Shania Twain is taking fans behind-the-curtain to her NOW World Tour to show them just how the whole stage show was arranged and choreographed. Check it out below.
The trek resumes Tuesday (July 3rd) in London, Canada and Friday (July 6th) in Toronto.
Lady Antebellum and Darius Rucker have been in rehearsals and production meetings for their upcoming Summer Plays On Tour, and they feel that the fans will definitely get their money’s worth when they come to see them on the road.
“The one thing that I love about Darius is, not only is he a great guy, he’s a seasoned entertainer and we finally feel like too as a band, and we’ve been at this for almost ten years now, we feel we know how to hold a crowd and put on a really fun and entertaining show,” says Lady A’s Charles Kelley. “I just feel like when the crowds come, they’re gonna get over three hours-worth of music that is just straight singalongs, constantly, and that’s what we want. Darius is just such a great entertainer and we’re friends and we’re gonna have a lot of collaborative moments on it too, and obviously I’ll have my golf buddy there with me during the day.”
The Summer Plays On Tour will launch July 19th in Toronto, Ontario, but first Lady A will headline Nashville’s Let Freedom Sing Fourth of July celebration, which features one of the largest fireworks displays in the nation.
The members of Lady Antebellum are currently making their way up the country charts with “Heart Break,” while Darius, along with Charles Kelly, Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean, just released “Straight to Hell.”
Lady A (Darius Tour) 1 OC: …during the day. :53
“One of the biggest reasons that we, kind of together with Darius, approached this concept of touring again together was because we had so much fun last time. When was the last time we toured together, Dave? (Dave): 2012. 2012 and still to this day it’s the biggest tour we’ve ever had and it was just so much fun and the one thing that I love about Darius is, not only is he a great guy, he’s a seasoned entertainer and we finally feel like too as a band, and we’ve been at this for almost ten years now, we feel we know how to hold a crowd and put on a really fun and entertaining show. And I just feel like when the crowds come they’re gonna get over three hours-worth of music that is just straight singalongs, constantly, and that’s what we want. Darius is just such a great entertainer and we’re friends and we’re gonna have a lot of collaborative moments on it too, and obviously I’ll have my golf buddy there with me during the day.”
Brandon Lay is making huge strides by opening for one of country music’s superstars, Kenny Chesney. It’s his first time graduating to the big stage of a stadium tour, but the firsts don’t stop there. Brandon’s wife (Nicole) is due in October, and a stadium tour with fatherhood on the horizon is making life both a blessing and a Summer he’ll never forget.
“God’s timing is perfect because she’s due in October and the tour actually winds down in September. And I’m sure, although we have several club dates here and there, it’ll be a great time to just kinda kick back and enjoy that whole process because just like the big stadium tours, being a dad is a first too,” says Brandon. “So, I’m kinda just winging it as I go. It’s a good season though. I’ve been in Nashville just a decade and I’ve been working for this moment so I’ve been trying to prepare myself as much as I can for these kinds of opportunities and so it does feel like I’m getting an opportunity that a lot of guys don’t get so I’m just trying to soak up every minute.”
“We started a thing the first week we kicked the tour off, the fortunate thing is she’s been able to come and travel, but we take a picture at soundcheck every week and I mean the baby bump is getting bigger and bigger,” he adds.” Life is happening fast right now and I just couldn’t be more blessed. It’s a summer to remember no doubt.”
Brandon, who recently released his new song, “Yada Yada Yada,” will hit the stage with Kenny again on the superstar’s Trip Around the Sun Tour Saturday (July 7th) at Centurylink Field in Seattle, Washington.
Brandon Lay (expectations of becoming a father) OC: …up every minute. :44
“Everybody talks about how it changes your life for the better. To be honest, it wasn’t a real planned thing for it to be this soon, but God’s timing is perfect because she’s due in October and the tour actually winds down in September. And I’m sure, although we have several club dates here and there, it’ll be a great time to just kinda kick back and enjoy that whole process because just like the big stadium tours, being a dad is a first too. So, I’m kinda just winging it as I go! It’s a good season though. I’ve been in Nashville just a decade and I’ve been working for this moment, so I’ve been trying to prepare myself as much as I can for these kinds of opportunities and so it does feel like I’m getting an opportunity that a lot of guys don’t get so I’m just trying to soak up every minute.
Brandon Lay (wife expecting) OC: …no doubt. :26
“You know, Nicole, my wife, she’s, I guess it’s half-time as far as the pregnancy goes and she’s due in October, and we started a thing the first week the tour kicked off. Another fortunate thing about having a bus is she’s been able to come and travel, but we take a picture at soundcheck every week and I mean the baby bump is getting bigger and bigger. Life is happening fast right now, and I just couldn’t be more blessed. It’s a summer to remember, no doubt.”
There’s a big issue with fake accounts on social media asking fans for money and personal information. Artists like Keith Urban, Kip Moore, Jon Pardi, Travis Denning, Blake Shelton, Kelly Clarkson, Jake Own, Cole Swindell, Maren Morris and many more talk about how to know if an account is real or not. To learn more about fake accounts and how to report them, head to Socialmediasafetynashville.com.
Alan Jackson tweeted against the predators, as well.
PSA: Imposters on Social Media – Learn more about reporting fake accounts here: https://t.co/vdATXKm60M pic.twitter.com/LOEi15LPOv
— Alan Jackson (@OfficialJackson) June 29, 2018
Some of your favorite artists are hitting the fair and festival circuit, in addition to their own tours. Many of them are tempted by the food that is synonymous with fairs and festivals. When Maddie & Tae hit the road, they’re usually looking for certain things they can only find at those specific venues.
