Today's Country Tidbits

Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney kick off their “Brothers of the Sun” tour tomorrow and Kenny wants his fans to be protected. Well, their eyes, anyway! He and Costa Sunglasses just released five new custom sunglass designs, all with his signature and palm tree logo inside the frame. Part of the proceeds goes to the Coastal Conservation Association. About touring with Tim, Kenny says, “I think it’s going to be very special for us. But the people that are going to benefit the most are the people that have lived with our music for a while now. And see that we’re being all mixed into one stage, everything we’ve been through to get to that point in our lives and our career. That doesn’t happen in everybody’s life and career.”

Dierks Bentley headed for Washington DC tomorrow, where he’ll perform after the Washington Nationals play baseball, hosting the Atlanta Braves. One song that’s a fan favorite already is “Home,” and according to Dierks, there’s a special group of fans who love it the most: “One of the first times I played this song, a girl came up to me that had been in the Navy and told me just how much the lyrics meant to her and since then as the song has gone up the charts more and more, just hearing from so many different fans in the military saying how much the lyrics really affect them, so it’s just awesome to have a song out there that we can sing to our fans and they can sing back to us, and we can really honor those families that are making a huge sacrifice for all of us.”

The next CMT Crossroads is star-studded. Joe Walsh picked “some old friends and some new friends” to share the stage with him. The show will include Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Luke Bryan, Sara Evans and Hunter Hayes, and it will air on June 23rd.

Martina McBride is in the current issue of Wine Enthusiast Magazine, telling about her first experience with drinking wine. She confesses to “drinking Tickle Pink by Boone’s Farm, while riding around the Kansas dirt roads with friends listening to Def Leppard or Journey.” Her palate has grown more sophisticated, and she says she likes to have champagne on hand for special occasions.

Rodney Atkins headlines the second annual “Music City Gives Back” benefit concert for the American Red Cross June 5th on Lower Broadway between Second and Fourth Avenues in Nashville. In addition to Rodney, Lee Brice, Thompson Square, Josh Thompson, Clint Black, The Farm, Jana Kramer, Mallary Hope and The Willis Clan are part of the show. The concert is free – the Red Cross will be taking donations – and the Wrangler Facebook page will webcast the show live starting at 5pm Central.

Happy birthday to Ronny Dunn, who turns 59 today.

Today's Country Tidbits

Last night, Montgomery Gentry led a salute to America’s heroes with a special performance at the Grand Ole Opry. About the special military appreciation night they said, “We just don’t thank them enough. When you see our American heroes, man, they are just totally awesome!” You’re totally right, guys!

Garth Brooks and Troy Aikman have teamed up to raise money for special facilities at children’s hospitals, and they dedicated one last week. The two superstars showed up at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Ft. Worth Texas to dedicate the Child Life Zone. It offers young patients an arcade and a professional recording suite, where kids can record their own music videos and songs. Garth and Troy spent hours at the facility, making kids’ smiles broader than cowboy hat brims.

Rascal Flatts and Farmers Insurance have teamed up to make a lot of Rascal Flatts fans very happy, and two fans will be over the moon! The “Star For A Day” contest is up and running, and 10 fans per Rascal Flatts tour stop will win tickets, a private meet & greet with the band, dinner at the crew catering tables, a private backstage dressing room and a package of tour merchandise. Everyone who enters is also in the hat for the grand prize tickets to the CMA and another Rascal Flatts meet and greet. Go get entered quick – the tour kicks off in June!

Big & Rich have new music out, and Saturday they hit the road for a summer tour. The video for “That’s Why I Pray” was released yesterday and you can hear the song and see the video here…



Taylor Swift is the top country nominee for the Teen Choice 2012 Awards. She nominated in four categories, including the all-genre Female Artist category. Blake Shelton is nominated in three categories, including the all-genre Male Artist category. The awards will be handed out on July 22nd.

Three country cuties landed on the Maxim 2012 Hot 100 list. Taylor Swift is the 26th hottest, Julianne Hough is at #47 and Kellie Pickler landed at #72. Topping the list is supermodel Bar Fefaeli.

Hot on the heels of yesterday’s announcement of Tim McGraw’s new label comes another country music label change. Joe Nichols and Show Dog Universal have parted ways. Joe tweeted, “I’m very thankful for Show Dog and what they have done for me.” Stay tuned for where he will land – I’ll let you know.

New music out this week includes Ronnie Dunn’s special Cracker Barrel release. “Ronnie Dunn – Special Edition” includes a couple of previously unreleased tracks, and a portion of the proceeds benefits the Wounded Warriors Project. Ronnie says the song “Singer in a Cowboy Band” describes him to a “T”: “I mean hey I’ve played all those states – I played all those bars, all those holes in the wall, that’s just part of the process coming up through the deal. At the end of the day I’m just a singer in a cowboy band, or a wannabe singer in a cowboy band. However you want to interpret that.”

Scotty McCreery is on American Idol tonight.

Happy birthday to Jewel, who turns 38 today.

The tweet of the day is from Miranda Lambert: “I just heard the worst song ever. It was pitched to Blake. People actually finish songs that shi**y and then demo them? Why?”

Today's Country Tidbits

Keith Urban and his band need combat pay for surviving the video shoot for his "Act of Valor" song, "For You." According to Keith, “I think my drummer got a little bit of [shrapnel] every now and then. And actually, I think in the video there’s one scene where they go off, and you can see my drummer’s head go forward a little bit…it’s so loud. Those things going off it’s just insanely loud and stuff goes everywhere. They were set a long way back from us, but there’s a lot of force going on.” Check it out for yourself...

Blake Shelton's doing it. Keith Urban's doing it. Does Justin Moore want to be a tv star, too? “You know what, as far as TV goes I have no desire to act. I don’t have a face for TV. I will never say never. You know, there are opportunities that come up that you have to think about. But for me, right now my soul reason for being where I’m at and my soul desire is to play music.” He's on the road with Blake's "Well Lit & Amplified" tour.

If Ronnie Dunn ever decides to give up music, he has a future in photography. He loves to shoot sunsets, and apparently he's really good. “It’s funny, I have a house in Santa Fe and I tell people I didn’t buy the house, I bought the sunset because it’s just perfect. The view is killer and I can stand outside on the veranda and shoot ‘em. But, a friend gave me this real cool 5D camera, state of the art stuff. So, I shoot sunsets. And they’re different! You know, every few seconds they change out there.”

In "hey, it worked for Toby Keith" department, Rascal Flatts will be opening a chain of restaurants later this year. No word on the name, or any other details, yet, but Gary LeVox said the guys want to give fans something new and different.

The Band Perry is touring the UK this week, celebrating the release of their self-titled debut album. It's been out in the US since October of 2010 but is just now being released across the pond.

