Today's Country Tidbits

Blake Shelton is proud of wife Miranda Lambert’s #1 song, but especially proud because it’s their first co-written #1, and the first time he’s opened up in song about the loss of his brother. “She never knew my brother, so I’m constantly remembering a story about him or something...telling her. Anyway, we ended up writing that song that night and it’s the first time I’ve ever actually done something like that, you know...I say for him, but about him. It’s hard to explain how important something like that is.”

Season two of The Voice wrapped up last night and Blake Shelton says that the cast and crew have gelled into a family after two seasons. Gifts were exchanged after the show wrapped, and Blake says that one of the judges gives the very best gifts, hands down. “Oh, Christina...absolutely no comparison...probably because she’s the richest person on Earth, might be why.” Watch for duets by the judges to be coming soon, and Cee Lo thinks the four of them would make the best super-group ever.

Alan Jackson was very comfortable taking over the Grand Ole Opry last night, airing out some new music from his “Thirty Miles West” cd, due out next month. He wasn’t always comfy there, though: “I mean, it’s always tough in the early days to go out on the Opry, just because it’s intimidating, you know – the wood floor and all that greats like Hank and everybody stood on, and then just the whole atmosphere that goes along with the Opry.”

Details are coming out about the events surrounding CMA Music Festival week in Nashville. The 2012 City of Hope Softball Challenge will happen June 9th at Nashville’s Greer Stadium, and celebrities include Carrie Underwood, David Nail, Scotty McCreery, Chuck Wicks, Lauren Alaina, Brantley Gilbert, Bucky Covington, Two Foot Fred, Sarah Darling, Whitney Duncan, Billy Gilman and several more celebrities to be named later.

“Tuskegee,” Lionel Richie’s collection of country collaborations has been certified platinum, just five weeks after its release.

You heard it here first, and then Lady Antebellum sang it last night on The Voice. Their new single, “Wanted You More,” grew from a guitar lick their guitarist was laying down during a sound check. The trio loved the sound of it and everyone gathered around and started working on the song. Watch it soar to #1, as most Lady Antebellum songs seem to do.

Carrie Underwood is on the Ellen DeGeneres show today, Lady Antebellum is on Anderson on CNN and Martina McBride is on The Chew on ABC.

The tweet of the day is from Danny Gokey: “I heard when Jessica Simpson had her baby, Kanye busted into the delivery room and said Beyonce had the best baby ever.”

Today's Country Tidbits

Carrie Underwood likes kids, but she's not ready to have any yet, so she stopped by PS22 in Staten Island, New York to sing with the school chorus. The kids nailed her song, "Good Girl," and the drummer has mad skills!

Keith Urban is launching a new video feature, and episode one is online. In the first Urban Chat, he's backstage with Seal, Kelly Clarkson and David Foster.

Colt Ford had a rough night last night - he didn't see a bank of speakers, tripped and fell off the stage. He's got "a few broke ribs and hurt knee," as he put it on Twitter, but says he'll be alright. He was doing a show in Danville, Virginia on Friday and kept his date in West Virginia on Saturday night.

Saturday in Nashville it was the St. Jude Marathon, and country music (of course!) was involved. Danny Gokey was one of the runners and Rodney Atkins and Gloriana provided the post-race entertainment.

Blake Shelton performs his new single, "Over," on The Voice tonight.

Tonight, Carrie Underwood will be on the David Letterman show, and Thursday night she'll perform on American Idol. Her cd, "Blown Away," comes out tomorrow.

Happy birthday to Willie Nelson, who is 79 today. He's in Maui, where he likes to spend Monday nights with friends: “We play in Maui, I have a little hideout out in the back of the house next to the ocean out there where we play poker a lot.  Owen Wilson and Woody Harrelson and a lot of my friends from Maui, we’ll get together on Monday nights or whenever and play poker.”

The tweet of the day is from John Rich: "I'm being very inappropriate right now."

Today's Country Tidbits

Sunday night is the Super Bowl, and also the premier of The Voice right after the big game. Blake Shelton says that the judges have discussed country collaborations, and Christina Aguilera wants to duet with Miranda Lambert. Meanwhile, Blake has a favorite judge - Cee Lo Green. “Cee Lo is the sweetest guy ever, I mean and he’s the coolest...he is...Cee Lo is the coolest human being I have ever been around in my entire life. I’ve never been around anybody that when they come into the room, I mean, you knock stuff over to go stand by him because he’s gonna say something that...is just...you’re gonna go, ‘Ah! Why didn’t I think of that?’”

