• NEWS AND NOTES: Luke Bryan, Brothers Osborne, Chris Stapleton, Nate Bargatze, Eric Church

    Luke Bryan performed a John Mellencamp classic, “Small Town,” on Sunday night’s (April 21st) ’70s-’80s theme night episode of ABC’s American Idol.

     

    Brothers Osborne will be featured in the new Beyoncé documentary, Call Me Country, which is scheduled to premiere on MAX on Friday (April 26th).


    Chris Stapleton
    ‘s “Weight Of Your World” from his latest album, Higher, was featured at the end of the CBS show, Fire Country.

    Comedian Nate Bargatze will perform a pair of special shows with Jerry Seinfeld, Jim Gaffigan and Sebastian Maniscalco at the Hollywood Bowl in L.A. on May 1st and May 2nd as part of Netflix is a Joke Fest, which showcases hundreds of comics at different venues for the first half of the month.

    Eric Church will appear on CBS Mornings on Tuesday (April 23rd) in a sitdown with the network’s Jan Crawford. The segment was filmed at his new Nashville venue, Chiefs, to discuss his residency at the Broadway Bar.

    Eric Church will healine the Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff on August 31st at the Caesar’s Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. Jon Pardi, Thomas Rhett and Ashley McBryde will also perform. Church Choir members will be able to participate in a special presale beginning Monday (April 22nd) at 1pm ET/Noon CT. General on-sale begins Thursday (April 25th) at 11am ET/10am CT.

     

     

     

  • CHRIS STAPLETON STOPS BY JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE! TO PERFORM, CHAT AND SING A SONG ABOUT JOHN STAMOS.

    Chris Stapleton appeared on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Wednesday night (April 17th). He chatted with Jimmy, performed “It Takes A Woman” on the outdoor stage — the first performance on that stage in four years — and he participated in a skit called “Wing It & Sing It,” in which Jimmy and his staff wrote a song and putting the lyrics (which Chris had never seen) on cue cards and having him sing it on the fly. There’s also a special appearance from actor/drummer John Stamos!

     

     

    During the interview portion, Chris talked about playing “It Takes a Woman” live for the first time on the show at Jimmy’s request, the birthday present he got from his wife, having his own whiskey brand now “Traveller Whiskey,” being Valedictorian and getting voted most stylish in high school in Kentucky, and what he’s planning to do with his beard in the future.

     

    Chris is currently making his way up the country charts with his latest single, “Think I’m In Love With You.”

     

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Chris Stapleton, Brothers Osborne

    Chris Stapleton is set to perform at the first Jimmy Kimmel Live! outdoor stage concert in four years on Wednesday night (April 17th). The stage hasn’t been in use since February 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic. The show airs at 11:35pm ET weeknights on ABC (and streaming next day on Hulu).

    Brothers Osborne just dropped an acoustic version of their song “Back Home” on their Youtube Channel.

     

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Eric Church, Chris Stapleton, Tyler Hubbard, Darius Rucker, Sam Hunt

    Eric Church led an all-star singalong to the late Jimmy Buffett with “Margaritaville” at a recent tribute to the iconic Parrothead at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. Other big names included Paul McCartney (holding and sipping a margarita), Sheryl Crow, Vince Gill, Don Henley, Jon Bon Jovi, Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown, Pitbull, Dave Grohl, Jack Johnson, Judd Apatow, Harrison Ford and others.

    Chris Stapleton teamed up with Slash, guitarist for Guns N’ Roses, on “Oh Well,” a Fleetwood Mac cover for the rocker’s upcoming album, Orgy of the Damned. “His singing cadence and that drawl that he has for this particular song, in my mind’s eye, it sounded perfect,” Slash tells Rolling Stone. “I had to get his number and cold call him. And he was really gracious about it and really bent over backwards to help me get it done.”

     

    Tyler Hubbard performed the song “Wish You Would” from his brand new album, Strong, on ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday (April 15th). Watch HERE.

