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  • NEWS AND NOTES: Kacey, Gary, Dierks, Chris, Travis and more

    Press
    Chris Stapleton / Dierks Bentley / Kacey Musgraves / Travis Denning

    Don’t forget to tune-in or set your DVRs since Kacey Musgraves will headline NBC’s Today Show Summer Concert Series on Friday (tomorrow morning).

    Gary Allan is set to headline this year’s 9th Annual Kickin’ for a Kure concert in San Antonio on Saturday (July 20th).  The concert series has raised over $500,000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society since its inception.

    Dierks Bentley and Chris Stapleton are among the artists to donate a percentage of their single-day earnings as part of the Music Health Alliance’s Heal the Music Day on October 18th. The organization helps provide access to healthcare through services that PROTECT, DIRECT & CONNECT music professionals with medical and financial solutions.

    Travis Denning will hit the road with pal Riley Green on the Get That Man a Beer Tour, kicking off Sepember 5th in Statesboro, Georgia. Tickets go on sale this Friday (July 20th).

  • CHRIS STAPLETON JOINS ED SHEERAN AND BRUNO MARS ON “BLOW.”

    Video
    Chris Stapleton

    Chris Stapleton joins Ed Sheeran and Bruno Mars on the rockin’ tune, “Blow.” The song will appear on the British pop star’s new album, No.6 Collaborations Project, due out Friday (July 12th).

    The official video just dropped and doesn’t feature any of the male stars, but an all-female cast in the clip that was directed by Bruno Mars at the world-famous Viper Room in L.A.

     

    Check out the official lyric video below:

    Other artists featured on the new project by Sheeran include Eminem, Travis Scott, Khalid, Cardi B, 50 Cent and Justin Bieber.

    You can catch Chris on the road this summer. He’s performing Tuesday (July 9th) in Allentown, Pennsylvania and Friday (July 12th) in Fort Laramie, Ohio. For more information on tour dates, go to chrisstapleton.com.

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Shania, Kacey, Carrie, Keith, Luke, Chris and more

    Press
    Carrie Underwood / Chris Stapleton / Kacey Musgraves / Keith Urban / Luke Bryan / Shania Twain

    Shania Twain appears on ABC’s Strahan & Sara on Thursday (June 20th) to talk about her Las Vegas Residency, as well as the new movie she is filming.

    Kacey Musgraves is nominated for two awards at this year’s Teen Choice Awards. She’s up for Choice Country Artist and Choice Country Song for “Rainbow.” Voting continues through June 25th, with the show airing August 11th at 8pm ET on FOX.

    Carrie Underwood is featured on the cover of the new issue of People Magazine. Along with being named at the top of the 100 best things in America, she also talks about family, faith and some of the personal pain and trauma she experienced over the last couple of years. The issue hits newsstands on Friday (June 21st).

    Luke Bryan has been tapped to perform during NBC’s annual Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks, live from New York City’s Brooklyn Bridge. The coverage will air live at 8pm – 10pm ET on NBC. Maren Morris and Brad Paisley will also perform.

    Keith Urban returns as the presenting sponsor of this year’s Music Row Ladies Golf Tournament for the fourth year. The 33rd annual golf outing, which will benefit the United Cerebral Palsy of Middle Tennessee organization, will take place August 19th at the Old Natchez Country Club in Nashville.

    Chris Stapleton has given his talents to Ed Sheeran’s new album, No. 6 Collaborations Project. He teamed up with the pop superstar and Bruno Mars for a song titled “Blow” for the project, due July 12th. Also appearing on the project are Khalid, Cardi B, Eminem, Justin Bieber, Chance the Rapper and Camila Cabello, among others.

     

  • CMA MUSIC FESTIVAL 2019

    Audio
    Brothers Osborne / Carrie Underwood / Chris Stapleton / Darius Rucker / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Keith Urban / Little Big Town / Luke Bryan

    It’s that time of the year again! The 2019 CMA Music Festival is kicking off this week in Nashville, and the stars are coming out to perform and hangout with their fans. You can find out where your favorite artists are playing, if go to cmafest.com here.