Miranda Lambert has rescheduled her show this Friday night so she can attend the funeral of Mark "Tex" Adams. The two had been friends since third grade, and Mark was killed on a Florida highway when he stopped to help a stranded motorist. The show in Tallahassee will now happen May 17th.

Chris Young is on tour with Miranda Lambert, and is up for two ACM Awards - Male Vocalist of the Year and Single of the Year for his song, "Tomorrow." When he plays it live, he sees the power of that song: “It really has lived up to all the expectations I’ve had for it, and I think that is because it’s such a powerful song. There’s a lot of emotion in it, and I think a lot of people can relate to it.”

Keith Urban added two awards to his collection this weekend, but wasn't able to collect them. The Country Music Association of Australia named Keith the male Artist of the Year and he also took the award for Top Selling Album of the Year. He tweeted that he was thrilled and plans to head Down Under soon.

Rascal Flatts started filming a movie yesterday. Describing it as a "performance/documentary style" with more of their individual stories, Jay DeMarcus is pretty sure Flatt-heads are going to love it. No word on a release date yet.

Every year, Billboard Magazine comes out with a Power 100 list - a list of the most influential people in the music business. It's a list heavy on behind-the-scenes movers and shakers, but one country artist made this year's list. Taylor Swift lands at #78, just above Lady Gaga.

Danny Gokey is married. He and Leyicet Peralta were engaged last month, and said it would be a short engagement. It was - and at the reception after yesterday's service, the couple, their families and close friends dined on a cake that Danny described as "three tiers of chocolaty heaven."

The famous boards of the Ryman Auditorium stage will host their last country music show this week. The stage will be taken up and replaced with one that will carry three times the load, ensuring that the historic church-turned-concert-hall can continue as a venue for all kinds of music. The final show for the current stage is Friday and features Keith Urban, the Oak Ridge Boys and Charley Pride. Saturday morning, the old stage will be ripped out and it will be two weeks before the new stage is in place. But it won't be entirely new wood - the front 18 inches will be made of wood from the current stage, so artists can still kiss the revered stage. Yep, happens all the time!

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride: "Home sweet home. Gorgeous sunny day. Just Dance 3 playing in the other room. Coffee in hand. Kisses from all my girls. #lifeisgood"

Today's Country Tidbits

The top tours of the last 3 months, according to Pollstar, have Taylor Swift at #3. Topping the list are Kanye West and Jay Z, with the current Cirque de Soleil tour in the number two spot. Keith Urban came in at number 8 and Jason Aldean is in the #10 spot.

The top 10 biggest selling albums of the year included a couple of country acts. Lady Antebellum’s “Own the Night” is at #10 with nearly a million units sold, and Jason Aldean is in fifth place, selling 1.42 million copies.

Congratulations to American Idol alum Danny Gokey, who just got engaged to his girlfriend, Leyicet Peralta. It’s Danny second marriage, as he is widowed from his first wife, Sophia. Leyicet shares Danny’s passion for helping children and families in need through his “Sophia’s Heart” foundation and has suggested that instead of gifts, well-wishers might consider a donation to the organization. It’ll be a short engagement – the two plan to wed in January.

Happy birthday to Les Taylor of Exile, who is 63 today.

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride: “Working on cleaning house from Christmas. Keep getting sidetracked by wanting to read my new books, smell my new candles, and sip my new wine.”

Today's Country Tidbits

When Kenny Chesney finished recording his current single, "Live a Little," he knew he had a special song on his hands. “I knew when we were done with this song, I knew where it was gonna fit in my show. I knew...cause this defines our show. This is classic, the two hours summertime time of the year when we strap on our guitars and go out there and let ‘em have it. And this song is gonna fit very well.” His "Going Coastal" tour kicks off next week in West Palm Beach. Kenny will take a minute off the road on April 3rd to attend the ACM Awards in Las Vegas, where he's up for Album of the Year, Video of the Year and Single of the Year.

More entertainers have been announced for the CMA Music Festival June 9-12. Brad Paisley, Zac Brown Band, Easton Corbin, Sara Evans, Josh Turner, Little Big Town, Chris Young, JaneDear Girls and Ashton Shepherd will all play LP Field, along with the previously announced Jason Aldean, Martina McBride, Blake Shelton, Keith Urban, Reba, Rascal Flatts, Miranda Lambert, The Band Perry, Trace Adkins, Darius Rucker and Lady Antebellum. Tickets are on sale now, and you might as well plan to get there early because the CMT Music Awards will be handed out June 8th. More details on that soon.

