Daily Lineup Announced for the 26th Annual Country Jam

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Kenny Chesney on Country Music News

Single Day Tickets Now On Sale  for “Colorado’s Biggest Country Music Party” Headliners Include Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean, Thomas Rhett and Co-Headliners Justin Moore and Randy Houser 4-Day Festival will be held June 15-18 The daily lineup has been announced for the superstar lineup for “Colorado’s Biggest Country Music Party”– the 26th Annual Country Jam festival at Jam Ranch outside Grand Junction, CO on June 15-18, 2017.  The headliner lineup this year includes the just crowned ACM Entertainer of the Year Jason Aldean and the ACM Male Vocalist of the Year Thomas Rhett as well as superstar Kenny Chesney and co-headliners Justin Moore and Randy Houser. Single day tickets are available now for Country Jam 2017 starting at $99. 4-day general admission tickets start at $155, with reserve tickets starting at $380, and weekend VIP tickets starting at $740. More information on single day tickets and VIP ticket details, along with camping options and pricing are available online at http://countryjam.com/tickets A packed lineup of superstar headliners and the hottest artists in country music as well as some rising newcomers will take the stage each day at Country Jam 2017. Thursday, June 15 Sasha McVeigh Smithfield Sammy Kershaw Randy Houser Justin Moore Friday, June 16 Sammy Arriaga Cody Johnson Parmalee Chris Young Jason Aldean Saturday, June 17 Devon Worley Band Farewell Angelina Frankie Ballard Old Dominion Kenny Chesney Sunday, June 18 American Young Mo Pitney Kane Brown Gretchen Wilson Thomas Rhett Details about performances at Jack’s Place, as well as for the festival’s annual Pre-Campground Party (held at Jack’s Place on Wednesday, June 14), will be posted at www.countryjam.com. Country Jam features world-class entertainment and on-site camping in the “high-desert” country of Western Colorado. The four-day festival has established itself as a must-do for country music fans, with last year’s Country Jam featuring performances from superstars, legends and the hottest rising newcomers in country music including Zac Brown Band, Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley and Lee Brice, as well as Trace Adkins, Big & Rich, Joe Nichols, Tyler Farr, Easton Corbin, Chase Bryant, Darryl Worley, Neal McCoy, Halfway to Hazard, Canaan Smith, Aaron Watson, Lindsay Ell, High Valley, Drake White and The Big Fire, Stephanie Quayle and Annie Bosko and many others. More information about Country Jam can be found online at www.countryjam.com Stay connected with up-to-the-date information on Country Jam on Facebook or by following @CountryJamCO on Twitter

Jason Aldean Helps WFMS/Indianapolis Listener Land A Date For Prom

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CUMULUS Country WFMS/INDIANAPOLIS used their time with BROKEN BOW RECORDS artist JASON ALDEAN just before the “52ND ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS” to ask a favor — not for the station, but for a young listener. The WFMS crew asked ALDEAN to assist a local high school junior with his “promposal,” and ALDEAN happily obliged. “We asked the Entertainer Of The Year for a favor at the ACM broadcast, and JASON delivered,” WFMS morning co-host DEB told ALL ACCESS. “More importantly, ASHLEY said yes!” See ALDEAN’s video promposal from GRIFFIN to ASHLEY here.

Grand Ole Opry Introduces The Opry Box, Country Music’s First Merchandise Subscription Box

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Opry Box on Country Music News Blog!

The Grand Ole Opry is introducing country music fans to a new subscription box, the first of its kind to be curated around country living, Nashville, and the Opry. Each season, the Opry Box promises country music surprises including themed one-of-a-kind merchandise, an exclusive Inside The Circle magazine, and more. The Opry Box launches with “Opry Friends”, a box celebrating friendships between Opry artists as well as between country stars and their fans. Opry member Brad Paisley graces the cover of the seasonal magazine, sharing the stories about friends who contributed to his upcoming album LOVE AND WAR, also included in the first edition Box. Paisley’s Opry fishing buddy Little Jimmy Dickens is remembered in the Box with the inclusion of a travel mug emblazoned with the Country Music Hall of Famer’s name as found on his Opry House dressing room door. In addition to Box surprises, the inaugural Box also includes the Grammy®-nominated DVD/Blu-ray American Saturday Night: Live From The Grand Ole Opry featuring Paisley, Blake Shelton, Darius Rucker, Brett Eldredge, and The Band Perry. Single boxes ($40 plus shipping) and subscriptions for four seasonal boxes ($140 plus shipping) are available now at opry.com and at 1-800-SEE-OPRY. About the Grand Ole Opry
 The Grand Ole Opry® is presented by Humana®.  Opry performances are held every Friday and Saturday of the year, and Tuesday Night Opry shows will return February 14, 2017.  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.  Marking more than  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.

