• CARRIE UNDERWOOD CELEBRATES A GREAT YEAR IN COUNTRY MUSIC WITH CMA ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR NOMINATION.

    As Carrie Underwood prepares for the upcoming DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR, she reflects on her Entertainer of the Year nomination for this year’s CMA Awards.

    “It is, I mean, obviously such an honor to be nominated in Entertainer of the Year,” says Carrie. “Obviously, that’s such a tough category to be in, ‘cause there’s just so, I don’t even want to call it competition, there’s just so many hard working artists out there that are just pouring themselves and their time and their energy and their love and their artistry into what they do. Obviously just to even be in the final category is just absolutely amazing and hopefully, above all, we can all just remember that it’s a celebration of a great year in country music and in our careers as artists, so we’ll just see what happens, but definitely excited to be in that category.”

    Carrie is also nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year and Musical Event of the Year with Jason Aldean for “If I Didn’t Love You.” The 56th Annual CMA Awards will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 8th at 8pm ET on ABC.

    Her tour will kick off on October 15th in Greenville, South Carolina, making stops in 43 U.S. cities including New York’s Madison Square Garden, Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, and L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena before concluding in Seattle, Washington on March 17th.  Carrie will be joined on THE DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR by special guest Jimmie Allen on all dates.

    Carrie is making her way up the country charts with her latest single, “Ghost Story.”

    Audio / Carrie Underwood talks about her CMA Entertainer of the Year nomination at this year's CMA Awards.

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    Carrie Underwood (CMA Entertainer 2022 nod) OC: …that category. :47
    “It is, I mean, obviously such an honor to be nominated in Entertainer of the Year. Obviously, that’s such a tough category to be in, ‘cause there’s just so, I don’t even want to call it competition, there’s just so many hard working artists out there that are just you know pouring themselves and their time and their energy and their love and their artistry into what they do. You know, obviously just to even be in the final category is just absolutely amazing and hopefully, above all, we can all just remember that it’s a celebration of a great year in country music and in our careers as artists, so we’ll just see what happens, but definitely excited to be in that category.”

     

     

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  • CARRIE UNDERWOOD BEGINS REHEARSALS FOR UPCOMING DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR.

    Carrie Underwood has begun rehearsing for the much-anticipated DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR which kicks off this fall. She shared a behind-the-scenes look at the tour with her fans on her socials.

    https://twitter.com/carrieunderwood/status/1573004602949177344

     

    The trek will kick off October 15th in Greenville, South Carolina, making stops in 43 U.S. cities including New York’s Madison Square Garden, Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, and L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena before concluding in Seattle, Washington on March 17, 2023.  Carrie will be joined on THE DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR by special guest Jimmie Allen on all dates.

    She tells us she loves putting set lists together, but admits it is tough to pick which songs should stay in the show and which ones she has to leave out.

    “I definitely like putting set lists together, but it is very difficult because there’s just not enough time,” says Carrie. “If it were up to me and up to my voice holding out, I’d probably do like a four-hour show. It’s just really hard to figure out what songs you’re not going to do and there’s always ones that it’s like, ‘Aw, but I love that song!’ but it doesn’t work with the flow or whatever. It’s fun, but it’s hard, but then you definitely want it to flow and for people just to be able to listen and have a great time and to sing along and for everything to make sense.”

    Carrie is currently making her way to the top of the country charts with “Ghost Story.”

     

    THE DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR

    DATE CITY VENUE
    October 15, 2022 Greenville, SC Bon Secours Wellness Arena
    October 17, 2022 Indianapolis, IN Gainbridge Fieldhouse
    October 18, 2022 Grand Rapids, MI Van Andel Arena
    October 20, 2022 Lexington, KY Rupp Arena
    October 22, 2022 Rosemont, IL Allstate Arena
    October 23, 2022 Milwaukee, WI Fiserv Forum
    October 25, 2022 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
    October 27, 2022 Grand Forks, ND Alerus Center
    October 31, 2022 Tulsa, OK BOK Center
    November 2, 2022 Austin, TX Moody Center
    November 3, 2022 Houston, TX Toyota Center
    November 5, 2022 New Orleans, LA Smoothie King Center
    November 7, 2022 St. Louis, MO Enterprise Center
    November 12, 2022 Moline, IL Tax Slayer Center
    November 13, 2022 Kansas City, MO T-Mobile Center
    November 15, 2022 Denver, CO Ball Arena
    November 17, 2022 Salt Lake City, UT Vivint Arena
    November 19, 2022 San Francisco, CA Chase Center

    2023

    February 2, 2023 Miami, FL FTX Arena
    February 4, 2023 Tampa, FL Amalie Arena
    February 6, 2023 Jacksonville, FL Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena
    February 7, 2023 Atlanta, GA State Farm Arena
    February 8, 2023 Charlotte, NC Spectrum Center
    February 10, 2023 State College, PA Bryce Jordan Center
    February 11, 2023 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun Arena
    February 14, 2023 Charleston, WV Charleston Coliseum
    February 15, 2023 Washington DC Capital One Arena
    February 17, 2023 Boston, MA TD Garden
    February 18, 2023 Newark, NJ Prudential Center
    February 21, 2023 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
    February 22, 2023 Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center
    February 24, 2023 Charlottesville, VA John Paul Jones Arena
    February 25, 2023 Pittsburgh, PA PPG Paints Arena
    February 26, 2023 Detroit, MI Little Caesars Arena
    March 1, 2023 Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena
    March 2, 2023 Cincinnati, OH Heritage Bank Center
    March 4, 2023 Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
    March 8, 2023 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
    March 11, 2023 Glendale, AZ Gila River Arena
    March 13, 2023 Los Angeles, CA Crypto.com Arena
    March 14, 2023 Sacramento, CA Golden 1 Center
    March 16, 2023 Portland, OR MODA Center
    March 17, 2023 Seattle, WA Climate Pledge Arena

     

    Audio / Carrie Underwood talks about putting set lists together for her tour.