Taylor Swift enjoyed writing songs for "The Hunger Games" soundtrack, which comes out tomorrow. She said writing from someone else's perspective was almost like taking a vacation. Taylor wrote from the perspective of Katniss Everdeen, the main character in "The Hunger Games," which hits the big screen this coming weekend.

Eric Church is on Jimmy Fallon's show tonight.

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride: "I just did a "nature hike" that began with 432 stairs...straight up. I am not exaggerating. I counted."

Today's Country Tidbits

Jason Aldean is on the 2012 My Kinda Party tour and is not just selling out arenas, he's breaking records: “You know, somebody with the venue, he’ll come up to us and he’s like, ‘Hey, you broke Elvis’ record tonight,’ and stuff like that. You know, anytime you hear that, it’s pretty cool...broke a Garth record not too long ago...broke a Bon Jovi record. So, it’s pretty crazy.”

Told you Friday about the sister of cancer patient Kevin McGuire putting up a Facebook page to convince Taylor Swift to be Kevin's prom date. Well, in true Taylor fashion, she's posted on her Facebook wall: “Kevin, I'm so sorry but I won't be able to make it to your prom. But I was wondering, the ACM Awards are coming up.. Would you be my date?” Kevin is hospitalized, but told reporters that he has cancer, it doesn't have him, and he's delighted to be Taylor's date.

The movie Act of Valor opened this past weekend, and Keith Urban's song "For You" was not just a hit with audience, it was a hit with the SEALS who were part of the movie. According to Keith, “For me, and I said this to some of the SEAL guys too, because they were saying, ‘Thank you so much for the song and being involved in the film’ – and I’d like to say it’s my family’s tiny little way of saying ‘thank you.’ It’s really extraordinary what they do. And I think this film in particularly when people see it will have a new insight as to what they do.”

The CMA Songwriter Series took Bob DiPiero, Clint Black and Bill Anderson to Ireland and the UK for a tour, but all didn't go as planned. A driver ran into the back of the tour bus, causing no injuries but delaying the concert for half an hour. According to Bill Anderson, “This accident happened when we were all on a Gibson bus – but it turned out to only be a Fender-bender – thank goodness!”

Condolences to Shawna and Keifer Thompson on the death of Shawna's father. He lost his battle with cancer last week, and he was surrounded by his family when he passed.

Yesterday, Johnny Cash would have been 80. And yesterday, Ronnie Dunn became a grandpa. Huxton "Huck" Wayne Dunn was born to Ronnie's son Jesse and his wife. All involved are doing great.

Lyle Lovett is on the David Letterman Show tonight.

The tweet of the day is from Joe Don Rooney: "It's a clear blue sky gorgeous day in Nash & Jag just walked outside w me & said hey dad it's a blue-tiful day! Lol"

Today's Country Tidbits

Taylor Swift is 22 today, and in that short time, she's accomplished a ton. She's the best-selling country artist, the CMA Entertainer of the Year, AMA Artist of the Year, CMT Artist of the Year and the Billboard Woman of the Year. She's won 4 Grammy's, 5 ACM Awards, 10 American Music Awards, 7 CMA Awards, earned the Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame, scooped up 11 Billboard Music Awards,11 BMI Awards, 6 CMT Awards, 1 MTV Award, 4 NSAI Awards, 2 People's Choice Awards, 13 Teen Choice Awards, 1 Young Hollywood Award, 3 Canadian Country Music Awards, 3 Nashville Music Awards, 2 Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards, 1 Independent Music Award, 3 Teen Icon Awards, 1 Thailand Music Video Award, 1 MYX Award from fans in the Philippines, and won special recognition from the Associated Press, the RIAA, Entertainment Weekly, Nashville Symphony Orchestra, Guiness Book of World Records, Rolling Stone Magazine and Billboard Magazine. She's also a great role model, a task she takes seriously. What's her advice for young fans who want to be like her? “Get inspiration from all your heroes, but try to be something completely different from your heroes. You know, for me, I think that writing my own songs was a way to create what I wanted to create, and music about my life, and that way it kind of became just a diary put to music every time I put out a new record.” I don't know about you, but I hadn't accomplished nearly that much by the time I was 22!

Brad Paisley has recorded a benefit song for the Ataxia-Telangiectasia Children's Project. He recorded "Hard Life," written by Joe Kindregan, who suffers from A-T. According to Brad, "I've known Joe for several years, and he is one of my favorite people. His disease is physically debilitating, but obviously, creatively and mentally, Joe has such tremendous depth. It's an honor for me to be the person to give voice to his creativity and cause." If you want to help, you can download the song and donate.

Radio's most-played song of the year is Jason Aldean's "Dirt Road Anthem." Congrats to Jason, Colt Ford and Brantley Gilbert.

Send up your prayers for Wade Hayes, ("Old Enough to Know Better") who has stage 4 colon cancer. He had surgery last week and his doctors are upbeat. Chemo and radiation treatments will continue for some time.

In a serious relationship? Love Lady Antebellum and going to one of their shows? If you're thinking about getting engaged, Charles Kelley and Hillary Scott have some advice about when during the show to pop the question. “[Dave] Don’t do it on ‘Love Don’t Live Here.’ Save it for ‘Just A Kiss’ maybe. [Hillary] Yep, ‘Just a Kiss,’ or another song off our second record, ‘When You Got A Good Thing.’ That’s a good one for that.” Oh, and if you're going to the show, wear a tacky Christmas sweater. People wearing the worst ones get seat upgrades.

Nothing tacky about Christmas at Ronnie Dunn's house - he says Janine does a good, thorough job: “My wife is crazy about it. I mean, there’s stuff everywhere. That time of year, I have to go upstairs in the attic and pull all the stuff down in the boxes and unpack it and stuff. You know, once we get it out, it’s all pretty.”

Tonight on CMT, the Artists of the Year concert happens. Taylor Swift, Lady Antebellum, Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney and Brad Paisley are the honored recipients, and they'll perform on the show.

Happy birthday to Taylor Swift, who turns 22 today, John Anderson, who is 57, and Randy Owen of Alabama, who turns 62.

The tweet of the day is from David Nail: "Killed the cardio! Killed my salmon and veggies! Now I'm gonna kill this nap! Then I'm gonna kill a shower hopefully!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Tomorrow, the battle for his freedom lands in court, as Tim McGraw takes on his record label, Curb. Curb sued Tim last year, claiming he had breached his contract by turning in "Emotional Traffic" too soon. He counter-sued, saying Curb has kept him in "involuntary servitude." The hearing tomorrow and Wednesday is to determine whether Tim will be allowed to record music for another label before the full trial begins next July. He hopes to release new music before his Australian tour with Faith Hill in the spring of 2012.

