Did you catch Taylor Swift’s performance on the American Music Awards last night? She loves doing that show, because “The AMAs have great production so you can do all kinds of different things.” Tomorrow, Seventeen magazine’s love column will be taken over by Taylor, who dishes out advice on how to steer clear of guys who are bad news, plus how to get a crush’s attention. Wonder if she’ll tell teens to write a song about their dream guy?

Carrie Underwood performed her new single, “Two Black Cadillacs,” on the AMAs last night, and knocked it out of the park. It’s her third single from “Blown Away,” and Carrie hopes it’ll follow “Good Girl” and the title track to #1 on the charts, too.

In case you saw it over the weekend, that cover story that tabloid magazine Life & Style ran isn’t true – Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton are not having a baby. In true Blake style, he tweeted to his fans, “Look, I know I've gained some weight but the test was negative!!!" Miranda piled on, tweeting, “‘we are having a baby' Yay! @BlakeShelton we're getting a new puppy?"

Eric Church loves the fact that country music seems to be getting more mainstream: “When I first started touring, it was not cool to wear a country music artist’s shirt on a college campus. There was still that stigma that country was outside of cool. Frankly, I think country music has always been the coolest format.” We agree, Eric, we agree!

Hey, if you’re going to show up, show up big. Last week, Shania Twain made her official entrance into Las Vegas in advance of her Caesars Palace debut on December first. But she didn’t arrive in a limo – no, Shania rode up on horseback, accompanied by 40 other riders. Her song, “Still The One,” blared from loudspeakers up and down the Las Vegas strip and fans lined up to catch a glimpse of the arriving star. Shania will be performing in Vegas at the Colosseum for two years.
There’s a Hungerthon auction going on, and you have a chance to pick up some one-of-a-kind Christmas gifts – autographed guitars from Taylor Swift, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood, Willie Nelson, Kix Brooks, and a football signed by Jason Aldean. There’s more in the auction, too, and it’s for a good cause. You have until December 13th to get your bids in. 
Wall bling for Justin Moore, whose album, “Outlaws Like Me,” has been certified gold, and for Florida Georgia Line – their first hit, “Cruise,” is now platinum, and has a huge fan in Darius Rucker: “That song! I heard that song – I don’t buy a lot of records. I heard that song I had to buy it on iTunes the second I heard it. Man, great song!”
Happy birthday to Billy Currington, who turns 39 today. 
Rascal Flatts is on Chelsea Lately, and Zac Brown Band is on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

Lady Antebellum is in Great Britain and on one of their tour stops, they opened for Bruce Springsteen. Of that experience, Charles Kelley says, “I’ve seen him several times, every time he comes to Nashville I see him. It is a huge honor...big influence and one of the best songwriters of all time.” Lady A got to complete their set, but Bruce Springsteen’s set was cut short because of a strict curfew at the Hyde Park location.

Eli Young Band is basking in another week at #1, and knew all along it would be a hit: “‘Even If It Breaks Your Heart’ is kind of one of those songs we knew right away that we wanted to record it. For us and the road we have been on the last 10 years, it kind of felt like our story and it felt like we could have or should have written it...it felt right.” It’s looking like Dierks Bentley will take the #1 slot away from Eli Young Band, but I doubt it will break their hearts.

Chris Young likes to box, so when he posted a picture of himself with a black eye, fans assumed for a moment that he got it sparring with someone. No – he tells the real tale: “I actually hit myself in the eye with a guitar the other day. For a second, I wanted to get on Twitter and say ‘Ah, I got punched in the face’ but I didn’t. I just hit myself with my own guitar...not quite as cool, but it’s still funny.”

Going to be in Nashville on September 24th? Slide by the Ryman for some red-carpet fun. The non-televised award winners of ACM awards this spring will be honored at the 6th Annual ACM Honors. Award recipients include Kenny Chesney, Vince Gill and Bobby Braddock. They’ll receive special awards, plus the Industry, Musician, Bandleader and Instrumentalist award winners will be recognized.

Tracy Byrd and his wife Michelle were in a wreck in Texas and were both hospitalized. A woman pulled out in front of the car they were in, and she was also taken to the hospital. Michelle has undergone two surgeries on her left foot since the accident early Tuesday afternoon. The driver of the other car was ticketed for failure to yield the right of way. The extent of Tracy’s injuries hasn’t been disclosed, other to say that they’re “non-life-threatening.”

Glen Campbell’s US tour is going well, but he’s cancelled the Australia and New Zealand legs of the tour. Those six dates will be carried by Kenny Rogers and local country artists. Glen’s people feel that the long plane ride would be more than he could handle as his Alzheimer’s disease progresses.

Tonight is the finale of ABC’s Duets, and the odds favor Jennifer Nettles to have a winner, as her partners J Rome and John Glosson are both in the top three. Kelly Clarkson’s partner, Jason Farol, rounds out the contenders for tonight’s show.

Congratulations to the Zac Brown Band, whose new album “Uncaged” debuted at the top of the Billboard Country Chart and also at the top of the all-genre Billboard 200. Nearly a quarter of a million copies were sold in its first week of release.

Heavy metal alert – Toby Keith’s “Red Solo Cup” has gone double-platinum and Billy Currington’s “Good Directions” was awarded platinum certification.

Today's Country Tidbits

Imagine being a married couple making a big splash at award shows - Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert have some serious decorating problems since last Sunday night! “We’re really thankful, we’re humbled. We’re really excited to celebrate it together. But I think he feels the same way I do, you know? It’s like ‘thank you so much for letting us win male and female, but we are totally happy.’ And we look at our awards every day, don’t get me wrong! We have ‘em all combined on one shelf, which I guess now, we gotta get a bigger shelf!”

First it was "Barefoot Blue Jean Night," and now Jake Owen scores his second #1 song with "Alone With You." “I mean there’s been people come and go that have had number one songs, you know? But when you can back up a number one with another number one, it really is a validating feeling like you—like people are accepting what I am doing.” "Alone With You has been certified gold with 500,000 paid downloads.

Rascal Flatts is making the media rounds this week, celebrating the release of their latest album, "Changed." Jay DeMarcus says the title is very appropriate: “Anytime that you have life changing experiences, whether it’s personal or career wise, and we have had bunch of both – it affects your artistry. You can’t help but let your life experience be let out through the music, and that has certainly happened on Changed.” The trio willbe on the Ellen DeGeneres show Thursday and Good Morning America Friday.

Lady Antebellum's Dave Haywood is planning his wedding to Kelli Cashiola, and plans to be part of the entertainment, too. According to Hillary Scott, the trio will crash the wedding band at some point during the night. No word on when this party will be happening.

Hot on the heels of the Lionel Richie country duets project, John Fogarty is working on one, featuring Miranda Lambert, Alan Jackson, Keith Urban and Brad Paisley. Set for release this fall, "Wrote a Song for Everyone" will include artists from both the rock and country worlds.

Miss Loretta is telling all - well, at least more than she has up til now. Loretta Lynn has released a book, "Honky Tonk Girl: My Life in Lyrics," which includes photos, song lyrics and the stories that inspired the songs. Get it at Amazon.com or a bookstore near you.