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    Carrie Underwood (set lists for tour) OC: …make sense. :33
    “I definitely like putting set lists together, but it is very difficult because there’s just not enough time. If it were up to me and up to my voice holding out, I’d probably do like a four-hour show. It’s just really hard to figure out what songs you’re not going to do and there’s always ones that it’s like, ‘Aw, but I love that song!’ but it doesn’t work with the flow or whatever. It’s fun, but it’s hard, but then you definitely want it to flow and for people just to be able to listen and have a great time and to sing along and for everything to make sense.”

     

     

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  • NEWS AND NOTES: Carrie Underwood, Maddie & Tae, Tyler Hubbard

    Carrie Underwood returns to Sunday Night Football for the 10th time this weekend (September 11th) to perform “Waiting All Night For Sunday Night.” She performed the show open – featuring an updated rendition of the song – from The Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas (home to her ongoing residency, REFLECTION. For the first time, the show open will highlight the game-day energy around each SNF game with footage surrounding the host city, as well as including fans getting ready for the game. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers take on the Dallas Cowboys in this Sunday’s matchup on NBC.

     

    Maddie & Tae are premiering the music video for their song, “Spring Cleaning,” on Friday (September 9th) at Noon CT. The song is from their upcoming EP Through The Madness Volume 2.

    https://twitter.com/MaddieandTae/status/1567975153178484737

     

    Tyler Hubbard premieres the video for his song, “Everybody Needs a Bar,” on Friday (September 9th). The song is from the collection of music, Dancin’ In The Country, which he recently released.

    Tyler is currently scaling the country charts with “5 Foot 9.”

     

  • THE 2022 CMA NOMINATIONS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED; CHRIS STAPLETON AMONG THE MOST NOMINATED.

    The nominations for the 56th Annual CMA Awards have been announced. Lainey Wilson leads the list of nominees with six nods.

    Chris Stapleton has five nominations including Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Music Video of the Year (“I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)”), Single and Song of the Year for “You Should Probably Leave.”

    With this year’s five nods, Stapleton has amassed 39 career nominations. He is a six-time nominee for Entertainer of the Year and an eight-time nominee for Male Vocalist, a category he has won five times. “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” collects Stapleton his third nomination for Music Video, a category he won in 2016. The video is directed by Lively and is performed with 27-time nominee Taylor Swift. “You Should Probably Leave” marks Stapleton’s fifth nomination for Single of the Year and third nomination for Song. He is a two-time winner in both categories, claiming both trophies in 2018 and 2021. Stapleton co-produced the single with Dave Cobb and it was mixed by Vance Powell. He co-wrote the song with Chris DuBois and Ashley Gorley.

    Carrie Underwood earned three nominations including Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year and Musical Event of the Year for “If I Didn’t Love You” with Jason Aldean.

    With this year’s nominations, Underwood has garnered 40 career nods since 2006. This year marks her 16th nomination for Female Vocalist, a trophy she’s claimed five times. She is a four-time nominee for Musical Event, earning a nod this year for “If I Didn’t Love You,” a duet with Jason Aldean produced by Michael Knox. She collects her fifth nomination for the night’s most coveted trophy, Entertainer of the Year.

    Jordan Davis picked up two CMA nominations for Single of the Year for the multi-week No. 1 single “Buy Dirt” featuring Luke Bryan (who is also nominated); and for Song of the Year for “Buy Dirt,” which he wrote with his brother Jacob Davis (who earned his first CMA nomination), along with Matt and Josh Jenkins.

    Jon Pardi also picked up a pair of nominations for his collaboration with Midland on “Longneck Way To Go” for Musical Event of the Year and Music Video of the Year. The song also appears on Jon’s brand new album, Mr. Saturday Night.

    2020’s Entertainer of the Year Eric Church earned a nod for Male Vocalist of the Year, while Little Big Town earned a nomination for Vocal Group of the Year, a category which they’ve won SIX times!

    Reigning CMA Vocal Duo of the Year Brothers Osborne and Maddie & Tae pick up nods for Vocal Duo of the Year.

    Dierks Bentley is nominated along with BRELAND and HARDY for Musical Event of the Year for the trio’s chart-topping tune, “Beers On Me.”

    Parker McCollum earns his first CMA nomination for New Artist of the Year

    The 56th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning, will broadcast LIVE from Nashville November 9th at 8pm ET/7pm CT on ABC.

    ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

    • Luke Combs
    • Miranda Lambert
    • Chris Stapleton
    • Carrie Underwood
    • Morgan Wallen

    SINGLE OF THE YEAR
    Award goes to Artist(s), Producer(s) and Mix Engineer  

    • “Buy Dirt” – Jordan Davis featuring Luke Bryan
      Producer: Paul DiGiovanni
      Mix Engineer: Jim Cooley
    • “half of my hometown” – Kelsea Ballerini (feat. Kenny Chesney)
      Producers: Kelsea Ballerini, Ross Copperman, Jimmy Robbins
      Mix Engineer: Dan Grech-Marguerat
    • “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” – Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde
      Producers: Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne
      Mix Engineer: Ryan Gore
    • “’Til You Can’t” – Cody Johnson
      Producer: Trent Willmon
      Mix Engineer: Jack Clarke
    • “You Should Probably Leave” – Chris Stapleton
      Producers: Dave Cobb, Chris Stapleton
      Mix Engineer: Vance Powell

    ALBUM OF THE YEAR
    Award goes to Artist(s), Producer(s) and Mix Engineer(s) 

    • Growin’ Up – Luke Combs
      Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton
      Mix Engineers: Jim Cooley, Chip Matthews
    • Humble Quest – Maren Morris
      Producer: Greg Kurstin
      Mix Engineer: Serban Ghenea
    • Palomino – Miranda Lambert
      Producers: Luke Dick, Miranda Lambert, Jon Randall, Mikey Reaves
      Mix Engineer: Jason Lehning
    • Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’ – Lainey Wilson
      Producer: Jay Joyce
      Mix Engineer: F. Reid Shippen
    • Time, Tequila & Therapy – Old Dominion
      Producers: Shane McAnally, Old Dominion
      Mix Engineer: Justin Niebank

    SONG OF THE YEAR
    Award goes to Songwriter(s) 

    • “Buy Dirt”
      Songwriters: Jacob Davis, Jordan Davis, Josh Jenkins, Matt Jenkins
    • “Never Wanted To Be That Girl”
      Songwriters: Shane McAnally, Ashley McBryde, Carly Pearce
    • “Sand In My Boots”
      Songwriters: Ashley Gorley, Michael Hardy, Josh Osborne
    • “Things A Man Oughta Know”
      Songwriters: Jason Nix, Jonathan Singleton, Lainey Wilson
    • “You Should Probably Leave”
      Songwriters: Chris DuBois, Ashley Gorley, Chris Stapleton

    FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

    • Miranda Lambert
    • Ashley McBryde
    • Carly Pearce
    • Carrie Underwood
    • Lainey Wilson

    MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

    • Eric Church
    • Luke Combs
    • Cody Johnson
    • Chris Stapleton
    • Morgan Wallen

    VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR

    • Lady A
    • Little Big Town
    • Midland
    • Old Dominion
    • Zac Brown Band

    VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR

    • Brooks & Dunn
    • Brothers Osborne
    • Dan + Shay
    • LOCASH
    • Maddie & Tae

    MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR
    Award goes to Artist(s) and Producer(s)  

    • “Beers On Me” – Dierks Bentley with BRELAND & HARDY
      Producers: Dierks Bentley, Ross Copperman
    • “If I Didn’t Love You” – Jason Aldean & Carrie Underwood
      Producer: Michael Knox
    • “Longneck Way To Go” – Midland (featuring Jon Pardi)
      Producers: Dann Huff, Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne
    • “Never Say Never” – Cole Swindell (with Lainey Wilson)
      Producer: Zach Crowell
    • “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” – Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde
      Producers: Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne

    MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR

    • Jenee Fleenor, Fiddle
    • Paul Franklin, Steel guitar
    • Brent Mason, Guitar
    • Ilya Toshinskiy, Banjo
    • Derek Wells, Guitar

    MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
    Award goes to Artist(s) and Director(s)  

    • “I Bet You Think About Me” (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault) – Taylor Swift (featuring Chris Stapleton)
      Director: Blake Lively
    • “Longneck Way To Go” – Midland (featuring Jon Pardi)
      Director: Harper Smith
    • “Never Say Never” – Cole Swindell (with Lainey Wilson)
      Director: Michael Monaco
    • “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” – Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde
      Director: Alexa Campbell
    • “’Til You Can’t” – Cody Johnson
      Director: Dustin Haney

    NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR

    • HARDY
    • Walker Hayes
    • Cody Johnson
    • Parker McCollum
    • Lainey Wilson

    https://twitter.com/carrieunderwood/status/1567550562119417856

     

    https://twitter.com/JordanCWDavis/status/1567543539105468419

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Audio / JORDAN DAVIS SAYS THE SUCCESS "BUY DIRT" IS HAVING IS VERY SPECIAL.

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    Jordan Davis (Buy Dirt success is special) OC: …more special. :13
    “It just means a lot more. I wrote it with my brother (Jacob) and two my best friends (Josh and Matt Jenkins) in town and just the content of it. It comes from a really, really honest place. So, when you have songs that mean that much and you get to see them have success like ‘Buy Dirt’ is having, it’s a little bit more special.”

  • LABOR DAY 2022 AUDIO SOUNDBITES

    For many decades, Labor Day was seen as a day for workers to voice their complaints and discuss better working conditions and pay.

    U.S. Congress declared Labor Day a national holiday in 1894, and on Monday, September 5th, we will once again celebrate the people in every occupation whose work and dedication help the nation keep going.

    Labor Day weekend also signals the unofficial end to summer, and many of the hottest country stars are taking a look back at some of the toughest jobs they had prior to making their mark in music or their dream job now.