Lauren Alaina Scores First Career #1 With ‘Road Less Traveled’

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Congratulations to MERCURY NASHVILLE/19/INTERSCOPE artist LAUREN ALAINA for scoring the #1 spot on the MEDIABASE Country singles chart with her single, “Road Less Traveled.” This is ALAINA’s first career #1. Kudos to UMG NASHVILLE SVP/Promotion ROYCE RISSER; MERCURY NASHVILLE VP/Promotion DAMON MOBERLY; UMG NASHVILLE VP/Promotion DAVID FRIEDMAN; UMG NASHVILLE Nat’l Dir./Radio Syndication DONNA HUGHES, Dir./Promotion & Radio Marketing CHRIS SCHULER; MERCURY NASHVILLE Sr. Dir./MIDWEST Promotion CHARLIE DEAN, Dir./WEST COAST Promotion SALLY GREEN, Dir./SOUTHWEST Promotion JILL BRUNETT, Dir./NORTHEAST Promotion SUMMER HARLOW, Dir./SOUTHEAST Promotion JACK CHRISTOPHER, and Promotion Coordinator NICK KAPER. ALL ACCESS delivered sweet treats to the MERCURY NASHVILLE office TODAY (4/10) to congratulate the staff on their success.

Darius Rucker supports St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

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Darius Rucker on Country Music News Blog

DARIUS RUCKER SUPPORTS ST. JUDE CHILDREN’S RESEARCH HOSPITAL®  WITH EIGHTH ANNUAL “DARIUS AND FRIENDS” BENEFIT CONCERT JUNE 5 IN NASHVILLE, NOW AT THE HISTORIC RYMAN AUDITORIUM NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Nine years since visiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® and pledging his support, Darius Rucker has announced the date for his eighth annual “Darius and Friends” benefit concert, sponsored by State Water Heaters. The event, which leads into CMA Music Festival week, takes place Monday, June 5 and will be held for the FIRST time at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. “This concert is a real highlight for me every year,” Rucker said. “And I couldn’t do it without the support of my friends who turn out to perform, tell stories and make this a memorable night for the fans, who are here from around the world.” The event has received an overwhelming response in past years, with sellouts year-after-year and more than $800,000 raised for St. Jude. Friends performing with Rucker in past years have included Luke Bryan, Radney Foster, Randy Houser, Jamey Johnson, Charles Kelley (Lady Antebellum) and Kenny Rogers, among others. The lineup for this year’s event will be announced in the coming weeks. Rucker made a commitment to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® after touring the campus in 2008 and is recognized worldwide for the lifesaving mission. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®  is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Unlike any other hospital, the majority of funding for St. Jude comes from individual contributions. Events like this help ensure families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. Tickets to “Darius and Friends” will be available on Friday, April 14 at 10 a.m. CT via ticketmaster.com. This year Rucker teamed up with Ticketmaster to allow supporters to become #VerifiedFans. Qualified registrants that enter by Thursday, April 13 at 10 a.m. CT will receive a unique code to ensure they can buy tickets without worrying about scalpers or bots. More info on becoming a #VerifiedFan here. Additional sponsors of “Darius and Friends” includes CDW/Intel, GE, Hutton, Maverick, CAA and UMG/Capitol Nashville. For more information please visit www.DariusRucker.com. About St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Since opening more than 50 years ago, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital has changed the way the world treats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. No family ever pays St. Jude for the care their child receives and, for every child treated here, thousands more have been saved worldwide through St. Jude discoveries. The hospital has played a pivotal role in pushing U.S. pediatric cancer survival rates from 20 to 80 percent overall, and is the first and only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted to children. It is also a leader in the research and treatment of blood disorders and infectious diseases in children. St. Jude was founded by the late entertainer Danny Thomas, who believed that no child should die in the dawn of life. Continue reading Darius Rucker supports St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital→

TRACE ADKINS’ SOMETHING’S GOING ON DEBUTS TOP 3

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Trace Adkins on Country Music News Blog!