Meanwhile, Kenny Chesney is chomping at the bit to get the Brothers of the Sun Tour underway: “It’s gonna be a rockin’ show — I can tell you that. And it’s still hard for me to believe, you know, that we’re gonna go out there, and I’m gonna spend next summer with my buddy Tim McGraw. And he and I are gonna have a blast out there with everybody.” Tickets for some of the shows go on sale this Saturday through Ticketmaster.

Keith Urban has his throat surgery behind him and is recovering nicely. The outpatient procedure happened just before Thanksgiving, and he's on vocal rest for three weeks. The procedure is described as routine and the doctor is thrilled with the results. Where is Keith resting his golden throat? That's a secret, apparently. If no one knows where you are, they can't find you and tempt you to talk.

Ronnie Dunn is celebrating - he's going to be a grandpa in February. Ronnie's son Jesse and his wife are expecing their first child, a son, early next year.

Miranda Lambert is celebrating today, but it's probably not because it's Cyber Monday. She tweeted last night that she finally got her first buck of the season. Well, she might be able to order a venison cookbook or something today.

Carrie Underwood is probably celebrating Cyber Monday - she's not a fan of the mall scene: “I hate shopping for Christmas presents. I kind of wander around aimlessly in malls and stores and what-not thinking, ‘Now what would fill-in-the-blank, what would this person like? Oh, yep, that looks like her, I’ll get that…’ I think I’ll be doing a lot of online shopping this year.”

Lady Antebellum is celebrating CyberMonday with free shipping on anything in their online merchandise store.

In this season of giving thanks, Darius Rucker counts his blessings and uses them as his reminder to help others all year long. “Giving back is just what you’re supposed to do. I mean, I’m a, I’m a blessed individual. God has blessed me with a great life and great kids and a great wife. And, and, you know, I like helping people if I can and, you know…giving back is how I do it, I guess.”

On Thanksgiving Day, Brad Paisley was playing with Twitter, posting a series of bad holiday special ideas:

The Gingrich that Stole Christmas

Frosty the Slow Man

The 12 Steps of Christmas

Occupy on 34th Street

Caucasian Christmas

And about the Macy's parade, he tweeted:

"This Macy's parade would be a lot better if they'd rope off an oval or square,set up pit crews,and see who's got the FASTEST float today."

Thanksgiving Day was a rough day for the American Idol country alums. Scotty McCreery was part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and made it painfully obvious that his performance was lip-synced. (They all are, but he just did a poor job on his.) And Lauren Alaina forgot a line in the National Anthem Thanksgiving night. She recovered well, but kicked herself all weekend.

Justin Moore is on the Craig Ferguson show tonight.

The tweet of the day is from Michelle Branch: "My favorite part of Thanksgiving: we asked my daughter to say "grace" and she said the Pledge of Allegiance. We felt too bad to correct her."

Today's Country Tidbits

Kenny Chesney + Tim McGraw = the 2012 Brothers of the Sun Tour, which will stop at 19 stadiums on weekend dates starting June 2nd in Tampa. Grace Potter & the Nocturnals and Jake Owen are the opening acts for this double-star bill. Kenny says of Tim, "He's one of my closest friends in music and in life, and I know this tour is going to be something special." Tim adds, "Our friendship was forged on the road, so it's going to be a blast heading out with Kenny again." It's been ten years since the two toured together, but they've stayed friends since then. You'll remember - or maybe not - the police horse incident about a decade ago, when Tim was the headliner and Kenny was the opening act. They bonded after that, and will be bringing their friendship to these tour stops:

Jun 02, 2012 Tampa FL Raymond James

Jun 03, 2012 Altanta GA Georgiadome

Jun 09, 2012 Dallas TX Cowboys Stadium

Jun 10, 2012 Kansas City MO Arrowhead Stadium

Jun 16, 2012 Philadelphia PA Lincoln Financial Field

Jun 23, 2012 Nashville TN LP Field

Jun 24, 2012 Charlotte NC Bank Of America Stadium

Jun 30, 2012 Pittsburgh PA Heinz Field

Jul 01, 2012 Cincinnati OH Paul Brown Stadium

Jul 07, 2012 Chicago IL Soldier Field

Jul 08, 2012 Minneapolis MN Target Field

Jul 14, 2012 Anaheim CA Angels Stadium

Jul 21, 2012 Denver CO Sports Authority Field at Mile High

Aug 11, 2012 East Rutherford NJ MetLife Stadium

Aug 12, 2012 Washington DC FedEx Field

Aug 18, 2012 Detroit MI Ford Field

Aug 25, 2012 Foxboro MA Gillette Stadium

This might come as a shock to you, but Blake Shelton doesn't care what you think. In a chat with CNN, he was asked about his series of "I'm so drunk" tweets. He said he likes to drink and isn't going to apologize for it. He went on to say he got The Voice gig because he's not afraid to make an a** of himself, and opined that he can't talk religion or politics because he already gets into enough trouble with his alchohol consumption. Check out the segment...

There's a release date for Dierks Bentley's next cd. "Home," which contains his current single of the same name and the hit "Am I The Only One," will be out February 7th, 2012. What has Dierks been working on for this project? “I mean, I’m always trying to be a better songwriter, and try to get in there and write songs that have more depth. By the same token, I love songs that are just fun and, when I’m drivin’ around just…just, I love jammin’ too. So, that aspect is represented on there as well.”

Ronnie Dunn is taping some tv appearances this week. He'll be on Dr. Phil and The Doctors in early December, and I'll let you now the air dates as soon as they're announced.

We think of Nashville as the center of the universe where country music is concerned, but where country album sales are concerned, not so much. Here are a couple of top ten lists that show that maybe Music City likes getting their country music live, not recorded:

Country’s Top Markets: Album Sales Volume

1. New York, NY

2. Los Angeles, CA

3. Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX

4. Chicago, IL

5. Houston, TX

6. Nashville, TN

7. Washington, D.C.

8. Atlanta, GA

9. Boston, MA

10. Philadelphia, PA

Country’s Top Markets: Percentage of Total Album Sales

1. Charleston-Huntington, WV

2. Tri-Cities, TN-VA

3. Springfield, MO

4. Paducah, KY; Cape Girardeau, MO; Harrisburg, IL; Marion, KY-IL

5. Nashville, TN

6. Knoxville, TN

7. Lexington, KY

8. Evansville, IN

9. Roanoke-Lynchburg, VA

10. Chattanooga, TN

Congratulations to Sunny Sweeny and her new hubby Jeff Hellmer, who were married at the Little White Chapel in Las Vegas on 11/11/11. Jeff is a sergeant with the Austin Police Department and former Air Force staff sergeant.

And more congratulations to Taylor Swift, who has notched yet another #1 song with "Sparks Fly." Check out how she describes the life of one of her songs: “The most amazing feeling is to watch a song start out as just an idea that hits you in the middle of your day, and kind of haunts you until you write it. And, then you’re playing it in your living room on guitar, and then you take it into a studio and they put a band behind it. And, then it goes out into the world and it becomes what it’s going to be.”

