Category Archives: News

American Country Awards 2011 Winners

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Complete List of 2011 Winners for 2nd Annual American Country Awards! Fox tried out its original awards show, American Country Awards, for the second year in a row Monday, December 5th. The fan-voted show which awards winners to scale guitar shaped trophies was a spectacular event hosted by Trace Adkins and Kristin Chenowith and featuring performances by Pistol Annies, Thompson Square, Eli Young Band, The Band Perry and more. I’m happy to say that in the list of award shows we’ve already seen this year, this one stands out at least because of the winners (see full list below). Some of the winners include artists who have yet to be recognized with wins this year like Thompson Square and Chris Young. Others though have been winners, big winners actually, like Blake Shelton. However, Shelton was recognize for a work that hasn’t gotten quite as much attention from the industry as his other singles (guess that’s the bonus of a fan voted show!). Jason Aldean was another big winner, and really, no surprise their. He produced a great album, and clearly knows how to put on a show for his fans! Well-deserved all around! All in all it was a good evening, but Fox probably still has a long way to go if it wants to compete for fans and viewers with the likes of the CMA Awards or even the CMT Awards. Be sure to let us know what you thought about the show and the winners! Complete List of 2nd Annual ACA Awards Artist Categories Artist of the Year Jason Aldean Artist of the Year: Male Brad Paisley Artist of the Year: Female Carrie Underwood Artist of the Year: Duo/Group Lady Antebellum Artist of the Year: Breakthrough Chris Young Artist of the Year: New Artist Scotty McCreery Album Album of the Year My Kind of Party, Jason Aldean Singles Categories Single of the Year “Voices“, Chris Young Single of the Year: Male “My Kinda Party“, Jason Aldean Single of the Year: Female “Mama’s Song“, Carrie Underwood Single of the Year: Duo/Group “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not“, Thompson Square Single of the Year: New Artist “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not“, Thompson Square Single of the Year: Vocal Collaboration “Don’t You Wanna Stay?“, Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson Music Video Categories Music Video of the Year “Who Are You When I’m Not Looking“, Blake Shelton Music Video: Male “Who Are You When I’m Not Looking“, Blake Shelton Music Video: Female “Mama’s Song“, Carrie Underwood Music Video: Group/Duo/Collaboration “Don’t You Wanna Stay”, Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson Music Video: New Artist “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not“, Thompson Square Tour Tour of the Year Jason Aldean Noteworthy Artist of the Decade Toby Keith Greatest Hits Award Alabama

Alan Jackson Walk of Fame Induction Speech

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Alan Jackson Gives Heartfelt and Humorous Acceptance Speech at Induction. On November 6th, Alan Jackson was present for the unveiling ceremony of the Music City Walk of Fame through which he was being honored for his success in the industry. In true fashion, he was humorous and heartfelt. With three CMA Entertainer of the Year Awards, 34 #1 singles, and more the 50 million albums sold, it is refreshing to see such humility from a country legend. I know this is maybe a couple weeks behind, but its worth recognizing someone of Jackson’s caliber more than once. You can see his induction speech below! Watch Jackson’s Acceptance Now

Arizona Country Thunder

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19th Annual Arizona Country Thunder Announces Details. The 2012 19th Annual Arizona Country Thunder is shaping up to be one heck of a weekend! Event organizers recently secured Alan Jackson as the Sunday headliner. If that is not enough of an incentive, the line-up also includes Dierks Bentley, Blake Shelton, Thompson Square, Big & Rich, Joe Nichols, Jake Owen, The Band Perry, Phil Vassar, Neal McCoy, Eli Young Band and others! Interestingly, Kellie Pickler is so far the only female solo act. For complete line-up days and times see the list below! Tickets for a four day pass to the concerts run for $120, or you can purchase tickets for individual days, ranging between $45 and $80. There are a variety of camping packages available for purchase. However, the event is currently at capacity. You can go to the official website to sign up for a spot on the reservation list. Arizona Country Thunder takes place in Florence, Arizona, and will take place Thursday, April 12th – Sunday, April 15th 2012. Click here for more details! Announced Line-Up (so far…) Thursday – Main Stage 4:00-5:00pm Wade Bowen 5:30-6:30pm Eli Young Band 7:00-8:30pm Craig Morgan 9:00-10:30pm Dierks Bentley Friday – Main Stage 2:30-3:30pm Steve Holy 4:00-5:00pm Sawyer Brown 5:30-6:30pm Kellie Pickler 7:00-8:30pm Jake Owen 9:00-10:30pm Big & Rich Saturday – Main Stage 2:30-3:30pm The Farm 4:00-5:00pm Neal McCoy 5:30-6:30pm Joe Nichols 7:00-8:30pm Thompson Square 9:00-10:30pm Blake Shelton Sunday – Main Stage 4:00-5:00pm Brett Eldredge 5:30-6:30pm Phil Vassar 7:00-8:30pm The Band Perry 9:00-10:30pm Alan Jackson