Trace and Adam Carolla Build Stuff Live, Tonight Trace hits CBS’ “The Talk” 4/18 With Trace Adkins’ March 31 release of Something’s Going On (his first for BBR Music Group/Wheelhouse Records), the 3x GRAMMY-nominated 6’6” vocalist finds himself debuting Top 3 on the Nielsen Soundscan Current Country Albums Chart. With his current single “Watered Down,” which showcases Adkins’ more “enlightened” side, Rolling Stone goes on to note he’s “going for longevity” with this release. Fans can view the official music video HERE, featuring Adkins enjoying a simpler life and slower pace on a Nashville farm, where he does much of the heavy lifting himself, skills he showcases tonight when he stops by Adam Carolla and Friends Build Stuff Live. Fans can catch the country music icon and the acclaimed comedian building an outdoor patio, competing for tool knowledge and answering fan questions via social media on Monday, April 10 on Spike at 11p.m. ET / 10 p.m. CT. Get Trace Adkins Tickets Here Adkins premiered “Watered Down,” the lead single from Something’s Going On, on NBC’s Today on March 31. In the slow-burning rumination on achieving insight with age, Adkins is fully aware of the adjustments and boundaries, but still maintains his edge, grit and power as an artist. It is the cut Adkins points to as the truest reflection of his career and life to date. The chart-topping star will give fans another chance to catch a live look at “Watered Down” when he stops by “The Talk” on Tuesday, April 18. Adkins’ trademark baritone has powered countless hits to the top of the charts. The three-time GRAMMY-nominated member of the Grand Ole Opry is a TV personality, actor, author and spokesman for the Wounded Warrior Project and the American Red Cross, for whom he raised more than $1.5 million dollars as winner of NBC’s All-Star Celebrity Apprentice. Get Trace Adkins Tickets Here In recent years, Adkins has performed for our service men and women across 11 USO Tours, with his 12th scheduled for spring 2017. In his 2007 autobiography, A Personal Stand: Observations and Opinions from a Freethinking Roughneck, he recounted his rise to fame, brushes with death and battles with personal demons. Adkins has played a tough-as-nails biker in The Lincoln Lawyer (starring Matthew McConaughey), a desperate father in Deepwater Horizon (starring Mark Wahlberg) and a wise oracle of a tattoo artist in the family-friendly film Moms’ Night Out (starring Patricia Heaton, Sean Astin, Sarah Drew). For more information, visit www.traceadkins.com or on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @TraceAdkins.

Little Big Town Grace the Cover of Billboard Magazine

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Country Music News from our friends at Billboard!

Today’s cover of Billboard features Little Big Town. Kimberly Schlapman, Phillip Sweet, and Karen Fairchild and Jimi Westbrook open up about how divided they believe our country is, what it means to be a woman in country music, their hit song “Girl Crush”, and more. Fairchild on how our country is divided: “There’s probably not a house in America that’s not divided right now, disagreeing about things going on in the country,” she says. “If you can’t learn to look across the table and go, ‘I love you and I totally disagree with you, but hey, let’s have a glass of wine…’” On their hit song “Girl Crush”: “We were secretly hoping people would use their brain power a little better and listen to the whole song, as opposed to just shut it off after they hear this one thing,” says Sweet. It wasn’t even the allusion to same-sex attraction that had the group concerned ahead of the single’s release: The song is a ballad with a 6/8 time signature. “Just the sheer tempo was controversial” Fairchild on being a woman in country music: “Being Southern doesn’t mean you’re stupid,” says Fairchild, who was born in Gary, Ind., but like the rest of her bandmates has spent most of her life below the Mason-Dixon line. “And being a woman in country music doesn’t mean that you’re simpleminded. You can be a complex, powerful businesswoman — and there’s a lot of that in this business. We have a lot of role models.”   Full Cover Story HERE

Darius Rucker Releases Signature Brand Of Whiskey

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Darius Rucker on Country Music News Blog

CAPITOL NASHVILLE artist DARIUS RUCKER has partnered with 843 WHISKEY to develop his own signature brand, BACKSTAGE SOUTHERN WHISKEY. RNDC DISTRIBUTING will introduce RUCKER’s brand in his home state of SOUTH CAROLINA, with distribution to follow in GEORGIA, KENTUCKY, and TENNESSEE. What has become a “good luck” tradition for RUCKER before every show is a whiskey toast with tour mates, band, and any special guests backstage. Through the years, the pre-show toast has become a significant tradition for RUCKER and his crew. “That toast is a vital part of our nightly routine,” said RUCKER. While BACKSTAGE SOUTHERN WHISKEY enters the marketplace in SOUTH CAROLINA, RUCKER’s bourbon brand, FORBIDDEN, is crafted at CASTLE & KEY DISTILLERY in FRANKFORT, KY.

