Brad Paisley is gallivanting around in Europe this week, playing shows in Sweden, Norway and Ireland. But as he says in the song “Southern Comfort Zone,” there’s no place like home: “There’s this circle of wood at the Opry, and it’s back here in Tennessee where everything is as I remember it. And everything is…it’s just…it’s the Shire in Lord of the Rings, it’s the place that’s this beautiful, ideal place to live, which I appreciate more now after having seen the world.”
When Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney toured together this past summer, what was their favorite part of the shows? Kenny starts the reminiscence: “It’s just special, you know, it was special for me, it was special for Tim. I think it was special for the fans to get to see us. To get to sing this song together every night and you know that’s something that doesn’t happen every day in this business and we were very excited to do it and this is just icing on the cake, really. [Tim] For me, it was seeing Kenny naked on those videos during the show.” Hey, Tim – that was “shirtless,” not naked!!
Taylor Swift has the #1 album in the country again this week with “Red.” It sits atop the Billboard Country chart and the Billboard 200 chart. As is her custom, Taylor either wrote or co-wrote every song on the album, and one of her collaborators is long-time writing buddy, Liz Rose. Taylor says, “It was really cool to get back with her, and tell her what was going on in my life and to just kind of walk her through this experience I had. We wrote a song called ‘All Too Well’ which is basically the story of a relationship from beginning to the ending. It’s pretty sad actually.” When the two sat down, Taylor had the song written, but it was over ten minutes long.
Luke Bryan has the #1 country song in America again this week, but if you ask him about other songs, he’ll dish. Favorite make-out song for him and Caroline? “Can’t Get You Off My Mind” by Lenny Kravitz. Favorite Karaoke song? Lionel Richie’s “All Night Long.” The song he wishes he’d recorded? Blake Shelton’s “Who Are You When I’m Not Looking?” About his #1 song, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye,” co-written by Luke, Jeff Stevens and Shane McAnally, Luke says, “I think the chorus of that thing is some of the best writing that I’ve ever been a part of and I love the simplicity of the verses…I just love ‘Girl, rest your head.’ I love all that -- the melodies and all that through the song.” “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye” is Luke’s sixth #1 song, and the third from “Tailgates & Tanlines.”
We know what the guys in Zac Brown Band will be doing this holiday season – resting! They blocked out their calendars for some serious family time, but they won’t be resting long. By March, they’ll have new music written, a new touring rig and the production mapped out for their 2013 tour.
Sunday, Jo Dee Messina is running 13.1 miles at the Rock n’ Roll San Antonio Marathon & ½ Marathon. Not content to just run, she’s playing the post-race show at the Alamodome.
Tracy Byrd is frying up turkeys again this year. His 7th Annual Mission Possible Turkey Fry happens Tuesday, November 20th at the Nashville Rescue Mission. He and his cohorts will fry 500 birds, providing meals for the homeless and unemployed. It’s open to the public, so go pitch in if you’d like. Donations are appreciated.
Showing posts with label Tim McGraw. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tim McGraw. Show all posts
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Blake Shelton understands that his work on The Voice helped him win the CMA Entertainer of the Year award, but he’s still a bit star-struck to have won: “It’s just making me go, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m starting to become one of those guys that I’ve read about, I’ve studied and I’ve understood and worshiped. What do I do with this?’ And it’s very important to me with what I do with this. That’s why a vehicle like The Voice is such a big deal.”
Little Big Town knows exactly why they won their first two CMA Awards last week – it’s the fans: “If we all knew the recipe for what makes that kind of big smash hit – then we would do it over and over again and we wouldn’t have waited 13 years! (Laughs) But I think just timing and the fans you know, you pick the right song at the right time and bam all the stars start lining up. But the fans, they gotta grab on to it, and they made it their song this summer.”
Their debut album went platinum for over a million in sales, and The Band Perry is poised to release their sophomore album early in 2013. The first single, “Better Dig Two,” hit #1 on iTunes as soon as it was released, and shows the dark side of love, but according to Kimberly Perry, it’s a love song! “It is truly that love story—and the cycle of life and love and living with the person that you care more about than anything in the world.” Including breathing, apparently!
Thompson Square is working on their next album, too, and say they’ve grown a lot since their debut album came out: “We learned a lot from radio, we learned a lot from our fans and just from all the shows we’ve been playing. We wanted to say something a little bit different on this album – it’s a little more diverse. It shows growth from the writing standpoint, performing and even production.” Expect their next album sometime in the spring.
Looks like Reba may have another hit on her hands, and it’s not a song. “Malibu Country” attracted nearly 9 million viewers last Friday night for the premier episode, and Reba says the end product was a labor of love: “Putting it all together, working hard on it, making sure every script, every concept of the TV show is meaningful—it’s a lot of work! I was in auditioning almost all the characters, but other than that it’s a lot of fun. It’s a job I love to do.” Catch Reba and Lily Tomlin tomorrow night at 8:30 on ABC.
The Civil Wars are apparently living up to their band name. The Grammy-winning duo of Joy Williams and John Paul White abruptly cancelled their tour right in the middle of the European leg, citing “internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition.” They have a new album due out in early 2013, but according to the announcement, they are “unable to continue as a touring entity at this time.” They won the Grammy for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Barton Hollow” and were nominated in the Vocal Duo category at last week’s CMA Awards.
Taylor Swift is the featured artist on CBS.com this week – check out her performance and audience Q&A..
Tim McGraw’s new song “One of Those Nights” has a lyric video out, taped at the performance he did the night before the CMA Awards. See if you can recognize any faces…
Carrie Underwood is on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight, performing “Blown Away.”
Little Big Town knows exactly why they won their first two CMA Awards last week – it’s the fans: “If we all knew the recipe for what makes that kind of big smash hit – then we would do it over and over again and we wouldn’t have waited 13 years! (Laughs) But I think just timing and the fans you know, you pick the right song at the right time and bam all the stars start lining up. But the fans, they gotta grab on to it, and they made it their song this summer.”
Their debut album went platinum for over a million in sales, and The Band Perry is poised to release their sophomore album early in 2013. The first single, “Better Dig Two,” hit #1 on iTunes as soon as it was released, and shows the dark side of love, but according to Kimberly Perry, it’s a love song! “It is truly that love story—and the cycle of life and love and living with the person that you care more about than anything in the world.” Including breathing, apparently!
Thompson Square is working on their next album, too, and say they’ve grown a lot since their debut album came out: “We learned a lot from radio, we learned a lot from our fans and just from all the shows we’ve been playing. We wanted to say something a little bit different on this album – it’s a little more diverse. It shows growth from the writing standpoint, performing and even production.” Expect their next album sometime in the spring.
Looks like Reba may have another hit on her hands, and it’s not a song. “Malibu Country” attracted nearly 9 million viewers last Friday night for the premier episode, and Reba says the end product was a labor of love: “Putting it all together, working hard on it, making sure every script, every concept of the TV show is meaningful—it’s a lot of work! I was in auditioning almost all the characters, but other than that it’s a lot of fun. It’s a job I love to do.” Catch Reba and Lily Tomlin tomorrow night at 8:30 on ABC.
The Civil Wars are apparently living up to their band name. The Grammy-winning duo of Joy Williams and John Paul White abruptly cancelled their tour right in the middle of the European leg, citing “internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition.” They have a new album due out in early 2013, but according to the announcement, they are “unable to continue as a touring entity at this time.” They won the Grammy for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Barton Hollow” and were nominated in the Vocal Duo category at last week’s CMA Awards.
Taylor Swift is the featured artist on CBS.com this week – check out her performance and audience Q&A..
Tim McGraw’s new song “One of Those Nights” has a lyric video out, taped at the performance he did the night before the CMA Awards. See if you can recognize any faces…
Carrie Underwood is on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight, performing “Blown Away.”
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Oh, to have been in this Nashville bar – Tim McGraw played a show in Nashville before the CMA Awards last week, warming up his band and working out some of his new songs. How did it feel? According to Tim, “Anytime you get to play new music, it energizes you. And playing new stuff, and knowing I’ve got an album coming and knowing it’s sort of a new day in my career, I was really energized.”
Little Big Town is delighted to have their first CMA wins in their decade-long career, and think that the success of “Pontoon” might lie in the mystery in the lyrics: “Who would’ve thought that ‘Motorboatin’’ would be up for Single of the Year, you know? But that’s how big an impact, I guess, it’s had with the fans and with people. People want to have a good time.” Ok, so if that’s the case, then their follow-up single, “Tornado,” should be a success because – people want to have a bad time? “It’s so much fun to sing, I mean the writers—they’re the ones that—they paint the picture of ‘thought you’d change the weather, start a little storm, make a little rain, I’m gonna do one better, hide the sun until you pray [laugh]—I’m a tornado’. I’m that kinda sets the whole scene of what’s to come.” Yeah, you don’t want to get on the bad side of that storm!
A little news broke on the red carpet last week – Jake Owen and his wife Lacey will name their daughter Pearl, after his Godmother, who passed away in July. Jake already has her name tattooed on his left wrist. Pearl should make her debut sometime this month.
