HaleighT Reflects On 2011

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To Mention All The Excitement Of 2011 Is A Hard Task, But Simply Put, It Was Awesome! This year has been a crazy ride and I have loved every minute of it! I am so thankful for the opportunities that have come my way and even more proud of myself for taking some chances! This week we have been focusing on the top moments of country music for the year and for me, getting this job (and in a small way becoming part of this crazy world) ranks at the top! I am honored to have met the people I have met, including all the artists who were gracious enough to give me their time to talk with them, the behind the scenes industry people who made each time possible and my employers who gave me the tools to do so! I am also so indescribably grateful for the family and friends who gave me such an abundant amount of support! When I look back at the interviews, the beginning of our video segment and even the littlest of things I was a part of in the first 8 months here at Country Music News Blog, I get excited for the things that I KNOW our team can accomplish in 2012! I hope everyone is ready because we plan on making it even more enjoyable for you to get you country music news fix! Thank you so much for reading my articles, especially the exclusive content (I would love to see some of you at some shows next year!)! Everyone have a very safe and festive weekend and we will most definitely be talking to y’all next year!!!!!!!!!

Sarah Darling Sings At The Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl

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Sarah Darling To Have A Busy Two Days! Sarah Darling has been chosen to sing “God Bless America” at the opening of the 2011 Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl. The college football game will be played by North Carolina’s Wake Forest and Mississippi State University and is expected to bring over 70,000 fans to Nashville’s LP Field today, December 30th! Tomorrow, Saturday December 31st, New Year’s Eve Darling will headline the 4th Annual New Year’s Eve Beach Ball Drop at Pier Parkin Panama City Beach, FL. She will take the stage at 10:45pm being the final performer of the night. The 800 pound glowing beach ball will slowly descend until the clock strikes 12! This event is free to the public and for more information click here!

Country Music Top Topics 2011

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Top Posts Our Readers Loved The Most for 2011! #1 Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton From their wedding photos to wedding details to album releases, it is safe to say that Blake and Miranda topped the charts at number 1. Blake gained many fans for himself and country music in general when he showed the world his down-home, don’t give a crap attitude on the hit new show The Voice! Miranda joined a few girls to become the Pistol Annies. With the same attitude as her husband, these three took the world by storm with their outspoken lyrics and solid harmonies! #2 Award Shows We had the CMAs, the CMT Awards, the ACMs and the ACAs, not to mention other non-country based shows (Peoples Choice, Grammy, Teen Choice, Etc.) and each show gave us moments that we will remember for years to come! I would say that the recognition given to the artists that won was pretty spaced out. An artist might have done a great job at taking home the majority of the trophies at one particular show, but no one was the top dog at every show. That seems right on the money considering each award show has different ways of voting, whether its fan based or industry votes. Another thing that was interesting about the award shows this year was the number of surprise performances. Who would have ever thought we would see Ludacris (the rapper) at a country based award show?! #3 Summer Tours This year was no different than any other when it came to summer tours! One of the first things that comes to mind when dreaming about the next summer when I’m looking outside at 2 feet of snow on the ground is what shows I will be lucky enough to catch! This year two major summer tours were the return of Kenny Chesney’s Goin’ Coastal and Tim McGraw’s Emotional Traffic! Along with them there were other country superstars headlining all over the country and those fabulous festivals that included multiple artists that lasted almost a week! Shows are slowly beginning to be announced for Summer 2012, so everyone be sure to keep your eyes and ears open for your favorite artists coming to a stadium or bar near you!

Country Music Top Artists 2011

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YOUR Most Searched Artists of 2011! Over the past couple weeks, I have been hearing a lot of discussion about the most searched people through the obvious search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo…you get the idea. I am always surprised, well not surprised, but annoyed by who the “world” cumatively searches for the most. So, I thought, why not take a look at who country fans are searching for the most. That’s what we really care about anyway, right? So, I give you, YOUR top 3 most searched country artists of 2011! I am okay with these results, and I’m both surprised and not surprised. Take a look and let us know what you think. 1.Thompson Square This duo is a definite up and comer, and they are rising fast. Everyone is completely in love with the hit “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not?”, and it is clear you just can’t get enough! So, they are sitting here at number 1. They are an adorable couple and talented musicians, and we just love them! Clearly, you love them too! 2. Taylor Swift No surprise here! Taylor has a massive following, finished up her hugely successful Speak Now World Tour, and released several hit singles. Oh yeah, and this is just a little thing, but she did also win CMA Entertainer of the Year. So, obviously there was a lot of information you needed to find out about her this year! 3. Jason Aldean We have said it once and we will keep saying it, but 2011 was one heck of a year for Jason Aldean. He had a great summer tour, the fans love him, he was either nominated for or was winning an award left and right, and he released some amazing singles off his My Kind of Party album (my favorite is “Tattoos On This Town“). So, clearly you wanted to pay attention to Jason this year and we can’t blame ya! Who is in your Top 3 for 2011? Be sure to comment below and let us know!