     

    Audio / Alan Jackson says that working man values have always been a part of his music.

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    AJ (working people songs) OC: … appreciate that. :28
    “I’ve always written songs and recorded songs, other people’s songs, about workin’ people, and workin’, the workin’ life ’cause I mean, that’s where I’m from. I mean, I worked…I’d already had jobs and worked as a grown person before I ever even thought about bein’ in the music business, so I come from that background, and…although I hadn’t had a job in a long time (laughs), I still remember a lot about it, you know, and I remember what the lifestyle is, and I still appreciate that.”

    Audio / Billy Currington recalls some of the jobs he had before landing his record deal in 2003.

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    Billy Currington (Labor Day) OC: …record deal. :40
    “I started working like at [age] 12, landscaping. This was summer, every summers, and roofing. I started when I was about 16 roofing houses, and that was probably one of my toughest jobs because down there in South Georgia, it gets hot, so doing that every day all summer long. The pawn shop when I moved to Nashville was one of my favorites, even though it was one of my least favorites. The concrete job was my least favorite of all – six years of that, and I couldn’t take it no more. After that job, that was my turning point. Either I’m going to do something else for a living [laughs] or quit and try to really focus on music and get this record deal.”

    Audio / CARRIE UNDERWOOD TALKS ABOUT THE JOBS SHE HAD GROWING UP AND HER BEST JOB -- PERFORMING FOR HER FANS.

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    Carrie Underwood (Labor Day) OC: …born to do. :59
    “I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad job. I’ve had hard jobs. I’ve had jobs that worked random hours. My first job was at a gas station, and that was a lot of fun actually. While I was working at the gas station, I took another job at a hotel down the street. There was nobody else working there. I had one day of training and then the next day I came in, and the lady that had worked there the longest and was training me just didn’t show. So, the second day at work I was now in charge ‘cause I was now the senior member that was working at the hotel. So, I feel like that one was really challenging to figure my way through it, but I did. My best job is definitely what I do now. I really like being on stage. I really like performing for people and just having fun and singing, because that’s what I feel like I was born to do.”

    Audio / Caylee Hammack says her worst job truly smelled bad.

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    Caylee Hammack (Labor Day-worst job) OC: …worst job. (laughs) :38
    “My worst job was working in a nursery, actually. I love kids so I thought I’d be really good at it, but when you’re the new person coming in, you have to change all the diapers first. So, I was changing 45 diapers a day and it got to the point where everything smelled like baby poop. It literally drove me crazy. I would walk my dog and I would have to go to pick up her poop, and it would smell like baby poop, and I just couldn’t handle it, honestly. The smell of poop warded me away. The children were lovely, but the smell of poop lingered, and I couldn’t handle that job. That was my worst job.” (laughs)

    Audio / Darius Rucker recalls one of his worst jobs before turning to music.

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    Darius Rucker (Labor Day) OC: …pizza. :15
    “I was fifteen, and I worked at a pizza place, and the guy decided that at fifteen, that I could not only clean the floors and wash the dishes, but I also had to make pizza. So, for two months, he taught me how to make pizza

    Audio / Dierks Bentley makes a living performing for his fans, and he can’t say enough about them.

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    Dierks Bentley (Labor Day) OC: …generosity. :26
    “Personally, the fans give me amazement. That’s the only word to really sum it up. I look out in the crowd, you know, usually see a lot of faces and fans are cheering. I know each one of these like from the road-the signs are from California…Michelle and Kayla live up in the Ohio area. They’re all, I just see them, and I’m like, ‘Wow!,’ they’re all from different regions. You know when you’re in a different region of the country and you just see certain fans. These people are way more hard core than I am, and I’m just amazed by their generosity.”

    Audio / Eric Church talks about one of his worst job.

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    Eric Church (Labor Day-odd jobs) OC: …bought at 2am. 1:27
    “I had an awful job. I’ve had a lot of awful jobs…my worst one was when I first came to Nashville. I got a job at the Shop at Home Network. I worked midnight, graveyard, midnight to eight. That was bad enough but then I would work all night, go home, shower and then I had writing appointments all day because I was trying to get a career started. I’d go write songs and get meetings just trying to get signed. And end up getting done at 3 of 4 with all of that, I’d go home, take a shower or sleep for a little bit and then I had to be at work again at midnight. So the schedule was bad enough, however, what I had to do at the job…I sold knives from midnight to 7 or 8am. And, anytime somebody calls you at 3 or 4am and needs 200 knives for $19.95, it’s automatically an alarming situation. And I just, I was young and I’d been in a lot of these people’s shoes, I had done this…I knew they were drunk. I knew what they had done. They’d just come home from the bar, flipped on Shop at Home and said, ‘You know what? I need that.’ So the reason the job didn’t last long for me is that I was maybe the worst salesmen in history because I ended up talking a lot of these people out of it, I’d say, ‘I’ll tell you what man, go to bed, call me, I’ll be here in the morning. If you get up in the morning and want these knives you call me back.’ Because I knew what was going to happen, you know. They bought 200 knives for $19.95…first of all some of these people you didn’t know whether you should call the cops. What do you need 200 knives for? Even though I’m selling them…what do you need them for? So, it was awful doing that job. And then they got rid of me because, they were like, ‘You’re the worst. I can’t believe you’re talking people out of it.’ I was like, ‘Man I know…I’ve been there.’ [laughs] I’d want some to talk me out of buying some of the stuff I’ve bought at 2am.”

