“ONE LAST TIME, WE WILL SING FOR THE HEART OF COUNTRY…” — Gene Watson & Rhonda Vincent Announce 2026 Farewell Tour
It is the kind of announcement that feels like both a gift and a goodbye. Gene Watson, the “Singer’s Singer” whose velvet voice defined honky-tonk heartache, and Rhonda Vincent, the “Queen of Bluegrass” whose fire and finesse redefined tradition for a new generation, have revealed plans for their 2026 Farewell Tour — “One Last Ride.”
For fans across the country, this is more than a tour. It is the closing of two remarkable chapters in American music history, told through songs that have endured for decades.
A Journey Back to the First Notes
Watson and Vincent have chosen to open their final tour not with the songs that made them famous, but with the ones that first set their journeys in motion.
For Gene Watson, it will be “If It’s That Easy,” his very first single, released in 1962. A simple track by today’s standards, yet it was the spark that lit a career spanning six decades, filled with classics like “Farewell Party” and “Love in the Hot Afternoon.”
For Rhonda Vincent, it will be “Bluegrass Express,” first recorded in 1970 when she was just a child prodigy carrying the hopes of a family band. That song — with its pure, driving energy — marked the beginning of a life devoted to bluegrass and beyond. Now, more than half a century later, she will breathe new life into it as a farewell offering.
Together, these two opening songs form a symbolic circle: the beginning and the ending, tied together in one last journey.
Two Voices, One Legacy
Though their paths came from different landscapes — Watson from Texas dancehalls, Vincent from Missouri bluegrass stages — their artistry has always shared a common thread: authenticity.
Watson’s voice, smooth yet aching, earned him the devotion of peers and fans alike. “The Singer’s Singer,” George Jones once called him. Vincent’s rise was equally undeniable — from the Opry stage to Grammy wins, her mandolin and unmistakable soprano crowned her as a bridge between bluegrass purity and country storytelling.
When they came together in duet, it was less collaboration than communion — two voices honoring the same truth, from different roads but bound by the same heart.
A Farewell Written in Song
The 2026 “One Last Ride” tour will span more than 20 cities, with dates across Texas, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, and beyond. Each night promises not only the greatest hits of their storied careers, but also intimate moments of storytelling, reflection, and gratitude.
Fans can expect to hear Watson’s eternal “Farewell Party,” Vincent’s “Kentucky Borderline,” and the duets that have brought audiences to tears — songs like “Together Again” and “Ashes of Mt. Augustine.”
But beyond the setlists, it is the spirit of the tour that will linger. “This isn’t just a show,” Watson said quietly in the announcement. “It’s our way of saying thank you for letting these songs live so long in your hearts.”
Vincent echoed the sentiment: “We started this journey with simple songs, family, and faith. Now we get to end it by singing those same songs again — one last time — with the people who made it all possible.”
History in the Making
The farewell tour is already being described as one of the most important country and bluegrass events of the decade. For longtime fans, it will be a chance to say goodbye. For younger listeners, it will be an opportunity to witness two living legends at their most personal.
“One Last Ride” isn’t just the end of two careers. It is the summing up of lives poured out in music — music that never bowed to trends, but instead carried the torch of tradition into the modern age.
When the final notes of “If It’s That Easy” and “Bluegrass Express” ring out next year, they won’t just close a concert. They will close an era.
Because some voices don’t just sing songs — they become the songs. And Gene Watson and Rhonda Vincent have spent their lives doing exactly that.