Country Music 2011 Top Moments

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Hear CMNB’s 2011 Top Moments for Country Music! As a year end finale, this week’s episode of “Takin’ a Break with HaleighT” features a run down of what we think the top moments of country music were 2011! From new album releases, to amazing summer tours, to lawsuits and scandals to what we have to look forward for 2012, HaleighT covers the best and worst moments in the country music scene this year. Watch the video below and let us know if we missed anything! Comment below and tell us what your favorite moment of 2011 was, and we’ll see you next year. Check Out Country Music’s Top Moments for 2011 Here! [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature&v=q8Z8mgt0NV4]

Taylor Swift Safe & Sound

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Taylor Swift Teams with Civil Wars for Hunger Games Song “Safe & Sound”. Taylor Swift has teamed up with The Civil Wars to create a single titled “Safe & Sound” for the soundtrack for The Hunger Games. The film is based on the popular book trilogy and is set to release on March 23, 2012. The single hit the Top 10 upon its release on iTunes, and is clearly already being well-received by fans. You can check it out below. Interestingly, this song might be the most country song Swift has released. It has a melancholy quality that is appropriate for the themes of the film, and an Americana vibe no doubt brought in by The Civil Wars. It really is a beautiful song, and its great to see The Civil Wars on such a big project and to see Taylor reaching outside of her comfort zone. Listen and tell us what you think. Take a Listen to Taylor Swift and The Civil Wars “Safe & Sound“ [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFEDTtKaFzU]

Wynonna Judd Engaged

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Wynonna Judd Ends 2011 Engaged! Congrats are in order for Wynonna Judd! She and boyfriend, Cactus Moser got engaged over the Christmas holiday! The couple have been dating since 2009, and tour together as Wynonna and the Big Noise. This will be Wynonna’s third marriage and comes on the heels of a remarkable turn around by the iconic artist after going through some tumultuous life events including surviving a head-on collision. We most recently got to see Wynonna on the OWN network series The Judds with her mother, Naomi. The two released a compilation album this past Spring, I Will Stand By You: The Essential Collection, and Wynonna released her brand new single, “Love It Out Loud“. So, its been a busy year for this always on the go gal, and she’s ending it on what is definitely a positive note. Congrats Wynonna and Cactus, and best of luck in 2012!

Jason Aldean Thanks Fans

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Jason Aldean Sends A Special Thanks To Fans! Jason Aldean has quite a bit to be thankful for, and appropriately he is sending out a shout-out to all of his fans who have supported him throughout his year of success after success! From releasing multiple hit singles off of his 2010 “My Kinda Party” to a successful summer tour to multiple award wins, Aldean has been on fire all year long. We have really enjoyed watching his rise from the side lines, and are proud fans of this talented artist! Check out the video below, and see Jason’s thank you to you and all his fans! Best of luck, Jason in 2012!!! Watch the Special Thanks from Aldean! Jason Aldean on WhoSay

American Country New Years Celebration

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Fox Hosts American Country New Years Eve Live Event. The Fox Network is offering a special New Year’s Eve celebration especially for country music fans. “American Country New Year’s Eve Live” will get started at 11pm ET on Saturday December 31st and will ring in the New Year…country style. The concert event will include live performances from Lauren Alaina, Rodney Atkins, Joe Nichols, Eli Young Band, and Toby Keith and will be hosted by comedian Rodney Carrington and “Pawn Stars” Rick Harrison and Austin “Chumlee” Russel.

Kenny Chesney Reality Music Video

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Kenny Chesney Gives Fans A Glimpse Of His 2011 Summer Tour In “Reality” Music Video! Kenny Chesney’s “Reality” has been out for a while, but until recently it wasn’t getting much airtime. This song can easily put you into a better place after listening to it. Basically it is about finding your own way of dealing with things. Life isn’t perfect, but take things as the come and relax, because you are going to get through it, but in the mean time take a break and embrace you escape from reality! The video for “Reality” takes you front row from some of his stadium shows this past summer. Somewhere in the sea of people at the Kansas City Chief’s stadium, I stood. Continuously rocking through every song makes you forget about the heat and the $12 beers. It was my first Chesney concert, but something I would LOVE to do again! Enjoy the video!