    Audio / Brothers Osborne’s TJ Osborne says they used to dream about playing CMA Music Fest and Nissan Stadium.

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    Brothers Osborne (CMA Music Fest-Nissan Stadium) OC: …their shoes. :40
    TJ: “When we first came to Nashville, we had dreams of playing, like ‘Oh my God, are we ever gonna play there?’ And it never even crosses your mind – you’re not playing the stadium. It’s just not happening. And now to circle around and to be playing here, it’s wild. The feeling of it is not lost on us, even the slightest. It’s hard to really, honestly put it into words. It’s literally every kid’s dream, even if you don’t become a musician, you still dream about being on that stage. And we used to come, when we would come, it was Fan Fair, and we would see artists performing on these stages and be like, ‘Gah, we’d just give anything to be in their shoes.”

    Audio / CHRIS STAPLETON SAYS IT’S “REMARKABLE” PEOPLE COME TO NASHVILLE FOR A WEEK TO CELEBRATE COUNTRY MUSIC.

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    Chris Stapleton (CMA Music Fest) OC: …It’s great. :20
    “It’s a weird thing, you know, like I can’t think of any other word, other than that I live down the street, so just gonna drive down to the football stadium and play for 25 minutes, you know. Yeah, it’s a remarkable thing to get to be a part of a mass of people who wanna listen to music. It’s great.”



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  • MAY 5TH ANNIVERSARY: Chris Stapleton’s “Traveller” and “From A Room: Volume One

    Audio
    Chris Stapleton

    Chris Stapleton is celebrating two anniversaries on May 5th. In 2015, he released his multi-platinum album, Traveller, and in 2017, he released From A Room: Volume One.

    Audio / Chris Stapleton talks about the title of his 2015 album, Traveller.

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    Chris Stapleton (title of Traveller) OC: …folks too. :43
    “The song ‘Traveller’ and how it ended up being the title of the record, it seemed like a natural thing to call it, because a lot of, certainly the inspiration for this record came from a series of events. It’s kind of the only song that was written inside of, well, there might’ve been one other song written inside of knowing I was going to make this record in this way. The rest of the songs came from outside of that time period. So, that’s one reason to name it that. The other reason is that it can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. It’s about a journey in a musical sense and in a physical sense and in a spiritual sense. In every way that you can have a journey, this record is kind of that for me, and hopefully for some other folks too.”

    Audio / CHRIS STAPLETON SAYS RCA STUDIO A HAS A DISTINCTIVE SOUND THAT HE LIKES.

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    Chris Stapleton (From A Room studio) OC: …about it. :38
    “That whole room is a sweet spot. The thing to know about that room is that room sounds like that room. I’m also a fan of studios that have a sound. Over time, there have been places that have sounds, you know, Capitol out in L.A. or Muscle Shoals. You can point to places that have sounds – Stax, Motown – these places have sounds, not just by the guys playing ‘em, but the actual sound of the room. The room’s become part of the band. Here in town, the place that has the most of that kind of mojo to me is that room, so that’s what I like about it.”

  • THE ACM AWARDS HAVE ADDED SEVERAL ALL-STAR COLLABORATIONS TO THE LIST OF PERFORMANCES THIS YEAR.

    Press
    Brothers Osborne / Carrie Underwood / Chris Stapleton / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / George Strait / Little Big Town

    The Academy of Country Music just announced new all-star collaborations for this year’s ACM Awards. The show will once again feature “ACM Flashbacks,” a fan favorite moment honoring classic country music hits and/or the artists whose music continues to influence musicians and fans alike. This year’s “ACM Flashbacks” will feature the King of Country Music and 24-time ACM Award winner George Strait performing with Miranda Lambert, as well as new Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Brooks & Dunn performing with Luke Combs.

