Kenny Chesney’s Trip Around The Sun EIGHTEEN Major Stadiums Are First 2018 Tour Announcement Pre-Sales Begin Today, General Sales Begin October 27
You could hear the collective sigh of the entire No Shoe Nation when Kenny Chesney announced that he was taking 2017 off from touring, so it’s no wonder we’re all waiting with baited breath for his team to announce if and when he will finally get back on the road. We’ve been doing our part here at CountryMusicOnTour.com to answer that very question: When will Kenny Chesney go back on tour?
Kelsea Ballerini to “Flip The Switch” On The Opry’s Signature Barn, Trisha Yearwood to Introduce the Year’s Honorary Survivor as Part of the Ninth Annual “Opry Goes Pink” in Support of the Fight Against Breast Cancer The Grand Ole Opry® is joining Women Rock For The Cure™ in the fight against breast cancer on Tues., Oct. 24 with its ninth annual “Opry Goes Pink” show. Black River Entertainment’s Kelsea Ballerini will flip the switch on the Opry’s signature barn backdrop, turning it pink for the night as the “Legends” singer takes the stage to perform to raise awareness and funds for Women Rock for the CureTM, a Nashville-based non-profit committed to connecting and supporting young women facing breast cancer. Opry member Trisha Yearwood will also take the stage to perform and introduce this year’s Women Rock for the Cure honorary survivor, symbolizing individual battles being won against the disease. Arista Nashville’s LANCO will make their Opry debut, Easton Corbin, Runaway June, and others will perform, and CMT’s Cody Alan will appear as a guest announcer for the night, joining the ranks of other personalities who have appeared in the role including Garrison Keillor, Dan Rather, and Robin Roberts, among many others. Beginning today, when fans order tickets, $5 from every ticket sold will be donated to Women Rock For The Cure™. Tickets are available at (615) 871-OPRY and opry.com. The Grand Ole Opry® is presented by Humana®. Opry performances are held every Friday and Saturday of the year, with Tuesday Night Opry shows through December 12. About the Grand Ole Opry The Grand Ole Opry® is presented by Humana®. Opry performances are held every Friday and Saturday of the year, with Tuesday Night Opry shows through December 12 and Wednesday shows returning September 13. To plan an Opry visit, call (800) SEE-OPRY or visit opry.com. The Opry presents the best in country music live every week from Nashville, Tenn. Celebrating nine decades of entertainment, the Opry can be heard at opry.com and wsmonline.com, Opry and WSM mobile apps, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, and its flagship home, 650 AM-WSM. The Grand Ole Opry is owned by Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE: RHP). For more information, visit opry.com. About Women Rock For The Cure Women Rock For The Cure™ is a Nashville-based 501(c)(3) organization committed to connecting and supporting young women facing breast cancer. Founded in 2007, the organization works to build awareness and provide outreach programs through the power of the entertainment industry. Fueled by the annual Opry Goes Pink concert, the signature event has featured performances by Jason Aldean, Martina McBride, Kacey Musgraves, Kellie Pickler, Rascal Flatts, LeAnn Rimes, The Judds, Carrie Underwood and more. All proceeds benefit the organization’s outreach efforts, including the impactful Young Survivors Retreat, which brings together young women diagnosed with breast cancer. For additional information on Women Rock For The Cure, upcoming events and how to get involved, please visit www.WomenRockForTheCure.org.
Two new tracks were just added to Spotify as part of the Spotify Singles release! Listen to the guys perform a new version of “Yours If You Want It” and an exclusive cover of Vince Gill’s “What The Cowgirls Do,” recorded live from the Spotify studio in New York. Listen Here LAS VEGAS RESIDENCY TICKETS ON SALE NOW Come party with Rascal Flatts in Las Vegas! Don’t miss your chance to see the guys this fall at The Venetian Las Vegas from Friday, October 6th through Saturday, October 21st. Tickets for the 8-show residency, “Night To Shine” are on sale now!
