Today's Country Tidbits

More details are coming out about this summer's "Flatts Fest" tour with Rascal Flatts, Sara Evans, Easton Corbin and Justin Moore. The tour hits 23 cities between June 18th and September 18th, and the pre-show festivities will be almost as much fun as the show. There'll be a Karaoke challenge, and the top prize is the chance to open for Rascal Flatts in 2012. There'll be a "Why Wait" chapel where one person at each show gets the chance to renew their vows, get engaged or get married before the show. There'll also be a scavenger hunt using cell phones and the Flatts Fest wi-fi hot spot. Check in, then look for the scavenger hunt signs, scan the QR code and have chances to spin the prize wheel for prizes like meet & greets, autographed guitars and birthday phone calls from Rascal Flatts. But wait, as they say on the cheesy late-night tv commercials, there's more! There's also the Flatts Fest Fan Zone, complete with life-size cut-outs of the band you can take pictures with, a Rascal Flatts museum and the Ask Flatts corner, where fans get videoed asking questions of the band. Some questions will make it to the big screen and be answered onstage. Here's where Flatts Fest lands this summer:

6-18 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live

6-19 Virginia Beach, VA Farm Bureau Live at Virginia Beach

6-25 Chicago, IL First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre

6-26 Maryland Heights, MO Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

7-8 Cuyahoga Falls, OH Blossom Music Center

7-9 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank Center

7-22 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center

7-23 Noblesville, IN Verizon Wireless Music Center

7-28 Atlanta, GA Lakewood

7-29 Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

7-30 Raleigh, NC TWC Music Pavilion

8-4 Detroit, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre

8-11 Hartford, CT Comcast Theatre

8-12 Darien Lake, NY Darien Lakes PAC

8-19 Tampa, FL 1-800-ASK-GARY Amphitheatre

8-20 West Palm Beach, FL Cruzan Amphitheatre Park

9-9 Salt Lake City, UT USANA Amphitheatre

9-10 Denver, CO Comfort Dental Amphitheatre

9-11 Albuquerque, NM HardRock Casino Albuquerque Presents The Pavilion

9-15 Sacramento, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre

9-16 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre

9-17 San Bernardino, CA San Manuel Amphitheatre

9-18 San Diego, CA Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre

Brad Paisley kicks off his H2O II: Wetter & Wilder World Tour tonight in Virginia Beach. Blake Shelton and Jerrod Niemann are along for the ride. His Water World Plaza includes concerts from Edens Edge, Sunny Sweeney, Brett Eldredge and the JaneDear Girls, a fishing simulator, dunking booth, slip 'n slide and other water fun. Brad is an inveterate prankster and years ago, he pulled a stinky prank on Blake Shelton. According to Brad, “I went on his bus and said, ‘How ya doin’?’ He said, ‘Good.’ I just went over there to see him. And while I was standing there, I had an air freshener, one of those stick-up air fresheners, and stuck it, twisted it open. We’d replaced the contents with raw chicken…as opposed to an air freshener…I feel bad about that now…but I’m ready. I’m preparing.” He says he's spent $200 preparing a prank for Blake while they're on tour this summer. Meanwhile, if you want to check out Brad Paisley's informal in-concert, WalMart has a new sound check available for viewing.

This fall, Luke Bryan headlines the 10th annual "CMT on Tour." The "Tailgates & Tanlines" shows will also include Lee Bryce and Josh Thompson on the 25-show series.

Taylor Swift is a huge success, which makes it easy for people to take pot-shots at her, thinking that she got where she is because of luck or connections. According to Taylor, those people don't have it quite right. “I honestly was raised never, never to expect that you are entitled to success. So you work an extra mile. That‘s why I learned guitar. ‘Cause I was like, ‘You know what, there‘s no guarantee that I will make it, there‘s not even half a guarantee that I will make it. I‘ve got to learn things that make me different, and I‘ve gotta learn things that make me more interesting’.” Her success is proof to the adage, "the harder you work, the luckier you are!"