Hunter Hayes is psyched to be Carrie Underwood’s opening act on the second leg of her “Blown Away” tour. He had a great time on the first leg, saying, “The crowds have been really cool. They’re showing up early. You know, and as an opening act it means a lot. And it’s really cool to be like direct support, you know, be right in front of Carrie and to get that slot and for her to say that I’m sort of worthy of that slot...it’s awesome and it’s really cool for her to say, ‘Hey, come back out next year! We’re doing some more.’” Probably didn’t hurt for him to win New Artist of the Year at the CMAs last week, with Carrie hosting!
You can’t see it until this weekend, but Eli Young Band went in a very different direction for the “Say Goodnight” video. “For the video, we could have very easily gone in more of a romantic love story kind of direction, but we chose to go science fiction with it. It’s pretty much the exact opposite of what you think it would be when you’re listening to the song.” Why science fiction? Oh, heck – why not? CMT will air it this weekend.
Kellie Pickler has a bone to pick with the media – Summer, the woman with breast cancer that Kellie shaved her head to support, is more than a friend: “It’s so weird for people to call her my best friend, because she’s not my best friend – she’s my sister. We’ve never referred to each other as friends – ever. She’s always been my sister Summer. So it is weird. She actually brought that up to me and goes, ‘It’s so weird to see headlines and people say were best friends because I feel like that’s an understatement.”
Little Big Town is delighted to have their first CMA wins in their decade-long career, and think that the success of “Pontoon” might lie in the mystery in the lyrics: “Who would’ve thought that ‘Motorboatin’’ would be up for Single of the Year, you know? But that’s how big an impact, I guess, it’s had with the fans and with people. People want to have a good time.” Ok, so if that’s the case, then their follow-up single, “Tornado,” should be a success because – people want to have a bad time? “It’s so much fun to sing, I mean the writers—they’re the ones that—they paint the picture of ‘thought you’d change the weather, start a little storm, make a little rain, I’m gonna do one better, hide the sun until you pray [laugh]—I’m a tornado’. I’m that kinda sets the whole scene of what’s to come.” Yeah, you don’t want to get on the bad side of that storm!
A little news broke on the red carpet last week – Jake Owen and his wife Lacey will name their daughter Pearl, after his Godmother, who passed away in July. Jake already has her name tattooed on his left wrist. Pearl should make her debut sometime this month.
Hunter Hayes is psyched to be Carrie Underwood’s opening act on the second leg of her “Blown Away” tour. He had a great time on the first leg, saying, “The crowds have been really cool. They’re showing up early. You know, and as an opening act it means a lot. And it’s really cool to be like direct support, you know, be right in front of Carrie and to get that slot and for her to say that I’m sort of worthy of that slot...it’s awesome and it’s really cool for her to say, ‘Hey, come back out next year! We’re doing some more.’” Probably didn’t hurt for him to win New Artist of the Year at the CMAs last week, with Carrie hosting!
You can’t see it until this weekend, but Eli Young Band went in a very different direction for the “Say Goodnight” video. “For the video, we could have very easily gone in more of a romantic love story kind of direction, but we chose to go science fiction with it. It’s pretty much the exact opposite of what you think it would be when you’re listening to the song.” Why science fiction? Oh, heck – why not? CMT will air it this weekend.
Kellie Pickler has a bone to pick with the media – Summer, the woman with breast cancer that Kellie shaved her head to support, is more than a friend: “It’s so weird for people to call her my best friend, because she’s not my best friend – she’s my sister. We’ve never referred to each other as friends – ever. She’s always been my sister Summer. So it is weird. She actually brought that up to me and goes, ‘It’s so weird to see headlines and people say were best friends because I feel like that’s an understatement.”
Monday, November 5, 2012
Jason Aldean sold out two more stadium shows on Friday, after selling out Fenway Park in Boston in a record 7 minutes. The second Fenway Park show and the show at Athens, GA’s Sanford Stadium were both sell-outs in under an hour on Friday. Jason says it’s a testament to how hard his band and crew work, plus the loyalty and passion of country music fans.
The post-CMA parties in Nashville have ended, and the winners are probably still staring at their trophies in amazement. Here’s what a few of them had to say about their wins:
Blake Shelton, on winning Entertainer of the Year: “I didn’t think about that tonight. I was thinking well...there’s Taylor Swift right there. I mean, really? This is pretty dumb that there’s anybody else even nominated, you know? So, I didn’t even really think about it.”
Miranda Lambert, on being named Female Vocalist of the Year: “You know, I’m one of those girls right now that’s on top and I’m so thankful to be able to be the reigning vocalist three times in a row and be standing here but I know it’s gonna be time to pass that trophy on to the next and I hope there’s enough females to put into that category and there’s some great talent out there and we’re gonna accept it. I kicked the door open and I’m gonna hold my leg in there! I’m gonna keep the door open for all these amazing female singer-songwriters.”
Eric Church, on “Chief” after winning Album of the Year: “We didn’t plan it. We didn’t talk about it. There’s as much unrehearsed magic on the record as we’ve ever had.”
Karen Fairchild of Little Big Town, after winning Vocal Group of the Year and Single of the Year: “We just really always kept showing up and believing and dreaming and working really hard and it happened! It’s happened for us. You never know what’s around the corner.”
Country music won big last Thursday night, as the CMA Awards show was the most-watched show during it’s time slot. Nearly 14 million viewers watched, making it ABC’s best ratings of any show this season.
Tim McGraw releases his new album, “Two Lanes of Freedom,” on February 5th. It includes the song he performed at the CMA’s, “One Of Those Nights.”
You’ll soon see Miranda Lambert sporting a milk mustache in the latest flight of the “Got Milk?” ad campaign. How does she manage to look sulky and sultry at the same time?
Blake Shelton is on The Voice tonight and Jerrod Niemann is on Marie! on the Hallmark Channel.
The post-CMA parties in Nashville have ended, and the winners are probably still staring at their trophies in amazement. Here’s what a few of them had to say about their wins:
Blake Shelton, on winning Entertainer of the Year: “I didn’t think about that tonight. I was thinking well...there’s Taylor Swift right there. I mean, really? This is pretty dumb that there’s anybody else even nominated, you know? So, I didn’t even really think about it.”
Miranda Lambert, on being named Female Vocalist of the Year: “You know, I’m one of those girls right now that’s on top and I’m so thankful to be able to be the reigning vocalist three times in a row and be standing here but I know it’s gonna be time to pass that trophy on to the next and I hope there’s enough females to put into that category and there’s some great talent out there and we’re gonna accept it. I kicked the door open and I’m gonna hold my leg in there! I’m gonna keep the door open for all these amazing female singer-songwriters.”
Eric Church, on “Chief” after winning Album of the Year: “We didn’t plan it. We didn’t talk about it. There’s as much unrehearsed magic on the record as we’ve ever had.”
Karen Fairchild of Little Big Town, after winning Vocal Group of the Year and Single of the Year: “We just really always kept showing up and believing and dreaming and working really hard and it happened! It’s happened for us. You never know what’s around the corner.”
Country music won big last Thursday night, as the CMA Awards show was the most-watched show during it’s time slot. Nearly 14 million viewers watched, making it ABC’s best ratings of any show this season.
Tim McGraw releases his new album, “Two Lanes of Freedom,” on February 5th. It includes the song he performed at the CMA’s, “One Of Those Nights.”
You’ll soon see Miranda Lambert sporting a milk mustache in the latest flight of the “Got Milk?” ad campaign. How does she manage to look sulky and sultry at the same time?
Blake Shelton is on The Voice tonight and Jerrod Niemann is on Marie! on the Hallmark Channel.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Here's a complete list of CMA Award winners from last night's show:
Entertainer of the Year
Blake Shelton
Female Vocalist of the Year|
Miranda Lambert
Male Vocalist of the Year
Blake Shelton
Vocal Group of the Year
Little Big Town
Vocal Duo of the Year
Thompson Square
Musical Event of the Year
“Feel Like a Rock Star” – Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw
New Artist of the Year
Hunter Hayes
Single of the Year
“Pontoon” – Little Big Town (Producer: Jay Joyce)
Song of the Year
“Over You” – Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton (songwriters)
Album of the Year
Chief - Eric Church (Producer: Jay Joyce)
Music Video of the Year
“Red Solo Cup” – Toby Keith (Director: Michael Salomon)
Musician of the Year
Mac McAnally (guitar)
Entertainer of the Year
Blake Shelton
Female Vocalist of the Year|
Miranda Lambert
Male Vocalist of the Year
Blake Shelton
Vocal Group of the Year
Little Big Town
Vocal Duo of the Year
Thompson Square
Musical Event of the Year
“Feel Like a Rock Star” – Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw
New Artist of the Year
Hunter Hayes
Single of the Year
“Pontoon” – Little Big Town (Producer: Jay Joyce)
Song of the Year
“Over You” – Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton (songwriters)
Album of the Year
Chief - Eric Church (Producer: Jay Joyce)
Music Video of the Year
“Red Solo Cup” – Toby Keith (Director: Michael Salomon)
Musician of the Year
Mac McAnally (guitar)
Thursday, November 1, 2012
As you try to keep your hands out of the Halloween candy stash from last night, country stars share some of their favorite Halloween memories. Lady Antebellum’s Dave Haywood remembers his best costume as a kid – half of a pair of dice: “I was a die for Halloween. I had a big cardboard box that I had painted white and had the polka dots and stuff. And I remember I was walking up this hill to go to this hill and literally fell back down the entire hill, rolling in this giant cardboard box that I couldn’t do anything about, because I rolled down about 50-feet.” Luke Bryan says Halloween is great for researching your neighbors: “You can find out a lot about your neighbors by what kind of candy they put out. So, well, like full bars of Snickers bars, that’s what, and Reese’s cups, but the old chocolate popcorn ball of stuff, that’s no good either, like Dots – you get Dots one time of year and they pull your teeth.” And Taylor Swift has a different kind of Halloween memory: “All I remember about Halloween last year is that it’s when I bought my cat. She’s a Halloween cat. I didn’t really dress up for anything last year - I just went out and bought a kitten.”