Miranda Lambert graces the cover of Redbook magazine, on shelves now. There's a bit of the story online, along with some of the photos. When asked how she felt about being called the "Lady Gaga of Nashville," Miranda replied, "I'm not near as brave as her, but I take it as a compliment. She's awesome. I guess it's the fact that I don't give a crap what people think. I just am who I am."

Meanwhile, Miranda's intended, Blake Shelton, is desiring another woman...as a duet partner. He's just worked with Lionel Richie and Brad Paisley on duets for their upcoming albums, and was asked who else he'd like to sing duets with. Said Blake, “Katy Perry…Mostly just like, you know, a video with her… You know, I’ve got a lot of heroes, and several of them I’ve had a chance to record with. I’ve already had the chance to record with the Bellamy Brothers. And of course Trace, I mean believe it or not, he is one of my heroes. I'd love to record with George Strait. Earl Thomas Conlee would be awesome. I named a bunch of guys just then. That’s weird…”

Zac Brown Band is headed across the Atlantic for some shows this summer. The first to be announced are June 22 and 23 in London. They'll play an outdoor show in Hyde Park with the Kings of Leon. Road..., er, airplane trip!

Danny Gokey is auctioning off a pair of glasses he wore on American Idol, with the proceeds going to Sophia's Heart, a Nashville-based charity that helps families re-build after personal tragedies. The glasses are blue and white Gucci frames, and aren't autographed, but you do get a photo of Danny wearing them on Season 8, when he made it into the top 13 on American Idol. As of 6:30 this morning, the top bid was $600.

Trace Adkins has been in three movies in four years, and the latest opens next week. He screened "Lincoln Lawyer" starring Matthew McConaughey Monday in Nashville, telling the audience, “I’m not in this movie very much. I’m in about 45 seconds at the beginning and at the end and then there’s a bunch of crap that happens in the middle that’s not very important. McConaughey takes his shirt off, so there’s that.” The movie opens March 18th.

Well, it happened. Gwyneth Paltrow signed a $900,000 record deal with Atlantic yesterday. Look for more country music from the movie star in the coming months.

The Randy Rogers Band is on the Tonight Show, Garth Brooks is on the Oprah Winfrey Show, Sara Evans is on Good Morning America, Trace Adkins is on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Charley Pride is on Daytime TV.

Happy birthday to Mickey Gilley, who turns 75 today, and Jimmy Fadden of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, who is 63.

The tweet of the day is from Sara Evans: "Audrey just told the waitress at flip burger that "she lost her school at tooth today"!!!"

Today's Country Tidbits

The Brooks & Dunn special last night was a tribute to two men who've had 23 number one songs, sold over 30 million albums and who have won more ACM awards than anyone else - 27, with three being Entertainer of the Year awards. The star-studded show was taped in Las Vegas, right after the ACM award show.

Lady Antebellum is ready to hit the road as headliners. The 35-city Need You Now 2010 tour launches on September 20th and runs through November. David Nail is the opening act.

Alan Jackson's Freight Train tour is over already - Saturday night, Charleston West Virginia was the last stop. Chris Young, who was his opening act, tweeted that it was over way too soon, and really enjoyed learning from AJ on the tour. “Alan was a huge, huge influence on me and still is. And you know, I think that’s one of those things. I mean, he is that guy. He is a traditionalist, singer/songwriter. I probably run around on stage a lot more than Alan does, but other than that…. I mean, it’s really been amazing to watch his show.”

Taylor Swift leads the Billboard Hot Tours list, with $8.1 million in revenue from eight tour stops. She's made their list six times this year, but this is the first time she's topped it.

Jimmy Wayne has made it to Albuquerque New Mexico in his walk across America. He estimates he'll reach Phoenix Arizona on July 8th, and you know there'll be a huge party when he does. As a former homeless teen, he's spending half of this year simulating what life is like for homeless teens, who have gotten too old for foster care and have no one to lean on. The kindness of strangers has lifted Jimmy's spirits along his trek. Learn more and follow Jimmy's progress on the official Project Meet Me Halfway website.