Good news for George Jones - he's out of the hospital after nearly a week of treatment for an upper respiratory infection. He'll rest at home until his next concert on April 20th in Minnesota.

Billy Currington is on Jimmy Kimmel tonight, dueting with Lionel Richie.

The tweet of the day is from Blake Shelton: "I shall now begin to punish my liver by drinking my face off in a way that only @richardmarx could understand and appreciate."

Today's Country Tidbits

Carrie Underwood will perform her new song, "Good Girl," at the ACM Awards on April first, and she's psyched: “Being in Vegas is always a lot of fun and I’m glad to finally get to perform ‘Good Girl’ in a big situation. It’s gonna be really good. We’re having something made for the performance and it’ll be pretty rockin’.” Also added to the lineup are Keith Urban and Sara Evans.

The night before the ACM Awards, stars line up to put on a free show for military families at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. Craig Morgan is part of this annual event and says, “It is going to be awesome! There will be vendors – all kinds of stuff. Saturday night there will be a concert featuring lots of artists and myself. It will be a bit of a military tribute show.”

The artist "please vote for me" videos wars have begun, with Blake Shelton taking a straight-ahead road looking for your votes for Entertainer of the Year.

Kix Brooks is having to take two weeks off the road for what he describes as "banged up vocal chords." Shows in Jacksonville and Las Vegas will be re-scheduled.

The guys from Rascal Flatts are in the studio, working on the soundtrack to Saving Santa.

Martina McBride is a real hands-on mom, in addition to being a very successful country star. What if her daughters wanted to follow in her footsteps? Martina feels that they've got a good understanding of the whole music business: “It can be a great life, obviously. And I think having grown up around it they understand the awesome parts of it and then there’s parts of it, you know, it’s hard work and there’s a lot of rejection and I think that they would have a realistic expectation of what it takes.”

Billy Currington's first headlining tour kicks off tonight in Dothon, Alabama, and he's taking David Nail and singer/songwriter Kip Moore on the road with him. Kip's excited about the opportunity: “There will be some wild times to be had, I can promise you that, and it’s gonna be a blast to play for packed houses every night, and the chance to really get in front of an audience that’s itching to hear some good music.”

Time Magazine has declared Dolly Parton has one of the 140 Best Twitter Feeds of 2012. The article says, “When a legacy this great tweets, we listen. Because she’s Dolly, but mostly, because she’s usually right.” Follow Dolly on Twitter - @Dolly_Parton.

The tweet of the day is from Jerrod Niemann: "Well, I just sat up, that's a step in the right direction."

Today's Country Tidbits

Fan voting is open for two of the ACM Awards. The fan voted awards are Entertainer of the Year and New Artist of the Year. In the running for EOY are Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton and Taylor Swift. Up for New Artist of the Year are Hunter Hayes, Brantley Gilbert and Scotty McCreery, and you can vote for your favorite in each category right up to the beginning of the show.

George Strait continues to raise the bar for the rest of country music. With "Love's Gonna Make it Alright" he has a second #1 song from the album, "Here for a Good Time," and has now racked up 59 #1 songs in a career spanning 31 years. What's his secret for success? “You know I’ve always thought that, whether I’m writing or not, you know, I’ve gotta pick the best songs. I’m not just gonna sing them because I wrote them. You know—I’ve gotta find the best songs to make the best record I can make.” His first charted single was "Unwound" in 1981 and his first #1 song was "Fool Hearted Memory" in 1982.

Jason Aldean knows how to treat his fans. Four Nashville fans drove to Illinois and camped out at the Civic Center box office, waiting to buy tickets for his May 10th concert. When Jason found out about it, he had some pizzas delivered to them. The camping paid off, too - the fans are in the front row for the show.

There's been football fever in Tennessee, and the stars aren't immune. Martina McBride offered Peyton a record deal and some free voice lessons. The Grand Ole Opry offered Peyton an open invitation to perform on the Opry, plus a VIP parking space. Carrie Underwood was hoping that Peyton would choose Tennessee, but now that it looks like Denver will be his town, Carrie said: "I like Tebow! I mean, obviously it was Manning fever for a couple days around here. But yeah, I just really want the Titans to be all that they can be!"

Speaking of Carrie Underwood, her new cd, "Blown Away," is out May first, and she's talkin' tour: “It’s going to be a lot of fun. It will be this fall and then potentially – we’ll see how that goes and then hopefully be able to add more dates in the spring next year. I’m just really looking forward to it it’s going to be really good and we have plenty of time to put it all together and make it really big.”

Garth Brooks is downsizing a bit. He unloaded 142 acres of raw land he owned in Oklahoma, raking in $2.7 million in the process. The land will become a community near Edmond, OK.

Day after tomorrow, country stars will gather with guns and guitars in Dothan, Alabama for the 11th Annual Country Goes Huntin' event hosted by Rhett Akins. Billy Currington, Eddie Montgomery, T-Roy Gentry, Rodney Atkins and more country stars will be part of the fun - Rhett Akins explains: “We pair up artists with hunting pros and we turkey hunt for two or three days. At the end of the event we have an acoustic jam where we raise money for different charities.” The Wounded Warriors Foundation is the biggest recipient.

Blake Shelton is working on a Christmas album for release this fall.

Lee Brice co-hosts the 4th hour of the Today show this morning.

Happy birthday to Ranger Doug, the frontman for Riders in the Sky, who is 66 today.

The tweet of the day is from Blake Shelton: "So completely awesome that people mouth off to me but can't comprehend the fact that I actually have the NERVE to defend myself..."

Today's Country Tidbits

Montgomery Gentry's new song, "Where I Come From," has cracked the top 10 on the country charts and is still climbing. Eddie Montgomery says their video take on the song was inspired by friends in their hometowns: “I’m very, very proud, and when you see a couple ‘ol boys that you went to high school with or watched playing football in high school and the next thing you know they’ve signed up for the military and they’re off to Iraq...you go like, ‘Man,’ you know it really hits you at home then.”

Luke Bryan is in Panama City Beach for spring break. He's the entertainment now that he's a grown up, but he remembers the shenanigans from when he was a teen: “One of my buddies...I’ll leave all the names out of it, but he got us banned from all of Thomas Drive down in Panama City. He threw a couple of TVs out of the hotel room...we had a great time though, it was all a part of being a kid, all a part of growing up.”

How does Carrie Underwood keep that killer body? She says she's 95% vegan, pays attention to where food comes from and would rather eat at home so she's in total control. Hubby Mike Fisher would rather go out to restaurants, which Carrie tolerates and manages with the LiveStrong.com phone app. Did you miss her new video when it was posted here Monday? Here it is again, so you can see how she's doing on her diet...

Billy Currington kicks off his first headlining tour this month, taking David Nail and Kip Moore on the road with him. He toured with Kenny Chesney last year and paid attention to how he kept his fans enthralled: “Yeah, he gets out there and talks to ‘em. I was like, ‘Dang! Do I gotta do that?!’ I thought you just come and here and sing! But he’ll carry on for a while!” If you're female and like to sing, you could be in luck- Billy will bring someone up on stage at each tour stop to sing Shania's part on "Party for Two."