Last week was the biggest sales week for any album in over a decade. Taylor Swift’s “Red” sold 1.2 million copies last week, meaning it is platinum after just seven days in release. It’s her second straight album to sell more than a million copies in its first week – “Speak Now” accomplished that feat in 2010. The last artist to sell over a million was Eminem in 2002, with the release of “The Eminem Show.”
What you’ll see tonight on the CMA Awards show: the show-opener will be Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan and Eric Church singing Jason’s new song, “The Only Way I Know How,” Tim McGraw performing his new single, “One of Those Nights,” Faith Hill performing “American Heart,” then Tim and Faith will be part of a tribute to Willie Nelson which will also include Lady Antebellum and Blake Shelton. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood performing separately, Taylor Swift doing her new single, “Begin Again,” Kelly Clarkson singing her new country song, “Don’t Rush,” backed by Vince Gill, and John Rich with the biggest smile on his face ever, because he and Big Kenny are nominated for Vocal Duo of the Year. “To see our name back in the lineup is pretty cool. It is like, ‘Alright there it is!’ It’s just a manifestation of what we’ve been doing for the last couple of years. You know, hookin’ the cables back together between Big Kenny and myself. It’s been quite a ride to do that, because you wonder if the fans are still there and you wonder if anyone gives a damn about your music anymore.”
The cash has finally all been counted, and Jason Aldean’s breast cancer benefit concert last weekend raised $509,125. Wanna bet he rounds the check up to $510,000?
Taylor Swift is the magazine cover queen right now – she’s on December’s Cosmopolitan magazine, plus the United Kingdom’s “You” and Australia’s “Sunday” publications.
Last week was the biggest sales week for any album in over a decade. Taylor Swift’s “Red” sold 1.2 million copies last week, meaning it is platinum after just seven days in release. It’s her second straight album to sell more than a million copies in its first week – “Speak Now” accomplished that feat in 2010. The last artist to sell over a million was Eminem in 2002, with the release of “The Eminem Show.”
What you’ll see tonight on the CMA Awards show: the show-opener will be Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan and Eric Church singing Jason’s new song, “The Only Way I Know How,” Tim McGraw performing his new single, “One of Those Nights,” Faith Hill performing “American Heart,” then Tim and Faith will be part of a tribute to Willie Nelson which will also include Lady Antebellum and Blake Shelton. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood performing separately, Taylor Swift doing her new single, “Begin Again,” Kelly Clarkson singing her new country song, “Don’t Rush,” backed by Vince Gill, and John Rich with the biggest smile on his face ever, because he and Big Kenny are nominated for Vocal Duo of the Year. “To see our name back in the lineup is pretty cool. It is like, ‘Alright there it is!’ It’s just a manifestation of what we’ve been doing for the last couple of years. You know, hookin’ the cables back together between Big Kenny and myself. It’s been quite a ride to do that, because you wonder if the fans are still there and you wonder if anyone gives a damn about your music anymore.”
The cash has finally all been counted, and Jason Aldean’s breast cancer benefit concert last weekend raised $509,125. Wanna bet he rounds the check up to $510,000?
Taylor Swift is the magazine cover queen right now – she’s on December’s Cosmopolitan magazine, plus the United Kingdom’s “You” and Australia’s “Sunday” publications.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
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.
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.
Monday, October 15, 2012
You’re not on it either? The Blake Shelton and Friends Cruise set sail yesterday, and Blake says there’ll be shenanigans, and someone might have to go overboard: “Well it won’t be Trace—although he may put us over the weight limit. I don’t know, I’d say—Easton’s gonna be there. I don’t think any of us would miss him if we through him over.” Also along for the ride are Jerrod Niemann, Neal McCoy, Lee Brice, Brett Eldredge, Randy Houser and Jana Kramer. Jana’s got mixed feelings about going on a cruise: “I’ve never done a cruise before because I’m really claustrophobic and I’m afraid – or if I get motion sickness. I was like, ‘You know what I’m getting over a fear, and hanging with some of my buddies on a boat. I get to bring my mom – it’s going to be awesome. I can’t wait to play and then meet people and hang out – go swimming and tan!”
In the wake of video showing an admittedly drunk Jason Aldean flirting with American Idol contestant Brittany Kerr in Hollywood, Jason Aldean says that the situation, though tough, is taken care of: “You can handle it two ways, you can go hide and run from it or you can get up and face it and deal with it and that’s kinda what we tried to do and just kinda move on, you know? And the main thing is that me and my family are OK.” He talked with CMT Insider and that segment aired this past weekend.
Jason Aldean is planning to hit a few more stadiums during his 2013 tour, saying that the sellout at Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio was pretty awesome. According to Jason, “This next year we’ll probably dabble in it a little more, try a couple places and really just try to build on that. There’s not a lot of people that can do that [consistently], and that’s where we’re trying to figure it out —can we do that in certain markets? Or can we do that on a consistent basis? That’ll be a little bit of a learning process for us over the next year.”
Tim McGraw and Faith Hill’s Soul2Soul show in Las Vegas kicks off in December, but preparations are in high gear now, and Tim says it’s pretty cool: “It’s different to think somebody offers you a ton of money to come do three years in Vegas or something, and they say ‘Here’s your theater and you can build it like you want it...’ For all we’ve done in our career past, and all we hope to do in the future with our careers, to have this sort of moment to do this thing for these ten weekends and then to turn the theatre over to us and build what you want is sort of rare.”
Jamey Johnson and Alison Krauss performed on the David Letterman Show Friday night. They collaborated on a song on his “Living for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran” album which comes out tomorrow. He’ll announce tour plans later this week.
Luke Bryan announced some tour plans – he’ll kick off his first headlining tour on January 17th in Evansville, Indiana, with shows running through at least March. Thompson Square and Florida Georgia Line will open on the first leg of the tour.
Taylor Swift’s new album, “Red,” doesn’t come out until the 22nd, but she’s working the publicity angle hard. She’s on the cover of the October 24th issue of Rolling Stone Magazine, presumably dishing some details of her love life, and has partnered with Keds to release a new, limited-edition line of “Red” footwear. But wait, there’s more – she’s also partnered with Walgreens, where you’ll find a Taylor Swift Store, with t-shirs, tour books, backpacks, journals and lots more. And of course, “Red” will be on sale one minute after midnight on October 22nd at all Walgreens stores.
Keith Urban will receive the Harmony Award from the Nashville Symphony in a gala later this year. The award honors him for his work to help the Country Music Hall of Fame, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Habitat for Humanity.
Trishia Yearwood is on The View and Josh Turner is on Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight.
In the wake of video showing an admittedly drunk Jason Aldean flirting with American Idol contestant Brittany Kerr in Hollywood, Jason Aldean says that the situation, though tough, is taken care of: “You can handle it two ways, you can go hide and run from it or you can get up and face it and deal with it and that’s kinda what we tried to do and just kinda move on, you know? And the main thing is that me and my family are OK.” He talked with CMT Insider and that segment aired this past weekend.
Jason Aldean is planning to hit a few more stadiums during his 2013 tour, saying that the sellout at Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio was pretty awesome. According to Jason, “This next year we’ll probably dabble in it a little more, try a couple places and really just try to build on that. There’s not a lot of people that can do that [consistently], and that’s where we’re trying to figure it out —can we do that in certain markets? Or can we do that on a consistent basis? That’ll be a little bit of a learning process for us over the next year.”
Tim McGraw and Faith Hill’s Soul2Soul show in Las Vegas kicks off in December, but preparations are in high gear now, and Tim says it’s pretty cool: “It’s different to think somebody offers you a ton of money to come do three years in Vegas or something, and they say ‘Here’s your theater and you can build it like you want it...’ For all we’ve done in our career past, and all we hope to do in the future with our careers, to have this sort of moment to do this thing for these ten weekends and then to turn the theatre over to us and build what you want is sort of rare.”
Jamey Johnson and Alison Krauss performed on the David Letterman Show Friday night. They collaborated on a song on his “Living for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran” album which comes out tomorrow. He’ll announce tour plans later this week.
Luke Bryan announced some tour plans – he’ll kick off his first headlining tour on January 17th in Evansville, Indiana, with shows running through at least March. Thompson Square and Florida Georgia Line will open on the first leg of the tour.