Could there be an Alabama reunion tour in the works? Maybe - Jeff Cook is quoted on Bradenton.com, saying that the band is talking about the possibility of doing 20 shows next year, and that it never felt right for a band named Alabama to end their career in North Dakota. Their last concert was there in 2004. Jeff goes on to say that if they do reunite for a tour, there'll be new music and maybe even a new album.

American Idol winner Scotty McCreery and runner-up Lauren Alaina will stand in the circle next week during the CMA Music Festival. They'll both perform on the Grand Ole Opry Friday June 10th. Also on stage that night are Randy Travis and Billy Ray Cyrus. You can be there, too, if you'd like. They'll be up bright and early for the City of Hope Celebrity Softball Challenge on Saturday.

Joe Nichols and Roper Apparel and Footwear have inked a long-term endorsement deal. Joe looks good in Roper anything.

Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina were on the Today show yesterday, where they talked about having the support of their Moms, relationship rumors and they duetted on Randy Travis' chestnut, "I Told You So." Check it out...

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Thompson Square is on Fox & Friends, Ronnie Dunn is on Entertainment Tonight, Ray Stevens is on Freedom Watch on FOX, and Kenny Chesney is the focus of a special on CMT.

Happy birthday to Too Slim of Riders in the Sky.

The tweet of the day is from Blake Shelton: "I'm so hung over right now I just brewed a fresh pot of Copenhagen..."

Today's Country Tidbits

According to those who have seen the show, Taylor Swift's north American "Speak Now" show is pretty amazing. She includes a mini fireworks display, a flying balcony and a snowfall. Says Taylor, "The tour is exactly how my imagination looks and I'm so excited that we get to have these entire scenes created onstage." The show lasts for two hours and includes all of her biggest hits as well as songs from her new cd.

Jason Aldean is just blown away at how well the Colt Ford/Brantley Gilbert-written "Dirt Road Anthem" is doing for him. As it continues to march up the country charts, Jason says the fan reaction is amazing: “You know, it’s one of those big anthem-type songs. You hold the microphone out and they know every word, you know, and that’s always a really good sign for a song. So it’s been great. It’s become one of the fan favorites in our show.”

The reigning Celebrity Apprentice, John Rich, has some ideas on which country artist should be part of the next Celebrity Apprentice, and in typical John style, he's not being quiet about his opinion. Says John, “The directors of the show…They’ve all been asking me, ‘Who do I think? Who do I think?’ and I have told them Dierks’ name, of course it’s up to Dierks. I don’t know if he’d want to do it. But, you know to me there’s so many different looks in country music. You know, we don’t all wear cowboy hats. That’s the iconic image I guess of it is a cowboy hat but I would love to see another country artist that’s totally different than a ‘hat act’. You know, somebody else with a different look that represents a different part of our genre.”

Asked if they would consider doing reality TV, both Tim McGraw and Brad Paisley say heck, no. Tim, who sang with Scotty McCreery on the finale of American Idol, says that if he was just starting out in the business, he'd forgo reality tv and "go to college and stay there." Brad Paisley said he'd never be part of something like "The Voice," even though Blake Shelton is doing really well as a coach. Both men just want to concentrate on what they do best - country music.

Willie Nelson's Country Throwdown is underway and the reviews are great. A side stage alternates with the main stage, meaning that everyone gets a great seat to the shows they want to see. Check out this preview of the fun...

Luke Bryan and the Doobie Brothers taped a CMT Crossroads episode last night. The songs included the Doobie Brothers’ “Black Water,” Long Train Runnin’” and “China Grove,” as well as Luke’s “Rain Is a Good Thing,” “Do I” and “Country Girl (Shake It for Me).” The episode will air June 24th on CMT.

Lee Ann Womack is working on her first new album since the Grammy-nominated "Call Me Crazy" came out in 2008. She's excited about her producer, saying “I'm getting to work with this hot producer named Frank Liddell, who does Miranda Lambert, David Nail and back when Chris Knight. He's kind of something... Though, I am a little prejudiced: he's my husband!” No release date for the album yet.

Congratulations to Brad Paisley, who's notched another #1 debut for his cd, "This is Country Music." It sold nearly 152,000 copies during it's first week last week. He also has the #1 country song in America this week with "Old Alabama."