Country Grammy Nominations

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2012 Country Grammy Nominations Announced! We are just finishing up this year’s award cycle, and those for 2012 are already gearing up. Last week, the nominations for the 54th Grammy Awards were announced, and we have a complete list of the Country, Bluegrass and Americana artists receiving recognition. I am not particularly surprised that the nominations are dominated by this year’s usual suspects, Blake Shelton, Taylor Swift, Jason Aldean and Kenny Chesney. It is good to see Eric Church in the running for best country album for Chief, and I have no doubt country fans will be pleased that George Strait is recognized for his album, Here For A Good Time. I find it strange that of all of Taylor Swift’s singles, “Mean” was chosen for nomination in both “Best Country Solo Performance” and “Best Song”. I enjoy many of Taylor’s songs, but that is not the most country song on her Speak Now album. It is just a little odd that it popped up in two categories. Also, I am pleased that country artists are being recognized outside of the genre categories as well. The Band Perry is up against several artists from multiple genres in the “Best New Artist” category, and Zac Brown is receiving deserved attention for his original work on the Footloose soundtrack. The 54th Annual Grammy Awards will be held on “Grammy Sunday“, February 12, 2012, at Staples Center in Los Angeles and once again will be broadcast live on CBS from 8 – 11:30 p.m. (ET/PT). Take a look at the list below, and tell us who you think deserves to win! Is anyone missing from the nominations? Tell us that too! Complete List of 2012 Country, Bluegrass, Americana Grammy Nominations Best Country Solo Performance “Dirt Road Anthem“, Jason Aldean “I’m Gonna Love You Through It“, Martina McBride “Honey Bee“, Blake Shelton “Mean“, Taylor Swift “Mama’s Song“, Carrie Underwood Best Country Duo/Group Performance “Don’t You Wanna Stay“, Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson “You and Tequila“, Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter “Barton Hollow“, The Civil Wars “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not“, Thompson Square Best Country Song “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not“, Jim Collins & David Lee Murphy, songwriters (Thompson Square) “God Gave Me You“, Dave Barnes, songwriter (Blake Shelton) “Just Fishin‘”, Casey Beathard, Monty Criswell & Ed Hill, songwriters (Trace Adkins) “Mean“, Taylor Swift, songwriter (Taylor Swift) “Threaten Me With Heaven“, Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Will Owsley & Dillon O’Brian, songwriters (Vince Gill) “You and Tequila“, Matraca Berg & Deana Carter, songwriters (Kenny Chesney Featuring Grace Potter) Best Country Album My Kinda Party, Jason Aldean Chief, Eric Church Own The Night, Lady Antebellum Red River Blue, Blake Shelton Here For A Good Time, George Strait Speak Now, Taylor Swift Best Folk Album Barton Hollows, The Civil Wars I’ll Never Get Out Of This World Alive, Steve Earle Helplessness Blues, Fleet Foxes Ukulele Songs, Eddie Vedder The Harrow & The Harvest, Gillian Welch Best Bluegrass Album Paper Airplane, Alison Krauss & Union Continue reading Country Grammy Nominations→

Tim McGraw Wins Lawsuit

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Tim McGraw Wins In The Legal Battle Against Curb Records! Congratulations to Tim McGraw for winning in the case he has had going against Curb Records! Earlier this year Tim was sued by Curb, the label where it all started for him 21 years ago, for breach of contract. Now he is not completely out of the dirty water yet, there will be another trial in July. But until then Tim can sing where he wants and record what he wants!