AT&T and AUDIENCE Network Present: “Keith Urban: Live From Phoenix” Concert Special Airs Friday, July 14 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT On DIRECTV and U-verse (DIRECTV Ch 239/U-verse Ch 1114) and DIRECTV NOW Tune in to the AT&T* AUDIENCE Network concert special “Keith Urban: Live From Phoenix” airing Friday, July 14,at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT via DIRECTV Ch 239, AT&T U-verse Ch 1114 and on-demand through DIRECTV NOW. The electrifying live performance and interview from the four-time GRAMMY Award-winning, platinum-selling artist was filmed on location during the AT&T Block Party at the 2017 NCAA March Madness Music Festival in Phoenix. Watch the trailer for “Keith Urban: Live From Phoenix” (HERE). AUDIENCE Network delivers groundbreaking concerts, unique stories and exclusive performances across all genres, plus select programming in ultra high-definition/4K1, to audiences nationwide. New shows premiere via national broadcast Friday at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on DIRECTV Ch 239/AT&T U-verse Ch 1114, as well as streaming on-demand at DIRECTV NOW, directv.com, uverse.com and on smartphones and tablets, via the DIRECTV and U-verse apps.2 AUDIENCE Network’s multiple series of original and exclusive performances give music fans an intimate view of music’s most influential artists today. The network collaborates directly with musicians to create a unique show from their perspective. A groundbreaking album for Urban, RIPCORD marked the second time that one of his albums debuted simultaneously atop the all-genre charts in the U.S., Canada and Australia. He is the only male Country artist to achieve this mark, not just once, but twice. It was recently certified platinum and produced Urban’s 22nd #1 song, his 6th consecutive, with “Blue Ain’t Your Color.” Thus far, RIPCORD has produced four #1 songs including “Wasted Time,” which moved Urban to #8 on Billboard’s All-time Country Airplay Chart, “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” and “Break On Me.” It leaves Urban’s streak as the artist with the most consecutive top 10 songs on Billboard’s Country Airplay Chart (38) well in tact–a streak that started in August of 2000. Urban’s career has seen a long list of groundbreaking firsts and accomplishments reserved for the music industry’s elite. In 2001, the Country Music Association honored Urban with its Horizon Award and the coveted Entertainer of the Year. Urban has gone on to win CMA’s Male Vocalist of the Year title three times. The 2015 CMA Awards brought Urban his third win for Vocal Event of the Year (“Raise ‘Em Up” featuring Eric Church). It marked the first time in history that any artist has received the award in three consecutive years. Besides his four GRAMMY Awards, Urban has won ten Country Music Association Awards, eleven Academy of Country Music Awards, a People’s Choice and an American Music Award and has been nominated for a Golden Globe. Following the worldwide, breakthrough success of RIPCORD, Urban launched the ‘ripCORD WORLD TOUR 2016.’ The tour played more than seventy shows on four continents, in front of more than a million people. Catch the “ripCORD WORLD TOUR 2017” as it lands at fairs and festivals in the U.S. Continue reading Tune-In Alert: “Keith Urban: Live From Phoenix” Debuts Friday July 14th on Audience Network
21 CITY TOUR KICKS OFF SEPT. 18 IN HERSHEY, PA & INCLUDES SHOWS IN NEW YORK CITY (RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL, SEPT. 19), NASHVILLE (RYMAN, OCT. 1-2) & LOS ANGELES (GREEK THEATRE, OCT. 17) BEFORE ENDING IN BERKELEY, CA ON OCT. 19 Multi-Platinum artists Alison Krauss & David Gray will be touring together throughout the United States this fall. The 21 city, co-headlining tour kicks off on September 18 in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and finishes up in Berkeley, California on October 19, including concerts at Radio City Music Hall in New York City (September 19), the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles (October 17), and two nights at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville (October 1-2). Ticketing information can be found at www.alisonkrauss.com and www.davidgray.com. ALISON KRAUSS Alison Krauss effortlessly bridges the gap between roots music and genres such as pop, rock, country and classical. She has released 14 albums and has sold more than 12 million records to date. With 27 wins, she is the most awarded female artist in GRAMMY history. Krauss recently released the critically acclaimed record Windy City, a collection of 10 classic country songs carefully selected with producer Buddy Cannon. Windy City debuted at #1 on the Country and Bluegrass Billboard charts. She has received a multitude of other honors throughout her career, including nine Country Music Association awards and 14 International Bluegrass Music Association awards. Alison has also contributed songs to numerous films, including O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Cold Mountain. Her 2007 platinum album Raising Sand with Robert Plant won six GRAMMY Awards including Album of the year, and was followed by 2011’s chart-topping, Paper Airplane with her longtime collaborators Union Station. DAVID GRAY David Gray has established himself as one of the UK’s leading artists both at home and overseas with a 25-year career