    Additional collaborations include Dierks Bentley & Brandi Carlile, Eric Church & Ashley McBryde, Maren Morris with Brothers Osborne, Jason Aldean & Kelly Clarkson,  Dan + Shay with Kelly Clarkson, Florida Georgia Line & Jason Aldean, and global superstar Khalid with Kane Brown.

    Other previously announced performers include Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapleton, Little Big Town, Reba McEntire, Thomas Rhett and LANCO. Additional acts and presenters will be announced in the coming week.

    The 54th Academy of Country Music Awards, hosted by Reba McEntire, will air live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas April 7th at 8pm ET/delayed PT on CBS.

  • ACM AWARDS 2019: Chris Stapleton

    Audio
    Chris Stapleton

    Chris Stapleton goes into this year’s ACM Awards with six nominations (tied with Dan + Shay), including Entertainer of the Year. He’s also nominated twice, as both artist and producer, for Album of the Year for From A Room: Volume 2, an award he won last year for From A Room: Volume 1. Additionally, he’s up for Male Vocalist (which he won last year), as well as Song of the Year twice, as both artist and songwriter, for “Broken Halos,” for which he won the CMA Song of the Year Award in November.

    He says he’s always surprised to hear his name called when it comes to awards. “These things are always fantastic to win, but when you get nominated or invited to these parties, in my estimation, you’ve already won and you’ve already gotten to be far beyond anything, you know, anybody who’s a musician could ever dream of getting to do, and we get to do that every day, we get to live it every day,” says the humble Kentucky native. “As far as thinking about going into anything, I’m always genuinely surprised to win anything, and I’m always grateful for it.”

    At last year’s CMA Awards, he picked up awards for Single and Song of the Year for “Broken Halos,” which he co-wrote with his friend and mentor Mike Henderson, which made the wins so much sweeter. “It’s very meaningful for me because I do consider myself first and foremost a songwriter  and to get to do it with a man who was a mentor to me, Mike Henderson. You know a lot of things that I try to do on electric guitar or the ways I try to think lyrically or I try to get as much information, or he would call it secret knowledge, out of him as I can. So, to win awards with him means so very much to me that I’m not even sure I can describe it.”

    The 54th Academy of Country Music Awards, hosted by Reba McEntire, will air live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas April 7th at 8pm ET/delayed PT on CBS.

    In the meantime, Chris is poised to top the country charts with his latest song, “Millionaire.” This would be only his second time as an artist to have a No. 1 song. We’re pulling for ya, Chris!

    Audio / Chris Stapleton says he’s always surprised when he wins awards.

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    Chris Stapleton (awards) OC: …grateful for it. :30
    “These things are always fantastic to win, but when you get nominated or invited to these parties, in my estimation, you’ve already won and you’ve already gotten to be far beyond anything, you know, anybody who’s a musician could ever dream of getting to do, and we get to do that every day, we get to live it every day. As far as thinking about going into anything, I’m always genuinely surprised to win anything, and I’m always grateful for it.”

    Audio / Chris Stapleton is nominated for Song of the Year for “Broken Halos” at this year’s ACM Awards. He took home the CMA Awards for Single and Song of the Year for “Broken Halos,” which he said was made even sweeter since he was able to share it with his friend and mentor, Mike Henderson.

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    Chris Stapleton (winning CMA Song Award for Broken Halos) OC: …describe it. :45
    “It’s extremely meaningful, because on paper and in chart performance and all those things, there were certainly more worthy songs in both categories, and I think that’s worth saying and noting. The flipside of that is it’s very meaningful for me because I do consider myself first and foremost a songwriter  and to get to do it with a man who was a mentor to me, Mike Henderson, you know a lot of things that I try to do on electric guitar or the ways I try to think lyrically or I try to get as much information, or he would call it secret knowledge, out of him as I can. So to win awards with him means so very much to me that I’m not even sure I can describe it.”

