Sticks Country Music Festival

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Sticks Country Music Festival is a perfect way to kick your summer off right! Sara Evans, Julianne Hough, Trace Adkins, Ashton Shepherd and Gretchen Wilson are just SOME of the outstanding names on the 2009 Sticks Country Music Festival lineup! The weekend of April 17th and 18th country music fans from across the nation will converge in Auburn Alabama to camp out and celebrate with a few thousand of their closest friends and favorite stars. The folks organizing the festival are encouraging fans to camp out all weekend long, bring a cooler, a tent, and even your favorite canned beer and just let them entertain you! STICKS is a 2-day, 2-night, COOLER-FRIENDLY, camping-friendly, showcase of true southern culture with 16 (and counting) COUNTRY SUPERSTARS! Use Discount Code CMNB09 starting Fri March 6th for $79 Passes! The STICKS lineup so far includes: Whiskey Falls Mark Chesnutt Craig Morgan Rodney Atkins Gretchen Wilson Adam Grant and Robert E. Granger Smith Shenandoah Chuck Wicks Ashton Shepherd Julianne Hough Jason Michael Carroll Diamond Rio Sara Evans Trace Adkins And the list just keeps on growing! With all those artists on the bill, you could expect tickets to be in the range of a couple hundred bucks like some “thunderous” events, but these are a STEAL at only $85 for a full weekend pass! And just for being a loyal reader here at CMNB, we’ll get you in for $79 when you use the discount code “CMNB09″ starting Friday March 6th! Stay tuned all month long, or subscribe to our country music newsletter for ways YOU can win a few tickets to STICKS along with some awesome gear, as well as feature articles about this year’s STICKS performers!Country Music Photo Gallery

Country Music News Sources

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Country Music sites seem to be popping up everywhere in the last year or so, leaving fans wondering which ones are worth subscribing to. Country music has always been a passion for me, so it’s no surprise that I now run several sites that cover many aspects of the country music industry. But where do I go to when I need to get the dirt? Well let me tell you that all depends on what I’m in the mood for! Here are my favorite country music news sources (in no particular order)! The 9513 – These folks are honest, upfront, and make no apologies to the bubblegum pop country stars and fans. They have unique opinions and they’re not afraid to voice them. When I want to know who the next big thing is, or whether the buzz surrounding a new artist is worth all the hype, I trust The 9513 staff to lay it out straight. http://www.the9513.com/ Country Music Is Love – I have never once gone on this site and seen all the negative nancies and powerful criticism that other sites carry. For a quick look at the positive impact country music is making on people’s lives, look no further than CMIL. http://countrymusicislove.com/ Country Music Tattletale – These gals post everything from celeb sightings to breaking news items. They seem to be in the thick of it all too because their content is updated daily which is no easy task when you’re running an independent, self-funded site, but they seem to make it work! The CMTT girls are sassy and resourceful, calling on fans to help bring the gossip to them. http://www.countrymusictattletale.com/ Galleywinter – Talk about knowing how to promote your local music scene! These guys have been the voice of Texas music for as long as I’ve been writing on the web! I have never run across a more thorough and supportive team of impassioned independent music fans, and I hope someday to meet the creators of this site in person and shake their hands for all their hard work! http://www.galleywinter.com/ Country Standard Time – Simple layout, simple navigation, plentiful headlines. These guys don’t fuss around with a lot of words. Instead they get to the point and let you get on with your day. They’re great for when I’m looking for small tidbits about artists I’d like to feature. http://www.countrystandardtime.com Country Stars Online – Now these guys may not update daily, but somehow when I’m diggin deep for facts about a particular star, I always end up on their doorstep, and that’s gotta say something good about them. http://www.countrystarsonline.com/ Nashville Gab -Now the country music news over here is pretty much the same news other folks are sharing, but what’s different about the gab is the focus on fans. They’ve got special places to show off fan art, and even fan tattoos! I’m always supportive of sites that point out that the fans make the stars. http://www.nashvillegab.com/ Now I know I left out GACTV and CMT, Continue reading Country Music News Sources→

Ashton Shepherd – 10 Facts

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Ashton Shepherd is quickly becoming a household name in country music, so let’s get to know her a little bit better. Ashton Shepherd is taking country music by storm, with her traditional sound, and heartfelt lyrics. She’s gathered so much attention in fact, that she is now nominated for GAC’s Top New Female (which you can help her win by voting here). So we here at CMNB did a little digging to find out what we could about who Ashton is and what makes her tick. Here are ten things you may not have known about Ashton Shepherd. Ashton is a proud wife to Roland, and a very proud Mamma to 3 year old James who often accompanies her on tour. Ashton was signed with MCA Nashville in the summer of 2007. But just months before getting signed, she was selling vegetables on the side of the road outside Leroy, Alabama. Ashton’s favorite place to write music is where she calls her “pickin’ shed”. She loves it so much in fact that she included a song by that title on her debut album. The first song she wrote was for her Mamma when she was 8 called “The Rest of My Life” about a widowed woman. After that point she started competing in local competitions covering Patsy Cline tunes as well as her own original songs to her little heart’s content. 11 out of the 12 songs on her debut album were written by Ashton herself which is nearly unheard of in modern country music. The one song she did not write was penned by her brother in law, and titled “Whiskey won the Battle”. Until the last year or so, Ashton’s only internet experience was still through old-fashioned dial-up access on a landline! Also, until fairly recently, Ashton, along with her husband and son, was happily living in just a single-wide trailer on some family acreage. A lifesaver for Ashton during the beginning of her mainstream career has been a wonderful woman who goes by “Miss Rachel”. Miss Rachel happens to be Ashton’s mamma-in-law who helped take care of little James while she was in and out of studios and on and off tour buses. The rest of the time either James joins mamma and daddy on the road, or stays home with daddy letting the men of the house run things. Ashton is self-admittedly not good at “the girlie stuff” like helping design her merchandise or even decorating her own house! Ashton’s high school friends would have her sign a little self-produced CD that she had recorded at Cook Studios (run by Alabama member, Jeff Cook) when she was 15, stating that they just knew she would be a huge hit someday. Meanwhile Ashton was as humble as could be and now laughs about it when they say “I told you so”. Well that’s all I have for now about Ashton Shepherd. I’m really looking forward to seeing what more she has in store for us traditional country Continue reading Ashton Shepherd – 10 Facts→