    Audio / GEORGE STRAIT’S CAREER HAS SPANNED DECADES AND 60 NO. 1 HITS, BUT HE CAN RECALL HEARING ONE OF HIS SONGS ON THE RADIO AND HOW COUNTRY RADIO HAS SUPPORTED HIM.

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    George Strait (first time on radio) OC: …records I’ve put out. :26
    “I took it to a radio station in San Antonio KKYX, and a guy named Jerry King put it on and played it while I ran out to the car to listen to it on the radio. So, it’s just been relationships like that through the years that I’ve had with different people. I don’t know, they’ve just supported me so much and have been very open to the records I’ve put out.”

     

    Audio / Jon Langston talks about his jobs prior to making a career in music.

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    Jon Langston (Labor Day) OC: …is the bomb. :45
    “The worst job – it wasn’t bad – I could just say growing up and stuff and in high school, I was working for my dad. It was a great job, working at the shop. One day I got tired of working for my dad. I thought it’d be smart to go work for somebody else and so I went to work at Chik-fil-a for a family friend, and I’m just not made for cooking chicken. But, I told my dad, ‘Hey, can I come back to work?’ (laughs) So, yeah, I mean, Chik-fil-a a great place to work if you’re into that kind of thing, but not me. But Chik-fil-a is my favorite fast food restaurant of all time. I mean, I will go to war for Chik-fil-a. I eat there probably three or four times a week. Chik-fil-a is the bomb.”

    Audio / Jon Pardi talks about his worst job, which was at a grocery store.

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    Jon Pardi (Labor Day) OC: …so bored! :17
    “The worst job I ever had was at Hometown Grocery Store. I didn’t want to work, I was 15, and I did not want to work at the grocery store. Bagging was fun, but they sent me down the aisles to pull up cans and turn ‘em around and face ‘em, and I would just get so bored!”

    Audio / Jordan Davis talks about one of his worst jobs.

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    Jordan Davis (Labor Day) OC: …worst job. :41
    “[My] worst job was probably whenever I got out of school I started working for an environmental group in Baton Rouge, and I was doing actual environmental work at first. I went to my boss probably about four months in and told him that I was going to move to Nashville and write songs. Luckily enough, he let me stay on, but I became the weedeater guy for the landscaping side of the business. I seriously weedeated eight hours a day. The only break I would get would be in-between yard to yard. So, like we would be in the car and I would try to doze off for like 10 minutes. I was covered in grass in the middle of the summer in Baton Rouge. It was awful. That was definitely the worst job.”

    Audio / Keith Urban talks about one of the worst jobs he had while working on doing music full-time.

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    Keith Urban (Labor Day-job) OC: …to sell things. 1:56
    “I’ve had a lot of crappy jobs. Wow! I don’t know about the worst job, oh, telemarketing. (laughs) I hated it! By all accounts, I was actually pretty good at it, and my boss was really upset that I wanted to quit, ‘cause he said you’d actually be pretty good at it, other than I was just too brutally honest. I was working for a company that at the time sold Franking Machines, which was a thing where – back then – you would put postal impressions on an envelope and send them out, instead of buying a whole stack of stamps. So, you had this thing called a Franking Machine and you’d pre-load it with a whole bunch of pre-paid for stamps. And you just put the envelope(s) in and (sound efx). So, if you’re putting out a whole bunch of mail from a business, it’s much better to get a Franking Machine, then have someone go to the post office all the time. I would have this whole long pitch about, ‘Hi, I’m Keith, blah, blah, blah, what volume of mail would you say you do every week?’ I was talking to this lady from a florist, and she was so sweet, and she goes, ‘Oh, I’d say I send out about three letters a week, love.’ And then I’m supposed to say, ‘Well, then you need a Franking Machine…’ (laughs) ‘cause it’s on the script, you know? I’m going, ‘I’m so sorry, you don’t need what we’re selling. I’m sorry to bother you.’ And she goes, ‘No, no, tell me about this. What are you selling?’ She was the perfect customer, and I went, ‘I promise you. You don’t need this thing. It costs a fortune. You don’t need it. You don’t need it.’ She goes, ‘No, but tell me about it.’ I said, ‘Honestly, I’m not even going to waste your time. You’re so lovely, but thank you so much. Have a great day,’ and I hung up. My boss was standing behind me (laughs), and he goes, ‘They all need Franking Machines. They all need…’ I was like, ‘She didn’t. I hate this job. I quit.’ And that was it. I wasn’t cut out to sell things.”

    Audio / Kip Moore recalls his worst job...ever.

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    Kip Moore (Labor Day-worst job) OC: …than that. :21
    “I’d have to say my worst job ever was laying sod in the south Georgia heat. There’s nothing than that, especially when somebody would think that you’re waiting for the next sod patch to be thrown to you and you got your back turned, and all of a sudden, that big ole piece of sod hits you right on the back. You got nowhere to clean up, and you’re just stuck with dirt on your back for the rest of the day. It doesn’t get any worse than that.”

    Audio / KYLIE MORGAN SAYS BEING ON THE ROAD PERFORMING FOR PEOPLE IS HER “HAPPY PLACE.”