Alan Jackson, Jerry, Reed, Don Schlitz Announced As Country Music Hall Of Fame Class Of 2017

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The COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME (CMHOF) revealed its class of 2017 inductees TODAY (4/5) in three categories. JERRY REED in the Veteran Era category, ALAN JACKSON enters in the Modern Era category, and DON SCHLITZ in the Songwriter category. VINCE GILL, a 2007 CMHOF inductee, was on hand to announce 2017 honorees, the 57th group of Country legends to join the MUSEUM’s famous rotunda. The COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME was created in 1961 by the COUNTRY MUSIC ASSOCIATION (CMA). Candidates are considered eligible for induction to the COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME into the Modern Era category 20 years after they first achieve National prominence and into the Veteran Era category 40 years after they first achieve National prominence. The Songwriter category is awarded every third year in rotation with the Recording and/or Touring Musician Active Prior to 1980, and Non-Performer categories. Class of 2017 inductees will be officially inducted during the traditional invitation-only medallion ceremony later this YEAR. “Each of this YEAR’s inductees are well versed performers and songwriters and have helped define Country music and popular culture,” said CMA CEO SARAH TRAHERN. Added CMHOF CEO KYLE YOUNG, “These three storytellers have added much to our lives, and to the story of Country music. They stand as models of undeniable eloquence and empathy. Over many decades, they have brought laughter, joy, and tears to millions. The HALL OF FAME ROTUNDA will be grander for the presence of ALAN JACKSON, JERRY REED, and DON SCHLITZ.” Learn more about the inductees and watch the entire Class Of 2017 announcement here.

MIRANDA LAMBERT MAKES HISTORY AT ACM AWARDS WITH EIGHTH CONSECUTIVE FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR WIN

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Miranda Lambert on Country Music News Blog

Vanner Records/RCA Records Nashville GRAMMY Award-winner Miranda Lambert set a record with her EIGHTH consecutive win for Female Vocalist of the Year at the 52nd Academy of Country Music Awards (ACMs) last night.  In her acceptance speech, after paying tribute to fellow nominee, Carrie Underwood, Lambert remarked, “I’m just glad to see females kicking ass these days.  I’m so proud to be part of that.” Her smash-hit double-album The Weight of These Wings also won for Album of the Year, prompting her to say, “Thank you for letting me use my heartbreak and sharing it with me.”   This marks Lambert’s FIFTH consecutive album to be recognized in the ACM Album of the Year Category, the most of any artist in ACM history.   Her total ACM wins now stands at 28 Awards. The Weight of These Wings soared to #1 on the iTunes charts within an hour of her win, and her single, “Tin Man” began climbing the charts following her emotionally powerful acoustic performance. Lambert recently completed the first leg of her “Highway Vagabond” tour and will be at festivals and amphitheaters throughout the summer.  Her European tour will kick off in The Netherlands and take her to England, Scotland and Ireland in August.  Late September and into October, Miranda will tour Canada. About Miranda Lambert: Vanner Records/RCA Records Nashville singer/songwriter Miranda Lambert is the reigning ACM Female Vocalist of the Year, having been bestowed this honor for eight consecutive years. Her accolades include 2 Grammy Awards, 13 (CMA) Country Music Associations Awards, and 28 (ACM) Academy of Country Music Awards as well as many other honors, including the prestigious Harmony Award from the Nashville Symphony. The Texas native released her most recent effort, a double album titled The Weight of These Wings in November 2016, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Albums chart. She touts six studio albums to her repertoire; Kerosene (2005), Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2007), Revolution (2009), Four The Record (2011) and Platinum (2014), the latter earning Lambert a GRAMMY Award for Best Country Album, in addition to her previous GRAMMY win for Best Female Country Vocal Performance in 2010 for “The House That Built Me.”  The first song released from The Weight Of These Wings, “Vice,” received multiple Grammy and ACM Award nominations.