    Darius Rucker, who is a huge golfer, will host the 2024 World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony airing live June 10th at 7pm ET live on the Golf Channel.

     

     

     

    Sam Hunt has been announced as one of the artists taking place in the Folds of Honor Celebrity Softball Game in Nashville on June 3rd during CMA Music Fest Week. Jelly Roll, Brett Young, Mitchell Tenpenny, Riley Green, Chris Lane and Charles Esten will also play in the event, with proceeds going to scholarship funds for America’s fallen and disabled service members and first responder families.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Video /

  • CHRIS STAPLETON PERFORMS ON SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE.

    Chris Stapleton was the musical guest on NBC’s Saturday Night Live this past weekend (April 13th). He performed a pair of songs from his latest album, Higher. First up with his most recent chart-topper, “White Horse,” which he co-wrote with Dan Wilson.

    His second performance of the night, he showcased his incredible vocals and songwriting on “Mountains of My Mind.”

    Chris also participated in a sketch song “Get That Boy Back.”

     

    Chris is currently making his way up the country charts with his single, “Think I’m In Love With You.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • GEORGE STRAIT’S ‘THE KING AT KYLE FIELD’ ON TRACK TO SURPASS 2014 AT&T ATTENDANCE RECORD.

    The demand for George Strait‘s only show in Texas in 2024, ‘The King at Kyle Field’ on June 15th, is so great that he is on track to best his own all-time indoor attendance record of 104,793 set in 2014 at his final Cowboy Rides Away finale at AT&T Stadium. The San Antonio Express-News reported the news earlier this week.

    “George has always said he has the best fans, and there’s nothing like a Texas crowd,” shares longtime promoter and founder of Messina Touring Group, Louis Messina. “We knew the show at Kyle Field would be exciting as it’s the first-ever one of its size to be held in the stadium, but even I didn’t expect we’d sell over 100,000 tickets in just a few days. He’ll play to more people in one night than we did at AT&T in 2014! It’s a testament to George’s reputation as an entertainer and performer that here we are, still setting records and personal bests years later.”

    Announced on March 19, it’s the shortest time in Strait’s career that a single show has moved over 100,000 tickets. On June 15th, the King of Country Music will be joined by special guests Parker McCollum and Catie Offerman.  Just fyi–it’s a great present for Parker to perform with the King since it’s also his birthday on June 15th.

    The news follows the recent announcement that Strait will once again team up with Chris Stapleton to perform one-off stadium dates this year with stops at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, Chicago’s Soldier Field, Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium and more. Joining Strait and Stapleton for those nine dates are special guests Little Big Town.

    Strait’s 2024 Concert Calendar:
    5/4  Lucas Oil Stadium  Indianapolis, IN
    5/11 EverBank Stadium  Jacksonville, FL
    5/25 Jack Trice Stadium  Ames, IA
    6/1  Bank of America Stadium  Charlotte, NC
    6/8  MetLife Stadium  East Rutherford, NJ
    6/15 Kyle Field  College Station, TX
    6/29 Rice-Eccles Stadium  Salt Lake City, UT
    7/13 Ford Field   Detroit, MI
    7/20 Soldier Field   Chicago, IL
    12/7 Allegiant Stadium  Las Vegas, NV

    For more information and to purchase tickets to all upcoming dates, visit GeorgeStrait.com.

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Chris Stapleton, Keith Urban, Darius Rucker, Little Big Town

    Don’t forget to catch Chris Stapleton on NBC’s Saturday Night Live this weekend (April 13th). He is the musical performer on SNL with Barbie actor — and apparently a big fan of Stapleton’s — Ryan Gosling as the host.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAoO_xOUeXY

     

    Keith Urban‘s #1’s Volume 1 and Volume 2 will be available on two different vinyl albums beginning April 26th. The collection features Keith’s very first No. 1 song to his latest and includes duets with Carrie Underwood, Eric Church, Miranda Lambert and Julia Michaels, as well as a special limited-edition poster with each vinyl.

