Today's Country Tidbits

As we head into Memorial Day weekend, Randy Travis has something he’d like you to think about: “Wanted to ask everybody to remember that this time, this vacation day this year is not just about a trip to the lake or a cookout. Remember our men and women in the military and say a special prayer for them, and always keep them in your thoughts on these Memorial Days.”

Carrie Underwood loves all kinds of music, not just country, and sometimes that can cause her some grief: “I grew up a lover of music and if you look on my iPod, I have the most random stuff. We’ll go to photo shoots, and they’ll take my iPod and push shuffle and I’m always so worried about what’s gonna pop up, just because it’s the most random mix of music ever.” Her “Blown Away” album is at the top of the Billboard charts again this week for the 3rd week in a row.

Luke Bryan celebrated his first, but probably not last, platinum album this week. “Tailgates and Tanlines” has sold over a million copies, and Luke truly appreciates what has happened around him: “It’s kinda like a college degree. When you get one, no one can take it from you, and when you get to say the rest of your life that you’ve got a Platinum album, that really means something and it’s a lot of hard work, a lot of effort, a lot of people that have worked hard and made this stuff happen.”

Last night, Kelly Clarkson was part of the new Duets show on ABC. What does she look for in a great singer, and hope for in a Duets partner? “I think the cool thing about country music, and not even just country music but just powerful women, you know, like Reba or Trisha or Dolly or Loretta or Annie Lennox or Whitney Houston, like, all these women, it’s more than just music. It’s just…I don’t know, it’s like a…you believe in it. You believe in all those artists. And it’s…I love that.”

The Tug McGraw Foundation’s Celebrity Sporting Clay Shootout has added a lot more fire-power: Luke Bryan, Eddie Montgomery, Troy Gentry, Keith Anderson, Brantley Gilbert, Josh Thompson, Brad and Brett Warren, Steve Holy, Josh Gracin, Craig Campbell, Jon Pardi and Jeff McMahon all join Tim McGraw in drawing a bead on flying pottery. In addition to the shooting, there’ll be a silent auction, all raising money to fight brain cancer. The Nashville Gun Club hosts the June 5th event.

Eddie Montgomery had a rough day yesterday. He was on a plane, waiting to take off, but the plane wasn’t leaving and the flight attendants weren’t serving. The reason? Apparently the Vice President was there, and for some reason it was a breach of security to let fellow fliers get buzzed. Eddie tweeted, “ThEY WON'T SERVE US CaUsE the vice PRES,is here,been sitting on Tarmac 2 fu# hours no beam and no AIr hey vice pres,ur ass owes me a drink!”

Montgomery Gentry is on Fox & Friends in the morning, and on Sunday, Martina McBride sings the National Anthem at the Indy 500.

The tweet of the day is from Miranda Lambert: “Um...will someone call the woods and have them tell my husband to get home. Thanks.”