“Any time we are at a fair or a festival, I hunt down those dipping dots. Every time,” says Tae Dye. Her partner Maddie Marlow has her own fair must-have. “I think mine is corn, like the big corn thing, corn dogs and funnel cakes. Corn everything and funnel cakes.”
The duo’s new single, “Friends Don’t,” is currently making their way up the country charts. For information on tour dates, music and more, go to maddieandtae.com.
Maddie & Tae (favorite fair festival food) OC: …funnel cakes. :14
TAE: “Any time we are at a fair or a festival I hunt down those dipping dots. Every time.” MADDIE: “I think mine is corn, like the big corn thing, corn dogs and funnel cakes. Corn everything and funnel cakes.”
Dierks Bentley just released the official lyric video for his latest song, “Burning Man,” which features Brothers Osborne. The song is the follow-up to his recent No. 1 hit, “Woman, Amen,” from his latest album, The Mountain. Check out the lyric video below.
Dierks and Brothers Osborne are on the road together on the Mountain High Tour. John and TJ are making their way up the country charts with “Shoot Me Straight.”
Carrie Underwood and Ludacris performed “The Champion” for the first time together on the Radio Disney Music Awards this past weekend. Check it out below.
Little Big Town has received their own major exhibit, titled “The Power of Four,” at Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. During a private celebration on Tuesday night (July 26th), the group talked about being a band for two decades, awards and much more.
Last night was completely overwhelming. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for this incredible tribute. #thepoweroffour #countrymusichalloffame pic.twitter.com/WxbH1KgLlg
— Little Big Town (@littlebigtown) June 27, 2018
“We’re dreamers. We still see ourselves as those scrapping kids that don’t think we’ve made it yet. I think we still have a lot left in our minds left to do, things we want to do,” says LBT’s Phillip Sweet. “But it’s incredible to have been able to see this and to be able to speak about some of these memories and these things that, it’s so great to relieve some of these moments. It’s incredible.”
On display are their Grammy and Emmy awards, as well as a high school English paper Taylor Swift wrote about them. The exhibit runs June 29th, 2018 to June 9th, 2019.
Little Big Town recently released their new song, “Summer Fever.” The group embarks on The Bandwagon Tour with Miranda Lambert beginning July 12th in Charlotte, North Carolina.
LBT (CMHOF) OC: …incredible. :23
“We’re dreamers. We still see ourselves as those scrapping kids that don’t think we’ve made it yet. I think we still have a lot left in our minds left to do, things we want to do. But it’s incredible to have been able to see this and to be able to speak about some of these memories and these things that, it’s so great to relieve some of these moments. It’s incredible.”
Chris Stapleton and Kacey Musgraves have been added to the lineup for this year’s Farm Aid. The 33rd annual event will also feature performances by the Farm AID board of directors Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Neil Young and Dave Matthews as well as Sturgill Simpson and Margo Price. Tickets for this year’s event, taking place September 22nd at the Xfinity Theatre in Hartford, Connecticut, go on sale Friday (June 29th) at 10am ET.
Keith Urban performs on NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday night (June 26th). Shaquille O’Neal and Jenna Dewan will also appear on the show, which airs at 11:35a ET.
Luke Bryan will reunite with his American Idol co-star on ABC’s Live With Kelly and Ryan on Wednesday (June 27th). Adam Sandler (The Wedding Singer, Grown Ups, The Waterboy, Happy Gilmore) and Winston Duke (Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War) are also scheduled guests on the show.
Dierks Bentley’s “Burning Man” (featuring Brothers Osborne) from his No. One selling album THE MOUNTAIN was released as his next single at Country radio today. “The hard-charging” (Newsday) track opens the album on a fiery-but-reflective note, fusing propulsive beats with booming vocals and guitars to describe the star– a restless spirit with his feet firmly on the ground. The “combustible new track” (Rolling Stone) follows his 17th career No. One “Woman, Amen” and implements “a rousing ode to middle-aged duality” (Paste).
“I just love that song. I could really relate to the lyrics,” says Dierks. “In the studio, Jedd Hughes put down this great guitar part, and I thought, ‘Man, John would be really cool on that,’ and then, obviously TJ has a, I love his singing. Great voice. I would’ve asked them to be on it regardless, I really would have, but the fact they’re on tour with us just makes it all that sweeter. Those guys are the perfect group to do it with and they definitely took it to a new spot and now we get to sing it every night on stage, so it worked out really well.”
Brothers Osborne are making their way up the country charts with their single, “Shoot Me Straight,” from the critically-acclaimed album, Port Saint Joe.
Dierks, John and TJ will join up together July 20th at the Country Thunder festival in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin and will resume dates for their Mountain High trek July 21st in Indianapolis.
Dierks Bentley (Burning Man) OC: …really well. :24
“I’d had this song for about two years. It’s been a song I’ve been holding on for a little while. I just love that song. I could really relate to the lyrics. In the studio, Jedd Hughes put down this great guitar part, and I thought, ‘Man, John would be really cool on that,’ and then, obviously TJ has a, I love his singing. Great voice. I would’ve asked them to be on it regardless, I really would have, but the fact they’re on tour with us just makes it all that sweeter. Those guys are the perfect group to do it with and they definitely took it to a new spot and now we get to sing it every night on stage, so it worked out really well.”