Craig Morgan is looking forward to this Sunday night, when he makes his acting debut. He's part of the Lifetime series, "Army Wives." What was his role? “That was cool because I got to perform as myself. I did have a few talking lines I can’t tell you a whole lot about the show I’ll get in trouble, I’m not supposed to talk about it but I can tell you I’m in it and that’s pretty cool.” The show airs Sunday night at 9 Eastern on Lifetime.

Happy birthday to Kristian Bush of Sugarland who is 42 today, and to Michael Martin Murphey, who is 67.

The tweet of the day is from Rhonda Adkins, wife of Trace: "RhondaAdkins: If I could only tweet the jokes Trace is telling about sausage and beavers.. I'll let Trace do that"

Today's Country Tidbits

The trial is over, and Garth Brooks won. A jury of his peers ruled that Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital in Yukon, Oklahoma misled Garth, making him believe that they would build a women's health center and name it for his late mom, Colleen Brooks. Garth donated half a million dollars in 2005, and the hospital has to return that money, plus another half million for breach of contract.

Charles Kelley was first, then Hillary Scott, and soon Dave Haywood will tie the knot with his girlfriend, meaning all of the members of Lady Antebellum will be married. Because they're all three planners, they've been discussing what will happen when couples become triples: “[Charles] It’s nice to kind of, all kind of be going through the same things and, you know, we’re gonna figure out, probably the next step when kids come what that’s gonna be. Maybe we stick ‘em in the bottom bays of the bus, you know, so you can hear when they cry. [Hillary] Make a really wicked nursery under there. [Charles] Yeah. [Hillary] No, we’re just kidding.” Their tour buses roll Friday, when their tour starts up again in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Keith Urban is getting ready to resume his life as a singer after vocal fold surgery in November. His latest song, "You Gonna Fly," is racing up the charts, but has people scratching their heads - what's the deal with the whistle? “I remember on one of the Guns ‘N Roses records, I think it was ‘Welcome To The Jungle,’ maybe before they went into one of the crazy sections you hear this whistle and I always thought that was such a quirky, cool thing to do. And so, I went out and bought a whistle! And put it on this song!”

Alan Jackson has this career thing all figured out: “I’ve always just tried to remember what it’s like to be a fan, and try to figure out songs that they might like more than songs that would be nominated for a Grammy or something, cause I think that’s what will make your career last a little bit longer is making music for the real people.” He's nearly done with his next album of fan favorites, but has caused a stir with his mustache-less look...

Billy Currington released his first solo music in 2003, but really hit country fan consciousness in Shania Twain's song and video, "Party for Two," in 2004. Finally, all these years later, he's about to embark on his first headlining tour, and he takes stage performing very seriously: “Always, before I walk on stage, I talk to the band. Is there anything I can do better? Or is the set list going good for everybody? ‘Cause, you know, that’s a lot of people there. They’re either gonna walk away saying you were great or you sucked.” On the tour with him are David Nail and Kip Moore. Details and tour stops will be announced soon.

Lionel Ritchie's country duets cd, "Tuskeegee," will finally be released on March 27th. It features duets with Willie Nelson, Jason Aldean, Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton, Rascal Flatts, Kenny Chesney and Shania Twain.

Well, The Hag tried to get away from the Macon hospital where he spent much of last week, but on the ride home to California, realized he wasn't up to the trip, turned around and headed back. He's again hospitalized in Macon, where he's getting a more aggressive treatment for his pneumonia, plus they're working on a plan to treat the stomach ulcers, esophageal diverticulitis and colon polyps they've also found. His concert calender has now been cleared through February 28th, when he's scheduled to be in Tuscon, Arizona. Merle Haggard had part of a lung removed several years ago while fighting lung cancer.

Kellie Pickler is on Good Morning America this morning.

The tweet of the day is from Miranda Lambert: "Back to work tomorrow. Well today I guess. Thanks u all for being amazing this past week. Bringin' mama with me to rock this weekend:)"

Today's Country Tidbits

Country Weekly has a feature about country stars’ favorite Christmas presents. Here are some of the highlights.

• “The greatest gift I’ve ever received is a letter from my dad a few years back. He wrote about all of his memories of my life through my ups and downs. He told me he was proud and loved me through it all. His greatest words were in the last paragraph, ‘Be at peace with yourself, be at peace with everyone around you and, most important, be at peace with God.’” — Big & Rich’s Big Kenny

• “My favorite Christmas gift is definitely my first Honda 50 motorcycle that I got back in 1984. It was just an amazing gift to have under the tree, and I never will forget seeing that.” — Luke Bryan

• “My favorite Christmas present as a kid was a ukulele from my parents, and I loved to carry it with me everywhere!” — the JaneDear girls’ Danelle Leverett

• “My favorite Christmas gift was probably my very first guitar from my Grandpa about 15 years ago. And more recently, I got a red Gibson about 5 or 6 years ago. That red one we use onstage was given to me by my Dad for Christmas years ago.” — Lady Antebellum’s Dave Haywood

• “I really enjoyed the go-cart my mom and dad got me and my brother when we were probably 6 or 7 years old. We had more fun on that thing, for just hours and hours on end. It was good times. Just hanging with him was good.”- Billy Currington

• “When I was in the third grade, I wanted a puppy real bad. I wanted a miniature dachshund. My parents told me they couldn’t, so I asked for a dirt bike instead. Christmas morning, I heard all this yipping and whining…They had gotten me the puppy I wanted.” - Brantley Gilbert

• “I can remember when I was about 6 or 7, I got a Hutch football outfit. You got the helmet, the shoulder pads, the little jersey, and the pants. Randomly, it was the New York Jets…I grew up in Southeast Missouri, so the Jets must have been the only one my parents could afford or get in the JCPenny catalog! I can remember just freaking out. I was a huge sports fan even then. I can remember being way too big to even where the stuff and still trying to put it on. Back then the Jets were horrible, and that was probably the most uncool jersey to wear but I didn’t care. I would have probably tackled you if you made fun of me.” - David Nail

Rascal Flatts’ “I Won’t Let Go” has reached platinum status for 1-million downloads, while Justin Moore’s “If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away” is certified gold for 500,000 downloads. Also, Miranda Lambert’s Four the Record and Blake Shelton’s Loaded: The Best of Blake Shelton earned gold album status this month.

Keith Urban posted a holiday greeting to his fans…good to hear his voice!

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride: “Super fun, laid back day. Santa was good to the girls. Just us at home. Nice. Hope you all have a very merry Christmas. Xoxo”

Today's Country Tidbits

Today is Veterans Day, and it's a day when we should take a minute to thank our military heroes who are willing to walk through fire for us. Country music artists know what we owe our veterans:

Dierks Bentley: “I think Veteran’s Day is something that happens once a year, but I think in the country community it really is something we are and need to be thinking about 365 days a year because those folks need us.”

Eric Church: “What I respect and admire is the sacrifice that those guys and girls go through for us to live the way they want to live too. And, again, I’m very thankful for the sacrifice that those guys endure. It’s something that’s always been very important to me and always will be.”

