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TEGAN MARIE TO “KEEP IT LIT” FROM NASHVILLE TO NYC

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Tegan Marie News

Rising Country Sensation Celebrates Song Release With Multiple Opry Performances Set To Light Up NBC’s TODAY On January 31 Rising Country sensation TEGAN MARIE is upping the shine factor with the release of her debut Warner Music Nashville song, “Keep It Lit,” worldwide on January 19. Lighting up Nashville, New York City and everywhere in between, Tegan Marie will celebrate with multiple Opry shows starting with her first performance at the Ryman Auditorium as part of Opry at the Ryman (1/19) followed by her debut New York City concert at The Studio at Opry City Stage (1/31). Adding to the excitement, the young trailblazer will bring “Keep It Lit” to television audiences nationwide when she appears on NBC’s TODAY with Kathie Lee and Hoda (1/31). Tegan Marie’s debut New York City show will be the FIRST ticketed event in The Studio at Opry City Stage. Tickets go on sale Wednesday, January 17 at 10:00am eastern via oprycitystage.com. Opry City Stage is New York City’s home for Country music and culture, with good times and great food rooted in the South and served up in Times Square. “Tegan’s reach is far and wide, much like the Opry.  We are thrilled to have her bring a bit of Nashville to Times Square with her upcoming Opry City Stage performance!” said Sally Williams, SVP, Programming & Artists Relations, Opry Entertainment Group. “The Opry is my home whether it’s Nashville or New York City,” shared Tegan Marie. “I’m so excited they believe in me this much to have me as their first ticketed event in NYC! And I can’t believe I get to perform ‘Keep It Lit’ in front of Hoda and Kathie Lee! I’ll be sure to bring Shirley Temples with me :).” Co-written by Tegan Marie, “Keep It Lit” is produced by acclaimed hit maker and WMN’s EVP of A&R, Scott Hendricks (with 70 #1 hits for artists including Blake Shelton and Alan Jackson). Named after a popular expression with the singer’s generation (aka Gen Z) – “lit”- the song celebrates happiness, good vibes and lightheartedness. It also serves as her anthem to inspire people across the country to make 2018 a year of positivity and hope. Media and fans alike have already taken notice of the rising star’s talent after being first discovered by leading Gen Z girls’ media company Sweety High. Landing on several high-profile emerging artist lists, HuffPost and Billboard included her in their 2018 Country Artists to Watch lists. Billboard praises, “…few have the stage presence, songwriting skills and overall show business moxie as this Michigan native…” and HuffPost adds, “Tegan Marie is primed to be country music’s first Gen Z star.” About Tegan Marie: With a larger-than-life voice, Tegan Marie was discovered when her father uploaded videos of her cover songs to Gen Z girls’ site, Sweety High. Featured as a Radio Disney Country artist, she has since catapulted into the national spotlight with several high-profile media performances and appearances including ABC’s Good Morning America, PBS’ star-studded Continue reading TEGAN MARIE TO “KEEP IT LIT” FROM NASHVILLE TO NYC→

Ray Stevens Unveils CabaRay Showroom Amidst a Who’s Who of Nashville’s Music Industry

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Ray Stevens Concert News

Stevens’ New West Nashville Music Venue Opens to the Public this Week with Live Concerts Set for Thursday Through Saturday Nights Last Wednesday night, January 10, in Nashville, legendary country and comedy music artist Ray Stevens unveiled his two-year labor of love, the Ray Stevens CabaRay Showroom. The new 35,000 square foot dinner theatre was packed with artists, music industry execs, media personalities, and politicians who came out to support the man who literally helped to pave the way for Nashville’s music scene. Those in attendance included Ricky Skaggs, Ralph Emery, the Gatlin Brothers, John Berry, Steve Wariner, Bill Anderson, TG Sheppard, Kelly Lang, T. Graham Brown, Jeannie Seely, Sharon White, Don Schlitz, Fred Foster, Bobby Goldsboro, Harold Bradley, Jerry Kennedy, Johnny Lee, Lee Roy Parnell, Williams & Ree, Jeff Bates, Mandy Barnett, Teea Goans, Charlene Tilton, Mark Ford, Bob Clement, Don Sundquist, Charlie Monk, Bill Cody, Larry Black, and more. “I haven’t been nervous on stage since I was a teenager. But boy was I nervous VIP night at CabaRay in front of all my friends,” says Stevens. “It was a big night!” Stevens performed a 90-minute show which included many of his career hits including, “The Streak,” “Mississippi Squirrel Revival,” “Misty,” “Gitarzan,” “It’s Me Again Margaret,” “Shriner’s Convention,” and “Turn Your Radio On.” The music legend received a standing ovation following a performance of his 1970 #1 smash hit, “Everything is Beautiful.” Earlier in the day, Stevens received a proclamation from Nashville Mayor Megan Barry declaring January 10 Ray Stevens Day in Music City, USA. CabaRay opens to the general public this Thursday, January 18. Stevens will perform live three nights (Thursday-Saturday) weekly. Tickets are on-sale now at raystevenscabaray.com or by calling 615-327-4630. The venue is located at 5724 River Road in West Nashville. About Ray Stevens Twelve-time nominated and two-time Grammy® Award winner Ray Stevens has spanned the generations with 60 years of comedic musical talent, including songs such as his multi-million selling hit “The Streak” and his classic pop standard “Everything Is Beautiful.” Throughout his career, Stevens has sold more than 40 million albums and continues daily office operations at his home base, Ray Stevens Music, located on Nashville’s historic Music Row. Stevens hosts Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville, a 30-minute weekly music/talk show airing on Public Television. The music legend will soon open his very own Nashville entertainment venue, the CabaRay Showroom, a 35,000 square foot music venue set to make its debut in January of 2018. The Ray Stevens: Everything Is Beautiful display is currently featured at the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum where museumgoers can view items from Stevens’ storied career. For more information on Ray Stevens, visit raystevens.com.