Jennifer Nettles Gets Married

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Sugarland Front Woman Jennifer Nettles Ties The Knot! Jennifer Nettles got hitched this past Saturday to boyfriend of two years, Justin Miller. The ceremony was a small affair with family and friends, including band mate Kristian Bush, in Tennessee. Nettles, or should we say Miller, will be performing tomorrow with Lady Gaga at the Grammy Nomination Concert and will host the CMA Country Christmas special this Thursday on ABC at 9pm (ET). Congratulations to you both!

Gloriana’s Soldier Song On Jay Leno

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Gloriana Performs Soldier Tribute On Special Jay Leno Episode. In honor of last week’s Thanksgiving festivities, NBC aired a special episode of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” in which the audience was comprised of members of the armed forces representing each of the five branches of the military. The episode aired Wednesday, November 23rd on the eve of Thanksgiving, and featured a performance by Gloriana of their “Soldier Song” which was inspired by the group’s interactions with the military last fall when they visited the Middle East. You can hear the back story of the group’s inspiration for writing the song in the video below, and you can also check out the group’s performance on Leno! Gloriana Perform “Soldier Song” On Jay Leno Gloriana Salute to the Troops, Behind the Scenes of “Soldier Song“. [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCuGZ8-gT-c]

Lady Antebellum on Dancing With The Stars

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Lady Antebellum Performs On Dancing With The Stars. Lady Antebellum stopped by the set of ABC‘s Dancing with the Stars Tuesday, November 22nd episode to perform both old and new music! The trio first performed one of the tracks off their new album, “Dancing Away With My Heart“, and then also had the chance to sing their Grammy winning hit, “Need You Now“. You can watch videos of both performances below. Their latest album, Own The Night, is the group’s third studio album, and was released September 13th (For a full review, click here.). Lady A will kick off their 2012 tour on January 27th. You can find all the details, dates and available ticket info by clicking here! See Lady A’s Television Debut of “Dancing Away With My Heart” Now. [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPEZzDUMtCk] Watch Lady A’s Performance of “Need You Now” Here. [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDXRcB7qQnw]

JaneDear Girls On CW’s Hart of Dixie

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The JaneDear Girls to Perform on Episode of CW’s Hart of Dixie! The CW Network must really love their country music! First, Kellie Pickler got to stop by the 90210 set to perform on an episode, and now The JaneDear Girls will be featured on an upcoming episode of the network’s new series “Hart of Dixie“. The series is in its debut season and features a young, fresh out of medical school doctor played by Rachel Bilson, who through a series of comedic and somewhat cliche events winds up working at a practice in a tiny southern Alabama town. The JaneDear Girls will appear in the Monday, November 28th episode titled “The Pirate and The Practice“. It will air at 9pm ET on the CW(check local listings!), and the girls will be performing their single “Shotgun Girl” at the town’s “planksgiving” festival. I’m not so sure about this series, but I had the chance to see The JaneDear Girls perform live this summer in Memphis. They are spectacular performers and musicians, and any chance to see them perform is a good one! So, be sure to tune in (even if you only watch long enough to see the girls singin’!). Watch a preview for Monday’s episode of “Hart of Dixie” below. [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPXRiLsw8a4]

Alabama Receive Award at American Country Awards

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Alabama to Receive Honor at 2011 ACAs. Iconic country group, Alabama are set to receive a special award, the Greatest Hits Award, at the 2011 American Country Awards. The band is also scheduled to join the line-up of performers for the television special. Many fans complained about the lack of “real country” at the 2011 CMAs. Perhaps, the ACAs are trying to answer this complaint by refocusing on more traditional country music. Just a thought. The 2011 ACAs will feature Kristen Chenoweth and Trace Adkins as hosts, and will air live on Monday, December 5th at 8pm ET on Fox. The list of performers so far includes both hosts as well as Blake Shelton, Pistol Annies, Thompson Square, Eli Young Band, The Band Perry, Scotty McCreery, Miranda Lambert and Lauren Alaina.