With less than two weeks to go before Election Day, country artists weigh in on the political season. Carrie Underwood is glad the debates are over: “The debates make me nervous. I can’t watch people argue, even when it is moderated and whatever. It’s like I can feel the tension and it just makes me nervous. So, it’s hard for me to watch. I try to watch as much as I can until I’m like; I feel too nervous right now. I have to change the channel and watch something stupid for a while then maybe I can come back to it. But, it gets me...gets me very anxious.” Meanwhile, Tim McGraw appreciates them: “I’m always interested. I grew up in Louisiana, so it’s like a sport in Louisiana. I mean, you grew up knowing about politics and hearing about it and it’s everywhere. And I’ve always been fascinated by it.” Will he ever run for office? Maybe… “If the time lines up with the cause and the reason in my life, then it would be something that I’d be interested in. But, it’s not something I’m gonna go pursue.”

Carrie Underwood is in the middle of her Blown Away tour, and hubby Mike Fisher is waiting out the current NHL lockout. Does that mean they have more couple time? Think again…he’s keeping close to his Nashville Predators teammates: “Well, he has to stay home, he can’t just come out on tour with us. He has to be able to work out and train and skate, and all that stuff. And keep himself ready. He’s a very dedicated person, and he wants to be ready for whenever they do start playing again.”

Want to sit in the front row when George Strait comes to your town? You can – he’ll auction off two pairs of front row seats and backstage passes at each of his “Cowboy Rides Away” tour stops and the money will go to the Jenifer Strait Foundation. Here’s what George has to say about the Foundation: "The Jenifer Strait Memorial Foundation was formed to preserve the memory of our daughter. Even though she was just a child of thirteen years, her love for younger children was amazing. It is for this reason that we chose to help others who might be in need, in her honor."
Gary Allan has been known for his angst-ridden music, but his new song, “Every Storm (Runs Out of Rain)” is a song of hope. What other differences can we expect from his new album, due out early next year? “You can expect a lot of honesty and a lot of songs about life. It’s gonna roll you through a breakup and it’s gonna roll you through the anger and the healing and wind you up at good-as-new. So, I think what you can expect is something a little bit different musically out of this.” 
David Nail has been touring for over four years, and he had a first last weekend. He was in Milwaukee for a show and tweeted, “Voice in rough shape – needing a miracle.” The miracle didn’t happen – he was diagnosed with laryngitis and his doctor ordered him not to perform. He’s day to day for his upcoming shows in Illinois and Missouri this weekend. 
ABC’s TV show, Nashville,” is about to get a music star as a recurring character, but it’s not a country star. Reggae singer Wyclef Jean will play the head of a record label and will be on the show from time to time. 
This will happen, and it’s big – Taylor Swift will become the first female artist since 1991 to have two albums sell more than a million units in a single week. She sold over half a million copies of “Red” on Monday alone. 
Taylor Swift is on The View and Little Big Town is on Live With Kelly & Michael today.

It’s her second time on the cover of Rolling Stone, and Taylor Swift and the art director at the magazine decided to go for something a little different: “The first one was me kinda with my guitar and hair, and the second one is kind of [laughs], kind of me like looking a little edgier and it’s a lot different than anything I’ve ever done before. And it was shot by Theo Wenner, who is like this ridiculously talented 25-year-old photographer who blows my mind he’s so talented and I felt really lucky to get to be a part of an edgy shoot like that, especially on the cover of Rolling Stone.” On the way to the interview, Taylor backed into her bass player’s car and put a pretty good dent in it. She told him, “I’m gonna pay for it, I promise! I’m good for it!” In other Taylor news, she’s partnered with Papa John’s Pizza – starting this coming Tuesday, you can order a large one-topping pizza and a copy of “Red” for $22.

So, have you listened to Jason Aldean’s “Night Train” all the way through yet? Jason wants to know what you think about the cut, “1994.” “This song is unlike anything we’ve ever cut. It really is different and very unique. It stands out from everything else on the album. It seems to be so far the one that people are talking about the most. I’m excited for people to hear it. We actually haven’t played it live yet – so I’m looking forward to throwing it in the show and kind of getting a reaction.”

George Strait has some pretty amazing fans – and they’ve proved it again, with a bunch of shows on his “The Cowboy Rides Away” tour already sold out. The first show, in Lubbock, Texas, sold out over 15,000 seats in less than 15 minutes. George knows he’s blessed with fabulous fans: “I’ve had great fans – they’ve been so loyal over the years. I’ll see fans sometimes that have come out during the ‘80s and they’re still coming out. That’s pretty special.”

Rascal Flatts on-stage set is pretty complex, with loads of screens, lights, risers and instrument changes. Now that they’ve decided to extend the Changed tour into 2013, Gary LeVox says that staging their show each night entails a lot: “A lot of communication, a lot of conversations, a lot of praying that everything that’s hanging above us will stay there [laughs].” Here are the 2013 tour dates… 1-10 Green Bay, WI Resch Center 
1-11 Moline, IL i wireless Center 
1-12 Springfield, MO JQH Arena 
1-17 Sioux City, IA Tyson Events Center 
1-18 Tulsa, OK BOK Center 
1-19 Wichita, KS INTRUST Bank Arena 
1-24 Spokane, WA Spokane Arena 
1-25 Missoula, MT Adams Event Center 
1-26 Billings, MT Rimrock Auto Arena at MetraPark 
2-7 Terre Haute, IN ISU Hulman Center 
2-8 Lexington, KY Rupp Arena 
2-9 Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena 
2-14 North Charleston, SC North Charleston Coliseum 
2-15 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum 
2-16 Charlottesville, VA John Paul Jones Arena 
2-23 Pikeville, KY Eastern Kentucky Exposition Center 
2-24 Youngstown, OH Covelli Centre 
2-28 Topeka, KS Landon Arena 
3-1 Jonesboro, AR ASU Convocation Center 
3-2 Tupelo, MS BancorpSouth Arena 
Tonight at Nashville’s War Memorial Auditorium, Vince Gill, Charlie Daniels and Randy Owen will be honored at the 2012 Leadership Music Dale Franklin Awards for their charity work and for making a difference in people’s lives. There’s a special musical tribute as part of the evening’s fun. 
More performers have been added – surprise, surprise! – to the CMA Awards show on November first. Just announced are Eli Young Band, Brantley Gilbert, Lady Antebellum and Blake Shelton. It is now officially easier to say who’s not performing than who is! 
It’ll be a while before Hunter Hayes has a new album out, but he’s working on it. Meanwhile, to tide fans over, he’s released a live EP – it’s on iTunes for $3.99. 
Congrats to Carrie Underwood, who has the #1 country song this week with “Blown Away.” 
Happy birthday to Alan Jackson, who turns 54 today.