Happy birthday to Jack Ingram, who turns 41 today.

The tweet of the day is from Kellie Pickler: "swaying' back & forth on an old porch swing...listening to the coyotes howl...& counting' deer."

Today's Country Tidbits

Taylor Swift played Nashville this weekend, and had some high-powered hunks on stage with her. Ronnie Dunn took the stage Friday night, and Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney joined her on stage Saturday night. Ronnie and Taylor sang "Bleed Red" together. Tim, dressed all in black, duetted with Taylor on "Just to See You Smile," and Kenny and Taylor knocked it out of the park singing "Big Star."

In other Taylor news, she was presented with some plaques while in Nashville, one celebrating 5 million in sales for her "Speak Now" album, and one commemorating a million tickets sold on the "Speak Now World Tour."

Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert have issues with going out. No, not issues with each other, issues with people who know them but don't like them very much. According to Blake, “We don’t go places like we used to. I hate to even say that because it just sounds stupid to say it, but we just can’t anymore. Especially now with Miranda—some of the stuff you see that’s written is hurtful—so you decide, ‘I’m not even gonna go out. I don’t want people to see me…’ You know what I mean? But outside of that, I mean, my gosh, this is what I moved to town for. It is awesome!” The next

season of "The Voice" starts taping next month, and the first show is right after the Superbowl in February. In other Blake news, some of the artists for the first Blake Shelton Cruise have been announced - get your berth reserved, because it's going to be a party. Trace Adkins, Easton Corbin and Neal McCoy will be on board and performing, and more artists will be announced soon. The cruise happens October 14-21, 2012 so you have time to save up.

The Shelby Corn Maze, featuring the likeness of Jason Aldean, opened this past weekend, and it's gained national attention because of the design. Jason is impressed, but feels a little bit strange about it: “It’s pretty good. But it’s a little weird, I’m gonna be honest with ya. I’d like to go walk around in my whiskers over there…or run up my nose.” The maze is open through the end of October, and becomes a haunted maze in two weeks.

Darryl Worley's Tennessee River Run was this past weekend, and even before all the events were over, they had raked in a record $120,000 for charity. Montgomery Gentry headlined the country concert on Saturday, so more money will flow in from this fun event.

What did the guys in Rascal Flatts give Justin Moore as an end-of-tour gift? A pretty snazzy pistol, and Justin's delighted, tweeting "Best end of tour gift ever!"

Happy birthday to Jeff Bates, who turns 48 today, and Trisha Yearwood, who is 47.

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride: "Loved @taylorswift13 in Nashville. Appreciated the"For the Girls"lyrics on her arm. It's a great big show! Beautifully done"

Today's Country Tidbits

A teacher in Knoxville, TN, knew that Keith Urban likes to read signs that audience members bring to the show. Patty Sloan had tickets to his show, so made up a sign that said, "I told my class no more homework for the rest of the year if I had my picture made with you." Keith loved the sign, and Patty's wish came true, as did the wishes of her 4th grade class. No more homework for the rest of the year for them. Patty said afterwards, "Thank God I'm tenured!"

Blake Shelton is on a roll, with #1 albums and songs coming easily in the last couple of years, a new marriage to a beautiful and talented woman, plus a role on a top tv show. That makes people talk about other dragons he could slay, and the rumors are out there that he's going to start his own record label. In response to that, Blake says, “I can’t even balance my checkbook. At least once a week, I’ll have an accountant call me and go, ‘hey, did your credit card get stolen? Are you okay?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, why?’ ‘Ahh you’re overdrawn you know, two-thousand dollars. It says here you bought a bunch of corn.’ ‘Oh yeah, I had to fill up my deer feeders—I’m broke?!’…I don’t really see myself in the executive position.”

We won't be seeing Dierks Bentley on "Celebrity Apprentice," apparently. After winning last year, John Rich suggested that Dierks would be a great contestant, but with a new tour and kids at home, Dierks is bowing out. “I did get the call, which I was totally flattered to get. It’s just for me, at this time, where I am, I just, I’m really happy. I have, like, the road and the show and the fans and the music and the songwriting and the making records. That stuff brings you so much joy and happiness…a family and everything that comes with that. I’m good. I don’t need anything more right now.”

Have you seen the video for Martina McBride's new song, "I'm Gonna Love You Through It?" It's star-studded, featuring Robin Roberts, Katie Couric, Hoda Kotb and Sheryl Crow, all women who've either fought their own battle with cancer or have a close connection to someone who has. The video is a message of hope to cancer patients and their loved ones.

Ronnie Dunn has lived some of the lyrics to his latest song, "Cost of Living." He grew up moving a lot, as his dad chased jobs to keep his family fed. According to Ronnie, “You know, I went to 13 schools in 12 years. My dad was always out of work. I can remember times when…just not knowing where the next meal was gonna come from. One of the comments that one of the executives made when I was getting’ ready to cut the song was, ‘Hey, you’re too rich to sell that song right now.’ And I just lost my mind.”

Congrats to Luke Bryan, as his "Tailgates & Tanlines" debuts at #1 on the Billboard Country Album chart this week, and at #2 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. The first single, "Country Girl (Shake it For Me)" has been certified platinum for more than a million downloads.

Onstage in London, Brad Paisley's show was well-received, especially when the legendary Ron Wood took the stage with him. He and Darius Rucker joined Brad for the encore, and the legendary Rolling Stone guitarist and Brad swapped hot licks (on their guitars, silly!)

The tweet of the day is from Josh Gracin: "I hate when mean snotty ugly people say "I need my beauty sleep".... B!%*h U need to Hibernate!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Tim McGraw wraps up his "Emotional Traffic" tour this weekend in Washington DC. Since April, he's been on the road with Luke Bryan and The Band Perry, hitting about 50 cities and playing to millions of fans. According to Tim, touring is what it's all about for him: “I don’t think any kid’s ever dreamed about being a rock star and dreamed about, you know, being in a studio singing the same song over and over for about three days. I think the impetus for doing what we do for a living and loving what we do is to be on stage in front of 20, 30-thousand people and slinging sweat, you know?” Saturday night is the last show of the tour, and Tim continues to be at loggerheads with his old record label over his "Emotional Traffic" project. Still no word on when or even if the tracks will be released.

When a major country music touring artist camps out for a weekend in a major city or two, they can play for a lot of people. Case in point - Brad Paisley was in Ohio and Detroit Lakes last weekend, playing a festival and an amphitheatre show. Along with Blake Shelton and Jerrod Niemann, he played for over 100,000 people in three days. Blake showed up on the Water World stage and joined Brett Edlredge on "Tulsa Time," surprising the crowd of several thousand in the pre-show fan zone.

