NRA Country Artist Of The Month

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Trace Adkins Announced As NRA Country January Artist Of The Month! January’s NRA Country Artist of the Month is Trace Adkins! The month-long promotion gives fans the opportunity to check out a never before seen, behind the scenes look at a recent photo shoot on his personal farm near Nashville. The exclusive video can be seen here! In addition to the video, fans can register to win a NRA Country prize pack, including a hat and t-shirt of choice! Click HERE from now through the end of January to register to win! “I grew up in the Sportsman’s Paradise – Louisiana, so I guess it isn’t a surprise that the great outdoors has always been a big part of my life. All my favorite memories involve the outdoors – whether it was playing outside as a kid, playing football in college, goofing around with my kids, or going hunting. I support NRA Country because they share my love of the outdoors and my wish to safeguard America’s hunting heritage. I am Trace Adkins and I am NRA Country.” Fans can also catch Trace at the 2nd Annual NRA Country Jam on April 13th, during the NRA Annual Meeting in St. Louis. Tickets will be on sale soon, just visit NRACountry.com for more information. For those of you wanting to see Trace in concert and do your part to help charities at the same time you are in luck! Great tickets and VIP Charity Packages are available exclusively at NRACountry.com to benefit NRA Country Cares, working to help charities supporting our military, American farmers, firearm safety and other important causes. Click HERE for more information!

Tim McGraw Emotional Traffic Releases January 24

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Tim McGraw’s Long-Awaited Emotional Traffic Will Release January 2012! After a long court battle which was partially resolved in November, Tim McGraw and Curb Records have set a release date for the long-awaited Emotional Traffic album, and fans can expect it to be available January 24th. The album features 12 tracks including latest #1 hit, “Felt Good On My Lips” and his current single, “Better Than I Used To Be”. The entire album was co-produced by McGraw along with Byron Gilmore, and McGraw also co-wrote, “I Will Not Fall Down” with Martina McBride and Brett and Brad Warren. Interestingly, R&B star Ne-Yo is thrown into the mix somehow featured on the “Only Human” track. All in all, we’ve been really curious about this album for awhile, and with these new details the curiosity is only growing! Emotional Traffic Complete Track Listing 1. Halo 2. Right Back Actha Babe 3. One Part, Two Part 4. I Will Not Fall Down 5. The One 6. Better Than I Used To Be 7. Touchdown Jesus 8. The One That Got Away 9. Felt Good On My Lips 10. Hey Now 11. Only Human 12. Die By My Own Hand

Chicago Bluegrass and Blues Festival 2012

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Details on the 2012 Festival Showcasing Bluegrass and Blues! The Chicago Bluegrass and Blues Festival is in its fourth year, and for the 2012 round of performances they are going to need more than just one weekend. Festival organizers have expanded the festivities to include an additional weekend in January. There will be a line-up of amazing performances on Saturday, January 21st and a second line-up of equally amazing performances on Saturday, January 28th. You can find details on both line-ups below! Tickets for the 21st run between $39.50 and $59.50. Tickets for the 28th are going for $35-$45. Saturday, January 21st, 2012 “Big Mon Jam” feat. the Del McCoury Band & David Grisman The Bluegrass Ball feat. The Travelin’ McCourys, Bill Nershi of String Cheese Incident, and Jeff Austin of Yonder Mountain String Band Additional Full Sets Include Del McCoury Band David Grisman Quintet Joe Purdy The Giving Tree Band Henhouse Prowlers Majors Junction Saturday, January 28th, 2012 Drive-By Truckers Dawes Joe Pug Van Ghost Bailiff Jaik Willis The Shams Band Great Divide Jon Drake & The Shakes Ben Ripani Music Co. Go Long Mule The Future Laureates Band Called Catch Michele McGuire Paper Thick Walls

Yonder Mountain String Band Cabin Fever Tour

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Details On Neo-Bluegrass Group, Yonder Mountain String Band, 2012 Tour! Yonder Mountain String Band will be kicking off 2012 with their Cabin Fever Tour! The neo-bluegrass group will be hitting spots from the Gulf to Appalachia to the Midwest between February and March. So, chances are they are coming somewhere close to you! For a complete list of tour dates, see below! Beyond tackling their Cabin Fever Tour YMSB is also finishing up an album to release later this year! Their current album, The Show is currently available. Yonder Mountain String Band 2012 Cabin Fever Tour Dates 12.27.2011: Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater 12.28.2011: Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater 12.29.2011: Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater 12.30.2011: Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater 12.31.2011: Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater – SOLD OUT 2.08.2012: Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic 2.09.2012: Baton Rouge, LA @ Varsity Theatre 2.10.2012: Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works 2.11.2012: Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle 2.12.2012: Birmingham, AL @ Workplay Theatre Soundstage 2.15.2012: Pensacola, FL @ Vinyl Music Hall 2.16.2012: Orlando, FL @ Beacham Theatre 2.17.2012: Fort Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution 2.18.2012: St. Petersburg, FL @ Jannus Live 2.19.2012: Jacksonville, FL @ Freebird Cafe 2.22.2012: Charleston, SC @ Music Farm 2.23.2012: Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel 2.24.2012: Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel 2.25.2012: Knoxville, TN @ Tennessee Theater 2.26.2012: Charlottesville, VA @ Jefferson Theatre 2.29.2012: Lexington, KY @ Buster’s 3.01.2012: Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall 3.02.2012: Covington, KY @ Madison Theatre 3.03.2012: Madison, WI @ Orpheum Theatre 3.04.2012: Urbana, IL @ Canopy Club 3.24.2012: Live Oak, FL @ Suwannee Springfest Haven’t met YMSB? Check out this video of their live performance on Craig Ferguson to see just how awesome they are! [youtube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8WQRB2C1gI]

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]