Taylor Swift’s new album, “Red,” doesn’t come out until the 22nd, but she’s working the publicity angle hard. She’s on the cover of the October 24th issue of Rolling Stone Magazine, presumably dishing some details of her love life, and has partnered with Keds to release a new, limited-edition line of “Red” footwear. But wait, there’s more – she’s also partnered with Walgreens, where you’ll find a Taylor Swift Store, with t-shirs, tour books, backpacks, journals and lots more. And of course, “Red” will be on sale one minute after midnight on October 22nd at all Walgreens stores.
Keith Urban will receive the Harmony Award from the Nashville Symphony in a gala later this year. The award honors him for his work to help the Country Music Hall of Fame, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Habitat for Humanity.
Trishia Yearwood is on The View and Josh Turner is on Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Dierks Bentley has new music in the works, but not before he finishes what he started with “Home.” “I’m working on trying, you know...wrapping up this year so I can start working on some new music. We’ve been touring pretty hard and I’ve been writing some stuff. I’m gonna start working on a new record probably in January, but just wrapping up the year up. We’ve been rockin’ really hard.” This Sunday is the Nashville stop for his “Miles and Music for Kids” motorcycle ride and concert to benefit the Children’s Miracle Network.
Apparently, Brad Paisley’s new album will have a lot of heart: one track features a heart monitor beating a rhythm track through the second verse, and another song features an actual recorded human heart as part of the instrumentation. Maybe he’ll give us sneak-peeks before the album drops in April of 2013!
It’s not easy being a superstar, especially when you’ve added a TV show to your schedule. Listen to the week that Keith Urban had recently: “Sunday started with the Emmys, of course. Monday and Tuesday nights we played in Vegas. Tuesday and Wednesday we shot American Idol in Chicago...had a great time there. And Thursday I got on a plane and I came to the south of France.”
Jake Owen’s CMT On Tour tour kicks off tomorrow night, with Love & Theft and Florida Georgia Line. Jake’s new “Endless Summer” EP features a song called “Summer Jam” that he and his buddies in FLG co-wrote, and Jake can’t wait to get onstage and do it live with them: “They were a big part in writing that song. Not only am I huge fans of theirs, and I really try to be very supportive of my buddies, but they’re gonna go out on our CMT On Tour, so I just thought it would be a really cool moment to bring them back out and do that song with them.”
After three years of camping out in Las Vegas, Garth Brooks pulls up stakes and heads back to Oklahoma next month. His final show at the Wynn Las Vegas will be November 17th, and Garth says he’s “thoroughly enjoyed [his] time” there, and has had some of the best audiences in the world.
Even though the tour is over, “Brothers of the Sun” is still atop the Pollstar Top 20 Concert Tour list. Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw averaged $4.4 million at the box office in each city of the tour, with an average ticket price of $87.96. Other country artists on the list include Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts and Jason Aldean.
In Kenny Rogers’ new memoir, “Luck or Something Like It,” you can read all about his life, his career and stories behind his music, but you won’t be reading anything about his plastic surgery. Unlike Dolly Parton, Kenny isn’t being open about his nips and tucks, saying that the publisher asked him to keep that part out of his book. You can read all the rest that he did put in there – the book’s available now online and in bookstores.
Apparently, Brad Paisley’s new album will have a lot of heart: one track features a heart monitor beating a rhythm track through the second verse, and another song features an actual recorded human heart as part of the instrumentation. Maybe he’ll give us sneak-peeks before the album drops in April of 2013!
It’s not easy being a superstar, especially when you’ve added a TV show to your schedule. Listen to the week that Keith Urban had recently: “Sunday started with the Emmys, of course. Monday and Tuesday nights we played in Vegas. Tuesday and Wednesday we shot American Idol in Chicago...had a great time there. And Thursday I got on a plane and I came to the south of France.”
Jake Owen’s CMT On Tour tour kicks off tomorrow night, with Love & Theft and Florida Georgia Line. Jake’s new “Endless Summer” EP features a song called “Summer Jam” that he and his buddies in FLG co-wrote, and Jake can’t wait to get onstage and do it live with them: “They were a big part in writing that song. Not only am I huge fans of theirs, and I really try to be very supportive of my buddies, but they’re gonna go out on our CMT On Tour, so I just thought it would be a really cool moment to bring them back out and do that song with them.”
After three years of camping out in Las Vegas, Garth Brooks pulls up stakes and heads back to Oklahoma next month. His final show at the Wynn Las Vegas will be November 17th, and Garth says he’s “thoroughly enjoyed [his] time” there, and has had some of the best audiences in the world.
Even though the tour is over, “Brothers of the Sun” is still atop the Pollstar Top 20 Concert Tour list. Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw averaged $4.4 million at the box office in each city of the tour, with an average ticket price of $87.96. Other country artists on the list include Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts and Jason Aldean.
In Kenny Rogers’ new memoir, “Luck or Something Like It,” you can read all about his life, his career and stories behind his music, but you won’t be reading anything about his plastic surgery. Unlike Dolly Parton, Kenny isn’t being open about his nips and tucks, saying that the publisher asked him to keep that part out of his book. You can read all the rest that he did put in there – the book’s available now online and in bookstores.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
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!”
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!”
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Tim McGraw understands the power of a song, and also that artists have to dish up different types of songs in order to stay relevant to their fans. What’s his secret? “The key is finding good ones. There’s always a place for ones that don’t say a whole lot that are just fun, too. I mean I’ve had a few of those and I have no problem with those. It’s like, I go to the movie, I like to have some chocolate covered peanuts, you know, but I also like a heavy movie. And there’s places for all of it.” His latest song, “Truck Yeah,” falls into the “chocolate covered peanuts” category – here’s a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the video…
Yes, that was Charlie Daniels being featured last night on Monday Night Football on ESPN. It’s not the first time he’s done that gig – every week during the 2006 football season, Charlie was part of an all-star band that opened the show.
All the Pistol Annies are now off the market. Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton have been married a couple of years, Angaleena Presley married Jordan Powell in May and now Ashley Monroe is engaged to Chicago White Sox pitcher John Danks. Here’s the photo she tweeted to announce the news…
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The ACM Honors stage just got hotter. Dierks Bentley is hosting the show, and Randy Houser, Luke Bryan, Jana Kramer, Kellie Pickler, Ashley Monroe, Rodney Crowell and Daily & Vincent will all be part of the entertainment next Monday night at the Ryman. The evening celebrates the winners of ACM awards given out before the televised portion of the show, as well as special honorees.
Lee Brice’s song, “Hard to Love,” has been certified gold for half a million copies sold. What’s the song about? Lee explains, “It’s a song about me. It’s a song about a lot of guys. So it’s a country strong and it’s really about every man in the world – not just country music men.”
Easton Corbin’s new album, “All Over The Road,” is out today, and he says the two years he spent living life have helped his sophomore project: “The more you grow, the older you get and obviously the more experiences you go through in life. I think it opens up some stuff, maybe some new territory to cover on a record, ya know.”
Dwight Yoakam is out with his first new music in seven years – “3 Pears” is out today, and Dwight produced the project. Why did a new album take so long? “I was continuing to hopefully evolve as a producer and learn. You know, you only have yourself to blame for whatever works or whatever doesn’t.”
Monday, September 10, 2012
What can we expect from the Tim McGraw and Faith Hill concerts in Las Vegas? Apparently they won’t be doing their individual hits, but will do a show full of duets. But, you say, they haven’t done a whole show’s worth of duets in their career – will it be a short show? Oh, no – they’re apparently thinking Loretta and Conway, Tammy and George – according to Tim: “We’re going to do some different stuff, there’s a list of those kind of songs that we want to figure out what’s the coolest thing for us to do and the most fun that we’ll have doing the things the audience will enjoy hearing the most. But, I mean, God, there’s so many great duets out there that are fun to do.” The first show is on December 7th at the Venetian.
Toby Keith was flattered to be under consideration for a seat at the judge’s table on American Idol, but he turned it down. Why? “Ten years ago, I’d of said ‘yea.’ I’ve done enough movies and television now to know how time-consuming those things are. It was a wonderful number. I mean, they offered me incredible dollars to do it, but it’s probably better suited for somebody who’s got the time on their hands I don’t have.” Meanwhile, he’s seeing the average age of concert attendees drop, and he believes that “Red Solo Cup dropped my average age down from about 35 down to about 25 I think. We got a lot of youth. And that’s what you gotta do, you know, you’ve been around 18, 19 years, you’ve gotta find a way to reinvent or regenerate or do something, and it did!”
With their new album, “Tornado,” coming out tomorrow, Little Big Town has had a great week before the release. What did it sound like when they heard they were nominated for three CMA Awards this year? “[SCREAMS] [Jimi] “We were freaking out! It kinda sounded like that.” [Kimberly] “Yeah, it did.” [Karen] “We’re so thrilled and so honored. The Group of the Year category is fierce, fierce. We’re so honored to be a part of it.” [Phillip] “We literally were jumping up and slapping and high fives and hugging each other. I mean, we’re so thrilled. This is the best. Living on cloud nine right now.” They’re nominated for Music Video of the Year, Single of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year, in the same week that they scored their first #1 song. How did they feel when “Pontoon” hit #1? They’re dancing in the streets…check it out!