US Magazine has put together a list of Hollywood's most eligible singles, and wouldn't you know it - Taylor Swift is on the list. The article does note that, since Taylor often uses exes as the subject matter for songs, "dating Swift can be a risky move."

Jason Aldean has been Lady Hazed by Lady Antebellum, with the help of Colt Ford, co-writer of "Dirt Road Anthem."

Gonna be in LA on September 13th? Then make plans to join Zac Brown, Sheryl Crow, Emmylou Harris and Vince Gill for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum's "All For The Hall" benefit guitar pull. Cocktails and dinner are included in the ticket price. Call 800-852-6437 for information and tickets.

Tim and Faith are planning a trip down under to play "CMC Rocks the Hunter 2012 Festival." It'll be the first time Faith has performed in Australia and the first time the two of them have performed together outside of North America.

After a couple of decades of dominance in the music business as half of Brooks & Dunn, how does Ronnie Dunn stay in touch with what's new in the world of music? He turns to his 16 year old daughter Haley. Says the proud Dad, “She’s all over the map. You know, I’m proud of her because I’ll go up to her room sometimes and I’ll say, ‘Play me what’s happenin’,’ you know something cool and stuff. And she listens to groups that are like under the radar at times like Randy Rogers and some of these younger, developing acts. She’s got a great taste in music. She kinda keeps me…keeps me current.”

Darius Rucker and actor/comedian Bill Murray are the team captains for "Slim Down the South Celebrity Softball Challenge" in Charleston, SC. Darius will head up the Piggly Wiggly team and Bill helms the Wells Fargo gang. The challenge happens on October first.

Up and coming country act The Dirt Drifters has a novel way to get their music out to their fans - they're giving away 30,000 copies of their new cd, "This is my Blood." Fans who attend their shows get two copies - one for themselves and one to give to a friend. Great way to double your fan base!

Watch Luke Bryan on the Today show this morning, and Trace Adkins on Piers Morgan's show tonight.

The tweet of the day is from John Rich: "You wanna WIN in this world? Show up early, stay late, out work and out think the competition. Simple."

Today's Country Tidbits

The Teen Choice Awards were last night, and Taylor Swift was up for six awards. She brought home five - she won the top award of the night, Ultimate Choice Award, and also took home surfboards for Female Artist, Female Country Artist, Country Single for "Mean," Break Up Song for "Back to December" and Red Carpet Fashion Icon. Jason Aldean won the Male Country Artist and Lady Antebellum won the Country Group surfboard. Taylor was the only country artist to appear in person at last night's award show.

Last week, Ronnie Dunn won several MillionAir awards, because his songs have been performed over 60 million times. Ronnie has an extensive catalog of songs he's written, and says his favorite of them all is "Neon Moon." He credits "Boot Scootin' Boogie" as the song that let him know he could write: “’Boot Scoot’ was kinda the first one that I would feel these little bumps out in the bars and beer joints in Oklahoma. And it wasn’t written as a line dance…at the time, I thought I was being a heavy lyricist, writing about the cowboy lifestyle.”

Wanna smell just like Keith Urban? You soon can, as the guitar hero is set to launch his first fragrance next month. Here's what we know about it - the name is Phoenix. Keith said he didn't want to name it after himself, putting men in the position of having to answer, "I'm wearing Keith Urban" when asked about their cologne. You can pre-order it now, if you can't wait until September.

Jake Owen's "Barefoot Blue Jean Night" has been certified gold for half a million digital downloads. About the tune, Jake says, “This song’s changing my life and it’s kind of ironic, because the song is true to my life. So, it’s kind of weird to say that a song is changing your life, although it seems very true to it. You know, running around Florida, barefoot, growing up, just really hit home to me. My life’s all about having fun and being with my friends and being on the water. It really, kind of, felt like home.”

Congratulations to the Oak Ridge Boys, who were inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday night. Little Jimmy Dickens did the honors, and a video featuring former President George Bush was part of the ceremony. President Bush remarked, "I think of the Opry and the Oaks both as American icons, beloved from coast to coast and known around the world. I can’t think of a better union. I love you boys, and my best to everyone at the Grand Ole Opry, one of my favorite places in America.”

Talking about the Opry, there are some great, road-trip-worthy shows coming up this month and next. Check out Clint Black on August 9th, Vince Gill and Martina McBride on August 13th, Charlie Daniels Band and Randy Houser on the 16th, Trace Adkins and Edens Edge on the 23rd, Rascal Flatts on September 6th and October 8th, and Alan Jackson with Jamey Johnson on the 13th.

Catch Eric Church on Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight.

Happy birthday to Mel Tillis, who is 79 today, and Mark Wills, who is 38.

The tweet of the day is from Josh Thompson: "Can't wait for the rotary cell phone. Should be epic."

Today's Country Tidbits

There's a bright spot in America's dreary economy - concert ticket sales. Because of tours, money is pouring into local economies, and country artists are definitely doing their part. Check out Pollstar's list of top country concerts and what they've generated in just the first half of this year:

#4 - Kenny Chesney - 446.7 million

#6 - Taylor Swift - 429.5 million

#15 - George Strait, Reba, Lee Ann Womack - $18.4 million

#27 - Brad Paisley - $11.9 million

#28 - Jason Aldean - $11.8 million

#33 - Sugarland - $10.1 million

#39 - Rascal Flatts - $9.2 million

#49 - Tim McGraw - $7.3 million

#50 - Zac Brown Band - $6.7 million

Jason Aldean was pitched a movie script about a month ago, and he says he's not ruling out acting, but he wants to ease into it, no leap into a big role right away. He says he wants to avoid kissing on-screen, though, because he doens't want his kids to see it and be confused. He's even careful about his music videos, though his creative people keep trying. According to Jason, “It seems like every time I get a video treatment, for some reason it's got me hooking up with some girl and I'm like, damn, y'all gotta get somebody else to do that.”

Fans turned out to see Luke Bryan at the Grand Ole Opry last night for a benefit concert. Parts of the show will be on an upcoming episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live" so fans who couldn't be in Nashville can see the show, too. One of Luke's biggest fans is his little son, Bo, who is three. The proud daddy says Bo is into all sorts of things. “Well, he’s kinda—he’s obsessed with baseball, playing drums, fishing, …the ‘Country Girl Shake It For Me’ video. He’s kinda everywhere, you know? He’s kinda stubborn like his dad. But he’s kinda comin’ in to his own and gettin’ his own little personality, and its fun watching your kids become little people, you know?”

If you are a musician, it could be time for a road trip to Nashville this Saturday. For the second time in the history of the National Association of Music Merchants trade show, the doors will be open to the general public to see the latest musical gear before it hits retail shelves. The "Wanna Play Music Day" will feature vendors with hundreds of new products, live performances, demos, workshops and autograph signings.

