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  • NEWS AND NOTES: Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, Reba McEntire

    Press
    Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Reba McEntire

    Dierks Bentley joined Blake Shelton‘s team as an advisor on NBC’s The Voice on Monday (October 11th) and Tuesday (October 12th) for the beginning of the battle rounds.

     

    Eric Church has been added as a presenter during tomorrow night’s (October 13th) 2021 CMT Artists of the Year. He’s joined by Connie Britton, Lady A, Michael W. Smith, Moran Evans, Nelly and Garth Brooks. The show is set to air live from Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center beginning at 9pm ET/8pm CT.

     

    Catch Reba McEntire on NBC’s Today Show on Thursday (October 14th) talking about her new three-part box set, Revised Remixed Revisited.

  • ERIC CHURCH AND 30,000+ GATHER AGAIN AS TOUR KICKS OFF IN LEXINGTON & COLUMBUS.

    Press
    Eric Church

    Nearly 700 days since wrapping his critically acclaimed Double Down Tour, reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year (and current repeat nominee) Eric Church stepped to the microphone in Lexington, Ky. on Friday evening to officially launch The Gather Again Tour with a show two years in the making.

    Prowling around his brand-new 2,400 square foot multi-level stage, positioned in the center of the arena floor for his first-ever in-the-round set up, Church launched into three and a half hours of music spanning his impressive decade-plus catalogue of both hits and deep cuts beloved by his loyal Church Choir.

     

    From multi-Platinum-certified singles including “Talladega” and “Drink In My Hand” to fan favorites like “Chattanooga Lucy” and “Pledge Allegiance to the Hag” as well as a sampling of the 24 songs making up his latest chart topping project, Heart & Soul, the current CMA Male Vocalist of the Year nominee’s vocals shone through stronger than ever after the unexpected time away from the road.

    Indeed, Church continued well past the end of the intended set list each night in response to the crowds palpable energy, with Friday’s performance eventually transitioning from a “Born to Run” rendition into his 6x Platinum-certified “Springsteen,” thrilling the crowd with a personalized chorus of “a soundtrack to a Lexington Friday night” before pausing mid-song to describe the opening night celebration as “the tip of the spear for what this tour is” and proclaiming: “We are made to gather – and gather we did and gather we shall!”

    The congregation continued Saturday evening in Columbus, Ohio with a brand-new set list as Church remains committed to giving fans in each city a completely unique experience.

    The Lexington Herald-Leader raved of the “energetic 40-song bonanza” that was opening night: “the entire show possessed an intriguing stylistic variance” and “was massively audience-friendly” while the Columbus Dispatch celebrated the way Church “treated the arena like his own personal honky-tonk, keeping the evening loose and likeable rather than bombastic or tightly controlled” as he “combined the storytelling power of country music with the energy and anarchy of rock.”

    The Gather Again Tour continues with 55 additional dates to come as Church visits cities throughout the U.S. and Canada into 2022. Tickets to all dates, including the grand finale at New York City’s iconic Madison Square Garden, are on sale now at EricChurch.com.

    All tour dates will enforce local venue and/or city guidelines regarding COVID-19 precautions. Church will be touring with a fully vaccinated crew.

    For more information, visit www.ericchurch.com and follow on Facebook and Twitter @ericchurch and Instagram @ericchurchmusic. Fans can also download the Eric Church Official App for exclusive offers only available on tour – including seat upgrades, contests and special merchandise – all while connecting with fellow fans from around the world.

     

    Go Behind the Scenes of The Gather Again Tour Opening Weekend With Rolling Stone’s Exclusive Photo Gallery