  • BROTHERS OSBORNE, CHRIS STAPLETON, GEORGE STRAIT AND LITTLE BIG TOWN ARE AMONG THE INITIAL PERFORMERS AT THIS YEAR’S ACM AWARDS.

    Press
    Brothers Osborne / Chris Stapleton / George Strait / Little Big Town

    The initial list of performers for this year’s ACM Awards have been announced and some of your favorite country artists will take to the stage, including Brothers Osborne, Chris Stapleton, George Strait and Little Big Town. Reba McEntire, Maren Moris, Thomas Rhett, Miranda Lambert and Kane Brown will also perform, as well as previously announced Jason Aldean.

    The 54th Academy of Country Music Awards, hosted by Reba, will air live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas April 7th at 8pm ET/delayed PT on CBS.

     

     

  • ACM AWARDS NOMINATIONS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED, AND CHRIS STAPLETON IS LEADING THE LIST.

    Audio
    Brothers Osborne / Carrie Underwood / Chris Stapleton / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Jordan Davis / Kacey Musgraves / Keith Urban / Little Big Town / Luke Bryan / Maddie & Tae

    The nominations for this year’s ACM Awards have been announced and the reigning Male Artist of the Year Chris Stapleton leads the list (ties with Dan + Shay) with six nods, including Entertainer of the Year. He is also nominated twice, as both artist and producer, for Album of the Year for From A Room: Volume 2, which he won last year for From A Room: Volume 1. Plus, he’s nominated for Song of the Year twice, as both artist and songwriter, for “Broken Halos.” He’s also up for Male Artist of the Year. He’s won numerous awards over the past few years, and while he’s grateful for every single trophy he takes home, he has a special affinity for the Album categories.

    “They are all significant and if you get one award for anything it’s a treat. But any of the awards that awarded the album, the album awards, because I really wanted to make an album that was good,” says Chris. “I wanted that to be a thing, again, more than I wanted it to be, ‘Well here’s the single and eight other songs.’ So, the album awards for me were important in that we did our job in a good way, you know. Just I have such an affinity for albums that I don’t know if I want those more or if they mean more, but they are all meaningful.”

    Kacey Musgraves earned five nominations in three categories, including a nod for Female Artist of the Year. Additionally, she is nominated in the Album of the Year Category twice, as both artist and producer, for Golden Hour, as well as in the Song of the Year category twice, as both artist and songwriter, for “Space Cowboy.” Kacey, who took home four Grammy Awards a couple of weeks ago, most recently won an ACM in 2016 in the Video of the Year category for “Forever Country” and previously won in the Album of the Year category in 2013 for Same Trailer Different Park.

    Dierks Bentley received four nominations, including his fourth nod for Album of the Year for The Mountain. Dierks is also nominated for “Burning Man” (featuring Brothers Osborne) in both the Music Event of the Year category and Video of the Year category. He is also nominated for Male Artist of the Year. If he were to win for Video of the Year this year, it would mark his third win in this category.

    Reigning Duo of the Year and Video of the Year winners, Brothers Osborne earned four nominations in three categories, including a nod for Duo of the Year. They are also nominated for Music Event of the Year for “Burning Man” with Dierks Bentley. Additionally, Brothers Osborne are nominated twice in the Video of the Year category for songs “Shoot Me Straight” and “Burning Man.” The guys tweeted, “Unreal. Beyond grateful. Love y’all.”

     

    Luke Bryan has won a handful of ACM Awards over his career, including the New Artist of the Year Award in 2010 and following it up with two Entertainer Awards just a few years later. He tell us he is honored to be included in both the Entertainer and the Single of the Year categories. “The opportunity to go to the ACMs with two nominations – Entertainer of the Year and Single of the Year – is just a huge honor for me. When I was able to record ‘Most People Are Good,’ I just felt like it was a really, really important song for the world to hear, an important song for me to have in my live show and to put out on radio, and to have it nominated is so rewarding for me and I’m so happy for the songwriters. And also, to have an Entertainer of the Year nomination is a huge honor for me. It’s something that I really, really work hard at every year to try to be a better Entertainer, a better singer and a better performer.”