Ronnie Dunn's new song, "Cost of Living," had to undergo a re-write before it could be part of his debut solo cd. When it was being written, gas was "two dollars and change." By the time they went into the studio to record it, gas was over $3 a gallon, necessitating a lyric change. Ronnie says that, for everyone's sake, he hopes there doesn't have to be another revision down the road.

Check out Lady Antebellum's sneak peek at the recording of "Own the Night."

Brantley Gilbert has a surprise for the children of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in the next 24 hours. I'm not spilling the beans, but will tell you all about it once the kids know.

Congrats to Blake Shelton, who has the #1 album, all genres, this week with "Red River Blue." The cd moved more than 116,000 copies, nearly a third of which were digital copies.

Happy birthday to Paul Brandt, who turns 39 today and to Brad Mates of Emerson Drive, who is 33.

The tweet of the day is from Eddie Montgomery of Mongomery Gentry: "Wow what a day house is empty but I'm smiling like a 2 dollar bill in a strip joint!!!!! HELLYEAH !!!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Dierks Bentley has two daughters, Evie, who's 2 and a half and Jordan, who's six months old. Of Evie, Dierks says, “When I was growing up, my exposure to country music was my dad listening to the radio in the car. I mean, my daughter’s exposure to music in general is just crazy, it’s all around. So, she loves it and I’m not trying to turn her into my 401k package you know, down the road. But, if she wanted to get into the business, I’d support her.” Gotta keep an eye on that little one - she's bound to be a prodigy.

Can't see the whole thing yet, but here are clips from the video for the Zac Brown Band & Jimmy Buffett song, "Knee Deep."

Blake Shelton had to hurry up and produce the album that went with his new single, "Honey Bee" when that song started racing up the charts. Blake knew he had a good song on his hands but never expected it to be as hot as it was. In the midst of taping "The Voice" he and his band had to hit the studios to produce the rest of the album, which comes out July 12th. "Honey Bee" is the fastest-selling digital single by a country male artist to hit gold status. The cd, "Red River Blue," comes out July 12th and here's the track list:

1. “Honey Bee”

2. “Ready To Roll”

3. “God Gave Me You”

4. “Get Some”

5. “Drink On It”

6. “Good Ol' Boys”

7. “I'm Sorry”

8. “Sunny In Seattle”

9. “Over”

10. “Hey”

11. “Red River Blue”

We see a lot of Carrie Underwood's Mom, but what about her dad? Says Carrie, “My dad is the kind of person that most likely, he’ll never look at me and my sisters and say ‘Hey, I’m proud of you,’ or ‘you’re doing a great job’ or anything like that. But I catch him watching things he’s taped of me on TV. You know, that means a lot. And I’d meet co-workers of his that used to work with him, and they’ll say, ‘Your dad has pictures of you all over his desk—like, proud to the world!”

Carrie Underwood earned a platinum single for "Last Name," and Taylor Swift is already at gold with "Mean."

Brad Paisley will be part of the New York City July 4th celebration. He'll perform on NBC's Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular.

Martina McBride, Darius Rucker and Lady Antebellum all taped performances at the Grand Ole Opry last week that will be used on the Labor Day MDA Telethon.

Congratulations to Ronnie Dunn, who debuted at #1 on the country album sales charts with his self-titled album. He sold over 45,000 units in the first week.

Happy birthday to Billy "Crash" Craddock, who turns 72 today.

The tweet of the day is from David Nail: "Who love 6am flights? Me me meeeeeeee! I admire folks who work this early, you all should be paid double!"

Today's Country Tidbits

Trace Adkins' trip to Nashville to check on his family after fire gutted their home is a short one. He'll head back to Alaska tomorrow, where he'll do his concert in Anchorage, then fly back to Nashville for the CMA Music Festival. Can you say "jet lag?"

The Grand Ole Opry is celebrating CMA Music Festival week online, so those of us who aren't in Nashville for the fun can still play along. Like the Opry Facebook page? You can win the chance to meet Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina. Follow the Opry on Twitter? You could be part of Crystal Bowersox's audience, and also win meet & greets with Opry members. And of course there's an app for that - follow the fun no matter where you are with the Opry's CMAfest app, or check out the online updates.

There's an online charity auction supporting the Bama Rising tornado relief efforts. An autographed Sugarland guitar, concert packages from Martina McBride and Alan Jackson and lots more great items are up for bid.

Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert are in LA digs while Blake wraps up The Voice. According to Blake, “We just rented a house out there and I’m gonna be living in L.A. for a month doing this show which should be a lot of fun, interesting. Probably p**s some people off when they catch me in the yard shooting pigeons and squirrels and stuff cause I know there’s a lot of tree huggers out there.” He's been tweeting about his experiences on the left coast:

"Ba! Ha! Just walked into a karaoke bar called Dimples in LA... me and #teamblake are about to blow the roof off this place!!!”

“How in the hell did I end up living in L.A. for a month?!!!!”

"This ain't no disco.. Ain't no club either.. This is LA.”

If you watch HLN's "Morning Express with Robin Meade" then you know she's beautiful and smart. She's also a talented singer and a huge country music fan, and is releasing her first country project on June 21st at Target and iTunes.

Brad Paisley's H2O II: Wetter and Wilder tour kicked off this past weekend with two shows, one in Virginia Beach and one in Hartford, Connecticut. Over 35,000 people showed up for the 7-hour-long party which featured two stages, an interactive Water World Plaza and performances from Brad, Blake Shelton, Jerrod Niemann, Brett Eldredge, Sunny Sweeny and Eden's Edge.

Brad Paisley is the king of one chart while Keith Urban is the king of the other. Brad's "Old Alabama" is #1 on the Billboard chart and Keith's "Without You" is #1 on the Country Aircheck/Mediabase chart.

Taylor Swift is the cover girl and featured article in this week's USA Weekend.

Ronnie Dunn is on The View today and Blake Shelton's on The Voice tonight.

Ronnie Dunn's self-titled solo debut is out today. It includes the hit, "Bleed Red." Randy Travis "Anniversary Celebration" duets CD is out today and it includes songs with Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley, Don Henley, Alan Jackson, Tim McGraw, Willie Nelson, Zac Brown Band and George Jones.