New Music From Scotty McCreery

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Scotty McCreery News On Country Music News Blog

SCOTTY McCREERY’S LONG-AWAITED ALBUM, SEASONS CHANGE, AVAILABLE FOR PREORDER EVERYWHERE TODAY Surprise Track “Wherever You Are” Available Now Ahead of Album’s Release 3/16 After a five-year wait and a multitude of life changes, Scotty McCreery releases his highly anticipated album, Seasons Change, for digital pre-order everywhere today, ahead of its March 16 release on Sony’s Triple Tigers Records – his first album on the label. The project features his current nearly-Top 10-and-climbing radio hit “Five More Minutes,” which People calls an “emotional walk down memory lane.” Fans are also surprised today with the instant grat track “Wherever You Are,” available now. “Wherever You Are” was co-written by McCreery, Frank Rogers and Dan Isbell.  The song outlines the motivation love gives to do whatever it takes to be with a significant other, and is inspired by McCreery’s recently-engaged fiancée, Gabi Dugal, with lyrics like: Up in Manhattan/ Or way out in some cabin/ In the middle of nowhere/ Well baby I’ll be there/ Wherever you are, wherever it is/ Baby it ain’t too far/ Just give me call or drop me a pin The 24-year old singer/songwriter has a lot to say on the 11-track album, produced by Rogers (McCreery’s See You Tonight, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker), Derek Wells (guitarist for Kenny Chesney, Brett Eldridge, Little Big Town), and Aaron Eshuis (producer for Ryan Hurd, songwriter for A Thousand Horses, Joe Nichols, Cole Swindell). With every song co-written by McCreery himself, Seasons Change marks the first time he’s played a hand in writing his entire album. With songs influenced by true-life events that occurred since he released his last album at 19 — including moving out on his own, going to college, getting robbed at gunpoint, losing his grandfather, changing record labels, releasing a book and proposing to his high school sweetheart — Seasons Change is a true reflection of where the North Carolina native is in life. Among his co-writers on the personal album are Jessi Alexander (Dierks Bentley, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton), Monty Criswell (Eric Church, Darius Rucker, George Strait), Jason Gantt (Brooks & Dunn, Faith Hill, Alison Krauss, Tim McGraw), David Lee Murphy (Gary Allan, Kenny Chesney, Blake Shelton) and more. Seasons Change Track Listing:  1. “Seasons Change” (Scotty McCreery/James McNair/Tommy Cecil) 2. “Wherever You Are” (Scotty McCreery/Frank Rogers/Dan Isbell) 3. “Boys From Back Home” (Scotty McCreery/Dan Isbell/Jason Gantt) 4. “Five More Minutes” (Scotty McCreery/Frank Rogers/Monty Criswell) 5.  “In Between” (Scotty McCreery/Frank Rogers/Jessi Alexander/Jonathan Singleton) 6.  “This Is It” (Scotty McCreery/Frank Rogers/Aaron Eshuis) 7.  “Wrong Again” (Scotty McCreery/Frank Rogers/Phillip White) 8.  “Move It On Out” (Scotty McCreery/Dan Isbell/Aaron Eshuis) 9.  “Barefootin’” (Scotty McCreery/Frank Rogers/David Lee Murphy 10. “Still” (Scotty McCreery/Aaron Eshuis) 11. “Home In My Mind” (Scotty McCreery/James McNair/Tommy Cecil) Album bundles are also available on ScottyMcCreery.com including autographed CDs bundled with a personalized video and various merchandise options for pre-order. The album’s first single, “Five More Minutes,” is closing in quickly on the Top Ten and has already built an impressive history. McCreery performed “Five More Minutes” on the Grand Ole Opry stage in 2016, where it quickly became Continue reading New Music From Scotty McCreery→