And congrats to The Band Perry, whose "If I Die Young" has been certifed double platinum in sales. That means two million units have sold, either in hard copy or by download.

Shania Twain gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame today. The ceremony starts at 11:30am Pacific time.

Mark your calendars and set your DVRs - the 45th annual CMA Awards will air live from Nashville on November 9th on ABC.

On this day in 1986, Randy Travis debuted with "Storms of Life."

Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina are on the Today show this morning. Tomorrow, catchThompson Square on Fox & Friends.

The tweet of the day is from Blake Shelton: "I'm so hung over right now I just put two pot holders in the toaster and poured milk in a bowl of Gardettos.."

Today's Country Tidbits

The 8th Annual Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic raised more than $650,000 to support the construction of the OK Kids Corral for pediatric cancer patients at the Oklahoma University Medical Center Children's Hospital. Top auction items were the private dinner with Toby, which went for $52,000 to the top two bidders and an elk hunt with private jet transportation. Nothing went for less than $7,000 which is a new record for this event. You can still donate, if you'd like.

Sugarland and Little Big Town have teamed up to raise money for tornado relief, using the song "Stand Up" and iTunes as the vehicles. Grab the song and all proceeds go to the American Red Cross.

Rodney Atkins is headlining the free Music City Gives Back benefit concert on June 7th, with the proceeds going to tornado relief through the American Red Cross. How will they make any money with a free concert? Oh, you can help now.

As part of next week's CMA Festival, Country Weekly is hosting their 5th annual Fashion Show and Concert. Rocketown is the location, and participants include Steel Magnolia, Bucky Covington, Ty Herndon, Sarah Darling, Burns & Poe, Joey+Rory and more.

Little Big Town is in the studio, working on a Christmas cd.

Congrats to Brad Paisley, who holds the top spot on the country singles chart with "Old Alabama" again this week.

It was on this day in 1999 that a star was born - or anyway, his career was. Brad Paisley's first album, "Who Needs Pictures," was released on the Arista label.

Lauren Alaina is on Live with Regis and Kelly today.

Happy birthday to Ronnie Dunn, who turns 58 today, to Andy Griffith, who turns 85 and to Pat Boone, who is 77.

The tweet of the day is from Dolly Parton:

"I think that all creative people are a little bit nuts." -Dolly :)

Today's Country Tidbits

Taylor Swift kicked off her North American tour Friday night, and she's truly enjoying the special moments with her fans. "Walking through the crowd every night, I would walk through the arena and surprise the crowd in some of the top rows of the arena every night, and then I would walk through and go down to this stage of the back of the arena and perform for the back rows, and that was one of my favorite moments, because that’s when I would get to kiss the little kids and hug people and just a lot of love was exchanged in that part of the show.” She's in Ft. Lauderdale, FL this week for three sold-out shows. Yesterday, she was on the Ellen DeGeneres show.

Jimmy Buffett played Nashville's Bridgestone Arena Saturday night, and Kenny Chesney joined the Coral Reefers, Jimmy and Mac MacAnally on a couple of songs.

Kenny Chesney's latest song, "You and Tequila," is magical to him for more than just the lyrics. It's magical because it illustrates the power of music for him. “I just fell in love with her voice a couple years ago, and didn’t know how to get a hold of her. Finally did, and sent her the song. To me, that just shows you how powerful music can be. You can meet a girl like Grace Potter—never met her before—she grew up in Vermont, I grew up in Tennessee. And I never met her until she walked in the studio, but it was as if—when we started singing together—it was as if we’d known each other our whole lives and it just worked." The video premiers on CMT this Friday at 10:45pm Eastern.

Keith Urban's "Get Closer" tour is appropriately named, according to Keith. “I’m going into the crowd on several occasions. This tour is not just called Get Closer, it’s literally gonna be that, too." Keith usually goes into the audience a time or two, but on this tour he'll spend more time in the trenches, even though it's tough on his wardrobe and his body. "I’ve come home a few times with scratches on my chest and on my back, and my wife’s gone, ‘What is that?’ And I’m like, ‘Well, I’ll show you,’ and we’ve filmed the audience. She’s like, ‘Oh my god!’ It can be a bit treacherous out there sometimes, but it’s always different, always unpredictable, and I love it.” The "Get Closer" tour kicks off June 16th.

