Oh, to have been in the audience for this - Darius Rucker's annual benefit for the childrens hospital in his home state of South Carolina raised $260,000. The show wasn't a typical Darius country set - he did 90 minutes of Sinatra music, backed by an orchestra which was led by Sinatra's long-time conductor. Darius is proud of this event, saying “Giving back is what you’re supposed to do. I’m a blessed individual. God has blessed me with a great life, and great kids, great wife, and you know I like helping people if I can – and giving back is how I do it I guess.”
Taylor Swift had a sit-down with an MTV reporter, talking about her new album, which should come out late this year - IF she quits writing long enough to get into the studio. She says she's been writing like crazy for the past year and will continue writing until she has literally zero time left to work on lyrics. According to Taylor, “With my feelings and things that I discover through love and through loss—writing about that is the only way that I feel better about that. And the only way that I get past it is when I’m standing onstage and I’m singing the words to that song, and I look down and someone is singing them back to me. ‘Cause it makes me feel like I’m not alone.”
Montgomery Gentry's first single for their new record label, "Where I Come From," is running up the charts, and T-Roy is really proud of it: “Every time I hear that song, I think about back home, I think about my family, and where I lived. Those years of growing up with all the neighborhood kids and hanging out and just playing ball in the front yard, and not having a care in the world.”
Lady Antebellum's members are still shocked over winning a Grammy, and they chat about that and Hillary dishes about Miranda Lambert and Lady Gaga's budding friendship as they shared a row at the Grammy Awards:
Lady Antebellum, Taylor Swift and Toby Keith are all nominated in the 25th Annual Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards, which will be handed out March first.
David Nail has picked up two gold certifications, one each for "Red Light" and "Let it Rain." That's a great track record for him so far, and he says the reason is the songs: “I feel like with this record, a lot of it, you make your job as an artist so much easier if you pick great songs and you pick songs you’ve lived or experienced. I feel like that’s something I’ve done well with.”
Blake Shelton has already signed up for season 3 of The Voice. All four judges will return, with Christina Aguilara raking in $10 million and the rest of them having to settle for $6 million for the season.
Happy birthday to Bryan White, who turns 38 today, and to Larry the Cable Guy, who turns 49.
The tweet of the day is from Jake Owen: "One of my main goals again this year is to try a local brew in every city. Oxford, MS thanks for a good time and a good beer."
