The McKameys

One of Southern gospel's longest-running ensembles, the McKameys formed as a family band whose performing history extended from the mid-1950s into the 2010s. Sisters Peg, Dora, and Carol McKamey launched the group in Clinton, Tennessee; over subsequent decades the lineup incorporated several generations of relatives and produced an extensive catalog issued primarily on the Morningstar and Horizon labels. Their signature sweet vocal blend and uplifting country gospel approach yielded repeated chart-toppers, among them the enduring signature number "God on the Mountain." Of the original members, only Peg McKamey Bean maintained continuous activity across the ensemble's full span.

Born to a minister, the three sisters had sung in church from childhood, yet their professional path began only in 1954 after Dora proposed that the trio perform together at an upcoming service. What began as a single appearance soon expanded as word of their performances circulated well beyond Tennessee. By the late 1950s the sisters were appearing throughout the South and Midwest at churches and revivals, supported by guitarist Ruben Bean. Peg married Ruben in 1959; their daughters Connie and Sheryl, who had grown up traveling with the group, assumed vocal duties in 1972 when Dora and Carol stepped away.

Prior to that transition the original quartet had issued the 1968 album The Family Prayer, while the revised configuration, billed as the McKamey Family, recorded On Business for the King in 1976. This version of the group continued until the mid-1980s, when Sheryl exited and founding member Carol (McKamey) Woodard returned. Shortly afterward Connie's husband, Roger Fortner, joined on guitar, and this configuration achieved notable success on Morningstar, scoring hits with "Getting Used to the Dark" and "God on the Mountain." After moving to Horizon Records in the early 1990s the McKameys maintained momentum, issuing nearly an album per year while maintaining more than one hundred annual engagements across North America. By the close of the decade they had reached the top of the Singing News gospel chart two dozen times, and Peg had been named Favorite Female Singer by the same publication on seven occasions.

In the mid-2000s another generation entered when Connie and Roger's son, Eli Fortner, joined as guitarist and vocalist. Carol retired in 2009, prompting the return of Peg and Ruben's daughter Sheryl, who had previously left in the early 1980s. Peg received the Norcross/Templeton Award in 2012 (her husband Ruben had received it in 2001) and was inducted into the Southern Gospel Museum Hall of Fame four years later. After issuing the 2019 album The Crown, the McKameys declared their intention to conclude full-time touring at year's end.