Trent Tomlinson and Keith Anderson played a show at Cadillac Ranch in Nashville last night. It was probably not a night that Trent will remember fondly. While he was onstage, someone stole his gear bag. Later, a woman had a heart attack and passed away. Tweeted Trent, Tonight a lady died of a heart attack at my show I'm completely in shock and overwhelmed. Please help me pray for her family and friends."
American Idol alum Crystal Bowersox made her debut at the Grand Ole Opry last Friday night. She was visiting backstage as Vince Gill, The Oak Ridge Boys and Bo Bice were performing. Opry announcer Mike Terry introduced her and she stepped out onto the side of the stage to wave at the crowd, and then went back to being a visitor. A little later in the show, host Vince Gill said, “We do things out here for an awful lot of different reasons, but one is spontaneity, one is fun. I went to the management and said, ‘Why don’t we do the Southern gentlemanly thing and invite her to sing a song on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry?’” The audience was treated to a performance of "Mine All Mine," a song she wrote for her husband. She borrowed Vince's guitar, stepped carefully into the famous circle of wood at center stage, and in between verses, told the crowd, “I can’t believe where I am!” She was given a standing ovation.
The ACM Awards show is going to be action-packed, with Jason Aldean, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley and Toby Keith all vying for the fan-voted Entertainer of the Year award, and also all performing. Online voting begins on March 11th and continues through the third hour of the award show. The awards will be handed out April 3rd on CBS.
Jason Aldean celebrated in Nashville this week with a platinum party for "My Kinda Party." It's his fourth album and the third to go platinum, so he's truly on a roll. Said Jason of his success, “The state of the music business has been kind of weird for the last few years, and I think every record label and artist is still trying to figure it out, so to be able to go out and sell a million records is a big deal for anybody. I don’t think anyone should take it for granted because you never know if it’s going to be your last one.” Jason will announce his summer and fall tour plans this coming Monday.
Little Big Town is serving up music scattered, smothered and covered. Videos of them covering songs by other artists are cropping up at TheBoot.com. Here's their take on Bruno Mars' song, "Grenade."
"Rascal Flatts: Nothing Like This presented by JC Penney" is going to feature a couple of guest stars. Justin Bieber will be part of it, as the show gives a behind-the scenes look at the making of the video for "That Should be Me," a Flatts/Bieber collaboration. And during the live concert taping in St. Paul in January, Natasha Bedingfield made a surprise appearance on stage to sing with the guys. The special will air March 12th on ABC.
Music is going green, and Zac Brown Band is part of the project. The Patagonia Music Initiative is a collection of songs donated by musicians, with the purchase price going towards the environmental group of the artist's choice. Zac Brown Band gave a live version of "Cold Hearted" with proceeds benefitting Urban Farming.
Congratulations to Ashton Shepherd, who is expecting her second child. As "Look It Up" climbs the charts, she's hoping that son James' little brother or sister is as musically inclined as he is. He will sit in his room playing his drum set for hours on end. Hubby Roland Cunningham is hoping for a bass player. Ashton's second cd, "Where Country Grows," will be in stores on June 7th.
Shania Twain is about to be everywhere at once, or at least it might seem that way. Her autobiography, "Shania Twain: From This Moment On" is scheduled for release on May 3rd, which is also the same time her series is set to premier on OWN.
Happy birthday to Brett Warren of The Warren Brothers, who turns 40 today.
Miley Cyrus is on the Jimmy Fallon show tonight, and Thompson Square will be on The Tonight Show tomorrow night.
The tweet of the day is from Sara Evans: "OH MY GOSH! My shoes are killing me......they have little knives I swear"