Craig Morgan: “There’s two things that are important in my life and that’s the security of my nation and the security of my family. The security of my nation comes first. Most people would not appreciate or understand that. But, without the security of this nation, I don’t have the security of my family...I can’t take care of my family. If it weren’t for those men and women there...stationed there and standing ready there, then we would be fighting terrorism at home on a much greater front.”

Kellie Pickler: “I get asked all the time, ‘Well, I don’t know how to...I can’t go to Afghanistan. What can I do?’ And it’s small things like saying thank you that make the biggest difference because it shows appreciation and it shows that you respect what they’re doing, regardless if you agree or disagree with what’s going on.”

It was Christmas in Nashville last night, as country's biggest stars lined up for the taping of the "CMA Country Christmas" special that will air December 1st on ABC. Some of the highlights of the show Jennifer Nettles hosts again this year include:

Sugarland performing a bi-lingual version of “Silent Night.”

Darius Rucker crooning “Winter Wonderland.”

Lauren Alaina sings “Grown Up Christmas List."

Vince Gill and Miss Piggy duet on “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”

Scotty McCreery takes on “The First Noel”

Little Big Town belts out a bluesy version of “Santa Claus is Back in Town” with Keith Urban on guitar.

Rascal Flatts performed “White Christmas”

The show will close with all the stars back on stage, singing a medly of Christmas songs.

Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland was very frank with reporters backstage at the CMA Awards when asked about their next album. She replied, "We're in the writing – actually, we're in the resting process, let me be real frank. We just got off tour two weeks ago after two years of being on the Incredible Machine tour and after obviously quite a tumultuous year. We're taking a few months off just to chill, relax and sleep in our own beds and contemplate on how we want to approach what's next."

The ratings for this year's CMA Award show were bigger than last year's - the 35 million viewers topped last year's telecast by nearly 3 million viewers.

Did you miss Thompson Square on Jimmy Kimmel Live after the CMA Awards? Here you go...

Lady Antebellum kicks off their "Own the Night" tour tonight in Knoxville.

Steve Martin and the Lonesome River Band wll be on the Late Show with David Letterman and Billy Currington is part of the UNC vs. Michigan State game tonight on ESPN.

The tweet of the day is from Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry: "Well we didn't win and that sucks. me and t will just work harder for next year"

Today's Country Tidbits

Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood are hard at work this week, writing and rehearsing for Wednesday night's CMA Awards. They'll duet on the show, co-host the show for the 4th year in a row, and according to Brad, kick a few chuckles out of us, too. “Everything’s pretty -- well no, it’s never just ready -- but we get out there and have a great time and uh, I hope, I hope we make you laugh. I think we have the last few years and, and hopefully we can do it again, uh, we aren’t pulling many punches, it ought to be fun.”

Miranda Lambert is the reigning CMA Female Vocalist, and is nominated again this year, along with Carrie Underwood, Sara Evans, Martina McBride and Taylor Swift. How does she feel about the competition? “Of course we want to win. You know, there’s the disappointment...for a while there I was getting beat out every year by Taylor and Carrie, and I was like, ‘OK, when’s my turn coming?’ You know? But, my turn has come and when it’s somebody else’s turn, I wanna be as gracious as...especially Carrie was to me when I won! You know? It’s not a competition. It’s a family.”

The husband/wife duo Thompson Square is up for New Artist and Vocal Duo. Kiefer and Shawna are pretty amazed to be nominated, saying “To us, it’s like, Ok, now these people take us seriously and accept us into their fold. And to be accepted into this country music family in Nashville is just...it’s a dream come true. It’s why we all move here and to be able to be in that fold is just unbelievable.” The show airs at 8pm Wednesday on ABC.

One of Billy Currington's neighbors needs a time-out. He showed up at Billy's door, inviting him to go fishing and telling him that he'd been watching Billy through binoculors and telescopes for six months! Billy's as calm about it as he can be, but probably won't go fishing with his neighbor any time soon.

Willie Nelson had to cancel a couple of shows last week because he got sick. The Washington DC show will be re-scheduled, but the Akron, Ohio show tickets will be refunded at the point of purchase.

Kenny Rogers will kick off his annual Christmas tour the day after Thanksgiving in Columbus, Ohio. Joining him on the "Christmas and Hits Tour" is Grammy-winner Billy Dean.

Alan Jackson and Kix Brooks both got stars on the Music City Walk of Fame in Nashville yesterday...congrats!

The tweet of the day is from David Nail: "Can't sleep, changed bunks, it's bumpy and loud in the back bottom right! But it beats listening to people up front snore! G Nite take two"

Today's Country Tidbits

As we head into a long Labor Day weekend, here's a round-up of some of the jobs held by country stars, and how they felt about those jobs:

Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley talks about some of the jobs he had before becoming a big star. “I used to do lawn care every summer. Oh, man, I do not miss that. Just glad those days are over. I get out here and play music for a living. It’s a lot more fun. But yeah, I used to do that, and I used to work as a bag boy at a golf course once. I did that for a couple of summers. I had a lot of crummy jobs.”

Luke Bryan talks about the jobs he had growing up in Georgia. “At age 12 thru 13, I worked at Rubos IGA Supermarket in Leesburg, GA. I worked during the summers on Monday and Tuesday. I stocked and cleaned up the produce. Let’s see, when I was 15, I worked at K-Mart for two months, and then I reverted back to Rubos because it didn’t really make sense for me to drive all the way into Albany and work for K-Mart.”

Jake Owen’s dad still worries about him, even though he now has a successful country music career. “Now, to be able to have conversations with my dad where he’s not constantly asking me how much money I have in the bank. When I say that, I mean he used to worry about like, ‘are you okay, man?’ ‘Cause I would never take anything from him. I wanted to prove to him that I could do it. I know he knew! ‘Cause I was going through it. You know, he’d call me when I had sixty-seven dollars in my bank account a four-hundred fifty dollar rent payment to make four days later!”

Kellie Pickler used to help her grandfather with his electrical work. “My grandfather is an electrician, and you know, my dad was an electrician, and he, I mean, they built houses from the ground up. So, I’m very hands-on when it comes to house stuff like that. I love to build things and whatnot. So, if it comes to putting carpet down, I’m all for it. Painting – I love to paint. I can wire a house and hook up your thermostat.”

Alan Jackson says that workingman values have always been a part of his music. “I’ve always written songs and recorded songs, other people’s songs, about workin’ people, and workin’, the workin’ life ’cause I mean, that’s where I’m from. I’d already had jobs and worked as a grown person before I ever even thought about bein’ in the music business.”

Darius Rucker remembers one of his worst jobs before starting a music career. “I was fifteen, and I worked at a pizza place, and the guy decided that at fifteen that I could not only clean the floors and wash the dishes, but I also had to make pizza. So, for two months, he taught me how to make pizza.”

Danny Gokey reveals his truck-driving past. “The truck driving thing, yeah, a lot of people don’t know about it because they didn’t highlight that on American Idol. But, it’s part of who I am. I did two years of truck driving. And if the bus ever did break down, I could be qualified to run the tour bus. I might just start doing it to save money.”