    Remaining Dates on The Gather Again Tour
    * denotes special appearances not part of The Gather Again Tour
    Sept. 24, 2021               Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse                     Cleveland, Ohio
    Sept. 25, 2021               KeyBank Center                                         Buffalo, N.Y.
    Oct. 1, 2021                  Alerus Center                                             Grand Forks, N.D.
    Oct. 2, 2021                  Canada Life Centre                                    Winnipeg, Manitoba
    Oct. 8, 2021                  PPG Paints Arena                                       Pittsburgh, Pa.
    Oct. 9, 2021                  Wells Fargo Center                                    Philadelphia, Pa.
    Oct. 15, 2021                Ball Arena                                                  Denver, Colo.
    Oct. 17, 2021*              Country Thunder West                               Florence, Ariz.
    Oct. 22, 2021                Scotiabank Saddledome                             Calgary, Alberta
    Oct. 23, 2021                SaskTel Centre                                           Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
    Oct. 29, 2021                Rogers Arena                                             Vancouver, British Columbia
    Oct. 30, 2021                Climate Pledge Arena                                Seattle, Wash.
    Nov. 5, 2021*               ATLive: The King & The Chief                Atlanta, Ga.
    Nov. 12, 2021               Thompson-Boling Arena                           Knoxville, Tenn.
    Nov. 13, 2021               Ford Center                                                Evansville, Ind.
    Dec. 3, 2021                 SNHU Arena                                              Manchester, N.H.
    Dec. 4, 2021                 UBS Arena                                                 Belmont Park, N.Y.
    Dec. 10, 2021               The Anthem                                               Washington, D.C.
    Dec. 11, 2021               The Anthem                                               Washington, D.C.
    Dec. 17, 2021               Bon Secours Wellness Arena                     Greenville, S.C.
    Dec. 18, 2021               Greensboro Coliseum                                Greensboro, N.C.
    Jan. 7, 2022                  Pinnacle Bank Arena                                 Lincoln, Neb.
    Jan. 8, 2022                  Denny Sanford PREMIER Center             Sioux Falls, S.D.
    Jan. 14, 2022                Scotiabank Arena                                       Toronto, Ontario
    Jan. 15, 2022                Canadian Tire Centre                                 Ottawa, Ontario
    Jan. 21, 2022                Van Andel Arena                                       Grand Rapids, Mich.
    Jan. 22, 2022                Little Caesars Arena                                   Detroit, Mich.
    Feb. 4, 2022                  KFC Yum! Center                                      Louisville, Ky.
    Feb. 5, 2022                  Bankers Life Fieldhouse                            Indianapolis, Ind.
    Feb. 11, 2022                CHI Health Center                                     Omaha, Neb.
    Feb. 12, 2022                Wells Fargo Arena                                     Des Moines, Iowa
    Feb. 18, 2022                T-Mobile Center                                        Kansas City, Mo.
    Feb 19, 2022                 BOK Center                                               Tulsa, Okla.
    Feb. 25, 2022                Hampton Coliseum                                    Hampton, Va.
    Feb. 26, 2022                Spectrum Center                                        Charlotte, N.C.
    March 4, 2022              Amway Center                                           Orlando, Fla.
    March 5, 2022              Amalie Arena                                             Tampa, Fla.
    March 11, 2022            United Center                                             Chicago, Ill.
    March 12, 2022            Enterprise Center                                       St. Louis, Mo.
    March 18, 2022            Resch Center                                              Green Bay, Wis.
    March 19, 2022            Resch Center                                              Green Bay, Wis.
    March 25, 2022            Legacy Arena at the BJCC                         Birmingham, Ala.
    March 26, 2022            Simmons Bank Arena                                Little Rock, Ark.
    April 1, 2022                Dickies Arena                                            Fort Worth, Texas
    April 2, 2022                AT&T Center                                             San Antonio, Texas
    April 8, 2022                Toyota Center                                            Houston, Texas
    April 9, 2022                Smoothie King Center                               New Orleans, La.
    April 15, 2022              Moda Center                                              Portland, Ore.
    April 16, 2022              Spokane Arena                                           Spokane, Wash.
    April 29, 2022              ExtraMile Arena                                        Boise, Idaho
    April 30, 2022              Vivint Arena                                              Salt Lake City, Utah
    May 6, 2022                 Pechanga Arena                                         San Diego, Calif.
    May 7, 2022                 STAPLES Center                                       Los Angeles, Calif.
    May 11, 2022               Golden 1 Center                                         Sacramento, Calif.
    May 13, 2022               T-Mobile Arena                                         Las Vegas, Nev.
    May 14, 2022               Gila River Arena                                        Glendale, Ariz.
    May 20, 2022               Madison Square Garden                             New York, N.Y.
    July 8, 2022*                Pendleton Whisky Music Festival             Pendleton, Ore.
    Aug. 27, 2022*             Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harvey’s    Stateline, NV
    Aug. 28, 2022*             Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harvey’s    Stateline, NV

    About Eric Church
    Reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year and 10-time GRAMMY nominee Eric Church has spent the past year releasing new music at a relentless pace; providing a glimpse into the results of a marathon writing session during which he spent nearly a month writing and recording a song per day – including his latest Gold-certified No. 1 single “Hell of a View” and current single “Heart On Fire” – while sequestered in rural North Carolina, and fueling speculation around his critically acclaimed, chart-topping new three-part project, Heart & Soul, available everywhere now.