The tweet of the day is from Miranda Lambert: "Favorite things Ashton Shepard said..... "if I wasn't pregnant I would haul off an get DRUNK" hahaha"

Today's Country Tidbits

More details are coming out about this summer's "Flatts Fest" tour with Rascal Flatts, Sara Evans, Easton Corbin and Justin Moore. The tour hits 23 cities between June 18th and September 18th, and the pre-show festivities will be almost as much fun as the show. There'll be a Karaoke challenge, and the top prize is the chance to open for Rascal Flatts in 2012. There'll be a "Why Wait" chapel where one person at each show gets the chance to renew their vows, get engaged or get married before the show. There'll also be a scavenger hunt using cell phones and the Flatts Fest wi-fi hot spot. Check in, then look for the scavenger hunt signs, scan the QR code and have chances to spin the prize wheel for prizes like meet & greets, autographed guitars and birthday phone calls from Rascal Flatts. But wait, as they say on the cheesy late-night tv commercials, there's more! There's also the Flatts Fest Fan Zone, complete with life-size cut-outs of the band you can take pictures with, a Rascal Flatts museum and the Ask Flatts corner, where fans get videoed asking questions of the band. Some questions will make it to the big screen and be answered onstage. Here's where Flatts Fest lands this summer:

6-18 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live

6-19 Virginia Beach, VA Farm Bureau Live at Virginia Beach

6-25 Chicago, IL First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre

6-26 Maryland Heights, MO Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

7-8 Cuyahoga Falls, OH Blossom Music Center

7-9 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank Center

7-22 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center

7-23 Noblesville, IN Verizon Wireless Music Center

7-28 Atlanta, GA Lakewood

7-29 Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

7-30 Raleigh, NC TWC Music Pavilion

8-4 Detroit, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre

8-11 Hartford, CT Comcast Theatre

8-12 Darien Lake, NY Darien Lakes PAC

8-19 Tampa, FL 1-800-ASK-GARY Amphitheatre

8-20 West Palm Beach, FL Cruzan Amphitheatre Park

9-9 Salt Lake City, UT USANA Amphitheatre

9-10 Denver, CO Comfort Dental Amphitheatre

9-11 Albuquerque, NM HardRock Casino Albuquerque Presents The Pavilion

9-15 Sacramento, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre

9-16 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre

9-17 San Bernardino, CA San Manuel Amphitheatre

9-18 San Diego, CA Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre

Brad Paisley kicks off his H2O II: Wetter & Wilder World Tour tonight in Virginia Beach. Blake Shelton and Jerrod Niemann are along for the ride. His Water World Plaza includes concerts from Edens Edge, Sunny Sweeney, Brett Eldredge and the JaneDear Girls, a fishing simulator, dunking booth, slip 'n slide and other water fun. Brad is an inveterate prankster and years ago, he pulled a stinky prank on Blake Shelton. According to Brad, “I went on his bus and said, ‘How ya doin’?’ He said, ‘Good.’ I just went over there to see him. And while I was standing there, I had an air freshener, one of those stick-up air fresheners, and stuck it, twisted it open. We’d replaced the contents with raw chicken…as opposed to an air freshener…I feel bad about that now…but I’m ready. I’m preparing.” He says he's spent $200 preparing a prank for Blake while they're on tour this summer. Meanwhile, if you want to check out Brad Paisley's informal in-concert, WalMart has a new sound check available for viewing.

This fall, Luke Bryan headlines the 10th annual "CMT on Tour." The "Tailgates & Tanlines" shows will also include Lee Bryce and Josh Thompson on the 25-show series.

Taylor Swift is a huge success, which makes it easy for people to take pot-shots at her, thinking that she got where she is because of luck or connections. According to Taylor, those people don't have it quite right. “I honestly was raised never, never to expect that you are entitled to success. So you work an extra mile. That‘s why I learned guitar. ‘Cause I was like, ‘You know what, there‘s no guarantee that I will make it, there‘s not even half a guarantee that I will make it. I‘ve got to learn things that make me different, and I‘ve gotta learn things that make me more interesting’.” Her success is proof to the adage, "the harder you work, the luckier you are!"

Could there be an Alabama reunion tour in the works? Maybe - Jeff Cook is quoted on Bradenton.com, saying that the band is talking about the possibility of doing 20 shows next year, and that it never felt right for a band named Alabama to end their career in North Dakota. Their last concert was there in 2004. Jeff goes on to say that if they do reunite for a tour, there'll be new music and maybe even a new album.

American Idol winner Scotty McCreery and runner-up Lauren Alaina will stand in the circle next week during the CMA Music Festival. They'll both perform on the Grand Ole Opry Friday June 10th. Also on stage that night are Randy Travis and Billy Ray Cyrus. You can be there, too, if you'd like. They'll be up bright and early for the City of Hope Celebrity Softball Challenge on Saturday.

Joe Nichols and Roper Apparel and Footwear have inked a long-term endorsement deal. Joe looks good in Roper anything.

Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina were on the Today show yesterday, where they talked about having the support of their Moms, relationship rumors and they duetted on Randy Travis' chestnut, "I Told You So." Check it out...

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Thompson Square is on Fox & Friends, Ronnie Dunn is on Entertainment Tonight, Ray Stevens is on Freedom Watch on FOX, and Kenny Chesney is the focus of a special on CMT.

Happy birthday to Too Slim of Riders in the Sky.

The tweet of the day is from Blake Shelton: "I'm so hung over right now I just brewed a fresh pot of Copenhagen..."

Today's Country Tidbits

The 8th Annual Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic raised more than $650,000 to support the construction of the OK Kids Corral for pediatric cancer patients at the Oklahoma University Medical Center Children's Hospital. Top auction items were the private dinner with Toby, which went for $52,000 to the top two bidders and an elk hunt with private jet transportation. Nothing went for less than $7,000 which is a new record for this event. You can still donate, if you'd like.

Sugarland and Little Big Town have teamed up to raise money for tornado relief, using the song "Stand Up" and iTunes as the vehicles. Grab the song and all proceeds go to the American Red Cross.

Rodney Atkins is headlining the free Music City Gives Back benefit concert on June 7th, with the proceeds going to tornado relief through the American Red Cross. How will they make any money with a free concert? Oh, you can help now.

As part of next week's CMA Festival, Country Weekly is hosting their 5th annual Fashion Show and Concert. Rocketown is the location, and participants include Steel Magnolia, Bucky Covington, Ty Herndon, Sarah Darling, Burns & Poe, Joey+Rory and more.

Little Big Town is in the studio, working on a Christmas cd.

Congrats to Brad Paisley, who holds the top spot on the country singles chart with "Old Alabama" again this week.

It was on this day in 1999 that a star was born - or anyway, his career was. Brad Paisley's first album, "Who Needs Pictures," was released on the Arista label.

Lauren Alaina is on Live with Regis and Kelly today.

Happy birthday to Ronnie Dunn, who turns 58 today, to Andy Griffith, who turns 85 and to Pat Boone, who is 77.

The tweet of the day is from Dolly Parton:

"I think that all creative people are a little bit nuts." -Dolly :)

Today's Country Tidbits

Donations are still being collected for the tornado victims by the American Red Cross, who benefited from the "Music Builds: The CMT Disaster Relief Concert" on Thursday night. The show will re-air tomorrow night on HLN, and you can see the performances here right now.