Billy Currington “I started when I was about 16 roofin’ houses. And that was probably one of my toughest jobs, cause down there in South Georgia, it gets hot! So, doin’ that everyday…all summer long. The concrete job was my least favorite of all. Six years of that and I couldn’t take it no more.”

It was Taylor Swift's turn to be featured on "YouTube Presents"...enjoy!

Tim McGraw has been known to kick fans out of his concert for being out of control, but Eric Church has one up on Tim...he kicked a security guard out of one of his shows! A woman came to the stage, took off her boot and asked Eric to sign it. The security guy grabbed her and tried to hustle her away from the stage, and Eric threw the boot at him, trying to get him to release the female fan. Eric invited her to bring him the boot again, at which point the security guard grabbed her again, and Eric had him removed from the show. Don't mess with Tim, and don't mess with Eric!

Colt Ford got to celebrate last week, as his song, "Dirt Road Anthem," was feted at a #1 party. Jason Aldean took the Colt Ford/Brantley Gilbert collaboration to the top of the chart, and Colt was the center of attention at the party.

From the "not surprised" department, Faith Hill will be the theme singer for NBC's Sunday Night Football. It's her 5th year of singing a different song each Sunday night, with the first game September 11th, as the Dallas Cowboys face off against the New York Jets.

Tracy Lawrence is the voice for FOX Sports South college football coverage this fall. "Saturday in the South" is the song that will be featured in coverage of SEC, ACC, Conference USA, Big 12 and Pac-12 games this fall.

Two legends are about to tour together. Kicking off in January, George Strait and Martina McBride will wow the crowds. Dates and markets haven't been finalized yet, but I'll have a link here for you when they are.

Darius Rucker is about to embark on his first country music headlining tour. Rodney Atkins, Justin Moore, Thompson Square and Frankie Ballard will all be part of the tour on different dates. The fun starts October 6th in Glens Falls, New York. Darius has been touring with Brad Paisley, and says of his friend, “You know, when you’re on tour, you hang out a lot. We’re hanging out a lot. We’re having a beer together, playing golf together, and stuff.” Darius' music has just earned him some heavy metal - "Alright" has been certified platinum, and gold certification has been awarded for "Come Back Song," "This," "It Won't Be Like This for Long" and "Don't Think I Don't Think About It."

Vince Gill and Sting are paired up for the next CMT Crossroads, premiering in November. The taping will happen in New York City. Both artists, with 36 Grammy awards between them, have wanted to do Crossroads for years and are delighted to be sharing the stage.

Ashton Shepherd is scheduled to have her baby next week. I'll keep you posted...she's excited to hold her baby with her arms, not her belly.

The Band Perry is on Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight.

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride "I am texting with my husband...and it's really romantic...For real..."

Today's Country Tidbits

It's Independence Day, a commemoration of the very brave Founding Fathers, who risked their life, liberty and happiness in order to build an independent nation. Those signers of the Declaration of Independence epitomized the bravery and can-do spirit of America.

On this day, country music artists reminisce about what the 4th of July means to them.

Josh Turner: “All the individual families kind of had a lot of competition with each other and they tried to outdo each other to try and see who had the biggest and baddest fireworks and all that. My daddy I think was the smartest one. He just went out and bought maybe 25-dollars worth of fireworks and let everybody else put on the big show. So, he saved a lot of money!”

Carrie Underwood: “America really is, you know, the land of opportunity. It’s the only place in the world that I could try out for some show and win and…amongst hundreds of thousands of people…and go on to do great things. I mean, it’s just the land of ‘anything could happen.’ The people in it are what makes it great.”

Chris Young: “Fourth of July is always a big day with me and my dad. I think we spend, like, four-hundred dollars, five-hundred dollars on fireworks alone during Fourth of July. And we go do a cookout at the house, and then we set off fireworks. And we’ve almost blown ourselves up a couple times, but you know, it’s somethin’ that me and my dad just love gettin’ out there and doin’. It’s a lot of fun for us.”

Jerrod Niemann: “Well, as a kid, I loved Fourth of July because I could shoot Roman candles at my siblings. But then when you finally understand what it stands for, and you’re old enough to grasp that the only reason you can shoot Roman candles at your siblings is because there’s people out there that are sacrificing their lives and allowed all of us to continue to be free and do the things that we love.”

Kenny Chesney: “You know what? I was usually playin’ little-league baseball on the Fourth of July. You know, I was big into sports, and the summertime in east Tennessee consisted of playin’ baseball, and that’s what I did on the Fourth of July. And they had a big fireworks display after all the games, and I was usually, you know, tryin’ to win the affection of some little girl over at the concession stand. And, you know, things don’t change very much!”

Miranda Lambert: “I love holidays in general, but Fourth of July is…summer is my favorite time of year, so Fourth of July is probably one of my favorites because…my favorite firework is sparklers. Always it brings out the little girl in me. I always ask for sparklers for Fourth of July”

Billy Currington: “My best memories would be hanging out with my mom and brother and sister on the beach of Tybee Island, right off the coast of Savannah, Georgia. We’d go there pretty much every year and we’d light our own fireworks and watch the ones they had for us. Those were some of the best times of my life.”

Jake Owen: “Fourth of July is my weekend, man to relax. Every year, we do a big boat party and just a lot of my friends, family...cook a lot of food, do a lot of wakeboarding, water skiing, hang out, get sunburnt…get a little buzz…and have a good time.”

Darius Rucker: “Oh, I love fireworks. We had the bottle rocket fights and all that good stuff. I was the typical little crazy kid, you know. In South Carolina it was always legal, so we shot fireworks when it was legal. We did all that sort of stuff. I almost blew my hand off once.”

No matter how you spend your day, have fun, be safe and remember the bravery that made our nation possible.

I'm on vacation for the rest of the week...see you on July 11th!

Today's Country Tidbits

Rascal Flatts' summer tour kicks off tomorrow night in Bristow, VA, and the guys are pulling out all the stops to be sure the fans have fun at Flatts Fest 2011. According to Jay DeMarcus, "I'll actually be out there giving bikini waxes. Only the dudes. I don't want to upset my wife." He's kidding. I hope. The real "Why Wait" wedding chapel will allow couples to walk down the "Broken Road" aisle to make or renew their vows. "There's a prenuptial tent right next to it, too," Joe Don Rooney kids. Gary LeVox adds, "Yeah, it's called the 'I'm Movin' On Tent.' That's where you get an annulment at the next show. It's a package deal." The tour will take them through the summer and is a romp around North America.

The ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp happens from June 26th to July first in Nashville, and campers will be treated to volunteer camp counselors Carrie Underwood, Gary Allan, Darius Rucker, Little Big Town, Wynonna and other music city luminaries. The camp is for people with developmental disabilities and their families. Activities include a recording session with Carrie, a songwriting session with Gary and a concert with Darius at the Grand Ole Opry.

Randy Owen wanted to raise $1 million, but they're at $2 million and counting after the BAMA Rising concert on Tuesday night. Nashville's A-list turned out to help raise money for those devastated by the tornadoes in the southeast last month. If you'd like to pile on, text BAMA to 501501 to make a $10 donation.