    Just as unique as Church’s approach to recording and releasing music is his tenacity on the road. During his last outing, 2019’s Double Down Tour, Church played back-to-back nights of two unique shows in each market sans opening act, giving every city’s fans six-plus hours of his iconic music. The tour also featured a massive stop at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, where he broke the venue’s concert attendance record with more than 56,000 fans in attendance and became the first artist to sell out the venue with a solo lineup. Church also took to the field at Tampa Bay’s Raymond James Stadium in February of this year to perform the National Anthem with R&B star Jazmine Sullivan ahead of Super Bowl LV and has now returned to the road for his 55-city The Gather Again Tour, visiting full-capacity arenas for an in-the-round show in addition to a headlining spot alongside George Strait and Metallica during the ATLive festival at Mercedes-Benz Stadium this November.

    A seven-time ACM Award winner, four-time CMA Award winner and 10-time GRAMMY nominee, Church has amassed a passionate fanbase around the globe known as the Church Choir as well as a critically acclaimed catalog of music. His previous album, the Gold-certified Desperate Man, earned a GRAMMY nomination for Best Country Album (his third nod in the category). Previous releases include the Platinum-certified Sinners Like Me (“How ’Bout You,” “Guys Like Me”), Carolina (“Smoke a Little Smoke,” “Love Your Love the Most”) and Mr. Misunderstood (“Record Year,” “Round Here Buzz”), the Double-Platinum certified The Outsiders (“Like a Wrecking Ball,” “Talladega”) and the 3x Platinum-certified Chief (“Springsteen,” “Drink In My Hand”), as well as 29 Gold, Platinum and multi-Platinum certified singles.

  • ERIC CHURCH READIES FIRST-EVER IN-THE-ROUND TOUR AS HE INVITES FANS TO GATHER AGAIN.

    Press
    Eric Church

    For reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year Eric Church, each tour is an opportunity to re-imagine the limits of what’s possible; to bring something new to the fans. For his most recent outing, 2019’s Double Down Tour, that meant playing back-to-back nights in each market with completely different set lists and setting a concert attendance record at Nashville’s Nissan Stadium – sans opening act – with 56,521 fans singing at the top of their lungs well past midnight.

    Now, just days away from the launch of The Gather Again Tour where he will perform a full tour from an in-the-round stage for the first time ever, Church carries with him five nominations for the upcoming CMA Awards, including an opportunity to retain the top honor of Entertainer of the Year. With four additional nominations, for Male Vocalist of the Year, Album of the Year (Heart), Single of the Year and Song of the Year (both for “Hell Of A View”), Church is tied for the most nods this year and brings his all-time count to 35 total nominations.

    For the man Billboard celebrates as “a touring juggernaut” and Pollstar regards as “one of the most successful touring country artists,” this return to the road – especially after nearly 700 days away from full-time touring – means going all in. Just as Church and his band hunkered down in rural North Carolina to create his chart-topping and critically-acclaimed triple album, Heart & Soul, the core group once again tucked away in a musical bootcamp, setting up shop in Lititz, Pennsylvania for two weeks to rehearse for the upcoming tour.

    “The hardest thing I’ve done thus far in my career is this setlist,” Church shares of the extensive preparations in a rare behind-the-scenes look at the inner makings of a live show. “It’s not a normal record; it’s three. So, you add 28 songs to what we already had going, which is a pretty stacked and packed setlist, and when you start to try to get rid of stuff and change it every night – which I’m committed to; we’re still going to play the different set, we’re going to give people different experiences – it has been maddening.

    “It’s the most musical we’ve ever been,” he continues. “To see the way the new music happens in the show is something that I’m excited just to see and, also, we’re trying to reimagine songs that we’ve played 100 times, playing them different, and that’s just fun. It’s fun for us to do. There’s going to be a lot of songs that fans aren’t gonna recognize at first, that we’re gonna start singing and they’re going to go ‘oh yeah, that’s that song.’ So, I think it’s just fun after this many years to change it up and make it about music; make it musical. I’m just excited to see the reaction.”