    Keith Urban #1’s Vol. 1- VINYL (Cola Bottle Clear)

    SIDE A

    1)- Somebody Like You

    2)- Days Go By

    3)- The Fighter (featuring Carrie Underwood)

    4)- Grace Of God

    5)- You Look Good In My Shirt

    6)- Blue Ain’t Your Color

    SIDE B

    7)- Wasted Time

    8)- Long Hot Summer

    9)- You’ll Think Of Me

    10)- Sweet Thing

    11)- Better Life

    12)- Raise ‘Em Up (featuring Eric Church)

     

    Keith Urban #1’s Vol. 2- VINYL (Grape)

    SIDE A

    1)- John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16

    2)- Break on Me

    3)- We Were Us (with Miranda Lambert)

    4)- Little Bit of Everything

    5)- Without You

    6)- You Gonna Fly

    SIDE B

    7)- Coming Home (featuring Julia Michaels)

    8)- Kiss A Girl

    9)- Only You Can Love Me This Way

    10)- Who Wouldn’t Wanna Be Me

    11)- Making Memories of Us

    12)- Once in A Lifetime

     

     

    You can now pre-order Darius Rucker’s new memoir, Life’s Too Short, which comes out May 28th. He says there are some stories in the book that people who know him would be surprised about, and it’s stories he’s always wanted to tell. Pre-order here: dariusrucker.lnk.to/LifesTooShort

     

    Little Big Town recently sat down with CBS Mornings to talk about going on tour with their pals Sugarland. Click here to watch the interview. More with LBT in the coming weeks.

     

  • ACM NOMINATIONS 2024: Chris, Brothers Osborne, Eric, Jordan, Parker, Maddie & Tae, Little Big Town, Kacey, Kassi,Kylie and more

    The nominations for the 59th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards were announced today (April 9th), and Universal Music Group has several nominated artists.

    The reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Chris Stapleton has five nods, including one for Entertainer of the Year, as well as his ninth consecutive nomination for Male Artist of the Year, an award he’s won three times in the past. Chris is also up for Album of the Year (Higher – Artist & Producer nominations) and Artist-Songwriter of the Year.

    Morgane Stapleton receives her first nomination as a producer on her husband Chris Stapleton’s album Higher. 

    Jordan Davis earns four nominations, including Single of the Year (“Next Thing You Know”), Song of the Year (“Next Thing You Know” – Artist & Songwriter nominations) and Visual Media of the Year (“Next Thing You Know”).

     

    Brothers Osborne’s nomination for Duo of the Year marks their 17th ACM nomination and the tenth year in a row being nominated for ACM Duo of the Year, an award the pair has brought home four times, including last year.

    Kacey Musgraves’ two nominations this year brings her total nominations count to 27, including eight nominations for Female Artist of the Year. She won the award in 2018, the same year she won Album of the Year for Golden Hour. She is nominatied for Female Artist of the Year and Music Event of the Year (“I Remember Everything” w/ Zach Bryan).

    2022’s New Male Artist of the Year Parker McCollum received two nominations for Single of the Year (“Burn It Down”) and Visual Media of the Year (“Burn It Down”).

    https://twitter.com/ParkerMcCollum/status/1777721612227260593

     

    Little Big Town receives its 18th nomination for Group of the Year, which ties the group for the all-time record of 18 nominations for Group of the Year held by Alabama. Little Big Town has been nominated in the category every year since 2005, with the exception of 2011.

    Maddie & Tae are nominated for Duo of the Year, along with Brothers Osborne and The War And Treaty.

    https://twitter.com/MaddieandTae/status/1777711532987621883

     

    Kassi Ashton and Kylie Morgan have earned their first ACM nomination, which is for New Female Artist of the Year.

     

    https://twitter.com/KassiAshton/status/1777701763279163456

     

    https://twitter.com/kyliemorgan/status/1777774399719985276

    Eric Church is nominated for Music Event of the Year for “Man Made A Bar,” along with Morgan Wallen.