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    Kylie Morgan (the road is her happy place) OC: …that’s me. :48
    “The road is truly my happy place. I love going to sleep and not knowing where I’m going to be the next day. I love hotel beds. I literally just eat and breathe the road. It is truly an adventure all the time, and I knew even when I was little that I had to do something where I traveled because I love the feeling of it. I love experiencing new things, and the fact that I truly feel like what I do is not a job. And the fact that I get to see the world, meet so many amazing people, have a one-on-one connection through my music, I never have to work a day in my life because I would do this for free. It is one of the most liberating feelings to finish a song and see someone turn to someone and go, ‘Omigod, that’s me.’”

    Audio / Luke Bryan talks about the different jobs he worked in and around Leesburg, Georgia, before heading to Nashville to pursue a career in music.

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    Luke Bryan (Labor Day-jobs) OC: …Nashville… 1:07
    “At age 12 thru 13, I worked at Rubos IGA Supermarket in Leesburg, GA. I worked during the summers on Monday and Tuesday. I stocked and cleaned up the produce.  They paid me under the table…I peeled off all of the brown lettuce. Let’s see, when I was 15, I was a cashier at K-Mart for two months. I worked at K-Mart for two months, and then I reverted back to Rubos because it didn’t really make sense for me to drive all the way into Albany and work for K-Mart. The benefits were great though-you’d get an hour-long on the blue light special. So I started back at Rubos, and then I quit Rubos and worked for my Dad-just awful just driving tractors through cotton all day, and spraying pesticides that eventually would turn your hair green. And then at some point, I started playing guitar. And well, after college I went back and worked for my dad and continued to spray and haul fertilizer around. And then I moved to Nashville…”

    Audio / RISCILLA BLOCK HAD A LOT OF SIDE JOBS WHEN SHE WAS TRYING TO MAKE IT IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS, INCLUDING CLEANING AIRBNBS.

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    Priscilla Block (Labor Day) OC: …didn’t care. :34
    “Cleaning Airbnbs, and that was really interesting ‘cause you’d find some crazy things in those Airbnbs. Those bachelorette parties, all I’m saying is I want to be invited next time. I was kind of sad that I had to be the house cleaner and I wasn’t at the bachelorette party. It was great! You’d go in and sometimes there’d be extra food, alcohol. When I walked in and I would see White Claws in the fridge, I’m, ‘Bingo, baby! Let’s go!’ I don’t know if I was supposed to be taking the alcohol, but I didn’t care.”

    Audio / TRAVIS DENNING HAS NEVER HAD ANOTHER JOB OTHER THAN PLAYING MUSIC.

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    Travis Denning (Labor Day) OC: …right for it. :13
    “I’ve always played music. I mean, my first gig was when I was 16-years-old. That was what I did. And as soon as I found out I could make money doing it, I thought I’d much rather make money doing this than anything else, so I went right for it.”

    Audio / Tyler Hubbard learned his work ethic from working manual labor jobs when he was growing up, and it shows now in how hard he works at his music career.

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    Tyler Hubbard (Labor Day) OC: …where I’m at. :43
    “One of the worst jobs – I don’t know if it was the worst job, definitely the most physical, was probably pouring concrete. I did that for a year with a friend that had a concrete business, and we poured a lot of concrete that year, and I just remember really early mornings and really late nights. It was, if the sun was up, we were working, and that was pretty influential in creating the work ethic that I have. It was either that or my dad had a tree service that I grew up working with him doing that, as well, which was again, very manual labor, very long days and taught me a lot about working hard. And so, those were special times and as hard as it was, I’m thankful for those years. I love working hard, and I’m grateful for the struggle that got me where I’m at.”

  • LABOR DAY LINERS 2022

    Audio / LINER Billy Currington (Labor Day)

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    Hey y’all! It’s Billy Currington, wishing you a very happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Brothers Osborne (Labor Day)

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    This is TJ, and I’m John, and we are Brothers Osborne, wishing you a happy and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Carrie Underwood (Labor Day Weekend)

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    Hey everyone! I’m Carrie Underwood, hoping you have a happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Catie Offerman (Labor Day)

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    Hey everybody! This is Catie Offerman, wishing you a fun and work-free Labor Day Weekend.

    Audio / LINER Caylee Hammack (Labor Day)

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    Hey y’all! This is Caylee Hammack. I’m wishing you a fun and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Darius Rucker (Labor Day)

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    Hey! It’s Darius Rucker, and I hope you have a have a happy work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Eric Church (Labor Day)

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    Hey! It’s Eric Church, and I hope you have a have a happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Jon Langston (Labor Day)

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    Hey! I’m Jon Langston. Hope you have a Happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Jon Pardi (Labor Day weekend)

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    Hey! It’s Jon Pardi, and I hope you have a happy and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Jordan Davis (Labor Day)

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    Hey! I’m Jordan Davis, wishing you a happy and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Kacey Musgraves (Labor Day weekend)

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    Hey! It’s Kacey Musgraves, hoping you have a happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Keith Urban (Labor Day weekend)

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    Hi everybody! This is Keith Urban, wishing you a very happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Kip Moore (Labor Day)

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    Hey—what’s happening guys? This is Kip Moore, wishing you a happy and work-free Labor Day Weekend.