    After such thorough rehearsals, the 10-time GRAMMY nominee has now made himself at home on the 2,400 square foot multi-level stage – which will be positioned in the center of each arena floor and accompanied by 11 busses, 20 trucks, a 127,000-pound lighting rig and four 836 square foot video walls – and he is primed to deliver a brand-new version of the high-octane live show his Church Choir fans have come to love.

    “I’ve never played a stage like this in my career… I’ve never seen anybody play one like this,” notes Church of his first-ever in-the-round setup. “There’s really no front… It’s kind of like a cage match. I mean once we get out there the crowd is everywhere. They’re behind you, they’re on the sides, and I love that…. The reason it’s called The Gather Again Tour is we want people on top of us, and they will be.”

    Now, with two weeks of rehearsals and detailed planning under their belt, Church and company get the cage match underway this Friday, September 17, at Lexington, Ky.’s Rupp Arena with 56 dates throughout the U.S. and Canada to follow. Tickets to all dates, including the grand finale at New York City’s iconic Madison Square Garden, are on sale now at EricChurch.com.

    All tour dates will enforce local venue and/or city guidelines regarding COVID-19 precautions. Church will be touring with a fully vaccinated band and crew.

    For more information, visit www.ericchurch.com and follow on Facebook and Twitter @ericchurch and Instagram @ericchurchmusic. Fans can also download the Eric Church Official App for exclusive offers only available on tour – including seat upgrades, contests and special merchandise – all while connecting with fellow fans from around the world!

    The Gather Again Tour
    Sept. 17, 2021                   Rupp Arena                                            Lexington, Ky.
    Sept. 18, 2021                   Nationwide Arena                                  Columbus, Ohio
    Sept. 24, 2021                   Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse                Cleveland, Ohio
    Sept. 25, 2021                   KeyBank Center                                    Buffalo, N.Y.
    Oct. 1, 2021                      Alerus Center                                         Grand Forks, N.D.
    Oct. 2, 2021                      Canada Life Centre                                Winnipeg, Manitoba
    Oct. 8, 2021                      PPG Paints Arena                                  Pittsburgh, Pa.
    Oct. 9, 2021                      Wells Fargo Center                                Philadelphia, Pa.
    Oct. 15, 2021                    Ball Arena                                              Denver, Colo.
    Oct. 22, 2021                    Scotiabank Saddledome                        Calgary, Alberta
    Oct. 23, 2021                    SaskTel Centre                                      Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
    Oct. 29, 2021                    Rogers Arena                                         Vancouver, British Columbia
    Oct. 30, 2021                    Climate Pledge Arena                            Seattle, Wash.
    Nov. 12, 2021                   Thompson-Boling Arena                       Knoxville, Tenn.
    Nov. 13, 2021                   Ford Center                                            Evansville, Ind.
    Dec. 3, 2021                      SNHU Arena                                         Manchester, N.H.
    Dec. 4, 2021                      UBS Arena                                            Belmont Park, N.Y.
    Dec. 10, 2021                    The Anthem                                           Washington, D.C.
    Dec. 11, 2021                    The Anthem                                           Washington, D.C.
    Dec. 17, 2021                    Bon Secours Wellness Arena                Greenville, S.C.
    Dec. 18, 2021                    Greensboro Coliseum                            Greensboro, N.C.
    Jan. 7, 2022                       Pinnacle Bank Arena                             Lincoln, Neb.
    Jan. 8, 2022                       Denny Sanford PREMIER Center         Sioux Falls, S.D.
    Jan. 14, 2022                     Scotiabank Arena                                  Toronto, Ontario
    Jan. 15, 2022                     Canadian Tire Centre                            Ottawa, Ontario
    Jan. 21, 2022                     Van Andel Arena                                   Grand Rapids, Mich.
    Jan. 22, 2022                     Little Caesars Arena                              Detroit, Mich.
    Feb. 4, 2022                      KFC Yum! Center                                 Louisville, Ky.
    Feb. 5, 2022                      Bankers Life Fieldhouse                        Indianapolis, Ind.
    Feb. 11, 2022                    CHI Health Center Omaha                    Omaha, Neb.
    Feb. 12, 2022                    Wells Fargo Arena                                 Des Moines, Iowa
    Feb. 18, 2022                    T-Mobile Center                                    Kansas City, Mo.
    Feb 19, 2022                     BOK Center                                           Tulsa, Okla.
    Feb. 25, 2022                    Hampton Coliseum                                Hampton, Va.
    Feb. 26, 2022                    Spectrum Center                                    Charlotte, N.C.
    March 4, 2022                   Amway Center                                       Orlando, Fla.
    March 5, 2022                   Amalie Arena                                        Tampa, Fla.
    March 11, 2022                 United Center                                        Chicago, Ill.
    March 12, 2022                 Enterprise Center                                   St. Louis, Mo.
    March 18, 2022                 Resch Center                                          Green Bay, Wis.
    March 19, 2022                 Resch Center                                          Green Bay, Wis.
    March 25, 2022                 Legacy Arena at the BJCC                    Birmingham, Ala.
    March 26, 2022                 Simmons Bank Arena                            Little Rock, Ark.
    April 1, 2022                     Dickies Arena                                        Fort Worth, Texas
    April 2, 2022                     AT&T Center                                        San Antonio, Texas
    April 8, 2022                     Toyota Center                                        Houston, Texas
    April 9, 2022                     Smoothie King Center                           New Orleans, La.
    April 15, 2022                   Moda Center                                          Portland, Ore.
    April 16, 2022                   Spokane Arena                                      Spokane, Wash.
    April 29, 2022                   ExtraMile Arena                                    Boise, Idaho
    April 30, 2022                   Vivint Arena                                          Salt Lake City, Utah
    May 6, 2022                      Pechanga Arena                                     San Diego, Calif.
    May 7, 2022                      STAPLES Center                                  Los Angeles, Calif.
    May 11, 2022                    Golden 1 Center                                     Sacramento, Calif.
    May 13, 2022                    T-Mobile Arena                                     Las Vegas, Nev.
    May 14, 2022                    Gila River Arena                                   Glendale, Ariz.
    May 20, 2022                    Madison Square Garden                        New York, N.Y.