Lee Ann Womack CD Giveaway!

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Lee Ann Womack is giving away 5 copies of her newly released album “Call Me Crazy” to our awesome CMNB readers! Lee Ann Womack is climbing the charts with her new hit single “Last Call” off her October release “Call Me Crazy”, and fans are going crazy over the album. The album has already achieved industry accolades such as a Grammy nomination for Best Female Country Performance for “Last Call”, ACM nomination for Top Female Vocalist, and AOL’s Country Record of the Year for 2008. And of course, Lee Ann is taking the success in stride. “I’m so fired up to be back doing what I feel like I was born to do, which is making country music,” said Womack. “The time I spent writing, looking for songs, and meeting with Tony felt so effortless and natural.” Four of the twelve tracks are co-written by Womack and fans will discover two other very well-known male voices accompanying the songstress, including Keith Urban and George Strait. Last time Womack and Strait collaborated was for “Good News, Bad News”, which earned them a Country Music Association award for “Musical Event of the Year.” Lee Ann’s humble nature shows through when she credits the joy of this album to the process of making it: “One of my favorite things when making a record is working with some of the best singers and musicians in the world…it was so fun to have some of them work on this project.” Pay a visit to  Lee Ann Womack’s official  website at http://www.leeannwomack.com/ to view her video for “Last Call” and to learn more about upcoming appearances, projects and her latest news. Enter to win YOUR copy of “Call Me Crazy” To enter the contest simply sign up for our country music newsletter By March 31st. Winners will be drawn from our email subscriber list on Wednesday April 1st and announced here on CMNB!Country Music Photo Gallery

Joey + Rory on Nashville At Nite

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  Joey + Rory give a sweet interview for Nashville at Night Joey + Rory talk about everything from their first ACM award nomination, to life on the farm, and running a restaurant on top of their very busy music career. This is one episode of Nashville At Nite you don’t want to miss! Nashville At Nite with Ashlie Kolb » Episode 20 – Joey + RoryCountry Music Photo Gallery

Single In The City Nashville in Pictures

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Kristine from The Tennesean shares her pictures from last night’s Single in the City event with country music star Jake Owen. Jake Owen was in fine form last night as he wooed the single ladies in Nashville’s Single In the City benefit gala. Guests were treated to music, and cocktails while they got the opportunity to bid in an auction for a date with some of Nashville’s hottest singles.  So far there’s no word on how much a date with Jake auctioned for, but let me tell you I’d guess the ladies were pretty competitive for that one! To see pictures from the party, head on over to: www.tennessean.com | Nashville Nashville Lifestyles – Party Pics | The TennesseanCountry Music Photo Gallery

Easy Does It from Jake Owen Available Today!

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Jake Owen’s latest album, Easy Does It, hits stores today and the reviews are already sounding great! <A href=”http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fdrunkenhill05-20%2F8010%2Faeb5805e-421b-45a5-8365-ea22bddde1c2&Operation=NoScript”>Amazon.com Widgets</A> Jake Owen is getting noticed left and right from his ACM Top New Vocalist nomination, to his upcoming appearance at Nashville’s Single in the City gala! But what he really wants you to notice is his new album!  Preview Jake Owen’s new album, Easy Does It and tell us what you think! My hopes: That he pushes “Tell Me” as his next single, and follows suite on his next album with more of that rumbly alt-country sound that will help him stand out from the pack! His hopes: That enough people go out and buy the album to fund another, as he playfully jabs at family and friends for sharing his last one 😉 Country Music Photo Gallery

Josh Turner Expects Baby Number Two

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Josh Turner, wife Jennifer, and son Hampton are preparing themselves for baby number two! Josh Turner was having a rough day when wife Jennifer turned it all around by announcing that she was pregnant with baby #2. Josh’s firstborn is excited to be a big brother and as for the nerves of our expectant father: “I do feel more confident,” he told People. “Jennifer talked about little things she’s worried about, but I’m like, ‘Hey we’ve been through this before.’ The fundamental things you freaked out about with the first child, I don’t think you’ll freak out about them as much. I’m more prepared for those newborn months, the crying and trying to figure out what’s wrong.” read more… Congratulations go out from CMNB to the Turner family!Country Music Photo Gallery