Brad Paisley and Darius Rucker team up with NASCAR brothers Darrell and Michael Waltrip for the third annual Charity Championship, a golf tournament, dinner and concert happening just outside of Nashville. Brad Paisley will perform at the Champion’s Dinner on October 24th, and on the 25th is the golf tournament at the Vanderbilt Legends Club golf course, where Darius will take a swing at winning. The event benefits Feed the Children and Motor Racing Outreach. Think Brad’s excited to be part of a NASCAR event? “I have done racing schools. And I do have a diploma or two from a couple of tracks…which has actually served me now way more than my actual college diploma has!”

Sunday is Dierks Bentley’s Miles & Music For Kids charity ride in Nashville, and he puts it all out there for this event. But as you can tell from his latest single, “Tip It On Back,” he puts it all out there when he’s partying, too: “Obviously it’s about tippin’ it on back and smokin’ and all that stuff but it’s bigger than that too. It’s just about finding some way to take a break from your...whatever you’re going through and you know music’s a big part of that too, you know whether you’re drinkin’ to it or not. So, it’s about the live show. It’s about getting out.”
Tickets go on sale to George Strait’s last tour today, and George is planning to hit the studio, record a new album and get it out in time to showcase some new music along with his 59 #1 songs. How’s he feeling about recording? “I haven’t recorded in a while - it’s probably been the longest time ever since I’ve made a record. So, I’m feeling a little antsy about getting back into the studio. I’ve got some great material already, and I’m working on some songs – some original stuff too.” 
Gary Allen has a new song climbing the charts, and while he has a few #1 songs, those aren’t his goals. Actually, being a big star in country music isn’t his goal, either. What is? “I’ve never really cared about being the ‘latest greatest thing’—I don’t know if you guys have noticed, but I never really fight to be in that inner circle, because I think that person won’t be around very long. I think whoever the latest greatest thing—that’s usually an up and down. I’ve always wanted to be the George Strait or the Willie Nelson—just make quality music and always be here.” His next album, “Set You Free,” features “Every Storm (Runs Out of Rain)” and is due out in early 2013. 
Because of busy schedules, Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton will have Thanksgiving in Los Angeles, where Blake will be working on “The Voice.” Miranda says she’ll find hay bales and pumpkins somewhere in southern California, because she has to decorate. Speaking of holidays, Blake Shelton’s “Cheers, It’s Christmas” comes out Tuesday. I got an advance copy and was blown away by it – grab it up to spruce up your holidays! 
The awards season is at full throttle – the American Country Awards will be on FOX December 10th, and Luke Bryan leads the nomination parade with seven. Lady Antebellum and Zac Brown Band have six each. See all the nominees and vote for your favorite. 

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital has started a “Hey St. Jude” fund and awareness drive, and country stars lend a hand, of course. Randy Owen, Keith Urban, Darius Rucker, Lady Antebellum, Big & Rich, along with a host of sports and entertainment stars, show up in the video. To watch it and to donate, visit the video’s home page, and you can get one of the cool t-shirts featured in the video for a $35 donation.
Kenny Chesney’s “El Cerrito Place” keeps leaping up the chart, rising faster than his past smash hits. He thinks the song is striking a deep chord in fans for a couple of reasons: “I understand that sense of searching and longing in that song. It just felt very real to me. And that’s what Grace sang on. You know, to have her on ‘El Cerrito Place’ and sing in that high harmony is just...she just makes that searching and longing come to life.” 

Jake Owen is having loads of success with his “Endless Summer” EP, which was released last week. How does he feel about these four songs? “You know everybody has got an iPod mix that says, ‘Summer Playlist.’ I’ve got mine. If I was making one, these songs I would put on there. I just felt honored to be able to put my voice on them, and put it out there – I think it’s kind of cool.” He’s getting set to hit the road with Love & Theft and Florida Georgia Line – the tour kicks off next Wednesday in New York City.

George Strait may be hitting the road for the last time, but he’s doing it in style, touring with Martina McBride. About her, George says, “She’s just incredible...an incredible singer and a great person. We have a lot of fun out there with her. We were out with her last year and we’re gonna go out with her again this year, and so we’re happy about that.” His “Cowboy Rides Away” tour happens in 2013 and 2014, and after that, George says he’s not going to tour anymore.
Rascal Flatts is in the current issue of Variety Magazine, and Jay DeMarcus remembers when the country music super group first hit the scene and reporters compared them to the Backstreet Boys. They were pretty stylish for country music in the early 2000’s, but held on to their look despite the digs. Gary, Jay and Joe Don just got their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, something the Backstreet Boys haven’t done yet. 

If you want to see a full-blown George Strait concert, you better get tickets when his “Cowboy Rides Away” tour gets near you in 2013 or 2014. He announced yesterday that this will be his last tour, though he’s not retiring. He’ll still make new music and play the occasional special show, but won’t go out on tour after this one wraps. George is 60 years old and started playing in a band when he was in high school.

If you’re keeping score in Tim McGraw’s very convoluted lawsuit to be free of Curb Records, Tim won a round yesterday. The Court of Appeals sided with Tim and against Curb, agreeing that Curb couldn’t keep Tim from signing with another record company.

In early 2013, when the next season of American Idol goes live, judge Keith Urban will have some moral support waiting in the wings. Wife Nicole Kidman has made it clear she’ll be there during the live shows, cheering her hubby on.

The “Hell on Wheels” tour kicks off tonight in Indiana. It’s Brantley Gilbert’s first headlining tour, and it includes Uncle Kracker, Brian Davis and Greg Bates. Greg loves the diversity of musical styles on this tour: “That’s what is so great about country music is that you can listen to George Strait and Brantley Gilbert at the same time. You can be fans of both equally. That’s what is going to be so great about going out and playing with him. We are gonna go out and take them on a rollercoaster journey through country music I think.”
Adding fuel to the rumors of Brantley Gilbert and Jana Kramer as a couple are Eric Gunderson and Stephen Barker Liles of Love and Theft – here’s what they said they saw: “[Eric] We were at the airport the other day and we were on a flight with um...some guy...beard...sings about country being country wide. [Stephen] He was on that flight? [Eric] Yeah, he was on our flight and then we got off and there was like a welcoming committee of Jana. I was like, ‘What the heck are you doing here?’ She was like, ‘Oh, picking up my boyfriend.’ So, I guess that’s something I can say now, ‘cause I gave it away. But, yeah, I think they’re...they’re dating!” They just celebrated their first #1 song – “Angel Eyes” – and plan to remember the feeling forever: “It’s still gonna be one of the coolest milestones that’s ever happened to either of us in our careers as a duo and individually as well.” 
Hunter Hayes has his first platinum plaque, commemorating sales of over a million copies of the song “Wanted.” He’s also the youngest male performer to hit the top of the Billboard Country chart ever, and he’s pretty excited about it all: “I feel like I’m on top of the world right now, I’m just like floating – it’s awesome! It’s so weird it puts it in a perspective for you. I just started two years ago singing ‘Storm Warning’ for everybody, and then we broke ‘Wanted’ on the scene. I just crossed my fingers, said my prayers and I was hoping for the best and – here we are!”