    About Eric Church
    Reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year and 10-time GRAMMY nominee Eric Church has spent the past year releasing new music at a relentless pace; providing a glimpse into the results of a marathon writing session during which he spent nearly a month writing and recording a song per day – including his latest Gold-certified No. 1 single “Hell of a View” and current single “Heart On Fire” – while sequestered in rural North Carolina, and fueling speculation around his critically acclaimed, chart-topping new three-part project, Heart & Soul, available everywhere now.

    Just as unique as Church’s approach to recording and releasing music is his tenacity on the road. During his most recent outing, 2019’s Double Down Tour, Church played back-to-back nights of two unique shows in each market sans opening act, giving every city’s fans six-plus hours of his iconic music. The tour also featured a massive stop at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, where he broke the venue’s concert attendance record with more than 56,000 fans in attendance and became the first artist to sell out the venue with a solo lineup. Church also took to the field at Tampa Bay’s Raymond James Stadium in February of this year to perform the National Anthem with R&B star Jazmine Sullivan ahead of Super Bowl LV and will return to the road for his 55-city The Gather Again Tour this month, visiting full-capacity arenas for an in-the-round show in addition to a headlining spot alongside George Strait and Metallica during the ATLive festival at Mercedes-Benz Stadium this November.

    A seven-time ACM Award winner, four-time CMA Award winner and 10-time GRAMMY nominee, Church has amassed a passionate fanbase around the globe known as the Church Choir as well as a critically acclaimed catalog of music. His previous album, the Gold-certified Desperate Man, earned a GRAMMY nomination for Best Country Album (his third nod in the category). Previous releases include the Platinum-certified Sinners Like Me (“How ’Bout You,” “Guys Like Me”), Carolina (“Smoke a Little Smoke,” “Love Your Love the Most”) and Mr. Misunderstood (“Record Year,” “Round Here Buzz”), the Double-Platinum certified The Outsiders (“Like a Wrecking Ball,” “Talladega”) and the 3x Platinum-certified Chief (“Springsteen,” “Drink In My Hand”), as well as 29 Gold, Platinum and multi-Platinum certified singles.

    Video /

    View

  • THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF SEPTEMBER 11TH: Alan Jackson, Brandon Lay, Darius Rucker, Eric Church, Jordan Davis, Keith Urban, Lauren Alaina, Luke Bryan, Travis Denning

    Audio
    Alan Jackson / Brandon Lay / Darius Rucker / Eric Church / Jordan Davis / Keith Urban / Lauren Alaina / Luke Bryan / Travis Denning

    On September 11, 2001, the world changed forever with the devastating attacks on both the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.  Alan Jackson’s “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” embodied the thoughts and feelings of millions in the wake of the events that took place 20 years ago. (This Saturday is the 20th Anniversary of 9-11.)

