Congratulations to Zac Brown and his wife Shelly, who welcomed their 4th daughter in four years into the world. Joni Mason Brown weighs seven pounds, 14 ounces and is doted on already by older sisters Justice, Lucy and Georgia. Joni was born at home, and mother and daughter are doing great. Dad Zac is popping buttons, he's so proud.
Joe Nichols performed during the AFC Championship game halftime, but has no prediction as to which team will win Sunday's Super Bowl. Says Joe, “You know what? I wish I could predict it. There’s two really really great teams. Both of them are on fire. Both of them are playing exceptionally well. And both of ‘em got great quarterbacks. So my prediction for the Super Bowl is it’s gonna be one heck of a game. Not sure who’s gonna win. I think it all depends on who plays faster. Because I believe it’s artificial turf down there and usually on those things, fastest usually wins.”
Faith Hill is pretty psyched for her part in this weekend's Super Bowl festivities, saying of working with The Pretenders, “So excited, are you kidding?! Yeah, I’m really excited, they’re great! To be able to do some of the songs that I’ve known for a really long time—‘Brass In Pocket’ just reminds me of my days back at MacLauren High School in Star, Mississippi. Oh yes!” "CMT Crossroads: Faith Hill and The Pretenders"airs live from the Super Bowl Fan Jam Saturday night at 10 Eastern on CMT.
Luke Bryan hosted a fund-raiser for Keep the Music Playing, an organization which promotes music education in schools. The All Stars Concert Tuesday night included performances by six music groups from Nashville public schools and kicked off the signing of this year's All Stars poster. Luke's signature is the first on it and it will be auctioned off during the CMA Music Festival.
Speaking of the CMA Music Festival, the first round of stars signed to perform this year will be announced on February 10th at 10am Central time, but you have to "like" CMA on Facebook to get the info first.
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo has a big surprise for Alan Jackson. Oops...now it's not a surprise! He's being induced into the Star Trail of Fame during his March 18th appearance at the show. Since his 1992 debut at the show, he's attracted over a million concert-goers. Quipped Alan, "I know there's always a whole lot of people out there when I walk out on that stage, but I never imagined they'd added up to a million!"
The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards are just over a week away, and presenters are being announced. Blake Shelton and Dierks Bentley will represent country music. Gwyneth Paltrow will perform, but not "Country Strong." She'll be part of a performance which includes Cee Lo Green and the Jim Henson Company Puppets. Country performers we know are performing are Lady Antebellum and Miranda Lambert. More performers will probably be announced between now and February 13th.
It's official - Toby Keith's daughter Krystal is signed to his record label, so he's her boss at home and at work. He's famous around Show Dog Records for being a hands-off boss with the artists unless they ask for his help, which Krystal apparently has. No word on when we might expect Krystal's first album.
Happy birthday to singer/songwriter Matraca Berg, who is 47, and Jessica Harp, who is 29.
The tweet of the day is from Zac Brown: "I guess now would be a good time to welcome the new baby Brown into this world"
