Happy 22nd Birthday To Taylor Swift! Happy Birthday to Taylor Swift! Today she is 22 and one of the most successful artists of all time! I love a good flash back, so here is “Tim McGraw.” Who would have thought that this teenager would take the world by storm the way she did?! World tours, sold out arenas, award after award…what will she do next?
Brad Paisley Uses His Voice To Support A-T Children’s Project. Brad Paisley has a new song available, but this new song, “Hard Life“, is anything but average. It was written by a young man from Springfield, VA named Joe Kindregan who has A-T or ataxia-telangiectasia, a rare, fatal genetic disease that combines the symptoms of cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, immune deficiencies and cancer. Brad and Joe met a fundraising benefit in 2005, and have maintained contact over the years. Joe was inspired to write this song when his friend Brian lost his battle with the same disease. Joe wanted to put into lyrics the struggle of living with such a disease, both the good and bad aspects. He drew from his own experiences and from interviewing others who also have A-T. Joe wrote his thoughts and shared them Paisley who decided to run with the project. Kindregan had the opportunity to visit Nashville twice to see the behind the scenes work of taking his lyrics and making a song out of them. “I’ve known Joe for several years and he is one of my favorite people. His disease is physically debilitating but obviously creatively and mentally Joe has such tremendous depth. It’s an honor for me to be the person to give voice to his creativity and cause.” -Brad Paisley The song is available through all digital media outlets (or by , and all of the artist royalties from U.S. digital single sales will be donated to the non-profit A-T Children’s Project. This is a not for profit organization that supports and coordinates biomedical research, scientific conferences and a clinical center with the goal of finding life-improving therapies and eventually a cure for A-T.
Easton Corbin Surprised Onstage By Basketball Great, Shaq. Easton Corbin got a big surprise during a House of Blues performance in Orlando, FL Friday, December 9th, in the form of NBA star, Shaquille O’Neal! Shaq took the stage with Corbin for an impromptu duet rendition of “It Just Comes Natural“. O’Neal even played the guitar! I had no idea Shaq’s talents went beyond the court, but you learn something new everyday! Can you think of a stranger duet combination? Let us know and comment below! Easton Corbin with Shaquille O’Neal and O’Neal’s girlfriend, Nicole Alexander. (photo courtesy Chris Tate)
Hank Jr. Raises Funds for Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. On December 6th in Nashville, TN at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Hank Williams Jr. concluded a four year exhibition, Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy, with a sold-out concert. The exhibit originally opened in March 2008, and was scheduled to close in December 2009. However, it was met with overwhelming popularity becoming the most acclaimed exhibition in the museum’s history. So, organizers extended the close date by two whole years. Williams’ concert included a solo acoustic performance of his own hits like “A Country Boy Can Survive,” “Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound” and “The Blues Man”, music from his upcoming album, and classic from his father and personal favorites like Cash and Jennings. The concert raised a substantial sum, precisely $75,000 that would be donated to the Hall of Fame and Museum. Additionally, Williams announced that many of the artifacts that were a part of the exhibit would be donated to the museum archives. Special guests included members of his own family, wife, Mary Jane, daughters Hilary and Holly and son Sam, as well as Jessi Colter, her son Shooter Jennings and Jamey Johnson.
Jo Dee Messina Launches The Fumbling Mom. Jo Dee Messina is branching out of the area of expertise she is known for, country music, and moving into an area where she maybe does not feel quite like an expert. The mother of one recently announced she is expecting her second child with husband Chris Deffenbaugh, and has decided to share her experiences with motherhood and parenting with the rest of the world. Messina is launching a parenting blog titled, The Fumbling Mom which will debut January of 2012. The content for the blog will focus on Messina’s experiences as a working mother, and she will give insight into her own life while offering tips and pointers to readers. Country music fans can also look forward to a brand new single from Jo Dee which she announced will release sometime early next year.