    There is audio from country superstar Alan Jackson sharing memories and thoughts on the events of September 11, 2001 and discussing his song, “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning),” as well as remembrances from Darius Rucker, Eric Church, Gary Allan, Lauren Alaina, Luke Bryan, Keith Urban, Jordan Davis, Lauren Alaina and Travis Denning.

    The chorus and melody of “Where Were You…” came to Jackson in the middle of the night several weeks after the 9/11 tragedies. He awoke…sang the words into a recorder and wrote down key elements of the chorus…and completed the lyrics and verses later that same day. Initially reluctant to record the song, he was convinced by family and friends to share it with the world and debuted “Where Were You…” live on national television in early November at the 35th annual CMA Awards.

    “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning),” embodied the thoughts and feelings of millions in the wake of the 2001 events. Written by Jackson, the song was called “…one of the most touching, powerful songs to come after the tragedies” by USA Today and dubbed “a reflective hymn that Americans will be listening to well into the second half of this century” by Salon.com. The New York Times singled out “Where Were You…” as “one of his finest songs,” and Billboard noted “a multitude of songs have been written and recorded in the wake of September 11th, but none captures the myriad emotions unleashed by the terrorist attacks on an unsuspecting nation more perfectly than Jackson’s eloquent ballad.” The song went on to be honored with a Grammy, CMA and ACM Awards.

     

    Audio / Alan Jackson explains why he feels “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” still resonates with music fans in concert 20 years after the events of September 11, 2001.

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    Alan Jackson (20th Anniversary of Sept 11) OC: …it all started. 1:24
    “Yeah, I mean it makes me feel really warm inside to know that that song and at the same time I feel a little bit surprised that it has lasted all this – these years. When I first wrote it, I didn’t think I would record it. And then we didn’t think it would ever – we would want to release it. At first I didn’t think I would ever write a song about the event because I just didn’t feel right about it and then this came out of nowhere and then it went on to be such an anthem for it for years. And now it’s kind of grown into just its own song outside of 9/11 where it’s just a song about faith and hope and love. And I see that in the crowds now. And a lot of my fans, younger fans weren’t hardly even around when 9/11 happened but they have connected with that song. And it’s one of the highlights of the show now and it’s just amazing that it has outlived where it really began. So, it can’t help but make me feel very proud that something like that has helped people through that hard time in the beginning and it still has a lasting affect outside of where it all started.”

    Audio / Alan Jackson describes how the events of September 11, 2001 impacted him…and talks about writing “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” a few weeks later.

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    AJ (Where Were You) 2 OC: …same feelings. 1:33
    “Well, I don’t know – I think I was probably like most people that were impacted with that day and the months that followed. You know, everybody was glued to the news and television and I think it really affected a lot of people – their perspective on their lives and their jobs and their families and where they were and what they were wanting to do and how they looked at things. And I guess…I mean, that’s what I was thinking, too. And I just pretty much visualized a lot of those scenes and stories I’d heard and seen on television or heard people talk about. The song came out of nowhere in the middle of the night – the chorus did. Just a gift. And I got up and scribbled it down and put the melody down so I wouldn’t forget it, and then the next day I started piecing all those verses together that were the thoughts I’d had or visuals I’d had, and…that was about it. I think it was just really…I had so many people tell me that there’s always a line or something in there that they did, whether it was go to church or pick up their Bible or go see their mother or watch a sunset – I mean, just a lot of things in there people told me that they had actually done those things, so…I guess I was like everybody else, just feeling those same feelings.”

    Audio / Alan Jackson recalls sharing “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” with all of us for the first time live on national television during the 35th Annual CMA Awards.

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    AJ (Where Were You) 3 OC: …meant something. :56
    “It was a tough performance for me. You know, just the whole idea of releasing that song was a little bit tough. I wasn’t sure I wanted to put that out, but everybody convinced me that it was the thing to do…and in retrospect, I agree with that. But, you know, I hadn’t really sung the song much, first of all. It was just in the studio, basically, and when I wrote it…so it’s hard to go out there and sing something new anyway, and just the topic made it nerve-wracking, too. You know, I didn’t think about what was going to happen or anything – we just sang it. And I just remember, other than being relieved that I got through it, I just felt very proud that it seemed to cause a reaction in people…and I was proud that I got to do it, and that it seemed like it meant something.”

