  Hall of Fame inductees

Country Music Hall of Fame inductees

• Flatt and Scruggs

  Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame inductees

• Don Messer
• Hank Snow

  Major awards

Grammy Awards

• Best Female Country Vocal Performance — "I Don't Know Why You Don't Want Me", Rosanne Cash
• Best Male Country Vocal Performance — "Lost in the Fifties Tonight", Ronnie Milsap
• Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal — "Why Not Me" The Judds
• Best Country Instrumental Performance — "Cosmic Square Dance", Chet Atkins and Mark Knopfler
• Best Country Song — "Highwayman," Jimmy Webb

  Juno Awards

• Country Male Vocalist of the Year — Murray McLauchlan
• Country Female Vocalist of the Year — Anne Murray
• Country Group or Duo of the Year — Family Brown

  Academy of Country Music

• Entertainer of the Year — Alabama
• Song of the Year — "Lost in the Fifties Tonight", Fred Parris, Mike Reid and Troy Seals
• Single of the Year — "Highwayman", The Highwaymen
• Album of the Year — Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind, George Strait
• Top Male Vocalist — George Strait
• Top Female Vocalist — Reba McEntire
• Top Vocal Duo — The Judds
• Top Vocal Group — Alabama
• Top New Male Vocalist — Randy Travis
• Top New Female Vocalist — Judy Rodman
• Video of the Year — "Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes?", George Jones

  Canadian Country Music Association

• Entertainer of the Year — Dick Damron
• Male Artist of the Year — Terry Carisse
• Female Artist of the Year — Carroll Baker
• Group of the Year — The Mercey Brothers
• SOCAN Song of the Year — "Counting the I Love You's", Terry Carisse, Bruce Rawlins
• Single of the Year — "Riding on the Wind", Gary Fjellgaard
• Album of the Year — Closest Thing to You, Terry Carisse
• Top Selling Album — Once Upon a Christmas, Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers
• Vista Rising Star Award — Ginny Mitchell
• Duo of the Year — Anita Perras and Tim Taylor

  Country Music Association

• Entertainer of the Year — Ricky Skaggs
• Song of the Year — "God Bless the USA", Lee Greenwood
• Single of the Year — "Why Not Me", The Judds
• Album of the Year — Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind, George Strait
• Male Vocalist of the Year — George Strait
• Female Vocalist of the Year — Reba McEntire
• Vocal Duo of the Year — Dave Loggins and Anne Murray
• Vocal Group of the Year — The Judds
• Horizon Award — Sawyer Brown
• Music Video of the Year — "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight", Hank Williams Jr.
• Instrumentalist of the Year — Chet Atkins
• Instrumental Group of the Year — Ricky Skaggs Band