Eric Church ended up with the most nominations for this year’s CMA Awards – he’s up for five, including male vocalist, album, single, song, and video. His first-ever CMA nomination was last year, when he was up for New Artist of the Year but was bested by The Band Perry. Eric was shocked by the amount of nominations: “Um, I’m um...truly speechless. I think it’s a testament to really fans that believed in the music and loved the music and told people about the music, otherwise we don’t have really the track record to be the most nominated artist at this point in time in our career for the path that we’ve taken and I think that it’s truly because of the fans.” As for how his songs come together when he’s recording, Eric says it’s pretty organic: “I don’t have a real direction as to what it is—I go in and I play—my producer Jay Joyce—I go in and I play it acoustic for him and the musicians, and then we start hashing it out, you know? We start figuring out what it is, and it takes, you know weeks on a song just trying to figure out what it was.”

Colt Ford is proud as a peacock over Jason Aldean’s CMA nomination for “Dirt Road Anthem,” which Colt co-wrote with Brantley Gilbert. How did Jason come to record the song? Colt explains, “You know, it just turned out that I was opening for him in 2009 and he said, ‘Man, how do all those people know all the words to that song?’ And I was like, ‘I don’t know, man, they just seem to really like it.’ So he called me up and said he wanted to try to cut it and of course, I didn’t have a problem with that. Jason’s been a good friend of mine and he grew up the same way I did, so it wasn’t like it was something made up for him. I mean, that was real life for him as well, and it turned out to be the biggest song of his career.”

Kellie Pickler is beautiful, even bald. Don’t believe me? Check out this video of Kellie shaving her head to support her childhood friend Summer Holt Miller. She’s only 36 but is battling breast cancer.

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George Strait will announce a 2013 tour later this month, and apparently he’s got another big announcement, too. Stay tuned…

“Cheers, It’s Christmas” is the title of Blake Shelton’s Christmas album, which is available for pre-orders now. It comes out October 2nd and here’s the track list:

1. “Jingle Bell Rock” (featuring Miranda Lambert)
2. “White Christmas”
3. “Oklahoma Christmas” (featuring Reba)
4. “Let It Snow”
5. “There's A New Kid In Town” (featuring Kelly Clarkson)
6. “Santa's Got A Choo Choo Train”
7. “Home” (featuring Michael Buble)
8. “Winter Wonderland”
9. “The Christmas Song”
10. “Blue Christmas” (featuring The Pistol Annies)
11. “I'll Be Home For Christmas”
12. “Silver Bells” (featuring Xenia Martinez)
13. “Time For Me To Come Home” (featuring Dorothy Shackleford)
14. “The Very Best Time Of Year” (featuring Trypta-Phunk)

Carrie Underwood tops the Billboard Country Album chart this week with “Blown Away,” and she says that she’s inspired by her new music: “It opened the door for the Blown Away album, and for me to be able to play a little bit, which has been a lot of fun. From the song to the album, to putting together a tour, I feel like that song has allowed me to be able to do different things. It’s definitely making the tour be more dramatic and more of a juicy story.”

Luke Bryan has been given a plaque recognizing sales of seven million downloads of songs from his platinum album, “Tailgates & Tanlines.”

Want to see how Lee Ann Womack roughs it? Check out the next issue of People Country magazine – they went along on a road trip with Lee Ann and two of her girlfriends in her 1973 Airstream Land Yacht, which Lee Ann says is “girly, but ‘60’s timeless.” Chandelier in the bedroom? Portable record player? Cornhole? Sounds like a party!

Little Big Town will be on Good Morning America Monday morning.

Here’s the complete list of CMA nominees for your wagering pleasure:

Entertainer of the Year

Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

Female Vocalist of the Year

Kelly Clarkson
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

Male Vocalist of the Year

Jason Aldean
Luke Bryan
Eric Church
Blake Shelton
Keith Urban

Vocal Group of the Year

Eli Young Band
Lady Antebellum
Little Big Town
The Band Perry
Zac Brown Band

Vocal Duo of the Year

Big & Rich
Love and Theft
Sugarland
The Civil Wars
Thompson Square

Musical Event of the Year

“Dixie Highway” – Alan Jackson, Zac Brown
“Feel Like a Rock Star” – Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw
“Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die” – Willie Nelson, Snoop Dogg, Kris Kristofferson, Jamey Johnson
“Safe and Sound” – Taylor Swift, The Civil Wars
“Stuck On You” – Lionel Richie, Darius Rucker

New Artist of the Year

Lee Brice
Brantley Gilbert
Hunter Hayes
Love and Theft
Thompson Square

Single of the Year

“Dirt Road Anthem” – Jason Aldean
“God Gave Me You” – Blake Shelton
“Home” – Dierks Bentley
“Pontoon” – Little Big Town
“Springsteen” – Eric Church

Song of the Year

“Even If It Breaks Your Heart” – Eli Young Band
“God Gave Me You” – Blake Shelton
“Home” – Dierks Bentley
“Over You” – Miranda Lambert
“Springsteen” – Eric Church

Album of the Year

Chief - Eric Church
Four the Record - Miranda Lambert
Home - Dierks Bentley
Own the Night - Lady Antebellum
Tailgates and Tanlines - Luke Bryan

Music Video of the Year

“Come Over” – Kenny Chesney
“Over You” – Miranda Lambert
“Pontoon” – Little Big Town
“Red Solo Cup” – Toby Keith
“Springsteen” – Eric Church

Musician of the Year

Sam Bush (mandolin)
Paul Franklin (steel guitar)
Dann Huff (guitar)
Brent Mason (guitar)
Mac McAnally (guitar)

Today's Country Tidbits

Country stars spent yesterday honoring fallen soldiers – here are their thoughts on Memorial Day…

Luke Bryan: “My dad served in Vietnam and it’s so cool that he can always walk around for the rest of his life and say, ‘I went to Vietnam, and I served.’ I hate that I’ll never be able to say that, but I guess kinda my way of serving is getting down here and trying to play for the troops.”

Craig Morgan: “There’s two things that are important in my life and that’s security of my nation, and the security of my family. And the security of my nation comes first. Most people would not appreciate or understand that, but without the security of this nation I can’t take care of my family.”

Kip Moore: “Both of my grandparents, on my mom and my dad’s side, were both in the war and protected this country. So I’ve always had a patriotic side to me, and I don’t think sometimes we grasp how lucky we are.”

Kiefer Thompson of Thompson Square: “We’ve always been big supporters of the military. My dad was in the Army. Shawna’s daddy was a Vietnam vet. Her cousin’s been in Afghanistan and Iraq both – two tours. It’s just...we love our country you know? Every time, if something comes up, if we can do it, we do it!”

And here are some thoughts from country stars on performing for the military…

Toby Keith: “They mean everything to me. They show up at my show every night. Their families show up. I represent a piece of American pie for them. It’s way more special than I ever intended or thought it ever could be.”

