Kenny Rogers

Kenny Rogers

Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted more than 120 hit singles across various music genres, topping the country and pop album charts for more than 200 individual weeks in the United States alone.

Early Career

Rogers began his recording career in the late 1950s with the Houston-based group the Scholars. In 1966, he became a member of the folk ensemble the New Christy Minstrels, and in 1967, he co-founded the First Edition, with whom he scored his first major hit, "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)".

Solo Success

The band broke up in 1975-76, and Rogers embarked on a long and successful solo career. His signature song, 1978's "The Gambler", was a crossover hit that won him a Grammy Award in 1980 and was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress. He developed the Gambler persona into a character for a successful series of television films.

Legacy

Rogers sold more than 100 million records worldwide during his lifetime, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. His fame and career spanned multiple genres: jazz, folk, pop, rock, and country. He was voted the "Favorite Singer of All Time" in a 1986 poll by readers of both USA Today and People magazine.