     

    Keith Urban has a pair of nominations at this year’s ACM Awards, including Entertainer of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year. Keith picked up the CMA Award for Entertainer of the Year in November and says he is absolutely elated.”

    Maddie & Tae are looking forward to being in Vegas for this year’s ACM Awards where they’re nominated for Duo of the Year.

    https://twitter.com/MaddieandTae/status/1098298938711592962

    Jordan Davis, who was the most played new artist of 2018, is up for New Male Artist of the Year.

    The 54th Annual ACM Awards, hosted by Reba McEntire, will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas April 7th at 8pm ET on CBS.

    Entertainer of the Year
    Jason Aldean
    Luke Bryan
    Kenny Chesney
    Chris Stapleton
    Keith Urban

    Album of the Year
    Dan + Shay — Dan + Shay
    Desperate Man — Eric Church
    From A Room: Volume 2 — Chris Stapleton
    Golden Hour — Kacey Musgraves
    The Mountain — Dierks Bentley 

    Single of the Year
    “Down to the Honky Tonk” — Jake Owen
    “Heaven” — Kane Brown
    “Meant to Be” — Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line
    “Most People Are Good” — Luke Bryan
    “Tequila” — Dan + Shay

    Female Artist of the Year
    Miranda Lambert
    Ashley McBryde
    Maren Morris
    Kacey Musgraves
    Carrie Underwood

    Male Artist of the Year
    Dierks Bentley
    Luke Combs
    Thomas Rhett
    Chris Stapleton
    Keith Urban

    Group of the Year
    Lady Antebellum
    LANCO
    Little Big Town
    Midland
    Old Dominion

    Duo of the Year
    Brothers Osborne
    Dan + Shay
    Florida Georgia Line
    LOCASH
    Maddie & Tae

     Song of the Year
    “Break Up in the End” (Cole Swindell) — Jessie Jo Dillon, Chase McGill, Jon Nite
    “Broken Halos” (Chris Stapleton) — Mike Henderson, Chris Stapleton
    “Meant to Be” (Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line) — David Garcia, Tyler Hubbard, Joshua Miller, Bebe Rexha
    “Space Cowboy” (Kacey Musgraves) — Luke Laird, Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves
    “Tequila” (Dan + Shay) — Nicolle Galyon, Jordan Reynolds, Dan Smyers
    “Yours” (Russell Dickson) — Casey Brown, Russell Dickerson, Parker Welling

    Video of the Year
    “Babe” — Sugarland featuring Taylor Swift
    “Burn Out” — Midland
    “Burning Man” — Dierks Bentley featuring Brothers Osborne
    “Drunk Girl” — Chris Janson
    “Shoot Me Straight” — Brothers Osborne
    “Tequila” — Dan + Shay

    Music Event of the Year
    “Burning Man” — Dierks Bentley featuring Brothers Osborne
    “Drowns the Whiskey” — Jason Aldean featuring Miranda Lambert
    “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” — David Lee Murphy featuring Kenny Chesney
    “Keeping Score” — Dan + Shay featuring Kelly Clarkson
    “Meant to Be” — Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line

    New Female Artist of the Year
    Danielle Bradbery
    Lindsay Ell
    Ashley McBryde
    Carly Pearce

    New Male Artist of the Year
    Jimmie Allen
    Luke Combs
    Jordan Davis
    Michael Ray
    Mitchell Tenpenny

    New Duo or Group of the Year
    High Valley
    LANCO
    Runaway June

    Songwriter of the Year
    Ross Copperman
    Ashley Gorley
    Shane McAnally
    Chase McGill
    Josh Osborne

    Audio / Chris Stapleton is going into this year's ACM Awards with six nominations, but one probably means the most to him.