Craig Morgan: “I remember being in Korea and having Sawyer Brown and Charlie Daniels. It was very impacting; it takes away a little bit of aggravation and tension for a few minutes. You get a taste of home, and there’s nothing like that.”

Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry: “I just love it more and more every time I go. Me and T we talk about it all the time, every time we go we wanna do more and stay longer. We just don’t thank them enough. When you see our America heroes man, they’re totally awesome.”

George Strait has been named one of the 21 sexiest men over 50 by AARP. Ya think??

Well, they’ve been married a week now – hope all is still well in the newleyweds’ world. Angaleena Presley of Pistol Annies married her boyfriend Jordan Powell one week ago today in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

The tweet of the day is from Rodney Atkins: “Grateful to the men & women past & present & their families for their courage & many sacrifices not just today but everyday God Bless y'all”

Today's Country Tidbits

Rascal Flatts have had a very crazy year. They changed record labels, which is a huge upheaval, released a new album, which means tons of media appearances, and have kept up a touring schedule that would wipe out younger artists. But Gary Levox believes they are exactly where they’re supposed to be at this point in their career: “It’s complete heart – 100% heart and soul in this album. Like Joe Don said, ‘It took us 11 years to make this thing.’ Everything feels so great right now in our career - professionally and personally. And we just look forward to the summer tour.” They’re touring with three other vocal groups: Little Big Town, Eli Young Band and Edens Edge.

Taylor Swift is the top country artist on Forbes list of “The World’s Most Powerful Celebrities.” The rankings are based on money, TV/radio/press exposure, web presence and social media influence. Taylor checks in at #11 in the world, Toby Keith is at #49, Kenny Chesney is at #53 and Brad Paisley is at #68. Jennifer Lopez tops the list. By the way, she apparently had an extra $4 million bucks burning a hole in her pocket – she donated it to the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Little Big Town is once again hosting the 6th Annual Ride For a Cure on June 10th. The charity motorcycle ride benefits the TJ Martell Foundation. It starts at 10:30 at Franklin, Tennessee’s Mickey Roo’s and ends at the Harley Davidson Columbia Superstore with an All-Star am Session. The concert includes not just Little Big Town, but also Love and Theft, Lauren Alaina and Dean Alexander.

Kix Brooks and Joe Walsh have a song climbing the charts – “New to This Town” – and Kix is so excited to be able to work with Joe: “He is my favorite guitar player. I mean you can only say that once, ya know. Somebody has to be your favorite, whatever. I just worship the way he plays. God I mean his records are just awesome too. I grew up and James Gang was just the coolest to me.”

The Voice champion Jermaine Paul is so proud to have been a part of Team Blake, and proud to have gotten the win for Team Blake. Says Jermaine of his coach, “You know, he’s been a tremendous support to me throughout this whole process and he’s helped me so much on so many different levels and, you know, I don’t take that for granted at all.”

Lee Brice and his fiancée Sara Reevely are planning a 2013 wedding in Florida. Details, of course, are confidential, but listen to his music and you can hear the love!

Happy birthday to George Strait, who turns 60 today.

The tweet of the day is from Brad Paisley: “Ok, wish someone had told me this was a damn rehearsal and the show’s tomorrow. Bout had a heart attack!”

 

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

Dierks Bentley's next cd, "Home," is coming out on February 7th, and he says the new music feels fresh and represents some personal growth: “I mean, I’m always trying to be a better songwriter and trying to get in there and write songs that have more depth. At the same token, I love songs that are just fun, and when I’m driving around, I love jamming to. So, that aspect is represented on there as well.” Little Big Town's Karen Fairchild duets with him on one of the songs, and bluegrass legends Sam Bush and Tim O'Brien are also featured. And listen carefully to "Thinking of You," because Dierks says there's a "hidden special guest" on that track.

Rascal Flatts had a banner 2011, and are starting 2012 with a "Thaw Out" tour. Looking back on the year gone by, the trio are pleased with their accomplishments: “We started off the year with our own network special, which was thrilling, and there are very few acts that can say they've had their own television network special. We had a video with Justin Bieber, a song, a duet with him. So a lot of things that were milestones in our career - members of the Grand Ole Opry and so many of the goals that we had set for ourselves years ago had finally come true.”

Martina McBride is looking forward to touring with George Strait again, and the part she likes best is just spending time with him: “I don't know if he still does this but when we toured together before, there was a tent every night. You could go and hang out with him if you wanted to. He kind of likes to hang out, which I was surprised, and I took advantage of that. You know I'm thinking if I get to hang out with George Strait, I'm gonna do that. So, we’ve always just had a cool connection. I don’t know, I just really think he’s awesome.” The tour kicks off January 27th.

Justin Moore and Darius Rucker made a bet on a football game, and Darius lost the bet. Justin has plans - big plans - for Darius to pay off. He wants to do a concert in his home town of Poyen, Arkansas, and knows just the guy to bring in the bucks for St. Jude: “We’ve been trying to find a date for it, we’re gonna do that, and Darius owes me a bet. We bet on the South Carolina-Arkansas game last year, and he lost it. So, he’s gotta come do a charity event for free for me...F-R-E-E, free.”

Happy birthday to Deana Carter, who is 46 today, and to Patty Loveless, who turns 55.

The tweet of the day is from Sarah Buxton: "My 96 year old grandpa skyped me tonight & I recorded the stories he told me about his life. I can't believe I never thought to do that."

Today's Country Tidbits

Brad Paisley celebrated two #1 songs, and he celebrated at the Opry, the first time a #1 party was ever held at the country music institution. The songs were "Old Alabama" and "Remind Me" and the celebration was yesterday afternoon, before Brad Paisley took the stage to perform at the Opry. Alabama was on hand for the celebration, but Carrie's schedule kept her from being able to attend.

If you went to my Facebook page yesterday, you saw Brad Paisley, Southpark style. Here's the scoop - through a friend of a family member, he was invited to tour the Southpark Studios in Culver City, California. They gave him the red-carpet treatment, he got to be the voice of one of the kids on the show, and according to Brad, “I went in and cut a couple voices of little kids. I’m just one of the kids in the background. But, my name is in the credits, you know? And, I’m floored. I can’t believe I got to do that.”

Blake Shelton is in LA as season two of The Voice begins taping. Hey Los Angeles...watch out!

It's tour-announcing time, looks like, as another major winter tour rolls out its schedule. Miranda Lambert kicks off her "On Fire" tour January 12th in Illinois, taking Chris Young and Jerrod Niemann along for the ride. Here are the tour stops - dates still are being worked out.

