Kenny Chesney's home flooded, and he had to use a boat to rescue what he could. Who knew he owned chest waders?Toby Keith, Brad Paisley and Keith Urban are just some of the artists who lost all of their tour gear when SoundStage flooded this week. Toby had seven production trucks parked at SoundStage, and his stage set, production cases, backdrops and instruments all got soaked when the parking lot flooded. They are not planning on missing any tour dates, though - they've all started ordering new equipment, and will rent stuff to use until their new gear arrives. Brad Paisley has a sense of humor about it, as you might guess: "I sent a Tweet the other day that basically told people that when they come to the show just know that what you're seeing has been fully tested under water. You're talking about total cred. This is the H2O Tour. This isn't posers acting like we know about it. We've done it, buddy." His H2O tour kicks off in two weeks, and he says his guitar tech is "spending like a broker on the stock exchange floor" trying to line up enough equipment by then.
Lady Antebellum's latest Webisode Wednesday installment is all about how we can help Nashville recover from the devastation.
Some good Nashville news - the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum reports that all of the collections are safe and dry, and they plan to re-open on Saturday. The Ford Theatre on the main level flooded, but all of the exhibits are on the second, third and fourth floors. The museum is closed until electricity can be restored, and then the staff is ready to welcome visitors back to the exhibits.
The CMA Music Festival will go on as scheduled, and CMA Board Chairman Steve Moore said, "We cannot think of a better way to help our local economy at this time of great need than to continue the 39-year tradition of Festival." If you were going to the CMT Music Festival and have reservations at the Opryland Hotel, you're going to have to get another hotel room, as the Opryland won't be cleaned up by then. You can check with the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau for hotel availability, and starting Monday, you can call 800-657-6910.
Taylor Swift performed at Time's 100 Most Influential People in the World gala Tuesday night. She was honored and thankful to have made Time Magazine's list this year. “It was so wonderful and so unexpected. This is such a prestigious list and to be on this list and to be in that room and to be asked to perform, it was such an honor.”
Gosh, big surprise here - Lexington, Kentucky is the overwhelming winner of on-line voting to select the site for the Montgomery Gentry ACM Humanitarian Award's playground. Eddie and T-Roy will be on hand this fall to help Home Depot with the build.