Lee Brice has co-written a fight anthem for his alma mater, Clemson. The song is called “Orange Empire” and you can get it on iTunes.
The politics of ugly got hung out on Twitter this week. Bocephus apparently tweeted something not very nice about President Obama, to which Alec Baldwin responded, “If Hank Williams Jr wasn't such a pathetic, wheezing fossil, I'd have a talk with him.” He then tweeted, “I think we need to call Hank Williams Jr what he is.... A broken-down, senile, racist coot.” Hank Jr. has been uncharacteristically unresponsive to Alec’s rant.
Little Big Town is on Good Morning America this morning, Blake Shelton is on Live With Kelly, “The Voice” returns tonight, with Blake Shelton in the big revolving red chair and Martina McBride is on Opening Act on E!.
Toby Keith was flattered to be under consideration for a seat at the judge’s table on American Idol, but he turned it down. Why? “Ten years ago, I’d of said ‘yea.’ I’ve done enough movies and television now to know how time-consuming those things are. It was a wonderful number. I mean, they offered me incredible dollars to do it, but it’s probably better suited for somebody who’s got the time on their hands I don’t have.” Meanwhile, he’s seeing the average age of concert attendees drop, and he believes that “Red Solo Cup dropped my average age down from about 35 down to about 25 I think. We got a lot of youth. And that’s what you gotta do, you know, you’ve been around 18, 19 years, you’ve gotta find a way to reinvent or regenerate or do something, and it did!”
With their new album, “Tornado,” coming out tomorrow, Little Big Town has had a great week before the release. What did it sound like when they heard they were nominated for three CMA Awards this year? “[SCREAMS] [Jimi] “We were freaking out! It kinda sounded like that.” [Kimberly] “Yeah, it did.” [Karen] “We’re so thrilled and so honored. The Group of the Year category is fierce, fierce. We’re so honored to be a part of it.” [Phillip] “We literally were jumping up and slapping and high fives and hugging each other. I mean, we’re so thrilled. This is the best. Living on cloud nine right now.” They’re nominated for Music Video of the Year, Single of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year, in the same week that they scored their first #1 song. How did they feel when “Pontoon” hit #1? They’re dancing in the streets…check it out!
Lee Brice has co-written a fight anthem for his alma mater, Clemson. The song is called “Orange Empire” and you can get it on iTunes.
The politics of ugly got hung out on Twitter this week. Bocephus apparently tweeted something not very nice about President Obama, to which Alec Baldwin responded, “If Hank Williams Jr wasn't such a pathetic, wheezing fossil, I'd have a talk with him.” He then tweeted, “I think we need to call Hank Williams Jr what he is.... A broken-down, senile, racist coot.” Hank Jr. has been uncharacteristically unresponsive to Alec’s rant.
Little Big Town is on Good Morning America this morning, Blake Shelton is on Live With Kelly, “The Voice” returns tonight, with Blake Shelton in the big revolving red chair and Martina McBride is on Opening Act on E!.
Friday, August 31, 2012
If you missed the premiere of Taylor Swift’s new video last night, never fear – CMT will air it every hour during music hours all through Labor Day weekend. As for those weird costumes, Taylor says, “You have to watch the video to just see how ridiculous they look [Laughs] It’s the funniest thing—it’s the funniest costume thing we’ve ever had in a video. I mean, I can’t believe that they actually went along with it. I probably would have put my foot down if I were them, just like, ‘I’m NOT doing that!’ [Laughs]” In other Taylor news, her new song, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” tops the digital song chart this week, selling over 300,000 units. That pace says that the song will go platinum before the end of Labor Day weekend – platinum means over a million units sold.
Carrie Underwood and Hunter Hays will tour together this fall, with Hunter opening the show. But according to Carrie, the two will perform together each night, too. “That is the plan, yeah we haven’t actually tried anything yet, of course we’ll have to get in there and see what we can do. But, surely we’ll figure up something we’re both talented individuals – so we’ll find some way to sing together and perform together. We are in rehearsals this week doing all of our music rehearsals, making sure everything’s perfect. After that, we’re going to start our production rehearsals.”
Artists spend a lot of time on the road, especially during the summer, when tours take them to all corners of North America. All of them take along things to make the miles pass more quickly, and Jake Owen’s sanity includes a furry friend: “My dog. I got to have Merle with me a lot. And some good music to put on the stereo, because music has always been such a huge part of my life. Not only as in my profession, but something that keeps my mind sane, you know?”
Keith Urban heads back to the classroom this coming Thursday, as he puts on a program for students at Metro Nashville Public High School. Keith will talk to them about the art of songwriting, his musical influences, favorite career moments and probably play them a song or two. The event isn’t open to the public but will stream live on keithurban.net on September 6th beginning at 10am Eastern.
Tim McGraw made new friends during his Brothers of the Sun tour this summer. At each of the 25 tour stops, he awarded a mortgage-free home to a military family in need. He met with each family, learned about their sacrifices and according to Tim, that made an indelible mark on him. He plans to keep HomeFront going in the future.
Dustin Lynch’s “Cowboys and Angels” has gone gold and propelled Dustin’s self-titled debut album to #1 on the Billboard Country Album chart. It’s a dream come true for Dustin: “I’ve put my whole life into album one and I’ve dreamed of having an album when I moved here nine years ago, and it’s finally happening.”
Carrie Underwood and Hunter Hays will tour together this fall, with Hunter opening the show. But according to Carrie, the two will perform together each night, too. “That is the plan, yeah we haven’t actually tried anything yet, of course we’ll have to get in there and see what we can do. But, surely we’ll figure up something we’re both talented individuals – so we’ll find some way to sing together and perform together. We are in rehearsals this week doing all of our music rehearsals, making sure everything’s perfect. After that, we’re going to start our production rehearsals.”
Artists spend a lot of time on the road, especially during the summer, when tours take them to all corners of North America. All of them take along things to make the miles pass more quickly, and Jake Owen’s sanity includes a furry friend: “My dog. I got to have Merle with me a lot. And some good music to put on the stereo, because music has always been such a huge part of my life. Not only as in my profession, but something that keeps my mind sane, you know?”
Keith Urban heads back to the classroom this coming Thursday, as he puts on a program for students at Metro Nashville Public High School. Keith will talk to them about the art of songwriting, his musical influences, favorite career moments and probably play them a song or two. The event isn’t open to the public but will stream live on keithurban.net on September 6th beginning at 10am Eastern.
Tim McGraw made new friends during his Brothers of the Sun tour this summer. At each of the 25 tour stops, he awarded a mortgage-free home to a military family in need. He met with each family, learned about their sacrifices and according to Tim, that made an indelible mark on him. He plans to keep HomeFront going in the future.
Dustin Lynch’s “Cowboys and Angels” has gone gold and propelled Dustin’s self-titled debut album to #1 on the Billboard Country Album chart. It’s a dream come true for Dustin: “I’ve put my whole life into album one and I’ve dreamed of having an album when I moved here nine years ago, and it’s finally happening.”
Friday, August 24, 2012
As Tim McGraw wraps up the Brothers of the Sun tour with Kenny Chesney, he’s looking forward to his stint in Vegas with wife Faith Hill. Sort of. After playing huge arenas all summer, the 1,800 seat Venetian Theatre is a little bit intimidating to Tim: “Makes me nervous to be that intimate. I mean, I’ve only done it a few times, early in my career of course when I played clubs, but only a few times have I played small rooms.”
Brad Paisley knows how to show his fans a good time, and apparently knows how to show his tourmates the same good time. “Why Ya Wanna” singer Jana Kramer is on the Virtual Opry stage, which is near The Escape plaza, filled with games, water slides and more fun things to bring out the kid in everyone. Apparently Jana is hooked: “Can I please like go now and after I perform. Yes, yes and yes. I’m such a kid, like in the jumpy house – oh, there’s a jumpy house! So, [laughs.]”
Taylor Swift has gone from being an anonymous songwriter in Nashville to being a record-breaking phenomenon whose face is on the cover of magazines all over the world in just 6 years. But according to Taylor, her day-to-day life hasn’t changed that much: “A lot of things have changed, but in a way I just feel like a lot of things have stayed the same – a lot of basic ways of going about your life. It’s not like I can’t go and do things that I used to do. Everywhere I go it’s more of a social situation now, but once you adjust your brain to that, it just seems normal.” Her 4th album, “Red,” comes out October 22nd, and she and Tim McGraw are lending their voices to the 3rd Annual Stand Up To Cancer telethon, which airs September 7th on several networks simultaneously.
Craig Morgan heads to Fort Hood Texas on August 28th to help stuff 7,500 care packages for soldiers serving in the Middle East. After a day of packing bags, he’ll perform a free concert for military ID card holders and their families. Jack Daniels is picking up the staging costs.
If you were hoping to see Thomas Rhett open for Toby Keith this weekend, sorry to disappoint you – he’s been diagnosed with tonsillitis and mono and has to sit out the weekend. He’s hoping to schedule something for his Atlanta and Charlotte fans later this fall.