Rockford, IL

La Crosse, WI

Fargo, ND

Charlotte, NC

Lexington, KY

Greensboro, NC

Baltimore, MD

Charlottesville, VA

East Rutherford, NJ

Huntsville, AL

Tallahassee, FL

Orlando, FL

Amherst, MA

Hershey, PA

Youngstown, OH

Macon, GA

North Charleston, SC

Fayetteville, NC

Sale Lake City, UT

Broomfield, CO

Kearney, NE

Toledo, OH

Saginaw, MI

Louisville, KY

Charleston, WV

Tulsa, OK

Little Rock, AR

Wichita, KS

Columbia, MO

Milwaukee, WI

Minneapolis, MN

Green Bay, WI

Fresno, CA

Mountain View, CA

Monday night in Texas, the stars came out to raise over half a million dollars for the families who lost everything in the summer Texas wildfires. George Strait, Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Dixie Chicks and Asleep at the Wheel all showed up to perform, with Willie and Lyle actually cancelling shows in order to do the benefit concert. The show was in Austin, and if you're like me, we're both hoping that someone taped it and will issue it on DVD.

Dierks Bentley trots out his patriotic side for the video to his new song, "Home." The song is a tribute to America and the visuals for the video support the tribute beautifully.

Dierks Bentley is proud that he's raised over $2 million for childrens hospitals with his Miles & Music for Kids, but says it's not all about the money. “I don’t want this thing to get out of control where it becomes all about money, money, money, money, money and, like, how can we make it be that? ‘Cause if that’s the case, we’ll just do a big live show and just give the money away. I want it to be about community, I want it to be about the families, and this day to be fun for everyone, at the same time we’re raising awareness and raising money for the children’s hospital. So, it’s a, it’s a bigger picture than just trying to, the numbers, you know?”

More performers have been announced for the 45th Annual CMA Award show on November 9th. New Artist nominees Luke Bryan, Chris Young, Eric Church and The Band Perry will all hit the stage.

Rapper Carlton Zeus is claiming that Toby Keith stole his song. In this video, he doesn't mince words:

If you want to see for yourself, check out Carlton's video for "Sharpie Solo." I'll help you out, though...the songs are nowhere near alike, and red Solo cups have starred at many, many parties, so I doubt Carlton has a legal leg to stand on.

Need Toby's video for comparison? Right after the ad runs is Toby's video for "Red Solo Cup."

And speaking of partying and adult fillers for red Solo cups, Colt Ford's "Goodtime Moonshine" and "Goodtime Vodka" hit stores in Georgia and Tennessee today. He had the release party last night in Buckhead.

Taylor Swift is on the Ellen DeGeneres Show today and Scotty McCreery sings the National Anthem at the World Series game tonight.

Happy birthday to Jeannie C. Riley, who turns 66 today.

The tweet of the day is from Miranda Lambert: "I'm in the Deer stand and so is Blake. he keeps telling me he can see me from his and to b still. I can't see him tho. Creepy stalker :)"

Today's Country Tidbits

Lady Antebellum has announced more dates for their "Own the Night" tour. They're planning nearly 60 shows between now and June of 2012, with Darius Rucker and Thompson Square on the road with them for the 2012 dates. The first leg of the "Own the Night" tour starts November 11th with Josh Kelly, Randy Montana and Edens Edge supporting the show.

Rascal Flatts announced their 2012 tour plans, and the "Thaw Out 2012" tour kicks off January 12th. So far, more than a dozen dates have been announced and there'll be more to follow. This is the indoor version of their summer tour - they'll launch a new show next summer. Sara Evans and Hunter Hayes are along for the opening act ride. Here are the show dates:

January 12th – Charleston, WV

January 13th – Roanoke, VA

January 14th – Hershey, PA

January 19th – Columbia, MO

January 20th – Peoria, IL

January 21st – Columbus, OH

January 26th – Albany, NY

January 27th – Providence, RI

January 28th – Atlantic City, NJ

February 9th – Jacksonville, FL

February 10th – Birmingham, AL

February 11th – Little Rock, AR

February 17th – Wilkes-Barre, PA

February 18th – E. Rutherford, NJ

Dierks Bentley likes his motorcycle rides, likes to party and likes life on the road. For his two kids, though, he envisions something quite different: “Total double standard. Totally fine for me to ride motorcycles and do the things I do. But, yeah, they’re not gonna be allowed to ride motorcycles, they’re not gonna be allowed to date, they’re not gonna be allowed to be in cars…no. I know it’s going to be really tough as they get older ‘cause I’m, I’m very protective. I have a feeling Evie’s going to be a little bit of a wild child, she’s been on the back of a motorcycle, she’s been on the bus a lot, she likes hanging out with the crew. She’s a fun girl.” Evie is three and baby Jordan turns 1 on Christmas day. We can only hope Dad mellows a bit with his rules by the time they're old enough to drive.

Sara Evans sang the National Anthem before last Saturday night's NASCAR race. Miss it? Here you go...

Montgomery Gentry's new cd, "Rebels on the Run," is out today. What's it about? Eddie Montgomery answers that: “You know we hear a lot of stories out there, man, over the years playing the night clubs. And nowadays when we go out and hang out, we hear a lot of stories coming through when we play shows and stuff like that, and you know—I reckon the easiest way to put it is we sing about the good, the bad, the ugly, and the party on the weekend, man! That’s it, we want to sing about everyday people.” Eddie and Troy Gentry hit the road this weekend and join Jay Leno for the 28th Annual Love Ride Motorcycle Rally on Sunday.

Congratulations to Blake Shelton on his 10th #1 song with "God Gave Me You." That's the #1 song on the Billboard Country Chart. On the Country Aircheck chart, George Strait holds down the top spot for his 58th career #1 song, with Blake in second place. How has George managed to snag 58 #1 songs? “It’s tough to get a #1 record. But, I’ve been fortunate through the years to be able to find some good songs and…got a great promotions department and everybody at MCA records has been behind me for all these years and it’s been a good team.”

The Band Perry performs on Dancing With the Stars tonight.

Happy birthdy to Josh Gracin who is 31 today.

Check out the Sandy Weaver Country Facebook page for a picture that Brad Paisley tweeted...it's Brad, Southpark style, and it's great.

The tweet of the day is from David Nail: "CMA dress shopping with my wife today, and let's just say, she's gonna have to find a second job!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Rodney Atkins dropped a bombshell in an interview with the Associated Press. Rodney, who was adopted as an infant, finally met his birth mother and her family in 2008. He won't reveal her name, for privacy purposes, but did say that she got pregnant when she was 19 on what she described as a traumatic first date. She hid the pregnancy and gave her son up for adoption. Rodney was raised by Allan and Margaret Atkins, who were supportive of the meeting and have become close with Rodney's birth mom. He's the spokesperson for the National Council for Adoption.

A couple of days ago Toby Keith's video for "Red Solo Cup" showed up on this blog. If you saw it, you saw a lot of heavy-hitters having fun with Toby's song. How did he talk them all into it? “I called all my friends and said, ‘Everybody do something stupid with a red Solo cup with your phone cam and send it to me.’ And, so I’ve got Sammy Hagar, Ted Nugent, Craig Ferguson, Larry Bird and Carrot Top. I actually talked a bunch of people I feel are important into doing something really dumb, and I love it.” In case you missed it, here it is again, complete with a language alert.