    The 59th Annual ACM Awards will stream live from Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas on May 16th at 8pm ET/7pm CT/5pm PDT on Prime Video.  You can also catch offical red carpet coverage on Prime Video, the Amazon Music Channel on Twitch and P, the Amazon Music Channel on Twitch and Amazon Live, starting at 7 p.m. EDT/6 p.m. CDT/4 p.m. PDT.

    ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

    • Kane Brown
    • Luke Combs
    • Jelly Roll
    • Cody Johnson
    • Chris Stapleton
    • Morgan Wallen
    • Lainey Wilson

    FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

    • Kelsea Ballerini
    • Ashley McBryde
    • Megan Moroney
    • Kacey Musgraves
    • Lainey Wilson

    MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

    • Luke Combs
    • Jelly Roll
    • Cody Johnson
    • Chris Stapleton
    • Morgan Wallen

     DUO OF THE YEAR

    • Brooks & Dunn
    • Brothers Osborne 
    • Dan + Shay
    • Maddie & Tae 
    • The War And Treaty

    GROUP OF THE YEAR

    • Flatland Cavalry
    • Lady A
    • Little Big Town 
    • Old Dominion
    • Zac Brown Band

    NEW FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

    • Kassi Ashton
    • Ashley Cooke
    • Hannah Ellis
    • Kylie Morgan 
    • Megan Moroney

    NEW MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR

    • ERNEST
    • Kameron Marlowe
    • Dylan Scott
    • Conner Smith
    • Nate Smith

    NEW DUO OR GROUP OF THE YEAR

    • Neon Union
    • Restless Road
    • Tigirlily Gold

     

    ALBUM OF THE YEAR [Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company–Label(s)]

    Gettin’ Old – Luke Combs
    Producer: Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton, Luke Combs
    Record Company-Label: River House Artists / Columbia Nashville

     Higher – Chris Stapleton
    Producer: Chris Stapleton, Dave Cobb, Morgane Stapleton
    Record Company-Label: Mercury Nashville

    Leather – Cody Johnson
    Producers: Trent Willmon
    Record Company-Label: CoJo Music LLC / Warner Music Nashville LLC

    One Thing At A Time – Morgan Wallen
    Producers: Joey Moi, Cameron Montgomery, Charlie Handsome, Jacob Durrett
    Record Company-Label: Big Loud Records / Republic Records / Mercury Records

    Rolling Up the Welcome Mat (For Good) – Kelsea Ballerini
    Producers: Kelsea Ballerini, Alysa Vanderheym
    Record Company-Label: Black River Entertainment

    SINGLE OF THE YEAR [Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company–Label(s)]

    Burn It Down – Parker McCollum
    Producer: Jon Randall

    Record Company-Label: MCA Nashville

    Fast Car – Luke Combs
    Producers: Luke Combs, Chip Matthews, Jonathan Singleton
    Record Company-Label: River House Artists / Columbia Nashville

    Last Night – Morgan Wallen
    Producer: Joey Moi, Charlie Handsome
    Record Company-Label: Big Loud Records / Republic Records / Mercury Records

    Need A Favor – Jelly Roll
    Producer: Austin Nivarel
    Record Company-Label: Stoney Creek Records / BMG Nashville


    Next Thing You Know – Jordan Davis
    Producer: Paul DiGiovanni
    Record Company-Label: MCA Nashville

     

    SONG OF THE YEAR [Awarded to Songwriter(s)/Publisher(s)/Artist(s)]

    Fast Car – Luke Combs
    Songwriters: Tracy Chapman
    Publishers: Purple Rabbit


    Heart Like A Truck – Lainey Wilson
    Songwriters: Dallas Wilson, Lainey Wilson, Trannie Anderson
    Publishers: Sony / ATV Countryside; Songs of Riser House; Songs of Wild Cat Well Music

     

    Next Thing You Know – Jordan Davis
    Songwriters: Chase McGill, Greylan James, Jordan Davis, Josh Osborne

    Publishers: Family Farm Songs; Hold On Can I Get A Number 1 Music; Songs of Universal Inc.