    Audio / LINER Kylie Morgan (Labor Day)

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    Hey, it’s Kylie Morgan, wishing you a fun and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER LBT (Labor Day)

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    Hi! We’re Little Big Town, hoping you have a work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Luke Bryan (Labor Day)

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    Hey! It’s Luke Bryan, and I hope you have a have a happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Maddie & Tae (Labor Day)

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    Hey everybody! I’m Maddie, and I’m Tae, and we’re Maddie & Tae, hoping you have a happy and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Parker McCollum (Labor Day)

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    Hey everybody, I’m Parker McCollum, wishing you a work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Priscilla Block (Labor Day)

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    Hey, it’s Priscilla Block, wishing you a fun and work-free Labor Day Weekend.

    Audio / LINER Reba McEntire (Labor Day)

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    Hey everybody, this is Reba McEntire, wishing you and your family and all your friends a Happy Labor Day Weekend.

    Audio / LINER Sam Hunt (Labor Day)

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    Hey everybody! I’m Sam Hunt. Have a great and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Travis Denning (Labor Day)

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    Hey y’all. It’s Travis Denning, hoping you have a happy and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio / LINER Tyler Hubbard (Labor Day)

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    “Hey y’all, it’s Tyler Hubbard, wishing you a fun and work-free Labor Day Weekend.

     

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Carrie Underwood, Reba McEntire, Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, Little Big Town, Eric Church, Brothers Osborne

    Carrie Underwood‘s music will be part of the Peloton’s All For One 2022 Music Festival this weekend, which is one of Peloton’s biggest weekends of the year. Carrie is one of 33 artists in a mixed genre lineup with artists like Alanis Morrissette, Lil Baby, Green Day, Maroon 5, Saweetie, Tove Lo, John Mayer and many others. There will be four classes dedicated to the global superstar with instructors giving highlights about her career, new album and tour, along with playing her music.

     

    Reba McEntire has been filming her role of local backcountry expert “Sunny Barnes” (and possible villan) for the much-anticipated third season of ABC’s Big Sky. It was recently announced she’d be joining the cast of the popular show this past summer, and now comes the news her real-life boyfriend, actor Rex Linn (Better Call Saul, CSI: Miami), will play her husband in the show. The new season will premiere September 21st on ABC.

     

    Taylor Swift has been named Songwriter-Artist of the Decade by the Nashville Songwriters Association International for her cumulative songwriting success between 2010-2019. Ashley Gorley, who has more than 60 No. 1 songs under his belt, has been named Songwriter of the Decade. Little Big Town and Jordan Davis will perform at the event, which will also include performances by Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett, HARDY, Jacob Davis, Babyface and more. The show will take place September 20th at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium.

     

    Shania Twain and Little Big Town are among the famous faces making special appearances on the new FOX series, Monarch, starring Trace Adkins and Susan Sarandon. The series, which also includes guest appearances by Martina McBride and Tanya Tucker, premieres September 11th.

     

    Eric Church and Brothers Osborne are featured on the new Something Borrowed, Something New: A Tribute to John Anderson album, which is available now. Luke Combs, Ashley McBryde, Tyler Childress and many more are also included.

  • CARRIE UNDERWOOD MARKS 10TH SEASON STARRING IN SHOW OPEN FOR NBC’S SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL, PREMIERING SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11TH.

    Multi-Platinum, 8-time GRAMMY® Award winner Carrie Underwood will star in the show open for NBC’s Sunday Night Football for the 10th consecutive season beginning in September on NBC and Peacock.

    Underwood performed the show open – featuring an updated rendition of the now-iconic “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night” – from The Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas, home of her ongoing residency, REFLECTION.

    For the first time, the show open will highlight the game-day energy around each Sunday Night Football game as a dedicated film crew will capture the atmosphere leading up to kickoff including fans tailgating and prepping for the game, player arrivals, and scenes from the host city.

    “Performing the show open for Sunday Night Football for 10 years has been such a joy and privilege for me,” said Underwood.  “It’s always a fun day when we shoot the new open — our amazing creative team somehow manages to top themselves year after year.”

    The show open for Sunday Night Football, primetime television’s No. 1 program for an unprecedented 11 consecutive years, will debut on Sunday, September 11th on NBC and Peacock leading into Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visiting Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys.

    NBC’S SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL IS PRIMETIME TELEVISION’S NO. 1 SHOW FOR RECORD 11 CONSECUTIVE YEARS: NBC’s Sunday Night Football finished the 2021-22 TV season as primetime’s #1 TV show in all key metrics for an unprecedented 11th consecutive year – adding to its record for the most consecutive years atop the charts (since 1950), based on official live plus same day data provided by Nielsen. Sunday Night Football also ranked as the No. 1 show in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic for the 12th consecutive TV season.

    Her new album, Denim & Rhinestones, which she co-produced with David Garcia, is out now, and the first single from the album, “Ghost Story” is sitting inside the Top 10 on the country charts.

    Carrie recently announced her 43-city U.S. arena tour, THE DENIM & RHINESTONES TOUR, kicking off October 15th, with dates throughout Fall 2022 and Spring 2023.