The Bayou Country Superfest is back for the third year, and it's bigger than ever. Who's there? Might be easier to say who's not going to be performing. The Superfest will include Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts, Jason Aldean, Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, Sara Evans, Little Big Town, Joe Nichols, and Jerrod Niemann. The event happens at LSU's Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, LA on May 26th and 27th, 2012.

Tim McGraw will headline the Tour for the Troops concert at Camp Pendleton in California. The November 13th show is free for military and Department of Defense ID holders. Civilians can see the show for $55 each.

It could be called the Bluest Eyes Tour, but instead it's George Strait with Martina McBride. The tour starts January 27th and so far, 11 stops have been announced. How does Martina feel about touring with George? “I love George Strait and, you know, I’ve made no secret of that. We all love George and have grown up with his music, and I’ve been fortunate enough to tour with him before and to, um, even sing on stage with him. And it’s just, he’s just, one of those artists that is just so consistent and so great.”

1/27 – Lafayette, LA

1/28 – Bossier City, LA

2/3 – Phoenix, AZ

2/4 – Las Vegas, NV

2/10 – Atlanta, GA

2/11 – Orlando, FL

2/16 – Tulsa, OK

2/17 – St. Louis, MO

2/18 – Wichita, KS

2/24 – Des Moines, IA

2/25 – Kansas City, MO

More performances have been announced for the CMA Award Show. Rascal Flatts & Natasha Bedingfield will sing their duet, "Easy," and Kenny Chesney will duet with Grace Potter on "You and Tequila." Show hosts Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will perform their song, "Remind Me," for the first time in front of an audience that night, too. The show airs November 9th on ABC, and tickets are on sale at all Ticketmaster outlets.

Jewel's been a mom for three months, and was asked by Perez Hilton to share some parenting tips...and she shared some good ones, plus gives insight into the way she and rodeo hubby Ty Murray are raising their son Kase.

Congratulations to Scotty McCreery. The American Idol winner has the #1 album on the Billboard Top 200 and the Billboard Country charts. He's the youngest male artist to debut at the top of the all-genre 200.

Martina McBride is on the Late Show with David Letterman, Taylor Swift s on Good Morning America and Live with Regis and Kelly and Lauren Alaina is also on Live with Regis and Kelly.

Happy birthday to Rhett Akins, who is 42, and Marie Osmond, who turns 52.

The tweet of the day is from James Otto: "Feeling motivated to change some bad habits lately. Sometimes my biggest obstacle is me. Good to have that knowledge."

Today's Country Tidbits

Rascal Flatts played the Grand Ole Opry last night and were surprised with the invitation to become members. Vince Gill joined them onstage, talking about all the hit records they've had and the $500 they still owe him from a golf match. The trio will be inducted into the Opry on the 86th birthday weekend, October 8th on the segment of the show aired live on GAC. Here's how it all went down:

On October 17th, Texas country artists will come together to raise money for those affected by the Texas wildfires. The benefit concert will take place in Austin, Texas, and already signed on to the project are George Strait, Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Asleep at the Wheel and Dixie Chicks. The Austin Community Foundation will administer the proceeds, being sure those who need help most get it.

Kenny Chesney just notched his 10th platinum cd. "Hemingway's Whiskey" has sold more than a million copies, spawned three #1 songs so far, and it looks like "You and Tequila" might be #4. What's the 5th single from the album? According to Kenny, “‘Reality’ was kind of, like, kind of like my message to the fans out there. You know, when I go to concerts – and I still love to go to concerts – because I don’t think about my reality when I’m at those concerts, just for a little while. I don’t think about what’s on my mind. I don’t think about the problems I’ve got or the problems somebody else has got, or anything. I see that in our audience, and I had that in mind when I was writing this song.”

When Martina McBride was ready to record her upcoming album, "Eleven," she wanted to do something different. Sure, she owns Blackbird studios in Nashville and has recorded most of her projects there, but she wanted some fresh walls around this music. She wanted to record in an Atlanta studio, but needed the support of her daughters before leaving home to do that. “But I sat down and talked with them, and I said, ‘I’m thinking about doing this, and I’ll be close enough to get back, if there’s an emergency, and it’ll only be for four days.’ They were so supportive. Ya know, they said, ‘Mom, you should go and do it. You should…should really focus on making this record.’ So, that was really a sweet thing, too.” Martina's "Eleven" is out October 11th.

Dierks Bentley celebrated his latest #1 song, "Am I the Only One," yesterday in Nashville. He hadn't driven his classic '67 Camaro in a while, so he took it out, shined it up and it was his celebratory ride.

Randy Travis is recovering after fainting on stage Saturday night. But if you have to faint on stage, you should do it in front of a room full of doctors, and that's just what Randy did. He was performing at the Crystal Heart Gala, a benefit for the Fort Worth Huguley Memorial Medical Center. Dehydration, over the counter allergy meds, caffeine and hot stage lights teamed up to cause the collapse. Randy is planning to resume his 25th anniversary tour Saturday night.

On the CMA Awards show November 9th, Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will perform "Remind Me" for the first time in front of a live audience. It should be awesome!

Condolences to Kitty Wells, who lost her husband of 74 years yesterday. Johnny Wright was 97 years old.

Luke Bryan makes his first appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres Show today.

Happy birthday to Karen Fairchild of Little Big Town, who turns 44 today.

The tweet of the day is from Colt Ford: "If your never in over your Head, how will you know how Tall you really are. Have a Great Day ya'll!!!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Taylor Swift is in the Guinness Book of World Records. No, she's not swallowing goldfish or leaping over river gorges on a motorcycle. She holds the record in two categories: fastest selling digital album by a woman in the US for "Speak Now" and the most songs on the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time, with 11 singles charting in the same week.

The three members of Lady Antebellum have been together as a band for four years, and Charles Kelley admits that the first two years weren't always easy. He, Dave Haywood and Hillary Scott got along great until a difference of opinion cropped up. According to Hillary, “We figured out how to argue and work through things, but argue respectfully. Because we agree on a lot of things — on most things — but on the things that we didn't, it was figuring out how to work through those things.” The trio worked with a mediator to learn how to respect their differences and move forward peacefully.

Alan Jackson and Ozzie Osbourne helped save a missing autistic boy this week. Eight-year-old Joshua Robb slipped away from school, and when teachers tried to catch him, he ran into the woods and became lost. His father suggested that the searchers play Joshua's two favorite songs over a loudspeaker, in the hopes that he would come out. It worked. Authorities alternated "Good Time" by Alan Jackson and "No More Tears" by Ozzie Osbourne, and Joshua walked to his rescuers, telling them, "Thank you. You saved me." Neihher Ozzie nor Alan has commented on the incident.

Jewel and Ty Murray introduced their nine-week-old baby boy, Kase Townes, to the world via People magazine. Ty and Jewel had a list of baby names even before they got married, but in the end, their son was named for Ty's best friend Kase and Jewel's favorite singer-songwriter, Townes Van Zandt.