     

    The Painter – Cody Johnson
    Songwriters: Benjy Davis, Kat Higgins, Ryan Larkins
    Publishers: Big Music Machine; BMG Platinum Songs US; Nashblonde Music; Pompano Run Music; Songs for Ellie May; Sony / ATV Tree Publishing; Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Group; Well That Was Awkward Music

     

    Tennessee Orange – Megan Moroney
    Songwriters: Ben Williams, David Fanning, Megan Moroney, Paul Jenkins
    Publishers: 33 Creative; Bone Bone Creative; Sony / ATV Tree Publishing

     

    MUSIC EVENT OF THE YEAR [Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company–Label(s)]

    Can’t Break Up Now – Old Dominion, Megan Moroney
    Producers: Brad Tursi, Geoff Sprung, Matthew Ramsey, Trevor Rosen, Whit Sellers, Ross Copperman, Kristian Bush
    Record Company-Label: Three Up Three Down, LLC / Columbia Nashville


    Different ‘Round Here – Riley Green (Ft. Luke Combs)
    Producer: Dann Huff
    Record Company-Label: BMLG Records

     

    I Remember Everything – Zach Bryan (feat. Kacey Musgraves)
    Producer: Zach Bryan
    Record Company-Label: Belting Bronco Records / Warner Records, Inc

     

    Man Made A Bar – Morgan Wallen (feat. Eric Church)
    Producer: Joey Moi
    Record Company-Label: Big Loud Records / Mercury Records / Republic Records

     

    Save Me – Jelly Roll (with Lainey Wilson)
    Producers: Zach Crowell, David Ray Stevens
    Record Company-Label: Stoney Creek Records / BMG Nashville

     

    VISUAL MEDIA OF THE YEAR [Awarded to Producer(s)/Director(s)/Artist(s)]

    Burn It Down – Parker McCollum
    Producers: Christen Pinkston &Wesley Stebbins-Perry

    Director: Dustin Haney

     

    Human – Cody Johnson
    Producer: Christen Pinkston &Wesley Stebbins-Perry
    Director: Dustin Haney

    In Your Love – Tyler Childers
    Producer: Kacie Barton, Whitney Wolanin, Nicholas Robespierre, Ian Thorton, Silas House
    Director: Bryan Schlam


    Next Thing You Know – Jordan Davis
    Producer: Jamie Stratakis

    Director: Running Bear (Stephen Kinigopoulos, Alexa Stone)


    Tennessee Orang
    e – Megan Moroney
    Producer: Lauren Starr, Saul Levitz, Laura Burhenn
    Director: Jason Lester

    ARTIST-SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR

    • Zach Bryan
    • ERNEST
    • HARDY
    • Chris Stapleton
    • Morgan Wallen

     

    Audio / CHRIS STAPLETON SAYS HIS NEW ALBUM HIGHER HAS SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE.

    Download

    Chris Stapleton (Higher album) OC: …on this record. :56
    “One thing that’s probably notable about the record to me is it’s the first one that we’ve put out that doesn’t contain a cover, so there’s no covers on this record. So, in that way, I guess you could say it should be more intrinsically whatever we do. So, there’s definitely some exploration of the edges of what that is, and certainly some moments of stretching out vocally and trying to see what that is. There’s some different stuff on this record, I think, and I think it’s really great. I think it’s something that people will enjoy. I think there’s something on it for everybody, which is kind of always my goal. If you’re a kind of a hardcore traditional country person, there’s a song on there for that somewhere. If you leaned into more of the R&B side of what we do, there’s stuff on there for that. If you like the rock side of things that we do, there’s stuff on there for that. And there’s some really great songs on here. I’m excited about the songs on this record.”

    Audio / At last year's ACM Awards, CHRIS STAPLETON SAYS HE'S HUMBLED BY THE PEOPLE WHO VOTED HIM ACM ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR.