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    Chris Stapleton (affinity for albums) OC: …any one of them. :45
    “They are all significant and if you get one award for anything it’s a treat. But any of the awards that awarded the album, the album awards, because I really wanted to make an album that was good. I wanted it, I wanted that to be a thing, again, more than I wanted it to be, ‘Well here’s the single and eight other songs.’ So, the album awards for me were important in that we did our job in a good way, you know. Just I have such an affinity for albums that I don’t know if I want those more or if they mean more, but they are all meaningful. They are all are things that one of them would feel like a career. One of them. Any one of them.”

    Audio / Dierks Bentley talks about his ACM nominations for Male and Album, but he's also nominated for two other awards.

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    Dierks Bentley (ACMs 2019) OC: …of it. :26
    “It’s like, ‘Wow!’ I look at that list of artists and there’s Luke Combs is probably gonna be a staple on there now, and Thomas Rhett’s gonna be in there every year and it’s gonna be harder, there’s less space. There’s only five guys in there, and to be one of those I think I appreciate it now more than ever. The album, obviously, is like the biggest nomination ever to get for anything. It’s one of the tangible results that you get to physically see from like putting time in the whole, the year and a half that goes into making that. I was very appreciative of it.”

    Audio / Luke Bryan, who is poised to enter the top of the country charts with “What Makes You Country,” is humbled by his two ACM nominations this year for Entertainer and for Single of the Year for “Most People Are Good.”

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    Luke Bryan (ACM 2019 reaction) OC: …the ACMs. 1:05
    “The opportunity to go to the ACMs with two nominations – Entertainer of the Year and Single of the Year – is just a huge honor for me. When I was able to record ‘Most People Are Good,’ I just felt like it was a really, really important song for the world to hear, an important song for me to have in my live show and to put out on radio, and to have it nominated is so rewarding for me and I’m so happy for the songwriters. And also, to have an Entertainer of the Year nomination is a huge honor for me. It’s something that I really, really work hard at every year to try to be a better Entertainer, a better singer and a better performer. Nothing is better than going to the ACMs in Vegas, having a couple of nominations and just being out there and enjoying the party and being in the room and seeing what happens. I’m humbled by it, and it’s gonna be exciting the night of the ACMs.”

  • GRAMMY AWARDS 2018: Kacey, Keith, Chris, LBT, Brothers Osborne and more.

    Audio
    Brothers Osborne / Chris Stapleton / Kacey Musgraves / Keith Urban / Little Big Town / Vince Gill

    The GRAMMY Awards are taking place on Sunday (February 10th), and several of your favorite country artists are nominated.

    Kacey Musgraves has four, including overall Album of the Year for Golden Hour, as well as Best Country Album. Her song “Butterflies” picks up a nomination for Best Country Solo Performance, while “Space Cowboy” earns a nod for Best Country Song. Click here for audio from Kacey.

    Chris Stapleton is nominated for three awards, including Best Country Solo Performance (“Millionaire”); Best Country Album (From A Room: Volume 2) and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance with Justin Timberlake for “Say Something.”

    Brothers Osborne has a pair of nods for Best Country Duo/Group Performance (“Shoot Me Straight”) and Best Country Album (Port St. Joe).

    Little Big Town competes for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for their song “When Someone Stops Loving You” – the song is also nominated for Best Country Song (award goes to the songwriters).

    Keith Urban grabs a nod for Best Country Solo Performance for “Parallel Line,” which is from his latest album, Graffiti U.

    Vince Gill gains a Grammy nomination in the Best Country Duo/Group Performance category for the duet “Dear Hate” with Maren Morris.

    And Restoration: Reimagining the Songs of Elton John and Bernie Taupin captures a nomination for Best Country Solo Performance for Maren Morris’ version of “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters.”

    The 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards will be broadcast live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles Sunday (February 10th) at 8pm ET on CBS.