Danny Gokey's flood relief center is open and taking donations. His non-profit Sophia's Heart Foundation is providing food, water, clothing, cleaning supplies and other needed items to people who lost their homes in the Nashville floods. Mail or drop off donations to 5320 Hickory Hollow Parkway, Antioch, TN 37013, or make a $10 donation by texting ONEHEART to 85944.

Country Weekly features a story about how country artists are helping with Nashville's flood relief efforts. A story that's not in there features Trace Adkins, who's raising money on his tour stops and radio station visits. In Portland, Oregon, his visit to a radio station raised a guitar case full of cash when he offered to do an impromptu meet and greet for anyone who donated at least $5. Fans flocked to the studios, and Trace signed everything from a hubcap to a pair of bull horns.

Looking for a new place to call home? Got about seven and a half million dollars to plunk down on it? Then you might be interested in Sheryl Crow's 150-acre estate outside of Nashville. It comes complete with a recording studio.


New music available tomorrow includes a 3-song download from iTunes by Chris Young. He says his musical influences are Keith Whitley, John Anderson and Vern Gosdin, and he's recorded versions of their biggest hits. The "Voices EP" features "Chisled in Stone," "I'm Over You" and "Swingin."

Happy birthday to Rosanne Cash, who turns 55 today.

Today's Country Tidbits

Over the weekend, musicians were allowed into the buildings at Soundcheck, the rehearsal and storage facility where most of Nashville's musicians kept their equipment. Brad Paisley posted photos of his ruined tour equipment, including this acoustic guitar. His 1968 Paisley Telecaster wasn't damaged...it was at his house when the flood happened. Steve Azar estimates he's lost $100,000 in musical eqipment, and the owner of Soundcheck, Ben Jumper, lost a 1952 Les Paul Gold Top, valued at $100,000. Joe Glaser, owner of Glaser Instruments, figures he'll be up to his eyeballs in guitar repairs for at least the next year.

Brad Paisley and Alan Jackson were at the Ryman Auditorium over the weekend, supporting the Grand Ole Opry by playing shows. This Sunday, Brad headlines a concert at the Ryman called "Music City Keep On Playin' - A Benefit for Flood Relief." Along with Brad are Lady Antebellum, Dierks Bentley, Rodney Atkins and more performers. The tickets are on sale today. And on June 9th, Marty Stuart's Late Night Jam will benefit Nashville Flood Relief. So far, Keith Urban is the biggest name on the bill, but Marty's promising surprise guests from the Country Music Hall of Fame and also the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. And crews cleaning up the Grand Ole Opry have taken the historic 6-foot circle of wood from the Opry stage and it's getting some special clean-up and TLC. President of the Grand Ole Opry Group, Steve Buchanan, says that the circle will be back in place on the Opry stage when the complex re-opens. That probably won't happen for at least 4 months.

Tomorrow in Nashville, there's a concert in Owen Bradley Park to raise money for flood relief. Darius Rucker, Steel Magnolia, Dailey and Vincent and New Orleans jazz band Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue will perform.

Danny Gokey's charitable foundation, Sophia's Heart, is working on renting an empty Best Buy store and stocking it with the supplies that flood victims need. Danny says, “We put a contract together and got insurance and got some organizations together, and want to sign on the dotted line for a 30-day lease on it. (The flood) is all over the news now, but what happens when it’s not on the news and people forget? We have trucks and volunteers lined up if we get the building. This isn’t about us — it’s about love. And love is action.”

Justin Moore gave up some details of his wedding day that are slightly less romantic than most wedding days. He came home from his bachelor party in the wee hours of the day and had to climb through a window to get into his house. His dogs seized the opportunity for escape, so Justin spent a couple of hours out looking for his dogs. While he was doing that, he was also on the phone with his manager, who was negotiating his record deal. The negotiations continued right through the ceremony (Justin ditched the phone before the ceremony, of course!) and the deal was signed after Justin and his new bride cut the wedding cake.

Today's Country Tidbits

It's April Fools Day, and time to reflect on one of the best April Fools pranks ever, perpetrated by a country music star. Trace Adkins and his bride-to-be, Rhonda Forlaw, were planning their wedding, and Trace had decided he would sing at it. He had his management company send a contract and a bill for $7,500 to Rhonda's family. They're still married and have three daughters together, so guess that prank was forgiven.