The date is set for Craig Morgan's 5th Annual Celebrity Dirt Bike Charity Ride and Concert, August 6th and 7th in Dickson, TN. Day one features the celebrity dirt bike challenge, and day two features a celebrity skeet shoot and acoustic cocert. The fun benefits Billy's Place, a home for temporarily displaced children.

Blake Shelton is enjoying his role as mentor to his team on "The Voice," and enjoys sharing the mistakes and missteps he's made so his team can learn from them. But if words don't work, Blake's got a back-up plan. “A couple of girls on my team get really nervous. Clearly I don't have a problem coming out of my shell, but that wasn't always the case. Who knows? I might take them to make (fools) of themselves at karaoke and get it all out of their system." "The Voice" is on tonight at 10 Eastern on NBC.

Kellie Pickler has a new album coming out this fall, and the first single, "Tough," is the story of Kellie's life as told by songwriter Leslie Satcher. Kellie and Leslie sat down for a writing session and, according to Kellie, “I found myself telling her things I’d never told anybody and then she, uh…She just kinda took my story and she went home and she wrote the song, ‘Tough’…So, I'm very, very blessed to have her a part of my life…that’s for sure.” You can hear a little bit of the song on Kellie's website. Leslie has written hit songs for many of Nashville's biggest stars, like George Strait, Reba, Martina McBride and Willie Nelson.

Shania Twain gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame this week.

The tweet of the day is from Miranda Lambert: "Thank u to the men and women who serve and have served our country. You are all rock stars. I'm proud to be an American:)!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Tonight kicks off the North American leg of Taylor Swift's "Speak Now" tour. It starts in Omaha, Nebraska, and she does 78 shows in 63 cities, 42 states and a Canadian province or two through November. She's reached the point in her career that she has more hit songs than she has time to do in a concert. According to Taylor, “It was a big thing that I had to…think about. Like, which songs do we stop playing? Which songs do we add? You only have two hours to play a show. So, thankfully we got it to a place where I’m really stoked about the set list. I can’t believe that we get pyro and costumes…things that are sparkly and just…wonderful ways to tell a story in a really theatrical way.” Christian rock group NEEDTOBEATHE, Randy Montana, James Wesley, Josh Kelley, Hunter Hayes, Danny Gokey and Charlie Worsham take turns being the opening act on this tour.

The Grand Ole Opry has lined up an action-packed, star-studded summer line up this year. Check it out:

Vince Gill tonight and tomorrow night

Josh Turner tomorrow night

Steel Magnolia May 31st.

Rascal Flatts June 4th

Carrie Underwood June 7th

June 7th and July 1st, Darius Rucker

Randy Travis and Billy Ray Cyrus June 10th

Kellie Pickler June 17th

Dierks Bentley July 19th

Carrie Underwood is in Us Weekly's annual Hot Bodies issue. How does the 28-year-old stay in shape? "Bouncing on stage is a workout in itself. But if I can get myself up to run on the treadmill, I'm good," proclaims Carrie. Julianne Hough is also part of that list of hotties.

Zac Brown is making sure his friends get a taste of the spotlight during the CMA Music Festival. He's invited several guests to join him and the band onstage for their June 9th performance. Randy Travis, Alan Jackson, folk-jazz singer Amos Lee and Sonia Leigh will jam with ZBB that night.

Tuesday night's American Idol was the worst-rated performance finale in the series' 10-year history. But Wednesday night made up for it, adding half a million viewers for the results show. And Scotty McCreery's song, "I Love YOu This Big," was the top-selling song on iTunes yesteray, with Lauren Alaina's song showing up at #3. And here are details you won't find in a lot of places, but will get here: Scotty earns $250,000 for winning and delivering his first album. Lauren Alaina wins $87,500, which will double if she delivers an album. Scotty's parents tell media outlets that their son will continue his education at Belmont University. Both will be on June 2nd's Today show and August 12th's Good Morning America.