marked by critical praise, numerous accolades and multi-platinum sales over the course of 10 album releases. The GRAMMY-nominated artist is known for his dynamic live shows and the energy behind his concerts exemplifies his deep and heartfelt music. David Gray’s latest studio album Mutineers, found the singer-songwriter steering into unfamiliar territory while cultivating a respectful relationship with his own history. The release was hailed by The Guardian, who declared that there is “a rare comfort in hearing an artist in pursuit of joy.” In 2016, David released a greatest hits collection entitled The Best of that included a re-recorded 25th Anniversary version of “Shine” and new tracks “Smoke Without Fire” and “Enter Lightly.” David promoted the album with a multi-city North American tour and a performance of his international hit “Babylon” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. David is currently in the studio recording a new album which is set for release in 2018. Tour Dates: September 18 – Hershey Theatre – Hershey, PA September 19 – Radio City Music Hall – New York, NY September 20 – The Mann Center for the Performing Arts – Philadelphia, PA September 22 – Blue Hills Bank Pavilion – Boston, MA September 23 – Merriweather Post Pavilion – Columbia, MD September 24 – Cary’s Booth Amphitheatre – Cary, NC September 28 – St. Augustine Amphitheatre – St. Augustine, FL September 29 – Continue reading DAVID GRAY & ALISON KRAUSS ANNOUNCE FALL 2017 U.S. CO-HEADLINING TOUR
DARIUS RUCKER SCORES EIGHTH NO. 1 WITH “IF I TOLD YOU” TO CAP OFF MOMENTOUS CMA FEST WEEK NASHVILLE, Tenn. – As Darius Rucker scores yet another No. 1 at Country radio with “If I Told You,” the first single from his forthcoming fifth studio album on Capitol Records Nashville, he looks back on a banner week. “If I Told You” is the eighth No. 1 single for Rucker since his debut in country music in 2008 and comes just a week after another milestone moment for the three-time GRAMMY Award winner, who reached the $1.2 million mark with his yearly kickoff to CMA Fest, the “Darius and Friends” concert and golf tournament to raise funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®. Friends including Brooks & Dunn, Luke Combs, Dan + Shay, John Oates of legendary pop duo Hall & Oates were among those who helped the event reach its record-breaking achievement. On Wednesday morning Rucker visited TODAY’s Kathie Lee and Hoda at Honky Tonk Central in Nashville, presenting two worthy recipients of new homes through his partnership with Ply Gem and Habitat for Humanity’s Home Builders Blitz and serenading the crowd with a performance of “If I Told You.” “If I Told You” marks Rucker’s first collaboration with producer Ross Copperman. The song was written with Copperman’s co-writers Jon Nite and Shane McAnally. “I love this time in country music,” Rucker said. “It’s so wide in range and to have this song — a ballad and one I’ve loved and related to since first hearing the worktape — is pretty incredible.” On Wednesday evening the CMT Performance of the Year nominated star helped kick off the awards show as he joined Jason Aldean and Charles Kelley for a rendition of “Midnight Rider” in tribute to Gregg Allman, as well as reprising his role as CMT president for the second year in a skit airing at the top of the show. Acting as CMT president follows a long list of acting accolades Rucker has collected this year, including playing Johnny Bragg, lead singer of the Prisonaires on CMT’s Sun Records and a career criminal on Hawaii Five-0. Rucker closed out 2017’s CMA Music Fest with performances dedicated to the fans that make the week so special, performing at the HGTV Lodge on Sunday morning and Nissan Stadium Sunday evening. In celebration of the imminent No. 1 status of the first offering of his fall 2017 album, Rucker welcomed Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild for a compelling duet of “If I Told You,” expressing to the crowd, “Thank you for believing in this song!” The emotional rendition had the crowd on their feet and in tears as Rucker and Fairchild crooned “I’ll love you anyway” to each other from either side of the stadium stage. Rucker’s as-yet-untitled fifth Capitol Records Nashville album will be released later this year with Copperman at the helm. It will be yet another signature moment in the multiplatinum career of one of music’s most beloved figures. Rucker has never been busier while working on his new album with a slate of television appearances this spring and summer that show just how popular he is, including his own CMT Crossroads episode with John Mellencamp. He also appeared Continue reading Darius Rucker Finishes CMA Week Strong With Eighth Number One Hit
When asked who his dream Opry duet partner was in an interview, Blake Shelton answered “Steve Wariner.” It’s not surprising as Wariner has had one of the longest-lasting and most influential careers in country music history. On Thursday night, during a special star-packed CMA Week Opry performance, the pair sang a duet on “Lynda” — one of the singer/songwriter’s 22 No. 1 hits. 2017 also marks the 30th Anniversary of the song released in 1987. “I am humbled by Blake’s answer to that question and singing with him on the Grand Ole Opry stage was a heck of a time. He’s one of the giants of today so I am glad we got to do this,” said Steve Wariner.