If a hurricane doesn’t interrupt the event, Jake Owen, Rodney Atkins, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Oak Ridge Boys are all scheduled to perform in Tampa this weekend as part of the Republican National Convention. Willie Nelson and Randy Travis were both supposed to perform, too, but Willie’s been sick and Randy’s been in trouble with the law, so they’ll both miss out.
Wall bling for Trace Atkins – his “American Man, Greatest Hits Vol. 2” earned platinum status. Luke Bryan has two new certifications: double platinum for “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)” and platinum for “Rain Is A Good Thing.” Jana Kramer’s “Why Ya Wanna” has gone gold.
LeAnn Rimes is on The Talk today – it’s a rerun.
Brad Paisley knows how to show his fans a good time, and apparently knows how to show his tourmates the same good time. “Why Ya Wanna” singer Jana Kramer is on the Virtual Opry stage, which is near The Escape plaza, filled with games, water slides and more fun things to bring out the kid in everyone. Apparently Jana is hooked: “Can I please like go now and after I perform. Yes, yes and yes. I’m such a kid, like in the jumpy house – oh, there’s a jumpy house! So, [laughs.]”
Taylor Swift has gone from being an anonymous songwriter in Nashville to being a record-breaking phenomenon whose face is on the cover of magazines all over the world in just 6 years. But according to Taylor, her day-to-day life hasn’t changed that much: “A lot of things have changed, but in a way I just feel like a lot of things have stayed the same – a lot of basic ways of going about your life. It’s not like I can’t go and do things that I used to do. Everywhere I go it’s more of a social situation now, but once you adjust your brain to that, it just seems normal.” Her 4th album, “Red,” comes out October 22nd, and she and Tim McGraw are lending their voices to the 3rd Annual Stand Up To Cancer telethon, which airs September 7th on several networks simultaneously.
Craig Morgan heads to Fort Hood Texas on August 28th to help stuff 7,500 care packages for soldiers serving in the Middle East. After a day of packing bags, he’ll perform a free concert for military ID card holders and their families. Jack Daniels is picking up the staging costs.
If you were hoping to see Thomas Rhett open for Toby Keith this weekend, sorry to disappoint you – he’s been diagnosed with tonsillitis and mono and has to sit out the weekend. He’s hoping to schedule something for his Atlanta and Charlotte fans later this fall.
If a hurricane doesn’t interrupt the event, Jake Owen, Rodney Atkins, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Oak Ridge Boys are all scheduled to perform in Tampa this weekend as part of the Republican National Convention. Willie Nelson and Randy Travis were both supposed to perform, too, but Willie’s been sick and Randy’s been in trouble with the law, so they’ll both miss out.
Wall bling for Trace Atkins – his “American Man, Greatest Hits Vol. 2” earned platinum status. Luke Bryan has two new certifications: double platinum for “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)” and platinum for “Rain Is A Good Thing.” Jana Kramer’s “Why Ya Wanna” has gone gold.
LeAnn Rimes is on The Talk today – it’s a rerun.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Dierks Bentley has had three #1 songs in a row from his Home cd, and he admits that his new song, “Tip It On Back,” nearly didn’t make it onto the album: “‘Tip It On Back’ was actually the last song that I really heard for the album. You kinda reach a place where you’re like, ‘I’ve listened to every song out there. There’s no more songs to listen to,’ and then you hear one like that, and you’re like, ‘Man, this is a great song.’” His college tour kicked off last night at the University of Georgia.
Luke Bryan’s 4th annual Farm Tour will kick off October 3rd in Claxton, Georgia and hit Clemson, SC, Valdosta, GA and Auburn, AL before it ends October 13th. Luke enjoys the small-town vibe and says, “I just love the fact that people can come out and have a big time, listen to some music and um...it’s just a fun experience all the way around and I wanna continue to do what I can to keep it rockin’.” This small-town tour raises money so kids from local farming families can go to college. Here’s the list of tour stops:
10/3 - Claxton (Statesboro), GA
10/4 - Clemson, SC
10/5 - Auburn, AL
10/6 - Valdosta, GA
10/10 - Villa Rica, GA
10/11 - Colbert (Athens), GA
10/12 - Tallahassee, FL
10/13 - Macon, GA
David Nail is also doing a series of smaller tour stops, focusing on small venues and featuring scaled-down shows. They’ll be special, though, because he understands the power of his fans: “You can’t help but not reference the people who came out to our shows when ‘Red Light’ was #36 – not even Top 20. Those people have kind of stayed with us, and it’s definitely helped our show a lot.” Here’s the list of his tour stops:
9/6 Cincinnati, OH
9/7 Marietta, OH
9/8 Cleveland, OH
9/9 Arcola, IL
9/13 Knoxville, TN
9/14 Richmond, VA
9/15 Philadelphia, PA
9/16 Baltimore, MD
9/18 New York, NY
9/26 Pittsburgh, PA
9/27 Ridgefield, CT
9/28 W. Springfield, MA
9/29 Boston, MA
10/1 Winston-Salem, NC
10/4 Southaven, MS
10/6 Houston, TX
10/10 Oklahoma City, OK
10/11 Dallas, TX
10/18 Minneapolis, MN
10/19 Milwaukee, WI
10/20 Chicago, IL
10/25 Carbondale, IL
10/26 Columbia, MO
11/2 Birmingham, AL
11/3 Biloxi, MS
Kix Brooks’ latest single, “New To This Town,” is climbing the charts. Wonder how he got Joe Walsh to be his guest on it? Wonder no more – according to Kix, “My manager and Joe’s manager Irving Azoff, who manages The Eagles, are partners. Actually an engineer from my radio show said ‘Man that’d sound great with some Joe Walsh-like guitar on it!’ And I go ‘Wow! I wonder if I could actually…maybe…’” And he found out the answer was “yes.” Kix releases his solo debut album on September 11th.
Singer/songwriter Dustin Lynch, who has his first single climbing the charts, loves to write. “Cowboys and Angels” is just one of the tons of songs he’s written lately: “Ahh, hundreds and hundreds. I’ve written hundreds of songs the past few years. It’s so funny, people are like, ‘Why did you write so many songs?!’ You know, when I woke up one morning and realized I was getting paid to write songs which is what I used to do for fun—you know I just love it! It’s so much fun for me to go into a room with nothing and come out with possibly something that could change my life or mean something to somebody else.”
Tim McGraw will answer fan questions on Pennzoil’s Facebook page this Friday. You can submit questions now, and if one of yours gets answered, you get autographed goodies from Tim.
Another country artist has been added to the Republican National Convention. Rodney Atkins will headline the official welcome party this Sunday in Petersburg Florida.
Dierks Bentley’s Country & Cold Cans EP is out today, as is the self-titled debut album by Dustin Lynch. The Dierks EP includes a special version of “Tip It On Back.”
9/7 Marietta, OH
9/8 Cleveland, OH
9/9 Arcola, IL
9/13 Knoxville, TN
9/14 Richmond, VA
9/15 Philadelphia, PA
9/16 Baltimore, MD
9/18 New York, NY
9/26 Pittsburgh, PA
9/27 Ridgefield, CT
9/28 W. Springfield, MA
9/29 Boston, MA
10/1 Winston-Salem, NC
10/4 Southaven, MS
10/6 Houston, TX
10/10 Oklahoma City, OK
10/11 Dallas, TX
10/18 Minneapolis, MN
10/19 Milwaukee, WI
10/20 Chicago, IL
10/25 Carbondale, IL
10/26 Columbia, MO
11/2 Birmingham, AL
11/3 Biloxi, MS
Kix Brooks’ latest single, “New To This Town,” is climbing the charts. Wonder how he got Joe Walsh to be his guest on it? Wonder no more – according to Kix, “My manager and Joe’s manager Irving Azoff, who manages The Eagles, are partners. Actually an engineer from my radio show said ‘Man that’d sound great with some Joe Walsh-like guitar on it!’ And I go ‘Wow! I wonder if I could actually…maybe…’” And he found out the answer was “yes.” Kix releases his solo debut album on September 11th.
Singer/songwriter Dustin Lynch, who has his first single climbing the charts, loves to write. “Cowboys and Angels” is just one of the tons of songs he’s written lately: “Ahh, hundreds and hundreds. I’ve written hundreds of songs the past few years. It’s so funny, people are like, ‘Why did you write so many songs?!’ You know, when I woke up one morning and realized I was getting paid to write songs which is what I used to do for fun—you know I just love it! It’s so much fun for me to go into a room with nothing and come out with possibly something that could change my life or mean something to somebody else.”
Tim McGraw will answer fan questions on Pennzoil’s Facebook page this Friday. You can submit questions now, and if one of yours gets answered, you get autographed goodies from Tim.
Another country artist has been added to the Republican National Convention. Rodney Atkins will headline the official welcome party this Sunday in Petersburg Florida.
Dierks Bentley’s Country & Cold Cans EP is out today, as is the self-titled debut album by Dustin Lynch. The Dierks EP includes a special version of “Tip It On Back.”