Garth Brooks was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame last night in New York. Trisha Yearwood was there to see her hubby serenaded by some pretty big stars: Billy Joel, Dwight Yoakam, Boz Scaggs and even more stars who showed up to speak at the induction ceremony. Inducted along with Garth were Leon Russell, Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly, John Bettis and Allen Toussaint.

Luke Bryan is part of Tim McGraw's Emotional Traffic tour, and Tim decided to have a little bit of fun with Luke's Bronco...

And "big baby" Justin Moore pranked his band...

Jake Owen was in the middle of a break-up when he found his newest single, "Barefoot Blue Jean Night." His then-girlfriend was packing up her stuff and storming around the house when she came downstairs and proclaimed, "If you don't record that 'Barefoot Blue Jean Night' song, you're an idiot." Well now we know...Jake Owen is no idiot!

Congratulations to Thompson Square. The husband/wife duo has just been handed their first platinum award for the song "Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not" for over a million copies sold.

New music out next week includes the latest by Weird Al Yankovic, who parodies Taylor Swift's song "You Belong to Me." It becomes a rant about the paparazzi called "TMZ." And Lady Antebellum gets the "Polka Face" treatment, as a parody of "Need You Now" becomes part of his trademark mash-up.

It's good to be a tv star. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Blake Shelton is making $75,000 per episode of The Voice, and is already signed to another year of the show. Yay for him!

Billy Currington is on Fox & Friends and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and Kenny Chesney is on the Today show.

Happy birthday tomorrow to Blake Shelton, who turns 35.

The tweet of the day is from Danny Gokey: "Every time a bird poops on my car, I eat a plate of scrambled eggs on my balcony, just to show them what I'm capable of."

Today's Country Tidbits

Last night was the closing night for the CMA Music Festival, and the concert at LP Field featured The Band Perry, Darius Rucker, Blake Shelton and his surprise guest Trace Adkins, Miranda Lambert and her new project, Pistol Annie's, and closed with Taylor Swift. Fan highlights were Miranda "killing" beach balls with her high heels, Blake & Trace doing "Hillbilly Bone" and Taylor Swift on a small stage at the back of the stadium performing an acoustic version of "Fearless" on a ukelele. Fireworks capped the event, and the festival is just a memory for this year. Plans for the 2012 CMA Music Festival are already underway, though, you can bet on that.

Chris Young celebrated his birthday weekend by playing the big stage at the CMA Music Festival. He was part of the Saturday night show, and was so humbled by the experience. "This is a big deal for me," he says. "I've been going to CMA Music Fest since I was a kid, so it's very cool .... My birthday's on Sunday. It's going to be a good weekend." Ironically, the CMA Music Festival and Chris share the anniversary. Chris has been around 26 years, and the CMA Music Festival, originally known as Fan Fair, began on June 12th 40 years ago.

Last week during the CMA Music Festival, several artists included fund-raisers as part of their events. Martina McBride raised over $100,000 for the YWCA, Darius Rucker raised over $50,000 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Marty Stuart raised more than $30,000 for MusiCares and Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, and LeAnn Rimes raised $35,000 for storm victims in the Southeast.

On the heels of the Nashville fun, several artists are making the road trip from Nashville to Birmingham, Alabama for the BAMA Rising benefit concert today. The show features Alabama, Dierks Bentley, Sara Evans, Sheryl Crow, Montgomery Gentry, Brad Paisley, Martina McBride, Darius Rucker and Kellie Pickler. Teddy Gentry of Alabama says, “The devastation can’t be described. You see it on the news, but unless you’ve been there and seen it firsthand…of course, the loss of life can’t be replaced. But, we feel like we’re doing something that can help bring people back to some sort of stability." If you can't be there but want to help, text BAMA to 501501 to donate $10.

According to US magazine, Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert spent the first part of their honeymoon in Tishomongo, Oklahoma on their farm, and the second part in Cancun. There, they stayed at Reba McEntire's vacation home. Back to work comes quickly - Blake's in LA working on NBC's The Voice and Miranda is headed back into the studio to record her next album.

Jake Owen is joining Keith Urban on tour this summer, and the two practiced a bit Saturday night at the CMA Music Festival.

Keith Urban on WhoSay

Huge Kenny Chesney fan? Then you might want to get tickets to his July 8th "Goin' Coastal" show at Red Rocks amphitheater in Colorado. It'll be the last of three nights there, and he's invited Grace Potter & the Nocturnals to join him. Grace is his duet partner on his current hit, "You and Tequila."

The conclusion of Shania Twain's series on OWN was last night, and featured the premier of her new song "Today is Your Day." Tonight on GAC, catch a re-air of ACM Presents: Brooks & Dunn - The Last Rodeo.

Happy birthday today to Jason Michael Carroll. He's 33.

The tweet of the day is from Billy Currington: "can someone make me a t'shirt that says I AM NOT DIERKS BENTLEY. i would appreciate it. v-neck size medium"

Today's Country Tidbits

The name of Ronnie Dunn's first solo album in the post-Brooks & Dunn era is "Ronnie Dunn." The release date is June 7th, and according to Ronnie, it's a very autobiographal body of work. "There is something in each song that I've lived or that I'm living. I'm hoping that you'll find something to take with you as you listen, as well. We all bleed red, ya know." Ronnie will sing the first single from the album, "Bleed Red," on the ACM awards.

In addition to Ronnie Dunn, ACM performers just announced include Martina McBride, Reba, Zac Brown Band with James Taylor, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Alabama, Sara Evans and Dierks Bentley. All of the Entertainer of the Year nominees will also perform - Taylor Swift, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, Toby Keith, Jason Aldean and Keith Urban. The show airs live from Las Vegas April 3rd at 8pm Eastern on CBS.

Sara Evans would love to welcome child #8 into her life with husband Jay Barker. He has four children from a previous marriage and she has three from her earlier union, and she wants a baby with Jay. The sticking point - she wants a surrogate to carry the baby and Jay says "no way." They rarely disagree, according to Sara, but when they do, she wants a lot of conversation. Said Sara, “I’m like, no. I have to like get it out, and then work it all the way around back to why it happened, how I feel about it, how do you feel about it, are we good? I’m just really that way.” The baby stale-mate continues, apparently.

Shania Twain's show will debut on May 8th on the Oprah Winfrey Network. "Why Not? With Shania Twain" will air at 11pm Eastern, following the season finale of "The Judds."

Remember a few weeks ago when Craig Morgan was returning home, saw a house fire and stopped to put it out, saving at least two people from the burning home? His efforts have been recognized by the Tennessee City Volunteer Fire Department. They've made him an honorary lifetime member, giving him a custom helmet, complete with his department ID, number 565. Said Craig, "I'm humbled by this kind of recognition. They are the real hometown heroes."

Congratulations to Luke Bryan for his 3rd #1 song in a row. He held a #1 party yesterday in Nashville, and talked about his vision for "Someone Else Calling You Baby." According to Luke, “I thought it was going to be the lead single so the fact that ‘Someone Else Calling You Baby’ became a number one kind of validates me internally. At least I knew it was good enough to be a number one, so, I was happy about that.”