    Audio / Brandon Lay remembers being in class in high school when he found out about the tragic events of 9-11.

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    Brandon Lay (9-11) OC: …changed forever. :52
    “I remember 9-11 very vividly. I was in Ms. Munn’s College Algebra class. It was a Tuesday. We happened to be able to bring breakfast, it was our day to bring breakfast to school that day, and Megan Smith was in my class and she came in and said something’s hit one of the towers in New York. There was a bomb or something. And the principal came and pulled Ms. Munn out in the hall and told her. From then on, we listened to some of the radio that day. Obviously, when we got home, we saw the replay of all that, and it was just unbelievable. I was in my sister’s Honda Accord – I had just got my driver’s license – and I went to go fill it up with gas and there was none, and I just remember thinking this country we live in now has just changed forever.”

    Audio / Darius Rucker recalls where he was on September 11th, 2001.

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    Darius Rucker (9-11) OC: …vicious day. :24
    “[On] 9-11, I was playing golf with a friend early in the morning. Had an apartment in New York, and I lived in New York kind of at the time. If you looked out my bedroom window, we saw the World Trade Center. I was on my way back home. I was playing a 7 o’clock round of golf, and then I was catching a noon flight, and when I was finishing up, we stopped in to get a drink and I looked and we saw the second tower come down. It was a vicious day.”

    Audio / Eric Church was on his way to work when he heard the news of the attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001.

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    Eric Church (9-11) OC: …that feeling. :23
    “I was driving into work — the Shop-At-Home Network — I was listening to (WSIX’s) Gerry House, I remember that, and the news broke. [I] really couldn’t grasp what had happened until I got to work and saw it for myself on television. I remember I watched the second plane hit the tower in real time. I had just moved to Nashville earlier that year, and all I remember is wanting to go home and be with those I loved. I’ll never, I’ll never forget that feeling.”

    Audio / Gary Allan was across the pond on September 11th, 2001, and was stuck in London for almost three weeks until his flight attendant wife was able to get him on a plane to come home.

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    Gary Allan (September 11th) OC: …me outta there. 1:31
    “I can remember exactly where I was on 9-11. I had played in Switzerland the 10th at Gstaad and the band flew home and me and Jake Kelly flew to London to do a show on September 11th in a bar. I was in the BBC doing media, I was sitting there doing interviews, and they had glass walls and there were cubicles, so I could see through into other offices.  I remember looking over, they were showing the first plane fly into the building, and I said, ‘Are they editing movies over there?’ And they all kind of looked at me pretty serious and said, ‘No, that’s live.’  And that was right when the second plane flew in, and I said, ‘That’s live?! That’s the twin towers?” And they said, ‘Yes.’ And I remember looking at John, my manager, and said, ‘Man, let’s get out of here!’ And that’s when the U.S. put out a statement saying that nobody’s flying into the U.S. If it flies, it dies, don’t approach us right now was the whole message. And I got stuck there for three weeks watching the media. It was really crazy times, just nobody really knowing, ‘cause it took us a while to get our heads around what had actually happened, but it was scary. I got trapped there for a couple of weeks. I remember my wife Angela got me out before the record label did. I remember going to the airport and John, my manager, saying you’re wasting your time, you’re not going to get out of here, and my wife at the time was a flight attendant, and she said, ‘Go sit at this terminal.’ That’s when you could just walk in and sit by a terminal. And I went in and sat there and eventually this flight attendant came out and said, ‘Are you Gary?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ She said, ‘Come on,’ and snuck me onto a plane and got me outta there.”

    Audio / Jordan Davis recalls what he was wearing and where he was on September 11th, 2001.

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    Jordan Davis (September 11th) OC: …happen again. :51
    “Yeah, I think I was in second period, Louisiana studies, Miss Porter was the teacher. I was wearing my football jersey ‘cause we had a football game that night. And I think back on that as like how many times in your life can you explain in that much detail what you were wearing? The number – I was number 11, it was a blue jersey, white lettering with yellow numbers. I’d never had anything just hit me that (hard) and just be that scary. But I remember just for the rest of the day, there was no school. I mean, we obviously stayed there, but nobody was teaching. Every TV was on and everybody was glued to it. I don’t know, it was just something that I still kinda get chillbumps about now thinking back on it. It’s one of those things that you pray never to happen again.”