    Album of the Year
    Invasion of Privacy — Cardi B
    By the Way I Forgive You — Brandi Carlile
    Scorpion — Drake
    beerbongs & bentleys — Post Malone
    H.E.R. — H.E.R.
    Dirty Computer — Janelle Monae
    Golden Hour — Kacey Musgraves
    Black Panther: The Album — Kendrick Lamar

    Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
    “Fall In Line” — Christina Aguilera Featuring Demi Lovato
    “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” — Backstreet Boys
    “‘S Wonderful” — Tony Bennett & Diana Krall
    “Shallow” — Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper
    “Girls I Like You” — Maroon 5 Featuring Cardi B
    “Say Something” — Justin Timberlake Featuring Chris Stapleton
    “The Middle” — Zedd, Maren Morris & Grey

    Best Country Solo Performance
    “Wouldn’t It Be Great?” — Loretta Lynn
    “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” — Maren Morris
    “Butterflies” — Kacey Musgraves
    “Millionaire” — Chris Stapleton
    “Parallel Line” — Keith Urban

    Best Country Duo/Group Performance
    “Shoot Me Straight” — Brothers Osborne
    “Tequila” — Dan + Shay
    ”When Someone Stops Loving You” — Little Big Town
    “Dear Hate” — Maren Morris Featuring Vince Gill
    “Meant to Be” — Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line

    Best Country Song
    “Break Up in the End” — Jessie Jo Dillon, Chase McGill & Jon Nite, songwriters (Cole Swindell)
    “Dear Hate” — Tom Douglas, David Hodges & Maren Morris, songwriters (Maren Morris Featuring Vince Gill)
    “Space Cowboy” — Luke Laird, Shane McAnally & Kacey Musgraves, songwriters (Kacey Musgraves)
    “Tequila” — Nicolle Galyon, Jordan Reynolds & Dan Smyers, songwriters (Dan + Shay)
    “When Someone Stops Loving You” — Hillary Lindsey, Chase McGill & Lori McKenna, songwriters (Little Big Town)

    Best Country Album
    Unapologetically — Kelsea Ballerini
    Port Saint Joe — Brothers Osborne
    Girl Going Nowhere — Ashley McBryde
    Golden Hour — Kacey Musgraves
    From A Room: Volume 2 — Chris Stapleton

    Audio / CHRIS STAPLETON SAYS HE’S ALWAYS LOVED THE SONG, “MILLIONAIRE,” WHICH WAS WRITTEN AND RECORDED BY KEVIN WELCH FOR HIS 2002 ALBUM OF THE SAME NAME.

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    Chris Stapleton (Millionaire) OC: …time to do it. :15
    “I love that song. I would always sit around the house playing that song to myself on guitar. It’s fun to play. It’s fun to sing. It’s a great melody. It’s great lyrics. It’s great everything. To me, that’s a great song, and I just loved it so it was time to do it.”

    Audio / Keith Urban talks about the song, “Parallel Line,” which was co-written by Ed Sheeran.

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    Keith Urban (Parallel Line) 2 OC: …great line. :37
    “Ed’s the only guy you’re gonna hear say, ‘You said I love you to me/and I don’t know what that means/so I froze on my feet/people use it so carelessly.’ When is a guy going to say, ‘People use the word so carelessly?’ That’s not usually a guy sentiment, but I feel it as far as being scared of having my heart broken by somebody. Yeah. That’s a guy feeling. That’s a human feeling. So, when I heard those opening lines and chorus, ‘take a little bit of my heart tonight/No I literally don’t mind/just please don’t misplace it.’ Gosh, that’s a great line.”

    Audio / Brothers Osborne says getting out of Nashville helped them focus just on making a record.

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    Brothers Osborne (Port Saint Joe) 2 OC: …you escape. :21
    JOHN: “There were no distractions, because we were away from Nashville.  We were just really able to stay focused and do our thing and not worry about the distractions of just being at home in Nashville.” TJ: “And that was one of the things that we most loved about recording out there was just to simply get into the record and get lost and do what really music does best; it just helps you escape.”