Congratulations to Billy Currington, who scores his 6th #1 song with "Let Me Down Easy." It's his 4th #1 song in a row, following "People Are Crazy," "That's How Country Boys Roll" and "Pretty Good at Drinkin' Beer."

Jerrod Niemann was on stage, singing his latest song, "What Do You Want." Carrie Underwood sidled up and lent a hand, making an already haunting song magical.

Up for a country cover of a Madonna song? Check out Sugarland and Little Big Town's version of Madonna's "Like a Prayer."

Foster & Lloyd will release their first studio album in 21 years on April 19th. According to Radney Foster, "We decided to start getting together once a month to write. Soon the songs were pouring out and we knew we needed to get back in the studio." "It's Already Tomorrow" is available for pre-order now.

Josh Kelley's first country album, "Georgia Clay," is out today.

Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers are on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson tonight, and Billy Ray Cyrus is on Good MOrning America tomorrow morning.

The tweet of the day is from Jewel: "Windy day, so I'm doing what any sensitive chic-singer would do...Stay inside & clean my hand gun"

Today's Country Tidbits

On this St. Patrick's Day, how do the artists celebrate? Billy Currington was in Savannah, GA on Tuesday, a town that goes big for St. Pats, and Billy was shopping for a new green shirt to wear for tonight's concert with Kenny Chesney. According to Billy, “There was green everywhere. I went to grab me a green shirt or whatever. And I couldn’t find anything that I liked better than the same green shirt I have been wearing for about ten years. It still don’t beat that one original, first shirt I ever got. You know?” He'll look great no matter what he wears on stage tonight, and there are lots of women who probably won't be wearing green, in the hopes he'll pinch them!

Kenny Chesney's "Goin' Coastal" tour kicks off in West Palm Beach tonight, and he's excited about the show fans will see. “It’s gettin’ really exciting for me and the band. And Zac’s guys are so great. I mean, they are really a great band, and to be able to collaborate like this together that way…we’ve never done this in our show in 17 years I’ve been on the road. We’ve never done this. And it’s a lot of fun, you know, and we’ve done it a little bit, but we’ve never made it a part of our show. And to be able to do this for the fans and to be able to have them experience it, you know, it’s just gonna be—I think I speak for everybody that I think it’s gonna be a really special night of music, you know, especially with what they’re doin’, too.” The tour includes 52 dates through the US and Canada this spring and summer.

Blake Shelton will be profiled in Parade magazine, and they asked him about his bachelor party: “I think me and my buddies are going to take a camping trip somewhere. Maybe try to find something to go hunt. Turkey or bears or something like that. Something country. The last ten years of my life has been a bachelor party, so I don’t need an extra one night to add to my life. I’ve had plenty of that stuff.” And the honeymoon? “I tell you what: when you are getting married to Miranda Lambert, you’re going to make time for whatever she wants. So that’s also a no-brainer. She’ll have the wedding and the time with me she wants, whether I like it or not.” I'm thinking he'll like it, aren't you?

Remember the rock group Styx? You'd never expect to see them at the Grand Ole Opry, but frontman Tommy Shaw will be there on March 26th, making his debut as a solo bluegrass picker. Carrie Underwood, Lorrie Morgan and Pam Tillis are also on the bill for that Saturday show. Tickets are still available.

Congratulations to Sara Evans, who has the top-selling country album in America this week with "Stronger." It's her first new music in six years. Look for a profile on her in the next issue of People magazine.

Congratulations to Eric Church on gold certification for "Love Your Love the Most."

Happy birthday to Paul Overstreet, who turns 56 today. He's written hit songs for Kenny Chesney, Randy Travis and had his own hits back in the day.

The tweet of the day is from Danny Gokey: "If women ruled the world there would be no wars. Just a bunch of jealous countries not talking to each other. ;)"

Today's Country Tidbits

Miranda Lambert is excited to hit the road again after the holiday break. "The Revolution Continues" tour fires up February 24th in St. Louis, and there's a little something different this time around. Not only will she play her own hits and fan favorites, but she'll also cover some of her favorite songs from other artists. Says Miranda, “The covers are what sort-of keeps me excited because it’s a break away from my normal thing…my music every night. You know, learnin’ new covers and havin’ different covers to throw in the set every night definitely keeps it interesting for us as…as the band up there.” In March, she'll take a break from the American road to hit the road in Australia with Alan Jackson.

Brad Paisley is rounding up a who's who to be part of his next cd. Alabama joined him in the studio, as has Clint Eastwood, who is whistling on an otherwise instrumental track called "Eastwood." Also scheduled to be part of the project are Don Henley, Marty Stuart and Sheryl Crow.

Congratulations to Sugarland on platinum status for "The Incredible Machine." It's sold more than a million copies, boosting their cumulative sales to over nine million albums.

Last week, Taylor Swift did a concert aboard the cruise ship, Allure of the Seas. Here's what it looked like...

Dierks Bentley and Jack Ingram will be part of what's being called Texas' Largest Tailgate on Sunday afternoon before the Super Bowl. Bud Light sponsors the concerts and will stream them live.

Fans are admitting to watching Dierks Bentley's silent studio feed for hours on end. Dierks is in Asheville, NC recording his 6th studio album. The broadcasting happens whenever the band is in the studio, so if you want to watch the process, you can. When I checked early this morning, there was nothing going on, no one in the studio, and still 23 viewers were logged in.

Friday night, the History Channel goes country. Brad Paisley's "H2O Tour" will be the focus of "Modern Marvels," a show that follows the set-up, break-down and move of a huge concert from city to city.

This Saturday, Reba's son Shelby Blackstock hits the track for his pro-driving debut at Daytona. Well, actually, he's already raced the race - it will air Saturday on the Speed Channel at 3pm Eastern. Mama Reba was there, cheering on her son, and probably holding her breath a little bit. Reba said, "Watching Shelby on the track racing 170 mph was the biggest rush I've ever had. We're very proud and very thankful to God for keeping him safe."

Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now" is getting Gleeked after the Super Bowl this Sunday night. The special episode also features Michael Jackson's "Thriller."

If you missed Billy Currington on the Tonight Show, catch up here.

If you'll be in or near Nashville on Saturday, stop by the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Admission is free Saturday, made possible by the Ford Motor Company Fund. "Ford Community Day" allows free access to the Hall of Fame and the museum, plus there's a musical petting zoo for kids to learn all about musical instruments. Hours are 9 to 5, Central.

The ACM nominees will be announced this morning. Look for a post with the complete list later today.

In stores today, the JaneDear Girls' self-titled debut. You know them for the song "Wildflower" and know their producer, John Rich of Big & Rich.

Happy birthday to Don Everly of the Everly Brothers, who turns 74 today, and to Del McCoury of the Del McCoury Band, who turns 72.