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Brad Paisley pranked his tour openers, Scotty McCreery and The Band Perry, over the weekend. He shortened the stage on Scotty, causing him to fall off, then the next night, put up cones and caution tape. For The Band Perry, he took it a step farther, changing their opening-song video to Canadian kids show, The DoodleBops. Aside from regularly checking out the screen to see what was going on, TBP didn’t miss a beat. Check out the performance, along with Brad’s video work…
Last year, Kenny Chesney broke the record for the biggest crowd at a ticketed event in the New York City area. This year, he broke his own record, selling 56,285 tickets at the show Saturday night at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Taylor Swift is set to release her 4th studio album, “Red,” on October 22nd. According to Taylor, “All the different emotions that are written about on this album, they’re all pretty much about the tumultuous, crazy, insane, intense, semi-toxic relationships that I’ve experienced in the last two years.” You can bet there’ll be some discussion over which song goes with which ex-boyfriend. “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” is available on iTunes and Google Play.
Trace Adkins takes on a new role starting a week from today: television star. GAC premiers a new series, Great American Heroes, and each week the show follows Trace on his Songs & Stories tour. At each stop, he honors local heroes hard at work in their communities, making their part of the world a better place. According to Trace, “This show does more than tell some good stories, it affirms our faith in others.”
Road trip alert: Dierks Bentley will host his 7th annual Miles & Music for Kids charity motorcycle ride and concert on October 14th in Nashville. Along for the ride and show are Chris Young, Brantley Gilbert and Craig Campbell. Dierks says, “I want it to be about awareness, I want it to be about community, I want it to be about families—at the same time that we’re raising awareness and raising money for the children’s hospital. It’s a bigger picture than just numbers, you know?” So far he’s raised over $2 million for the Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
Luke Bryan, Tim McGraw and Carrie Underwood will all be part of the annual Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Labor Day Telethon, live on September 2nd.
Carrie Underwood is on the Today Show this morning.
Last year, Kenny Chesney broke the record for the biggest crowd at a ticketed event in the New York City area. This year, he broke his own record, selling 56,285 tickets at the show Saturday night at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Taylor Swift is set to release her 4th studio album, “Red,” on October 22nd. According to Taylor, “All the different emotions that are written about on this album, they’re all pretty much about the tumultuous, crazy, insane, intense, semi-toxic relationships that I’ve experienced in the last two years.” You can bet there’ll be some discussion over which song goes with which ex-boyfriend. “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” is available on iTunes and Google Play.
Trace Adkins takes on a new role starting a week from today: television star. GAC premiers a new series, Great American Heroes, and each week the show follows Trace on his Songs & Stories tour. At each stop, he honors local heroes hard at work in their communities, making their part of the world a better place. According to Trace, “This show does more than tell some good stories, it affirms our faith in others.”
Road trip alert: Dierks Bentley will host his 7th annual Miles & Music for Kids charity motorcycle ride and concert on October 14th in Nashville. Along for the ride and show are Chris Young, Brantley Gilbert and Craig Campbell. Dierks says, “I want it to be about awareness, I want it to be about community, I want it to be about families—at the same time that we’re raising awareness and raising money for the children’s hospital. It’s a bigger picture than just numbers, you know?” So far he’s raised over $2 million for the Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
Luke Bryan, Tim McGraw and Carrie Underwood will all be part of the annual Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Labor Day Telethon, live on September 2nd.
Carrie Underwood is on the Today Show this morning.
Friday, August 10, 2012
Sure, you may think that Tim McGraw and Faith Hill live a glamorous life, but with back-to-school season upon us, you might be surprised to find that in at least one way, their life is a lot like yours. With three daughters, they spend a lot of time in the car, though oldest daughter Gracie has her learner’s permit. “Next year, she’ll have her full on license. The bad part is it’s a whole other set of nerves, but the good part is it cuts down on our taxi service a little bit. [Faith] Exactly! Being the taxi service isn’t glamorous at all. I’ve tried to make it, going to the studio… [Tim] How many days or hours do you spend in the car when you’re a parent? [Faith] Oh my goodness!”
Jennifer Nettles is pregnant with her first baby, due in November. She and Kristian Bush are on tour, and Jennifer’s first order of business in every new town is to find the best Mexican food. That’s what she’s craving – everything from salsa to black beans to fish tacos, as long as it’s Mexican. She normally watches her calorie intake but says that “it’s pretty much a free-for-all at this point.”
Another incident with autos, alcohol and authorities happened to Randy Travis this week. Tuesday night around midnight, officers responded to a report of a man lying in the middle of the road. They found Randy Travis, completely naked, intoxicated and with minor cuts and bruises, his car off the road nearby, wrecked in the midst of a construction zone. Thankfully, there was no construction going on at the time of the crash, so no one besides Randy was hurt in the incident. In addition to drunk and disorderly, public indecency and other charges, Randy has been charged with “retaliation,” because he threatened to shoot and kill the troopers after they placed him in the police vehicle. He bonded out of jail Wednesday morning, and had to have someone bring him clothes to wear home, because apparently he was naked when he started driving his car. He had to be given clothing to wear for his mug shot. In February of this year, Randy was arrested on suspicion of public intoxication in the parking lot of a church in Texas.
Curb Records is celebrating 50 years of success by putting 50 titles on sale for $5.99. C’mon, you know 50 cents would be too good to be true! Grab albums from LeAnn Rimes, Wynonna, Tim McGraw, Jo Dee Messina, Hank Williams, Jr., Clay Walker, Lee Greenwood and lots more. Search “Curb 50” on iTunes to see the whole list.
Zac Brown Band sits atop the country music album charts for the 4th week in a row with “Uncaged.” How does that make Zac feel? “It is dead center right down the middle for people who like our other music. I feel like it’s the best record we’ve made so far. I feel like we’re a better band now. I feel like we’ve just continued to improve and I feel like it’s – I really do feel like it’s the best record we’ve ever made.”
Miranda Lambert is on the Ellen DeGeneres Show – it’s a rerun.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Tim McGraw had some details to share about the Soul2Soul shows he and wife Faith Hill will do in Las Vegas. The eighteen-hundred seat Venetian Theater will be home to them for ten weekends, starting December 7th, and Tim says, “We’re in the process of building the show now, and we can say that the production’s gonna be very cutting edge. We wanna do really cool stuff...things that certainly we haven’t done before and probably some things that haven’t been done before in a lot of ways. Um, we don’t wanna give away too much of what the show’s gonna be, but it’s certainly gonna be a lot of us. I mean, it’s gonna be us together.” Just what do their daughters think of spending two and a half months in Vegas? “[Tim] They’re excited! They’re very excited ‘cause they love going to the shows, so they probably won’t see ours [laughs]. [Faith] They’ve been to most of the shows here over the years when we’ve been coming in and out, so they’re thrilled!” Tickets go on sale to the general public Monday at the theatre box office and online at Ticketmaster.
Taylor Swift is planning an interactive webcast this Monday night, and she’s got some news to share. Is it new music news? Tour news? Boyfriend news? She’s being pretty coy: “You can ask questions! I wanna share some news with you. Some really cool news—not gonna go into it too much—but it’s cool!” The webcast starts Monday at 7pm Eastern time on TaylorSwift.com.
Rascal Flatts’ Jay DeMarcus and wife Allison are enjoying their new son, Dylan Jay, even though Daddy Jay is on tour right now. When asked how being on the road with his dad’s band might affect little Dylan, Jay replied, “All of his bad habits, I’m sure he will learn from Uncle Gary and Uncle Joe Don. I hope that Gary teaches him how to sing like he does and hopefully Joe Don will teach him to play guitar like he does and then I’ll have the best of both worlds… Then I can go out on the road with my son and leave these two yahoos.” The tour hits Raleigh, NC tomorrow night.
Jason Aldean’s My Kinda Party Tour scored a major hit Monday night – he broke the attendance record at Columbus Crew Stadium in Ohio. Over 27,000 people showed up for the concert, and Jason remarked, “It’s been a pretty crazy year as far as the tour goes. I mean, it’s kind of exceeded any expectations we could have had for ourselves.”
Craig Morgan’s 6th annual charity weekend is this weekend in Tennessee. Saturday, motocross stars lead a trail ride in Vanleer and Saturday night, Craig, Darryl Worley, Robin Meade and Nan Kelley of GAC team up for a concert to support the Craig Morgan Charity Fund. Sunday features the Celebrity Sporting Clay Event at the Tennessee Clay Target Complex in Nashville, led by “The Ultimate Shooter,” Tim Bradley. If you’d like to be on the trail ride but you don’t have the right wheels, fear not – there’s anauction on eBay that runs through tomorrow. The Husqvarna For a Day experience puts you on a great ride and up front with the celebrities!
Taylor Swift is planning an interactive webcast this Monday night, and she’s got some news to share. Is it new music news? Tour news? Boyfriend news? She’s being pretty coy: “You can ask questions! I wanna share some news with you. Some really cool news—not gonna go into it too much—but it’s cool!” The webcast starts Monday at 7pm Eastern time on TaylorSwift.com.