A bit of controversy around Fox News' show, "Real American Stories" with Sarah Palin tonight. Toby Keith is featured on the show, but he only found out a couple of days ago. He gave the interview to a Fox reporter in 2008, talking about his song, "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue," and the interview never aired. It's being recycled for use in tonight's show, and it will probably look like Sarah interviewed him, but she didn't. LL Cool J was also supposed to be featured, but he asked that his interview segment be pulled from the show. Toby said, "I would have thought it polite and responsible to contact me first before using it for this, but it's their interview and they can do whatever they want with it."

New artists have been added to the nightly concert line-up for the 2010 CMA Music Festival. Trace Adkins, Easton Corbin, Danny Gokey, Randy Houser, Justin Moore, Blake Shelton and Josh Turner will all put on shows, joining previously announced performers Jason Aldean, Billy Currington, Alan Jackson, Lady Antebellum, Martina McBride, Reba, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler, Rascal Flatts, Darius Rucker, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and the Zac Brown Band. The 2010 CMA Music Festival runs June 10-13 in Nashville.

ACM Entertainer of the Year and Best New Artists voting is scheduled to start today. Keith Urban has posted a video to help you remember what his 2009 was like.

Rodney Atkins has teamed up with Velveeta Shells & Cheese to give one lucky winner a private concert by Rodney and a cookout in their own back yard.

Jewel fans, take note - she's playing two shows at the intimate Blue Bird Cafe on April 28th as a fund-raiser for Project Clean Water. Tickets are $100 and $250 and there isn't a bad seat in the house.

Haven't bought Gretchen Wilson or Alan Jackson's new albums yet? Want to hear them before you buy them? You can, on MySpace Music this week.

Easton Corbin is on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Patty Loveless is on the Late Show with David Letterman, Toby Keith is on Fox News Real American Stories, and GAC is where you'll find Trace Adkins hosting the ACM Top New Artists show.

Today's Country Tidbits

He's nominated, but he won't campaign for the win. That's what Brad Paisley said about all the hooplah surrounding artists trying to get fans to vote for them as the ACM Entertainer of the Year. The other nominees in the fan-voted category are Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Toby Keith, George Strait, Zac Brown Band and Kenny Chesney. Brad says he won't campaign because it makes him uncomfortable. "Honestly, I don't like that part of it. I understand that people love to get involved and it's cool that they can, but vote for who you want." Voting begins a week from today.

ACM awards aren't the only thing fans can vote for. Brooks & Dunn are letting their fans choose the song they'll sing on the show, from a list of six: "My Maria," "Brand New Man," "Red Dirt Road," "Neon Moon," "You're Gonna Miss Me," and "Boot Scootin' Boogie."

Jake Owen is getting to learn from a lot of different artists. This weekend, he's opening three shows for Jason Aldean, next month he's the opener for Miranda Lambert and then in May, he's on the road with Sugarland. He's already a really good stage performer - imagine what he'll be like when he's got these tours under his belt!

Told you yesterday about the travel woes of James Otto, trying to fly to California from snowed-in Denver's airport. He finally got to LA at 12:30 yesterday afternoon, for a show at 7:30 in Bakersfield. Travel time from the airport plus shower time and sound check time means he cut that one really close! The crowd was very appreciative, though, and the show went well last night.

Rascal Flatts is in the studio in California, working on music for a new album.

Montgomery Gentry is also in the studio, and if you're on Twitter, look for T-Roy...according to Eddie, his partner's starting to tweet now, too. His Twitter handle is mgunderground

The Zac Brown Band have been working on a new album, and plan to make it even bigger than "The Foundation." Guest artists include Jimmy Buffett and Alan Jackson, and it should be released this fall. It may be named "You Get What You Give," a favorite quote and one of Zac's tattoos. Meanwhile, they'll miss the ACM award show because they'll be on a USO tour. The band visited White Sands Army Base in New Mexico and got to play with some big guns. Zac said, “Oh it was awesome. The soldiers and the troops took really good care of us. We got to shoot some full automatic weapons, and get out and shoot. I love to shoot anyway, I do that when I’m out at home. But getting to shoot some toys we don’t get to play with was very, very cool.”

Alan Jackson's estate just outside of Nashville is on the market, and he and his girls are looking to move to Florida, at least part time. His youngest daughter is 13, so they'll be looking for a home in Nashville, too, while she finishes up school.

Last year on American Idol, Danny Gokey was booted off the show as the third runner-up. When he came back to perform this season, how did the judges treat him? “Right before I went up there and sang, they just greeted me. Simon gave me a big ole smile and hug. So did, Kara, Randy, and Ellen. It was great”