The tweet of the day is from Kimberly Perry of The Band Perry: "Up and ahem. Up and atom. Up and Adam. Up and at em!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Jimmy Buffet, occasional country collaborator and chief parrot-head, took a header off the stage in Australia during his final show down under. He was unconscious for several minutes and was taken to the hospital, where he was admitted and treated for lacerations on his head and arm, and for a concussion. His CAT scan was normal, so he's been released from the hospital, and according to his management, will still be able to kick off his North American tour in April, as scheduled.

The line-up for the ACM's "Girls' Night Out: Superstar Women of Country" is being revealed, and it's as good as you would suspect. Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, Reba, Miranda Lambert and Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland will all take part in the party on April 4th in Las Vegas, the night after the ACM Awards are handed out. The show will be taped to air on CBS, and you can be there if you'd like. Tickets are $100, $150 adn $200 each, and proceeds go to the ACM's charity, Lifting Lives.

The first show sold out in 8 minutes, so a second Foxboro, Massachussetts stadium show has been added for Kenny Chesney and Zac Brown Band. The show will be August 28th and is the last show on his "Goin' Coastal" tour. Tickets go on sale February 5th.

Congrats to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. They've received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to expand the "Words and Music" program, which provides songwriting workshops to Nashville public school students.

Heard Trace Adkins new song, "Brown Chicken, Brown Cow?" If so, you know it's pretty suggestive. How to make a family-friendly video for it? Puppets! Says Trace of the puppet that sort of looks like him, “It’s kind of creepy.”

Tonight is the night American Idol airs it's Nashville auditions. It was the city with the biggest turn-out of show hopefuls, and apparently some major talent was found.

The Keith Urban/The Wiggles collaboration is due to be released this coming Tuesday. "England Swings" is a happy-sounding remake of the Roger Miller classic, and Keith hopes it will help him score some "cool dad" points with daughter Sunday Rose.

Catch Larry Gatlin on FOX News Red Eye, Wynonna on NBC Nonstop Moms in the City and Billy Currington on the Tonight Show.

Happy birthday to Cheryl White, who turns 56 today, and to Tracy Lawrence, who is 43.

The tweet of the day is from Terri Clark: " who to follow" on my twitter account just suggested "Weight watchers" AND "Paula Deen"...sounds counter productive."

Today's Country Tidbits

The Super Bowl always has stellar entertainment, and this year is no different. Martina McBride is part of the "2011 Taste of the NFL," a fund-raiser for food banks across the country. Thirty-five celebrity chefs come together to create a night of food for NFL players, retired players and team staff members. The night wouldn't be complete without a concert, and Martina is the performer. No word on whether she has to wear pads and a helmet for the show.

Kenny Chesney has announced the dates for his "Goin' Coastal Tour." After taking a year off from touring, Kenny's chomping at the bit to get back out on the road, and the tour schedule shows it. Starting in West Palm Beach Florida on March 17th, and ending with a sold-out show at Gillette Stadium on August 27th, Kenny will hit 50 cities this year. Billy Currington and Uncle Kracker will open the regular shows, and at the stadium dates, The Zac Brown Band will co-headline.

Tickets go on sale Saturday for Tim McGraw's "Emotional Traffic" tour. He'll stop in 52 cities between March 7th and August 13th, with Luke Bryan and The Band Perry along as his opening acts.

Curious about Kellie Pickler's wedding to Kyle Jacobs on New Year's Day in Antigua? People Magazine has the scoop in the issue hitting newsstands tomorrow. The two had been planning a big shindig in Nashville, but realized that they were getting lost in the details, so they decided to have a private ceremony. "We didn't have anything but us and God and our minister," Kellie said, "and I can't think of a word that can quite describe how perfect it was."

General Electric has a new tv commercial coming out, and it features people line-dancing all around the world when Alan Jackson's song "Good Time" comes on the radio. It's an ad for GE's "ecomagination" technology initiative. Look closely...you might see Alan dancing. (or maybe not...!)

How do you handle it when you're a big star that everyone wants to know everything about and your Mom likes to share stories of your childhood? Invent a code word. Carrie Underwood and her Mom Carole are often seen together at award shows and other events. The two are very close, and understandably, Carole is very proud of her daughter and loves to chat with reporters about her. When Carrie hears an embarassing childhood story coming out, she uses the phrase "chocolate bunnies" and that's her Mom's cue to change the subject. Clever!

Gwyenth Paltrow - actress, country music singer and now cookbook author. She's released "My Father’s Daughter: Delicious, Easy Recipes Celebrating Family and Togetherness" as a tribute to her late father, producer Bruce Paltrow. The cookbook features easy recipes that her Dad enjoyed making.

Shania Twain will be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in March at the 2011 Juno Awards, Canada's version of the Grammy's.

Sara Evans' second novel, "Softly and Tenderly," is out. It's the second in a three-novel series called "Sweet By and By," and Sara has loved the writing process. “I never imagined that I would be able to create the character and then have this character, you know, come to life. It's a really weird thing. It's almost like she's a real person."

Got Wii? Love to dance? You're in luck, as "Country Dance for Wii" is set to be released this spring. It features music from all of your favorite country artists - here's just a sample:

Carrie Underwood, “Cowboy Cassanova”

Brad Paisley, “Water”

Sugarland, “Stuck Like Glue”

Trace Akins, “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk”

Tim McGraw, “Just to See You Smile”

Zac Brown Band, “Chicken Fried”

Rascal Flatts, “Life is A Highway”

Blake Shelton, “All About Tonight”

Miranda Lambert, “White Liar”

Johnny Cash, “Ring of Fire”

Happy birthday to Trace Adkins, who turns 49 today.

The tweet of the day is from Terri Clark: "Been shoveling snow. Its been 20 years since I've shoveled so much snow. Need an ATV-quad with a blade."

Today's Country Tidbits

Last week, between singing at a friend's funeral and taking home the top BMI awards, Taylor Swift visited a school and spoke with 200 students - most of them girls. According to reports, Taylor talked about her love of reading and writing song lyrics, which she says are actually poems. "I love poetry," Swift said, "because if you get it right, if you put the right rhymes at the right ends of the sentences, you can almost make words bounce off a page." How many of those 200 kids do you think she inspired to read and write more?

You can buy it tomorrow, but you can hear it today. Check out Rascal Flatts' "Nothing Like This" on their Facebook page. Click the "Music" tab for the freebie.

Tour names just keep getting better. Josh Thompson will headline the 2010 Cold Beers & Reindeers Tour, hitting venues all over Texas in mid-December. The Christmas-themed show will feature Joanna Smith and James Wesley.

A fun surprise for the audience at the Grand Ole Opry on Friday night - Restless Heart, the country super-group from the 80's and early 90's - made a surprise appearance and performed a couple of songs.

And Blake Shelton capped a phenomenal week just the way he dreamed he would - he was bow-hunting and took down a 12-point buck.

Rascal Flatts is on the Ellen Degeneres Show today, the Late Show With David Letterman tonight, then they'll be up early to perform on the Today show tomorrow. Lyle Lovett is on Castle, and Jason Aldean is on Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight.

Happy birthday to Jack Ingram, who turns 40 today.

The tweet of the day is from Billy Currington: "Your imagination is your preview of life's coming attractions. Keep dreamin' yall. goodnite"