Rascal Flatts played the Grand Ole Opry last night and were surprised with the invitation to become members. Vince Gill joined them onstage, talking about all the hit records they've had and the $500 they still owe him from a golf match. The trio will be inducted into the Opry on the 86th birthday weekend, October 8th on the segment of the show aired live on GAC. Here's how it all went down:
On October 17th, Texas country artists will come together to raise money for those affected by the Texas wildfires. The benefit concert will take place in Austin, Texas, and already signed on to the project are George Strait, Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Asleep at the Wheel and Dixie Chicks. The Austin Community Foundation will administer the proceeds, being sure those who need help most get it.
Kenny Chesney just notched his 10th platinum cd. "Hemingway's Whiskey" has sold more than a million copies, spawned three #1 songs so far, and it looks like "You and Tequila" might be #4. What's the 5th single from the album? According to Kenny, “‘Reality’ was kind of, like, kind of like my message to the fans out there. You know, when I go to concerts – and I still love to go to concerts – because I don’t think about my reality when I’m at those concerts, just for a little while. I don’t think about what’s on my mind. I don’t think about the problems I’ve got or the problems somebody else has got, or anything. I see that in our audience, and I had that in mind when I was writing this song.”
When Martina McBride was ready to record her upcoming album, "Eleven," she wanted to do something different. Sure, she owns Blackbird studios in Nashville and has recorded most of her projects there, but she wanted some fresh walls around this music. She wanted to record in an Atlanta studio, but needed the support of her daughters before leaving home to do that. “But I sat down and talked with them, and I said, ‘I’m thinking about doing this, and I’ll be close enough to get back, if there’s an emergency, and it’ll only be for four days.’ They were so supportive. Ya know, they said, ‘Mom, you should go and do it. You should…should really focus on making this record.’ So, that was really a sweet thing, too.” Martina's "Eleven" is out October 11th.
Dierks Bentley celebrated his latest #1 song, "Am I the Only One," yesterday in Nashville. He hadn't driven his classic '67 Camaro in a while, so he took it out, shined it up and it was his celebratory ride.
Randy Travis is recovering after fainting on stage Saturday night. But if you have to faint on stage, you should do it in front of a room full of doctors, and that's just what Randy did. He was performing at the Crystal Heart Gala, a benefit for the Fort Worth Huguley Memorial Medical Center. Dehydration, over the counter allergy meds, caffeine and hot stage lights teamed up to cause the collapse. Randy is planning to resume his 25th anniversary tour Saturday night.
On the CMA Awards show November 9th, Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will perform "Remind Me" for the first time in front of a live audience. It should be awesome!
Condolences to Kitty Wells, who lost her husband of 74 years yesterday. Johnny Wright was 97 years old.
Luke Bryan makes his first appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres Show today.
Happy birthday to Karen Fairchild of Little Big Town, who turns 44 today.
The tweet of the day is from Colt Ford: "If your never in over your Head, how will you know how Tall you really are. Have a Great Day ya'll!!!"