Martina McBride is planning a whistle stop tour this fall, to celebrate the release of her "Eleven" album. The four-day trip will take her from Los Angeles to New York, making 11 stops along the way, performing intimate concerts for fans in Albuquerque, NM, Chicago and New York. The event is called "Eleven Across America Powered by Amtrak," and Martina is excited about the trip, saying a cross-country railroad excursion is something she's always wanted to do. Her next cd, "Eleven," comes out October 11th.

Jason Aldean's "Here for the Party" has just been certified double-platinum for sales of over two million copies. That makes it the best-selling country album of 2011. He's having a good year - he's up for five CMA awards, and is sure to bring home at least a couple of those.

Congratulations to George Strait, who's 39th studio album is actually #24. It's his 24th #1 album on the Billboard Country Album chart, debuting on top this week. "Here For A Good Time" sold 91,000 copies. He admits he wanted to hang up his songwriting hat until son Bubba and songwriter Dean Dillon called with an idea: “’Here for a Good Time was an idea that my son had had, and Dean, he’s going like, ‘Well, Bubba what have you got today?’ And he goes, ‘Well, I got this ‘I’m not here for a long time, but I’m here for a good time idea. Should we write it as a ballad? Or is it serious?’ We decided it was a more fun idea than a more serious, so we wrote it that way.” And it turned out seriously fun, didn't it?

Find Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum between the covers of Ladies Home Journal, on newsstands now.

Clay Walker is on Fox & Friends this morning.

The tweet of the day is from Chris Young: "The real two-step... Step 1. Drunk late text Step 2. Hungover apology text"

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

George Strait has worn a lot of hats in his life, but he's about to don a new one. He's been a troubador, a business man, movie star, cutting-horse competitor and soon, he's going to be a grandfather. George's son Bubba and his wife Tamara are expecting their first child, and King George is over the moon. “Norma and I are having a great time, and my son and his new wife – they’ve been married, they were married last December – they’re expecting a baby in February, so I’m going to be a grandfather.”

Lady Antebellum is having a crazy-busy year, and the fall should be even crazier, with a new album on September 13th, a tour that kicks off November 11th, three big-city acoustic events and all of the media madness that goes with a new album and tour. Lady A's Hillary Scott is also planning a wedding, to fiance Chris Tyrell. When is she finding time to work on the wedding? “[Hillary] I’ve met the wedding planner a lot. But going into this album, the tour—it will definitely still be something that I’m working on, but I tried to get a lot of the big decisions out of the way before all this has picked up. I haven’t gotten my dress yet. I’m starting to kinda stress about that, but umm… [Dave] They’ve got some a Target, I saw the other day… [Hillary] Perfect!”

Blake Shelton didn't write the title track to his current cd, "Red River Blue" but it sounds like it could be a story about Blake and Miranda. Turns out, it is. The songwriter is Buddy Owens, a friend of Blake's, and as Blake tells it, “At some point along the way, Miranda and I had gotten in a fight and broken up for one of our week-long breakups, or two days or whatever. But at this moment, I had seen him that night and he asked how she was doing, and I said, ‘Aw, Man. Ya know, I screwed up.’ He said, ‘Aw, Man, I hate that, ya know.’ He went and wrote a song about a guy from Oklahoma and a girl from Texas breaking up, and about how the Red River is, ya know, the great divide, symbolic, between the two.” Catch the now-happily married couple Monday night on Dateline NBC at 10pm Eastern.

Taylor Swift is up for an award at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday night. Interesting note about the awards - when the nominees were first announced, Taylor's name wasn't anywhere in the list, after raking in Moonmen over the last several years. Someone at MTV must have taken note of that and decided to ensure that the Golden One would participate, and suddenly a new category, Best Video with a Message, had a gang of nominees, with Taylor as one of them. Her song "Mean" is up against Eminem's "Love the Way You Lie," "Firework" by Katy Perry, "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga, "F******* Perfect" by Pink and "Make It Stop" by Rise Against. Taylor's not scheduled to perform on the show.

If you're in a doctor's office this fall, check out the magazine table. Carrie Underwood is on the cover of Vim & Vigor, distributed to health care practitioners only, and in the article she talks about her vegetarian diet and her exercise routine to keep those legs in shape.

On September 6th, The Band Perry and Jake Owen will announce 5 categories of nominees for this year's CMA Awards on ABC's Good Morning America. Then Jerrod Niemann and Thompson Square wll announce seven categories, wth the Jane Dear Girls revealing the Broadcast awards finalists. The awards will be handed out on country music's biggest night, November 9th, live from Nashville on ABC.

Montgomery Gentry is getting set to slap the jumper cables on the Sylvania 300 - they're the pre-race entertainment at the September 25th race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Jake Owen will turn 30 this weekend on tour with Keith Urban. They'll be in Dallas, Texas, so you can expect some big doins' for the milestone. How does Jake feel about hitting the big 3-0? “I had some pretty awesome things happen in my 20s. And so as I’m turning 30, I’m just at a place now where I think about my life more than I think about just day-to-day. When you’re 22, 23 years old, and you’re just going day-to-day, you don’t think about the ‘bigger picture’. You don’t think about ‘Damn, I’m 30! My kid – if I don’t have a kid ‘til I’m 40 – he’s not gonna wanna throw a baseball when he’s 10 with his 50-year-old dad!’ You know?!”

I don't usually predict #1 songs, but it's looking like Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will log a #1 with their collaboration, "Remind Me," next week. I'll either say "I told you so" or I'll eat crow in this space next week.

Chris Young is on Fox & Friends, Kellie Pickler is on the Ellen DeGeneres show and Emmylou Harris is on Late Night with David Letterman tonight.

Happy birthday to Jmmy Olander of Diamond Rio, who is 50 today. Tomorrow, Jeff Cook of Alabama turns 62, and on Sunday, Shania Twain turns 46, Jake Owen turns 30 and LeAnn Rimes turns 29.

The tweet of the day is from Joe Don Rooney of Rascal Flatts: "Thinking about the East Coast tonight Hoping Hurricane Irene loses her power and doesn't do very much damage this weekend! #PrayersGoingUP"

Today's Country Tidbits

Road trip alert - Zac Brown Band will throw a huge three-day food and music festival October 21-23 at Charleston, SC's Riley Park. In other ZBB news, the guys have a new tour sponsor - Jack Daniels. Old No. 7 will back the tour, take part in the Eat and Greets with adult beverages, and Zac Brown Band will be featured in advertising and responsible drinking messages. The partnership kicks off at Red Rocks in Morrison, CO on September 5th. If you can't make it to the show, there'll be special commemorative bottles of Jack Daniels for sale soon, with some of the proceeds going to Camp Southern Ground.

