Tonight's the night for BAMA Rising in Birmingham, Alabama. The show features Alabama, Dierks Bentley, Sara Evans, Sheryl Crow, Montgomery Gentry, Brad Paisley, Martina McBride, Darius Rucker and Kellie Pickler. Sara Evans, a Birmingham native, shares the stage tonight, but shares something else special today - it's her 3rd anniversary of being married to Jay Barker. “I am so proud of country music for coming together and doing this benefit concert because everybody’s donating their time and it’s just a busy time of year for everybody. It just warms my heart that this is taking place. It’s on our anniversary and Jay and I are both saying, ‘We can’t think of a better way to spend our anniversary than to be helping.’” If you can't be there but want to help, text BAMA to 501501 to donate $10.
Trace Adkins releases new music on August 2nd. "Proud to Be Here" is it's title, which has taken on a whole new meaning for Trace since his home burned down last week. “It’s an autobiographical song anyway, because of some of the well-publicized near death experiences that I’ve had, and now—if that had happened at three o’clock in the morning, there may not be any of us here to tell about it. But it didn’t. It happened at three o’clock in the afternoon, and for that I am grateful.” Yes, there'll be a deluxe edition, featuring extra music including a new duet with Blake Shelton called "If I Was a Woman." That will be available July 12th on iTunes.
For the second year in a row, the LP Field concerts at the CMA Music Festival were sellouts. That means for four nights running, 65,000+ people showed up, shelled out cash and partied the night away to great country music. Tickets for next year's festival go on sale July 30th.
The annual City of Hope Celebrity Softball Challenge, held each year on the Saturday of CMA Music Festival week, raised over $100,000 for those combatting life-threating diseases. The After Midnight with Blair Garner team beat the Grand Ole Opry team 9-5. Stars turning out for the game were Dierks Bentley, David Nail, Jake Owen, Vince Gill, and American Idol's Lauren Alaina and Scotty McCreery.
Congratulations to Justin Moore and his wife Kate, who are expecting their second child in November. The little one will join one-year-old big sister Ella Kole. Justin's new cd, "Outlaws Like Me," comes out June 12th.
Forbes Magazine has compiled a list of the world's top earners under 30, and you know Taylor Swift is on it. Lady Gaga tops the list, earning $90 million last year, Justin Bieber, LeBron James and Roger Federer are in spots two through four, with Taylor checking in at #5. She earned $45 million last year.
Didja miss Keith Urban on the Ellen Degeneres show? Oh no you di-unt...just watch!
Carrie Underwood is down under, charming the Australian media and blowing away the country with her high-energy show.
Could Bieber Fever be coming to country music? After picking up a CMT Music Award for his collaboration with Rascal Flatts, Justin told the media that his mom is a big country music fan, and so is he.
Congratulations to Blake Shelton, who has the number 1 song in country music this week with "Honey Bee."
Tonight, catch Blake Shelton on "The Voice and Josh Turner and Randy Travis on the Tonight Show.
The tweet of the day is from Michelle Branch: "Confessed my fried chicken salad and biscuit sins to my trainer this morning. Then he made me do 5 million lunges. #WorthIt"