2012 Wisconsin Country Thunder Line-Up Announced. The initial line-up for the 20th annual Wisconsin Country Thunder in Twin Lakes, WI has been announced, and you can check out who is slotted to perform so far below! The camping and concert festival will take place Thursday, July 19th through Sunday, July 22nd, and so far, it is looking like this is going to be one awesome weekend. Headliners include, Jason Aldean, Toby Keith, Blake Shelton and Big & Rich with additional performances by Luke Bryan, Hunter Hayes, Brantley Gilbert, Steve Holy, Wade Bowen, The Farm, and Neal McCoy. Tickets are available for four day passes or individual days, and concert goers can camp onsite or stay off site and just purchase a ticket to gain entrance to the festival grounds. Whether you’re a camper or just want to check out the music, you are bound to have one heck of a time! Stay tuned for more details as they are released! Current Announced Line-Up Thursday, July 19th 5:30-6:30pm The Farm 9:00-10:30pm Big & Rich Friday, July 20th 4:00-5:00pm Wade Bowen 5:30-6:30pm Steve Holy 7:00-8:30pm Luke Bryan 9:00-10:30pm Jason Aldean Saturday, July 21st 9:00-10:30pm Blake Shelton Sunday, July 22nd 4:00-5:00pm Hunter Hayes 5:30-6:30pm Neal McCoy 7:00-8:00pm Brantley Gilbert 8:30-10:00pm Toby Keith
Big & Rich Host GAC Special, Christmas In The Black Hills. December in country music means plenty of Christmas celebrations. Country artists and others in the industry are just clamoring to join in on all the festivities, and GAC is offering a television special titled Christmas In The Black Hills. The show will be hosted by country duo Big & Rich, and will include performances by up and coming country artists. Among those featured will be husband and wife duo, Thompson Square known for their hit single “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not“. Most recently the two have been nominated for several awards including a CMA for vocal duo of the year, and several American Country Awards of which they walked away with three. Also featured on the show will be newcomer Andy Gibson who recently released his debut single “Wanna Make You Love Me“, and has two Christmas singles, “The Christmas Song” and “Feliz Navidad” which will be performed as part of the show. Viewers will also have a chance to check out new trio, The Farm, Bradley Gaskin and Tracy Lawrence. Christmas In The Black Hills was shot in and around The Black Hills of South Dakota and the iconic city of Deadwood. The Christmas special will air on Monday, December 12th at 8pm, Tuesday, December 13th at 12am, 10am, and 7pm , and Wednesday, December 21st at 8pm (all ET).
Kellie Pickler Releases Cover of Upcoming Album, 100 Proof. In the run-up to the release of her upcoming album, 100 Proof, Kellie Pickler has let slip a little sneak peak of the album cover! I know you’re not supposed to judge a book (or album…) by its cover, but if you could, I think you could expect good things from 100 Proof! It has a classic and sophisticated look, and frankly, I’m excited! We’ve been hearing little bits and pieces about this album for a few months now, and Pickler’s recent single “Tough“, is one of the eleven tracks featured on the album (for a complete list see below). The release date is set for January 24th, 2012, and fans can already pre-order. 100 Proof, Complete Track Listing 1. Where’s Tammy Wynette 2. Unlock That Honky Tonk 3. Stop Cheatin’ On Me 4. Long As I Never See You Again 5. Tough 6. Turn On The Radio And Dance 7. Mother’s Day 8. Rockaway (The Rockin’ Chair Song) 9. Little House On The Highway 10.100 Proof 11.The Letter (To Daddy)
Billboard Releases List of 2011 Country Music Chart Toppers! Billboard has released a year end summary of the 2011 country music chart toppers, and you can find the complete list below. After all the awards she has won this award season and the success of her Speak Now world tour, its not really surprising to see Taylor Swift at the top of the list. Happily, while they may have disappointed on their nomination to actual award win ratio, Zac Brown Band are sitting at number 4 on the list which proves that award or no award, they are one successful group! Newlyweds Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert both claim spots in the top 15 which follows the winning trend both have been on all year long. The only person I am surprised to see on this list is Scotty McCreery since he has only technically been a country artist for about 5 months. However, the rankings are based on album sales, airplay, track download sales, touring revenue, ringtone sales, etc. So, if the numbers back him up, I guess that’s all there is to it. Are you surprised to see any of these folks on this list? Is anyone missing? Let us know, and comment below. Billboard’s Top Country Artists Chart 1-Taylor Swift, Big Machine 2-Jason Aldean, Broken Bow 3-Lady Antebellum, Capitol Nashville 4-Zac Brown Band, Southern Ground/Roar/Bigger Picture/Atlantic 5-Blake Shelton, Warner Bros. 6-The Band Perry, Republic Nashville 7-Rascal Flatts, Big Machine 8-Kenny Chesney, BNA 9-Brad Paisley, Arista Nashville 10-Luke Bryan, Capitol Nashville 11-Keith Urban, Capitol Nashville 12-Miranda Lambert, RCA 13-Sugarland, Mercury 14-Eric Church, EMI Nashville 15-Scotty McCreery, 19/Interscope/Mercury
Rascal Flatts Will Host Opry Year End Radio Special. Rascal Flatts will be hosting the 2011 Grand Ole Opry radio special, America’s Opry Weekend Year-End Special. It will be available to country radio both Christmas and New Year’s weekends, and will recap all of the hits and high points of 2011 in country music. They will be spinning all of these hits as well as live recordings from the Opry. Some of the songs you can expect to hear include “Honey Bee,” Blake Shelton; “The House That Built Me,” Miranda Lambert; “This Is Country Music,” Brad Paisley; “Am I The Only One,” Dierks Bentley; “Tomorrow,” Chris Young; “Mama’s Song,” Carrie Underwood; “If I Die Young,” The Band Perry; “Just A Kiss,” Lady Antebellum; “Barefoot Blue Jean Night,” Jake Owen; and the hosts own “Why Wait”. You can catch this special edition of the weekly syndicated radio show by tuning into 650 WSM-AM, through Sirius XM Satellite radio or at opry.com. So, why not include Rascal Flatts in your holiday festivities and check out the brightest moments of country music from 2011?