Yesterday's blog told you about Alan Jackson's invitation to be part of the national 9/11 recognition event this year. After yesterday's earthquake, the host venue is in trouble. Washington National Cathedral reports that at least three of the spires have fallen off of the central tower and the tower itself appears to be leaning. Structural engineers will be on site later today to assess the damage and see if the show can go on.

More George, more often. George Strait's "Here For a Good Time" streets on September 13th, and a week later, a greatest hits collection, "Icon," will be out. The 11-song collection includes nine #1 songs. Here's the track list:

Amarillo By Morning

Ocean Front Property

All My Ex's Live In Texas

Love Without End, Amen

I Cross My Heart

Check Yes Or No

I Just Want To Dance With You

Living And Living Well

Give It Away

I Saw God Today

River Of Love

Chomping at the bit to hear new Lady Antebellum music? Head over to Amazon.com for 30-second previews of all of the songs on "Own the Night," which streets on Septeber 13th. The trio is really excited about the new songs, suggesting, “[Hillary] ‘Dancing Away with my Heart’ for sure…It’s very Lady Antebellum. [Dave] Yeah, there’s one called ‘Friday Night’ that we’ve been playing live. It’s a fun tempo, just kinda good electric guitar kinda rocker. So, you know, that would be one they could definitely check out.” The "Own the Night" tour kicks off November 11th in Knoxville, TN.

Another ZZ Top tribute album is set to be released on October 11th, and includes Jamey Johnson covering "Tush."

Brad Paisley is enjoying his time in Europe, and the Old World fans are enoying Brad, singing along to all of his songs, even the album cuts. He did three sold-out shows in Ireland last weekend, with fans coming from as far away as Spain. He's off to Scandanavia this week.

Congratulations to the President and CEO of Big Machine Label Group Scott Borchetta, who will be honored with the TJ Martell Foundation Spirit of Excellence Award at the November 3rd gala. The other honorees are Arnold Palmer and Drew Carey. Big Machine is the home of Taylor Swift, Martina McBride, Rascal Flatts and many more Nashville luminaries.

Last night at a Taylor Swift concert in Los Angeles, Justin Bieber hit the stage for a song. What happened next is the tweet of the day, so be sure to scroll down and read it. He promised in July that he would surprise fans with an appearance and duet with Taylor on his hit, "Baby" after he found out she was singing it in concert. Enjoy...

Rascal Flatts' current song, "Easy," is a duet with Natasha Bedingfield. But, Natasha can't be on tour with them, so how does that work on stage? Tour mate Sara Evans to the rescue. According to the band, “We asked her, and she loved the song and was willing to stick around…it’s hard for somebody that’s been offstage for an hour-and-a-half to get pumped up to come back out and do one song, so, we’re very, very grateful to her that she decided to come out and do that with us each night. And it is one of my favorite moments of the show, to be quite honest.”

Big & Rich have remade the Kenny Loggins hit, "Footloose," and here's a peek at the video...

Here's a peek at the behind-the-scenes world while Martina McBride was filming the video for "I'm Gonna Love You Through It."

Tomorrow night, "CMT Unplugged: Martina McBride" wll be webcast on the Starburst Facebook page as well as on the Unplugged CMT page. Martina will perform music from her upcoming album, "Eleven," as well as talk about the making of the album.

http://unplugged.CMT.com

This coming Monday night, check out Dateline NBC, because Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton and Pistol Annies will be featured.

Alison Kraus & Union Station are on the Ellen DeGeneres Show today.

The tweet of the day is from Taylor Swift: "You think you've heard LOUD screaming in your life.. Then @justinbieber comes out and does a surprise song during your show. Woah. Unreal."

Today's Country Tidbits

Sugarland and Sarah Bareilles were the featured performers at the Indiana State Fair on Saturday night. Sarah had just finished her set and Sugarland was preparing to take the stage when a huge gust of wind hit, estimated at between 60 and 70 mph, collapsing the stage. Five people were killed and dozens more were injured, with 45 still hospitalized. Many of the injured are "walking wounded," but several spent Saturday night in surgery and are still very critical, so the death toll could rise. Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland said, "We are stunned and heartbroken for the fans and their families in Indiana. We hold those injured in our prayers at this very sad time. There are no words to process a moment of this magnitude and gravity. There are only prayers for peace in the hearts of the bereft, and prayers of thanksgiving for those who were spared or safe. A piece of our heart is left in that grandstand." Sugarland was also scheduled to perform Sunday night, but the fair was shut down yesterday and the performance cancelled. Most of Sugarland's staging and band equipment is onstage, tangled in the lighting rig and broken stage supports. A concert-goer shot this video of the stage collapse...

Here's a high-def video from another angle. As you watch, notice people running to, not from, the collapsed stage and light rigging. That's the spirit of America on display there - people rushing to help in a tragedy. YouTube has age-restricted this video, so you may have to sign in and verify your birthdate to see it.

The Indiana State Fair will re-open this morning, starting with a service for those who lost their lives. The concerts will resume on Wednesday night. No word on whether or when Sugarland's show will happen.

Taylor Swift is well-known for her heart-hands, a gesture she flashes to fans from stage. She started making a heart symbol with her hands when she was in high school, and explains that the meaning is somewhere between "hello" and "I love you." She uses it to express her appreciation for fans. “It’s not like meeting a stranger, it’s sort of like saying hello to someone that I already know is on the same page with me. And I just feel so thankful to have that understanding between us. I just have so much fun with them. They’re incredibly cool people and I’m really happy that I get to spend the summer with them.”

In other, less fun, Taylor news, six Nashville police officers have been suspended after accepting an off-duty job escorting Taylor around town. Firefly Entertainment contracted with the officers, who were initially given the go-ahead to do the job by their higher-ups. Then the top brass told the officers, no, they couldn't take the gig, but the officers decided to do it anyway, hoping their superiors wouldn't find out. They did. Firefly is working to mend fences, and their spokesperson says Taylor was unaware of and is not responsible for the issue.

When George Strait's "Here for a Good Time" lands in stores on September 6th, we'll get to hear George duet with Faith Hill. The song is "A Showman's Life," the same song that appeared on Gary Alan's "See if I Care" cd. His version of the tune is a collaboration with Willie Nelson.

In more George Strait news, he tops Billboard's list of the hottest 25 country artists from 1985 through 2011. Garth Brooks is second, Reba is third, Alan Jackson is fourth and Tim McGraw is fifth.

Kellie Pickler will play a country music singer on the CW's "90210" next month. She'll perform her new single, "Tough."

If you've been waiting to get Scotty McCreery's and Lauren Alaina's debut cd's, your wait is nearly over. Release dates have been set for them both: Scotty's "Clear as Day" comes out October 4th and Lauren Alaina's "Wildflower" drops October 11th.

Congratulations to Vince Gill, who celebrated his 20th anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday night.

The tweet of the day is from Blake Shelton: "My prayers to the people at the Sugarland concert in Indianapolis.... Absolutely shocking and hard to comprehend... Beyond belief..."