    2022 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
    Thurs. Sept. 8 NFL Kickoff  Buffalo Bills at Los Angeles Rams
    Sun. Sept. 11 Week 1   Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Dallas Cowboys
    Sun. Sept. 18 Week 2   Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers
    Sun. Sept. 25 Week 3   San Francisco 49ers at Denver Broncos
    Sun. Oct. 2 Week 4 Kansas City Chiefs at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
    *Sun. Oct. 9 Week 5   Cincinnati Bengals at Baltimore Ravens
    *Sun. Oct. 16 Week 6 Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles
    *Sun. Oct. 23 Week 7 Pittsburgh Steelers at Miami Dolphins
    *Sun. Oct. 30 Week 8 Green Bay Packers at Buffalo Bills
    *Sun. Nov. 6 Week 9 Tennessee Titans at Kansas City Chiefs
    *Sun. Nov. 13 Week 10 Los Angeles Chargers at San Francisco 49ers
    *Sun. Nov. 20 Week 11  Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers
    **Thurs. Nov. 24 Week 12 New England Patriots at Minnesota Vikings
    *Sun. Nov. 27 Week 12 Green Bay Packers at Philadelphia Eagles
    *Sun. Dec. 4 Week 13 Indianapolis Colts at Dallas Cowboys
    *Sun. Dec. 11 Week 14 Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos
    *Sun. Dec. 18 Week 15 New England Patriots at Las Vegas Raiders
    Sun. Dec. 25 Week 16 Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Arizona Cardinals
    *Sun. Jan. 1 Week 17 Los Angeles Rams at Los Angeles Chargers
    *Sun. Jan. 8 Week 18 TBD

    *Flex Week
    ** Thanksgiving Night Game

     

    Audio / CARRIE UNDERWOOD TALKS ABOUT BEING A PART OF SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL.

    Download

    Carrie Underwood (loves being a part of SNF) OC: …my whole life. :54
    “I love being the voice of Sunday Night Football because I grew up watching football…from birth. I’m from Oklahoma – we’re a football state. It’s just a part of the country that everybody has their teams and there’s such an energy about it. We would drive down to Dallas and watch the Cowboys play whenever we could. There’s just something about being at a live sporting event or watching it on TV. You have your favorites. They have their rivals. There’s an excitement to it that really, it’s unlike anything else, so being a small part of that is absolutely amazing. It’s been so wonderful working with everybody at SNF, and I count myself very lucky and very blessed that I get to be a small part of something that I’ve loved my whole life.”

  • CARRIE UNDERWOOD ENJOYS REHEARSING FOR UPCOMING TOUR.

    Carrie Underwood is getting ready to launch The Denim & Rhinestones Tour this fall. She’s set to kick off the trek, featuring Jimmie Allen, October 15th in Greenville, South Carolina, making stops in 43 U.S. cities including New York’s Madison Square Garden, Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, and L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena before concluding in Seattle, Washington March 17th.

    The global superstar is already preparing for the upcoming tour and says she really enjoys the anticipation of getting ready to hit the road.

    “I think my favorite parts of putting a new tour together is the anticipation. I love rehearsals as well. I feel like it’s, it’s like a show with no pressure (laughs), no pressure, no audience and we just kind of get to play music and do all that stuff and it’s fun, and so I really, I enjoy rehearsals.”

    Carrie is closing in on the Top 10 of the country charts with her latest single, “Ghost Story.”

    Audio / Carrie Underwood says she enjoys putting a tour together.

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    Carrie Underwood (enjoys tour rehearsals) OC: …enjoy rehearsals. :19
    “I think my favorite parts of putting a new tour together is the anticipation. I love rehearsals as well. I feel like it’s, it’s like a show with no pressure (laughs), no pressure, no audience and we just kind of get to play music and do all that stuff and it’s fun, and so I really, I enjoy rehearsals.”

  • CARRIE UNDERWOOD IS BACK AS THE VOICE FOR THE OPENING FOR SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL.

    Carrie Underwood will mark 10 consecutive years of starring in the Sunday Night Football open.

    https://twitter.com/SNFonNBC/status/1555389828145053697

     

    https://twitter.com/carrieunderwood/status/1555413141059784704

     

    “I love being the voice of Sunday Night Football because I grew up watching football…from birth,” says Carrie. “I’m from Oklahoma – we’re a football state. It’s just a part of the country that everybody has their teams and there’s such an energy about it. We would drive down to Dallas and watch the Cowboys play whenever we could. There’s just something about being at a live sporting event or watching it on TV. You have your favorites. They have their rivals. There’s an excitement to it that really, it’s unlike anything else, so being a small part of that is absolutely amazing. It’s been so wonderful working with everybody at SNF, and I count myself very lucky and very blessed that I get to be a small part of something that I’ve loved my whole life.”

     

    Audio / CARRIE UNDERWOOD TALKS ABOUT BEING A PART OF SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL.

    Download

    Carrie Underwood (loves being a part of SNF) OC: …my whole life. :54
    “I love being the voice of Sunday Night Football because I grew up watching football…from birth. I’m from Oklahoma – we’re a football state. It’s just a part of the country that everybody has their teams and there’s such an energy about it. We would drive down to Dallas and watch the Cowboys play whenever we could. There’s just something about being at a live sporting event or watching it on TV. You have your favorites. They have their rivals. There’s an excitement to it that really, it’s unlike anything else, so being a small part of that is absolutely amazing. It’s been so wonderful working with everybody at SNF, and I count myself very lucky and very blessed that I get to be a small part of something that I’ve loved my whole life.”