Full Nominee List for the 2018 iHeartRadio Music Awards

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iHeartRadio 2018 Music Awards

iHeartMedia and Turner announced today the nominees for the 2018 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Sunday, March 11, 2018 at the historic, “Fabulous” Forum in Los Angeles. The event will be simulcast live on TBS, TNT and truTV at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT; on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide; and the iHeartRadio app, the free all-in-one digital music, podcasting and live streaming radio service. TV subscribers can also watch the iHeartRadio Music Awards on the truTV, TNT & TBS Apps. For the fifth straight year, the iHeartRadio Music Awards will celebrate the biggest songs and artists heard throughout 2017 across iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide and on the iHeartRadio app. The 2018 telecast will feature live performances from today’s superstar performers, once-in-a-lifetime artist collaborations, celebrity guest appearances and live award presentations. This is Turner Broadcasting’s third year broadcasting the event. “We have a guiding principle at iHeartRadio that fans rule,” said John Sykes, President of iHeartMedia Entertainment Enterprises. “In our fifth year we are still holding true to our original vision of staging an awards show that truly reflects the music fans loved listening to on iHeartRadio all year long.” Artists receiving multiple nominations include Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars, Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, Justin Bieber, DJ Khaled and The Chainsmokers. All nominees are listed below. For a full list of categories visit iHeartRadio.com/awards. “We’ve expanded the iHeartRadio Music Awards categories each year to ensure it accurately reflects the tastes of the millions of listeners on our broadcast radio stations and on the iHeartRadio app,” said Tom Poleman, Chief Programming Officer for iHeartMedia. “We’ve been thrilled with the response from both fans and artists and we can’t wait to celebrate the year in music by honoring its biggest songs and moments.” For the first time ever, this year iHeartRadio will present seven awards in the seven nights leading up to the Sunday, March 11 telecast. Each night at 8 p.m. ET, an artist will be presented their award and give an acceptance speech. In addition to being a compelling celebration of music and artists, the 2018 iHeartRadio Music Awards will again celebrate the fans, giving iHeartRadio listeners the opportunity to decide winners in several new and established categories. Fan voting will determine this year’s Best Fan Army presented by Taco Bell, Best Lyrics, Best Cover Song, Best Music Video, the Social Star Award, Best Solo Breakout and the first-ever Cutest Musician’s Pet, Best Boy Band and Best Remix awards. In addition, fans will get to vote on social media during the show for winners of the Best Performance and Best Dressed awards, which will be announced immediately after the event. Social voting for the Social Star Award and Best Fan Army presented by Taco Bell award began through iHeartRadio’s social sites and in the iHeartRadio app on January 9. Social voting for all other categories begin today, January 10 and will close on March 4, with voting for the Social Star Award and the Best Fan Army presented by Taco Continue reading Full Nominee List for the 2018 iHeartRadio Music Awards→

Listen Now: Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats – You Worry Me

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Tearing at the Seams, the highly anticipated new album from Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, will be released March 9 on Stax Records. The lead single, “You Worry Me,” is premiering worldwide today—you can listen/share the track here: http://found.ee/NRNSyouworrymeyt.   On March 9, Stax Records will release Tearing at the Seams, the highly anticipated new album from Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats. Tearing at the Seams follows the band’s critically and commercially lauded self-titled debut album, which is certified Gold in the U.S., Belgium, Switzerland and the Netherlands, Platinum in Canada and Silver in the U.K. “You Worry Me,” the lead single from the new album, is premiering worldwide today—listen to the track here: http://found.ee/NRNSyouworrymeyt. The album is available for pre-order beginning today, here http://found.ee/NRNStats. In addition to the 12-track standard edition, Tearing at the Seams will be available in a 14-track deluxe edition that features two bonus tracks and exclusive photos. Vinyl editions include the (2-disc, 180gram) 12-track standard edition and the (2-disc, 180gram) 14-track deluxe edition, which features an exclusive photo book and special 7” single. Initial writing and recording sessions for Tearing at the Seams took place in Rodeo, New Mexico where Rateliff & The Night Sweats re-established their dynamic off the stage and in the studio. “For the first record I demo’ed everything up and created most of the parts,” says Rateliff. “This time, I felt like we’ve all spent so much time on the road that we should all go off somewhere together. We should all have that experience together.” The band finished recording with producer Richard Swift—who has helmed records for The Shins and Foxygen in addition to The Night Sweats’ debut—collectively creating a group of songs that capture the band’s emotion and intensity. Of the new album, Rateliff reflects, “I want—and I need—everybody to feel like they’re a part of this band. I want them to feel like they’re contributing artistically and emotionally to the experience of writing and creating this music. We’ve all had to make sacrifices to be in The Night Sweats and I want them all to know that it’s worth something.” Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats are: Rateliff (vocals, guitar), Joseph Pope III (bass), Patrick Meese (drums), Luke Mossman (guitar), Mark Shusterman (keys), Andy Wild (saxophone), Scott Frock (trumpet) and Jeff Dazey (saxophone).   For the past two years, the Denver-based band has performed extensively across the globe headlining shows and major festivals including Coachella, Bonnaroo, New Orleans Jazz Fest, Newport Folk Festival, Glastonbury, Monterey International Pop Festival and dozens more. The band also made an immediate and lasting impression on late night television including performances on “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” (twice), “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “CONAN,” “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” as well as on PBS’ “Austin City Limits” and “A Prairie Home Companion.” Most recently, the band released their first-ever full-length concert recording, Live at Red Rocks, featuring the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, and their hit single “S.O.B.” is now certified Platinum in the U.S. and Canada and Gold in Switzerland. Continue reading Listen Now: Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats – You Worry Me→