    Download

    Chris Stapleton (ACM 2023 win) OC: …take it. :13
    “I’m humbled by it and feel very thankful to the people that voted for me for it and think I’m deserving of that, but I’ll take it. I’ll take it.”

    Audio / JORDAN DAVIS TALKS ABOUT HIS ACM NOMINATED SONG, "NEXT THING YOU KNOW."

    Download

    Jordan Davis (Next Thing You Know) OC: …whole lotta people. :47
    “You know, there’s no chorus to this song. And I think it’s really cool that all we do is repeat ‘Next Thing You Know’ throughout it, but when you’re trying to write songs for a, a job, not putting a chorus on it is a fast way to get it thrown into the garbage can, and I think that makes me more proud of this song in that this is what we wanted to do with it and we just wanted to be as honest as possible in how fast life goes. I remember leaving, telling somebody like when they were like, ‘Did you write today?’ And I was like, ‘Yeah.’ They said, ‘Did you get anything good?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, we wrote a song that doesn’t even have a chorus.’ And I got the look of like, ‘Well, we’ll probably never hear that one,’ and little did I know it would connect with a whole lotta people.”

    Audio / Parker McCollum talks about shooting the video for "Burn It Down."

    Download

    Parker McCollum (Burn It Down video) OC: …turned out great. :38
    “Man, the video was pretty easy, actually. I talked to Dustin, the director, and I was like, ‘Man, I feel like wherever we are, we’re just blowing stuff up and so let’s go blow some stuff up and burn it down.’ And he had a great vision out there in New Mexico. We were in the desert, I mean, the desert, desert. You couldn’t, it was like the ocean, but sand; the middle of the ocean but sand. And it was actually really cold in the morning, then it got really hot at night and then the smoke and the fire and they’re wanting me to walk through it over and over, take after take after take. I’m walking through like this chemical burning black smoke. I’m like this is really risking it for a music video, but it turned out great.”

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Kacey Musgraves, Chris Stapleton, Little Big Town, Parker McCollum

    Kacey Musgraves performed her new single, “The Architect,” on the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to promote the release of her new album, Deeper Well, last week.

    Kacey also talked about her new album, Deeper Well, as well as winning her seventh GRAMMY for Best Country Duo/Group Performance with Zach Bryan for their smash single, “I Remember Everything.” She also talked about “almost dying” during the video shoot for the title track, getting a speeding ticket in Iceland and her upcoming world tour.

     

     

     

    Kelly Clarkson recently performed a rousing version of Chris Stapleton‘s recent No. 1 smash, “White Horse,” during the Kellyoke segment of her daytime talk show.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyXZRs5RPo0

    The members of Little Big Town are set to perform some of their biggest songs and share the stories behind them when they are featured on CMT Storytellers debuting April 5th at 8pm ET/7pm CT on CMT.

     

     

    Parker McCollum, a self-proclaimed sports fanatic, is going to be running a March Madness bracket of his own. He’ll give away a bunch of cool prizes, including a flyaway to his show at Red Rocks in Colorado later this year. You have to fill out the bracket by Thursday (March 21st). Check out his video, which includes instructions in filling out the bracket by clicking the link in his bio.

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Kacey Musgraves, Chris Stapleton, Tyler Hubbard, Carrie Underwood

    Kacey Musgraves will perform her song “The Architect” on NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Thursday night (March 14th). The song is from her new album, Deeper Well, which will be released on Friday (March 15th).

    Chris Stapleton will be the musical guest on NBC’s Saturday Night Live April 13th. Actor Ryan Gosling (Barbie,  The Gray Man, The Fall Guy, La La Land, Crazy Stupid Love) will host.

    Tyler Hubbard, who is climbing towards the country charts with his latest hit “Back Then Right Now,” has a new song coming out on Friday (March 15th). “Vegas” is from his upcoming album, Strong, available April 12th.

    Carrie Underwood is pretty “dicey” lately. Check out this portrait of the superstar made from 6,400 dice. It was inspired by her REFLECTION: The Las Vegas Residency at Resorts World Las Vegas.