Wanna see all the fun we missed at Dierks Bentley's lates Miles and Music for Kids ride in Columbus, OH? Here you go...

Luke Bryan and Longhorn Steakhouse have teamed up to let one lucky person win a trip to Sundance, UT through the "Go West With Luke" contest. One winner gets to take a guest for a weekend stay at the Stewart Mountain Lodge, where Luke will give them a private acoustic show. Airfare and accomodations are included.

Congratulatons to Blake Shelton, whose latest single, "Honey Bee," has been certified gold for half a million units sold. That's the fastest any country male solo act has ever reached gold with a single.

And congratulations again to Blake and Reba, whose tornado benefit concerts raised half a million dollars for Tushka, OK relief.

Darryl Worley and Lee Greenwood are the performers at the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend.

Kellie Pickler hits the Indy 500 this weekend, singing "Tough," the first single from her upcoming album, then ride in the parade before the race. Sunday's Indianapolis 500 is the 100th anniversary of the race.

Dolly Parton will be on the Ellen DeGeneres show today.

Happy birthday to Don Williams, who turns 72 today.

The tweet of the day is from Blake Shelton: "Thank y'all for a great two nights.. We raised $500,000 for the Tushka Oklahoma tornado relief efforts!!!!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Congratulations to Scotty McCreery, the winner of season 10's American Idol. Both Scotty and Lauren Alaina were prepared for the other one to win. According to Scotty, “Me and her have been together since day one and we’re gonna stick together.” And Lauren chimed in, "He's my best friend and I love him and I couldn't be happier for him." Carrie Underwood made a special appearance and duetted with Lauren Alaina on the show. 122 million votes were cast Tuesday night in the lowest-rated performance finale in American Idol's history.

Reba and Blake Shelton threw a benefit concert for tornado victims in Oklahoma, and Blake told the story watching the tornado that did so much damage to a town close to him. “It was coming literally directly to my house. Being the, you know, the smart guy that I am I walked outside and stood in the driveway and we actually filmed the tornado…it was only about, you know, a mile and a half from our house and we filmed it come out and it touched the ground for a minute and then it went away and it kept moving east and ultimately ended up going through Tushka.” Donations are still being accepted - text “OKGIVE” to 27722 to make a one-time $10 donation, added to your cell phone bill. Funds will be donated to The mGive Foundation for the benefit of the Tushka Disaster Relief Fund. Checks can also be made out to the Tushka Disaster Relief Fund and mailed to: 101 SE 1st Street, Tushka, OK 74525.

An online charity auction is underway through mid-June, with proceeds benefiting Musicians on Call. Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Blake Shelton, Dolly Parton and Gwyneth Paltrow have all donated memorabilia and meet & greet opportunities. Sports stars have also donated items, so check out the auction and be generous!

Luke Bryan is on tour with Tim McGraw, and Tim had a birthday this week. Luke interrupted Tim's set to sing him the birthday song, with a little help from the audience.

Speaking of Luke, a new CMT Crossroads is in the offing, featuring Luke Bryan and the Doobie Brothers. The special has already taped and it premiers June 24th on CMT.

Sara Evans had a #1 party for "A Little Bit Stronger" yesterday in Nashville. The songwriters, Luke Laird, Hillary Lindsey and Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott, were also at the party. According to Sara, “When the album was all done and we knew that ‘Little Bit Stronger’ was the first single, I knew that as soon as I heard it. I…I said, ‘That is the first single, no question…We have to name the album Stronger.’ And it’s a great song! You know, it’s a song that everybody can relate to. Very well written.”

Did you miss Sara Evans on Dancing With the Stars? Here she is...

People are going "huh??" over Craig Campbell's new song, "Fish." It'll either shock you or make you laugh out loud...you've been warned!

Congratulations to Jason Aldean, who has the #1 country album for the 4th week in a row with "My Kinda Party." The album has been on the charts for 29 weeks, never outside the top 5.

Loretta Lynn's ranch, The Plantation, will be featured on an upcoming episode of Ghost Adventures on the Travel Channel. The show's hosts visit with Miss Loretta and hear stories about the many ghostly encounters she and her family have had on the property. The episode will air June 10th.