Who among us hasn’t been both embarrassed and enthralled when our parents pull out the old photo album and start walking us through the pictures of our past? Things aren’t much different when we start paging through the moments that made up country music history. Some are legendary moments in the making while others are disasters just waiting to unfold, but they are all a part of where we came from. Join me, WhiskeyChick, as I take a look today through the story of the CMT Music Awards! While the award show has had its roots in Nashville since 1967, first as the Music City News Awards, then later as the The Nashville Network’s Viewer’s Choice Awards, then finally as the CMT Flameworthy Video Music Awards the ceremony is now known as simply the CMT Music Awards. These awards separate themselves from other established awards shows by putting the main focus on fan voting and on in-show performances with the actual presentation of trophies taking a back seat. Over the years those performances have been nothing short of amazing, so let’s take a look at a few: When CMT took over the award show they were trying to cross over the mainstream audience from their sister station MTV and this is obvious in the focus they put on flashy pop-styled performances. This of course turned a lot of the more traditional fans away from the show all together but cemented the CMT Awards as an influence in the younger markets. Shania Twain – 2002 CMT Music Awards – “I’m Gonna Get You Good” Brooks & Dunn feat. ZZ Top – 2002 CMT Music Awards – “Only In America” As the awards grew up alongside technology, the balance between pop and flash and classic country crooning started to settle into more epic showcases of modern talent. Keith Urban – 2004 CMT Music Awards – Opening the show with “Who Wouldn’t Want To Me” Rascal Flatts – 2004 CMT Music Awards – “I Melt” Eventually the channel realized they had an opportunity with this younger audience to have a lot more fun than those other stuffed-shirt formal affairs and started showing their softer side with comedic hosts like Jeff Foxworthy to kick things off. 2005 CMT Music Awards opener But don’t let all that fun and funny fool you… they’re still all about the performance here! Carrie Underwood – 2006 CMT Music Awards – “Before He Cheats” Of course some of those moments are ones the country bloggers tend to sweep under the rug, but can we all take a moment and admit that this pairing got all us parents misty-eyed JUST long enough to forget about Billy Ray’s achey breaky heart after watching his baby girl swinging on a wrecking ball? Billy Ray and Miley Cyrus – 2008 CMT Music Awards – “Ready, Set, Don’t Go” Of course, who can forget the moment another teenage sweetheart took over country radio in a way nobody saw coming! Taylor Swift – 2009 CMT Continue reading A Look Back At The History Of The CMT Music Awards
Watch the latest episode of The Pickup here. CMA FEST, VINCE GILL, JOHNNY LEE, RAY SCOTT, JASON ALDEAN AND MANY MORE FEATURED IN THE NEWEST EPISODE OF “THE PICKUP” Continuing the tradition of bringing you the latest news in country music, the latest episode of “The Pickup” features a look inside CMA Fest, Vince Gill’s latest musical pairing, Johnny Lee still lookin’ for love, Ray Scott’s latest album, and so much more of country’s top stories. One of country music’s biggest names, Vince Gill, will be the newest member of the Eagles, one of the best-selling bands of all time. Gill can be seen performing with the band throughout the month of July. With CMA FEST right around the corner, “The Pickup” has a list of must-dos for the week. This list includes paying a visit to the Cracker Barrel Country Roads Stage at Ascend Amphitheater to see classic acts such as The Oak Ridge Boys and Billy Ray Cyrus for free. Also on that list is the CMA Fest Family Feud: Country Stars vs Reality Stars featuring Darryl Worley, Jeannie Seely and Ray Stevens Sunday at the CMA Close Up Stage. John Conlee was recently honored by the Georgia Sheriff’s Association for his song “Walkin’ Behind the Star” in support of the women and men in blue. Ray Scott talks about his newest album Guitar For Sale that is set to release on June 9. He has also released a lyric video to “Livin’ This Way” that features a look at the recording process. Country legend Johnny Lee is releasing his autobiography titled Still Lookin’ for Love and speaks with “The Pickup” about the meaning behind the title. The Country Music Hall of Fame has a new exhibit chronicling Jason Aldean’s life and career that will be open until November. Aldean talks to “The Pickup” about his thoughts on the exhibit, Asphalt Cowboy. “Things Change” is the title track to the latest album from living legend Bobby Bare. Bare shares the secrets to his distinctive country voice with Adam Wurtzel from “The Pickup.” Stay tuned for our next episode for a look inside CMA Fest. It will be one you don’t want to miss! Check out the latest episode of The Pickup here. ABOUT THE PICKUP: Launched in early 2015, The Pickup, a syndicated country video news series produced by The Hot Seat, highlights today’s stars and classic country artists making news today. New episodes are posted on the 1st and 15th of each month. The Pickup, hosted and produced by Adam Wurtzel, can be seen on the websites of broadcasters across the country including over 160 stations, as well as online media blogs, RFD-TV, the U.K.’s SKY Television and the Heartland Network.