Today's Country Tidbits

One year after the Nashville floods, Nashville's stars are making noises about a benefit concert for those affected by the tornado outbreak in the southeast last week. So far, Brad Paisley and Dierks Bentley are in. No announced date or location, but I'll keep you posted!

Tonight's the night that Lady Antebellum is on American Idol, performing their new song "Just A Kiss." Here's the story of how the song came to be...

Lady Antebellum on WhoSay

Ronnie Dunn's next single will be "Love Owes Me One." Here's the video...

Luke Bryan is on the "Emotional Traffic Tour" and is blown away that he gets to tour with his idol, Tim McGraw. But he's even more blown away that Faith Hill knows who he is. According to Luke, “To be out there on tour, and to be walking around backstage, and you’re like, ‘Hey, Faith!’ and she’s like, ‘Hey Luke!’ And I’m like, it’s just so weird, you know? It’s like, the fact—the day that walking by and saying ‘What’s up?’ to Faith is comfortable to me, it’s like ‘…how did I get here?!’”

Steve Holy performed an intimate little show in Kansas City on Tuesday, and posted an acoustic "Brand New Girlfriend" from the show.

The Rapids Jam Throwdown Hold 'Em Benefit Poker Tournament is the start of the three-day weekend of country music and fun in Roanoke Rapids, NC on June 16th. Playing poker and country music are Lee Brice, Craig Campbell, Brantley Gilbert, Randy Houser, Lukas Nelson and Drake White. If you sign up to play poker, too, you'll get a VIP pass to the opening night of the festival and a barbeque lunch with the artists. There'll be live and silent auctions and the proceeds benefit Unite the United Foundation and MusiCares Foundation.

The Grand Ole Opry is teaming up with Gibson Guitars to give you the ultimate country music tour of Nashville, plus a Gibson Les Paul Standard guitar. You can enter once a day this month for a trip for four to Nashville, a long weekend at the Gaylord Opryland Resort, use of the Gibson tour bus to get around town, tickets and backstage passes to the Grand Ole Opry, tours of the Ryman, Gibson USA factory, the Country Music Hall of Fame and lots more.

If you're a fan of the Chicken Soup books, be on the lookout for the newest one - "Chicken Soup for the Soul: Country Music." In it, you'll find the stories behind some of your favorite country songs, as told by the songwriters.

Sunday is Mother's Day, and Taylor Swift has a card for that. Actually, there are 18 Taylor-designed Mother's Day cards in the American Greetings line. She also might like the Taylor Swift prize package being offered up on Mother's Day. Check out The Best Day sweepstakes on American Greetings' Facebook page.

Lady Antebellum is on American Idol tonight.

The tweet of the day is from Trent Tomlinson: "I fell asleep on the couch last night at around nine and just woke up! WOW I better just go workout or something till the world wakes up!"

Today's Country Tidbits

May of 2010 is one of Nashville's darkest moments in history. That's when the devastating floods hit the area, wiping out homes, businesses and the industry that fuels the city's economy - tourism. But you can't keep a good city down, so the Grand Ole Opry will mark the anniversary of the flood with a huge celebration. "Party On, Nashville!" is set for Tuesday May third at the Opry House, and at this point the scheduled performers include Brad Paisley, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan and the Charlie Daniels Band. You know that between now and a week from tonight, even more of Nashville's stars will sign on to the party. If you'd like to go, tickets are available. If you'd like to support Hands On Nashville, the American Red Cross or United Way of Metropolitan Nashville, buy your tickets through your favorite charity and $10 of the ticket price will go to them.

Tomorrow is the day we find out all of the nominees for the 2011 CMT Music Awards during the third hour of the Today Show on NBC. The Band Perry will perform during that hour, singing their new single, "You Lie." These are fan-voted awards, and the voting starts as soon as the nominees are announced. One category has been revealed already - Breakthrough Video of the Year, and here are the nominees:

Lee Brice - "Love Like Crazy"

Aaron Lewis - "Country Boy"

Jerrod Niemann - "Lover, Lover"

The Band Perry - "If I Die Young"

Thompson Square - "Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not"

With "Honey Bee" rocketing up the charts at a record pace, (pardon the pun!) Blake Shelton has had a change in plans. He wasn't going to release a new cd until fall of this year, but the momentum of the first single has moved that time frame up to July 12th. That means Blake has some work to do, as the album isn't finished yet. He and his guys are in the studio this week, working on the untitled album. Better get it done quick - he and Miranda are tying the knot in a couple of weeks!

Breaking with tradition, Brad Paisley's next cd, "This is Country Music," will street on a Monday instead of a Tuesday. The album now goes on sale Monday, May 23rd.

Ronnie Dunn's first ever solo album is a self-titled one, due out June 7 but available for pre-order now. And Ronnie's doing something new to country music, to coincide with the release of the physical cd. Says Ronnie, "I am producing a series of videos to go with the majority of the songs. So far, I have finished five." You can see a "behind the scenes" video now.

Uncle Kracker loves mash-ups, so he sort of did one of his own, melding "Good to be Me" with "All Summer Long."

There are good fans, great fans and super fans. One of Reba's super fans, Wanda Couturier, got to meet her idol last week. Why? Because super fan Wanda has been to more than 100 of Reba's show, seeing 33 in just one year. She also broke the Today show record for standing in line the longest to see a star. Now, that's a fan!

Toby Keith has returned to the states after his 9th USO tour. He loves performing for the troops and spending time with America's heroes, and loves sending back photos.

Jo Dee Messina has donated a song to help build a school, and the songwriter, Jared Anderson, is kicking in his share of the royalties, too. "Carry On" is available for a $1 donation to "A Million Doors," an organization raising money to build a new school for Nashville's Holy Trinity Montessori. The goal is to raise $2.3 million, so text all your friends and all of you go get this song.

In an interview on Taste of Country, Darius Rucker was asked who he would love to trade places with for one day. His answer, "Let’s see … Miranda Lambert. That way I could see how it feels to be that cool!" Miranda, did you know Darius was such a big fan?

Congratulations to Kenny Chesney, who has earned his 22nd number 1 song with "Live a Little." It's the third #1 from "Hemingway's Whiskey."

Tonight is the premier of the new singing competition show, "The Voice," which finds Blake Shelton as a coach on a show, looking for America's best voice. The other coaches are Cee Lo Green, Christina Aguilera and Adam Levine, and their job is to each pick a singing team based on sound, not looks. It's on NBC at 9pm Eastern.

Happy birthday to Jay DeMarcus of Rascal Flatts, who turns 40 today. And happy anniversary to Joe Don Rooney of Rascal Flatts. He and wife Tiffany Fallon were wed on this day in 2006.

The tweet of the day is from Brad Paisley: "Hey @martinamcbride, your new song is so fantastic. It sounds classic and current and real and catchy, and it makes me so glad I have boys."