John Rich is on the Ellen DeGeneres show today.

Happy birthday to Hank Williams Jr., who turns 62 today.

The tweet of the day is from Kellie Pickler: "I wish these dang cicadas would watch where their going. They keep flying in my hair. Maybe I should use bug spray instead of hairspray??"

Today's Country Tidbits

Six years ago today, Carrie Underwood was crowned the American Idol. Tonight, either Lauren Alaina or Scotty McCreery will find out how Carrie felt, as one of them will win this year's American Idol. Carrie's advice for them? “I have people ask me, ‘How did you do it?’ Well, I tried out for a reality television show. I tried a different route than a lot of people go, because I didn’t know how to do it. I didn’t have anybody giving me advice. But I say, you know—do what you do, and do what you love. And take your opportunities where they come. When those doors open, don’t be afraid to walk through them.” Last night, Scottie performed Montgomery Gentry's "Gone," George Strait's "Check Yes or No" and the song that'll be his single if he wins, "I Love You This Big." Lauren Alaina sang Carrie Underwood's "Flat on the Floor," Pam Tillis' "Maybe it was Memphis" and her single, "Like My Mother Does." The live, two-hour American Idol finale begins at 8 Eastern tonight on Fox.

Tim McGraw has filed a counter-suit against Curb Records, his label of many years. They filed suit against him earlier this month, claiming that he turned in his last album too soon after the last one, making it not "topical and new." Tim's suit calls for payment for the album he's given them, reimbursement for recording expenses, unspecified damages and a jury trial. He's also asking to be "free to begin recording for himself or any other party as of July 23, 2011." Meanwhile, the master recordings for "Emotional Traffic" are caught in the middle of this mess.

Montgomery Gentry is working on their first new music in three years. Troy is psyched about it: “We’re actually finishing up uh…an album this week. A lot of it I think is a lot of old school Montgomery Gentry. You know, I haven’t been this excited about a complete project since the My Town record so I’m really excited to get it out there for everybody to hear.” And how did he feel about hearing Scottie McCreery sing "Gone" on American Idol last night? “My phone was blowing up from text messages of people saying, ‘Hey Scotty the guy on American Idol is singing your song Gone right now on TV, you got to check it out.’ I got to catch just the last tail end of it but what I heard that he did, he did a really good job performing that song.”

Taylor Swift has donated some "execess baggage" to DoSomething.org, a group that encourages teens to make a difference in their communities. Celebrities including Donald Trump and Weird Al Yankovic have also donated autographed items. Taylor gave an autographed acoustic guitar.

Dierks Bentley raised nearly $150,000 for the local Nationwide Children's Hospital during his Columbus, Ohio Miles and Music For Kids charity motorcycle ride and concert on Sunday. About a thousand bikers rode, and another four thousand concert attendees showed up for the after-party. More Miles and Music for Kids events are planned this year.

Oh, it's tough to be Zac Brown, having to do a benefit ride for Camp Southern Ground. It was a Harley-fest around Atlanta.

Randy Travis and Kenny Chesney did a duet of "He Walked on Water" for Randy's upcoming duets project. It turned out so well that Randy wants us all to have it for free! The cd, "Anniversary Celebration" is out on June 7th.

Didja miss Brad Paisley and Alabama on Good Morning America yesterday morning? Here you go...

And in case you missed it on tv last night, here's a sneak-peek at Taylor Swift's new video, "The Story of Us."

Congratulations to Eric Church, whose "Carolina" cd has been certified gold.

Congratulations to Rascal Flatts, who have their 13th career #1 song with "I Won't Let Go."

Happy birthday to Jessi Colter, who is 68 and Tom T. Hall, who turns 75 today. And 20 years ago today, Randy Travis married Lib Hatcher. They are in the process of divorcing now.

Catch Brad Paisley on "The View" today on ABC.

The tweet of the day is from Jake Owen: "Sittin' on the houseboat. Quiet glass like lake.. Cicadas are singin. Video for Barefoot Blue Jean today. Friends here. Life is awesome"