Rascal Flatts’ Jay DeMarcus and wife Allison are enjoying their new son, Dylan Jay, even though Daddy Jay is on tour right now. When asked how being on the road with his dad’s band might affect little Dylan, Jay replied, “All of his bad habits, I’m sure he will learn from Uncle Gary and Uncle Joe Don. I hope that Gary teaches him how to sing like he does and hopefully Joe Don will teach him to play guitar like he does and then I’ll have the best of both worlds… Then I can go out on the road with my son and leave these two yahoos.” The tour hits Raleigh, NC tomorrow night.
Jason Aldean’s My Kinda Party Tour scored a major hit Monday night – he broke the attendance record at Columbus Crew Stadium in Ohio. Over 27,000 people showed up for the concert, and Jason remarked, “It’s been a pretty crazy year as far as the tour goes. I mean, it’s kind of exceeded any expectations we could have had for ourselves.”
Craig Morgan’s 6th annual charity weekend is this weekend in Tennessee. Saturday, motocross stars lead a trail ride in Vanleer and Saturday night, Craig, Darryl Worley, Robin Meade and Nan Kelley of GAC team up for a concert to support the Craig Morgan Charity Fund. Sunday features the Celebrity Sporting Clay Event at the Tennessee Clay Target Complex in Nashville, led by “The Ultimate Shooter,” Tim Bradley. If you’d like to be on the trail ride but you don’t have the right wheels, fear not – there’s anauction on eBay that runs through tomorrow. The Husqvarna For a Day experience puts you on a great ride and up front with the celebrities!
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
First it was Garth Brooks. Then it was Shania Twain. Now, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill are setting up house in Vegas for a stint at the Venetian Theatre. They’ll do a ten-weekend run of shows beginning December 7th, calling the shows “Soul2Soul,” the same name as their two successful tours together. Those tours happened in 2000 and 2006, and the two have not performed a full concert together since the last tour. Tim says that the residency arrangement in Vegas will be good for their family and he’s been looking for a way to work with Faith onstage, and this fits the bill. Presale tickets will be available tomorrow and the general public can start buying them on Monday the 13th at the hotel box office. This announcement comes on the heels of the mega-successful “Brothers of the Sun” tour with Kenny Chesney and being inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. Tim was born and raised in Delhi, Louisiana.
Speaking of Garth Brooks, he’s been added to the list of performers on the Teachers Rock special on CBS. He joins Carrie Underwood and Dierks Bentley as the country performers. The show tapes on August 14th and will air on August 18th.
Keith Urban is working on a new album, and is laying down tracks all around the world. He’s planning a tour next year, so feels the pressure to get new music out, but wants it to feel fresh and different. Check out a tiny piece of his new song, “Tidal Wave,” in this video…
Blake Shelton worked hard to make his Christmas album a very special one. He’s co-written a song with his mom, Dorothy Shackleford, and she sings on it. He and Michael Buble re-worked the song “Home” into a holiday tune and for the first time ever, Blake Shelton and Reba duet on a song. “Cheers It’s Christmas” drops on October second.
Other country artists got in the Christmas spirit, lending their voices to the 25th anniversary of the Very Special Christmas project, a benefit for Special Olympics. Rascal Flatts, The Band Perry and Vince Gill all have cuts on this double-album project, which streets October 16th.
Miranda Lambert and Pistol Annies will kick off the new season of Say Yes to the Dress! Angaleena Presley and her hubby Jordan Powell eloped in May, but went dress-shopping at Bridals by Lori in Atlanta with her band members Ashley Monroe and Miranda Lambert. The episode airs on August 24th at 9pm on TLC.
Congrats to Kenny Chesney, who has the #1 country song in America with “Come Over.”
Zac Brown Band is on Jimmy Kimmel tonight – it’s a rerun.
Speaking of Garth Brooks, he’s been added to the list of performers on the Teachers Rock special on CBS. He joins Carrie Underwood and Dierks Bentley as the country performers. The show tapes on August 14th and will air on August 18th.
Keith Urban is working on a new album, and is laying down tracks all around the world. He’s planning a tour next year, so feels the pressure to get new music out, but wants it to feel fresh and different. Check out a tiny piece of his new song, “Tidal Wave,” in this video…
Blake Shelton worked hard to make his Christmas album a very special one. He’s co-written a song with his mom, Dorothy Shackleford, and she sings on it. He and Michael Buble re-worked the song “Home” into a holiday tune and for the first time ever, Blake Shelton and Reba duet on a song. “Cheers It’s Christmas” drops on October second.
Other country artists got in the Christmas spirit, lending their voices to the 25th anniversary of the Very Special Christmas project, a benefit for Special Olympics. Rascal Flatts, The Band Perry and Vince Gill all have cuts on this double-album project, which streets October 16th.
Miranda Lambert and Pistol Annies will kick off the new season of Say Yes to the Dress! Angaleena Presley and her hubby Jordan Powell eloped in May, but went dress-shopping at Bridals by Lori in Atlanta with her band members Ashley Monroe and Miranda Lambert. The episode airs on August 24th at 9pm on TLC.
Congrats to Kenny Chesney, who has the #1 country song in America with “Come Over.”
Zac Brown Band is on Jimmy Kimmel tonight – it’s a rerun.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw sit atop Pollstar’s Top 20 Concert Tour list and their Brothers of the Sun tour has earned the moniker “top-grossing summer tour.” So far they’ve taken in over $4 million in ticket sales. Other country acts making the list include Lady Antebellum at #14, taking in $490,000, Miranda Lambert at #16, making $432,000, and Eric Church at #20 with $320,000 in concert earnings.
Tornado warning! Little Big Town’s fifth studio album, Tornado, will be out September 11th. Kimberly Schlapman knows the album is special and has a new energy – here’s why: “This time we decided to use the guys that travel with us on all our shows, and it gave it such a fresh spirit. Everybody was just out there having fun and just putting out the very, very best that they had, and it was so creative. I think you can hear the spontaneity and the energy and the freshness in the music.” The first single on the album, “Pontoon,” has already gone gold.
Gloriana has hit a milestone – they have their first top-5 song with “(Kissed You) Good Night.” It’s the first single from A Thousand Miles Left Behind, which drops on July 31st. Tom Gossin says the project is a hint at the band members’ personal lives: “It’s really the story of the past three years of our lives...different experiences that we went through on the road, different experiences that we were experiencing in our own personal lives and our lives with each other and we’re very, very proud of it.”
Colt Ford is out with a new song, and it features Jake Owen. “‘Back’ is me doing what I do. It’s Jake Owen doing what he does. It’s me at my best –being honest and real, and open with the fans – which is what I’ve always tried to do.” Check it out…
College football season hasn’t even cranked up yet, but Lady Antebellum has already signed to perform at the FanFest just before the Belk Bowl on December 27th in Charlotte, NC. All three Lady A’ers are huge football fans – they even watch games on their tour bus when they’re on the road.
DVR alert – September 17th at 8pm Eastern on ABC, the CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock will air. Co-hosted by Kimberly Perry and Luke Bryan, the show will feature all the best performers from the CMA Music Festival this year: Zac Brown Band, Jason Aldean, Brad Paisley, Miranda Lambert, Dierks Bentley, Rascal Flatts and tons more…Kix Brooks, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Brantley Gilbert, Hunter Hayes, Faith Hill, Alan Jackson, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Martina McBride, Scotty McDreery, Jake Owen, Blake Shelton, The Band Perry, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and Hank Williams, Jr.
Tornado warning! Little Big Town’s fifth studio album, Tornado, will be out September 11th. Kimberly Schlapman knows the album is special and has a new energy – here’s why: “This time we decided to use the guys that travel with us on all our shows, and it gave it such a fresh spirit. Everybody was just out there having fun and just putting out the very, very best that they had, and it was so creative. I think you can hear the spontaneity and the energy and the freshness in the music.” The first single on the album, “Pontoon,” has already gone gold.
Gloriana has hit a milestone – they have their first top-5 song with “(Kissed You) Good Night.” It’s the first single from A Thousand Miles Left Behind, which drops on July 31st. Tom Gossin says the project is a hint at the band members’ personal lives: “It’s really the story of the past three years of our lives...different experiences that we went through on the road, different experiences that we were experiencing in our own personal lives and our lives with each other and we’re very, very proud of it.”
Colt Ford is out with a new song, and it features Jake Owen. “‘Back’ is me doing what I do. It’s Jake Owen doing what he does. It’s me at my best –being honest and real, and open with the fans – which is what I’ve always tried to do.” Check it out…
College football season hasn’t even cranked up yet, but Lady Antebellum has already signed to perform at the FanFest just before the Belk Bowl on December 27th in Charlotte, NC. All three Lady A’ers are huge football fans – they even watch games on their tour bus when they’re on the road.
DVR alert – September 17th at 8pm Eastern on ABC, the CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock will air. Co-hosted by Kimberly Perry and Luke Bryan, the show will feature all the best performers from the CMA Music Festival this year: Zac Brown Band, Jason Aldean, Brad Paisley, Miranda Lambert, Dierks Bentley, Rascal Flatts and tons more…Kix Brooks, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Brantley Gilbert, Hunter Hayes, Faith Hill, Alan Jackson, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Martina McBride, Scotty McDreery, Jake Owen, Blake Shelton, The Band Perry, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and Hank Williams, Jr.
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