Fans Pouring Out Support For Loretta Lynn After Hip Injury

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Loretta Lynn News

Yesterday the official Twitter account for Loretta Lynn made the announcement that the people’s queen of country was quietly recovering at her home after suffering a broken hip injury from falling. Since then fans and stars alike have been flooding the platform with love and support for the musical icon. Our hearts and prayers as well go out to Loretta for a comfortable and speedy recovery! American music icon, Loretta Lynn is recovering from a fractured hip after a fall while at home. She is doing well and thanks all her fans for their thoughts and prayers. pic.twitter.com/wBSpJGZBob — Loretta Lynn (@LorettaLynn) January 8, 2018 Love you Loretta, 🙏🙏🙏 — Bellamy Brothers (@BellamyBrothers) January 9, 2018 Ms Loretta, I'm joining my birthday wish with @TheCrystalGayle for everyone to send you healing thoughts and prayers. Love you lots and get well soon!!💗🎶😇 — Deb Cornell (@DebCornell3) January 8, 2018 Feel better soon Loretta! We all love you and our hearts are with you! ❤️ — Sheldon Riddle (@SheldonRiddle) January 8, 2018 Get better soon my friend. Not through with you yet Loretta. Take care of yourself and hope you get better real soon. Be careful my friend, you're one of my only few classic one's left. Don't wanna lose you yet. Get plenty of rest and take it easy my friend. — William Stine, Jr. (@stinejrwilliam1) January 8, 2018

Carrie Underwood Teases “Champion” Track

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Carrie Underwood

Country megastar Carrie Underwood gave fans a quick taste of her upcoming track “Champion” during Saturday night’s Wild Card game between the Atlanta Falcons and the L.A. Rams and those fans are going rabid for more! Check out something special from @carrieunderwood that aired tonight during halftime! #SBLII #TheChampion pic.twitter.com/YBL77YsgbQ — SNF on NBC (@SNFonNBC) January 7, 2018 Rumor has it this track will be debuted during the 2018 Superbowl which takes place February 4th. In the meantime Carrie is nursing injuries obtained during a fall at her Nashville home over the holiday season. Those injuries include a broken wrist and an undisclosed amount of cosmetic damage to her face that, according to her social media posts, required 40-50 stitches and will leave her looking quite different than what fans expect. Though we doubt fans give a hoot if she’s got a burlap bag and her favorite sweats hiding her looks completely as long as she still sings the same!

Tune-In Alert: Shania Twain on “Drop the Mic” 1/9/18

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Shania Twain on Country Music News Blog

Shania Twain is set to appear on the show Drop the Mic where stars go head-to-head in an amateur rap battle. The show, which pits the superstar against pop star Megan Trainor, will air Tuesday (January 9th) at 10p ET. Shania is currently gearing up for her record-breaking 2018 tour in support of her new album “Now. You can find tickets to see Shania Twain LIVE at CountryMusicOnTour.com

Nicole Kidman Includes Keith Urban in Golden Globes Acceptance

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In a time of gender divides and terrible revelations, country’s sweetheart couple stands together as an example of love and respect. In last night’s Golden Globe award ceremony the pair flashed another set of great relationship goals as Nicole Kidman included husband Keith Urban in her acceptance speech for Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series for her role as Celeste Wright in HBO’s Big Little Lies. “Keith Urban, when my cheek  is against yours, everything melts away, and that is love. It’s true. I love you so much,” she said. Her impassioned speech included appreciation for her co-stars of the series, including co-producer Reese Witherspoon, as well as Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley and Zoe Kravitz. The show went on to win Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Alexander Skarsgard and Laura Dern also picked up Best Supporting awards for their roles in Big Little Lies.   Keith is making his way up the country charts with his latest song, “Female.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8BhbOqgTAI