    Audio / Keith Urban recalls being on the beach in Florida on September 11, 2001 and felt there was a really eerie feeling in the air, before heading back to his rental house and finding out what happened that would change the world forever.

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    Keith Urban (September 11th) OC: …lot of people. 1:14
    “Yeah, I was in Florida. We had just played a show on the night, either the 9th, I think it might have been the 9th or the 10th, somewhere around there. It was right before it. And then we decided to stay down and have a few days vacation on the beach down there and I remember that morning. I didn’t turn the news on and I was really grateful that I didn’t because I had a few extra hours before I was aware of this reality that was going on that would change everything. But the beach was deserted, and it was an eerie, ominous feeling in the air and I couldn’t put my finger on it. when we ended up going back to the house that we were renting we put the news on and that was the first time I saw what was happening and I couldn’t take it in. It was too surreal. Couldn’t fly anywhere. I had to send my tour bus to come down and get me and then bus all the way back to Nashville. My mom was staying with me at the time, and she was panicked and worried about me being away and was anxious for me to get home. It was a very, it was a really, really surreal traumatic time for a lot of people.”

    Audio / Lauren Alaina was just a little girl when the tragic events took place on September 11th, 2001, but she remembers feeling very scared when her father picked her up at school and explained what happened.

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    Lauren Alaina (September 11th) OC: …very scared. 1:11
    “I was in first grade when 9-11 happened. I don’t have a ton of memories from that time period, but I do specifically remember 9-11, because my father came and picked me up at school which never, ever happened. Like I didn’t miss school, but I didn’t totally understand what was going on. My father explained it to us, and we went to the house. I think he just wanted our family to be together ‘cause it was so devastating and so scary, and nobody knew what was actually happening. And I just remember as a little girl knowing how serious it was. I didn’t know what was going on, but I remember my dad cried and it really affected my dad and little girls don’t see their dads cry very often, and I remember thinking this is not good. This is not good. For both of my parents to come home from work and for us to all be at home in the middle of the day, I just remember being seven years old being very confused and very scared.”

    Audio / Luke Bryan just moved to Nashville about 10 days before the devastating terror attacks on the twin towers in New York City and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.

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    Luke Bryan (9-11 20th) OC: …when that happened. 1:01
    “So, as we come up on the 20th Anniversary of 9-11, certainly a life-changing event for me and it was really, really challenging for me because I had just moved to Nashville. I moved to Nashville September 1st, 2001 and I’m in an apartment by myself down in Franklin. I never will forget. I was in bed and my sister called and said, ‘Turn on the TV. A plane had flown into the World Trade Center.’ I remember kinda getting my wits about me, and I turned it on and like so many other people, I saw the second plane hit. And at that moment a lot of innocence is forever lost and that’s certainly when the world changed. And I remember almost getting in the car and going home and spending some time with my family, but I wound up kinda toughing it out in Nashville. But it was a challenging moment being away from your family when that happened.”

    Audio / Travis Denning recalls where he was, what he was doing and how worried he and his family were about his mother, who was in D.C. working out of the Pentagon on a worktrip on September 11th, 2001. Near the end of the soundbite, Travis gets a little emotional and the soundbite trails off.

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    Travis Denning (Sept. 11th) OC: …makes me…(emotional trailoff). 2:18
    “I was in Atlanta on a field trip and we were going to a shadow puppet play and we were actually currently making our own shadow puppets. I’m telling you, I can remember everything about this, and my teacher came in, Mr. Andy Payne who I went to church with and amazing guy, great guy, and he came into the room, the little workshop we were in and had to be 12:30p, one o’clock, and he just announced in the room, ‘Hey everybody. There’s been a change of plans. We’re not gonna go to the play, and we actually have to, we’re going to go back home.’ And we’re in Atlanta, so we’re an hour and a half from Warner Robbins. I walked past him, and I said, ‘Well, what’s going on?’ He didn’t even look at me. He just said, ‘Everybody, get your stuff and we’ll get back in the bus and we’ll get rolling.’ I thought that was pretty weird. We did not go back to the school. We got dropped off at a Chik-fil-a parking lot down the road from the school and all our parents were picking us up and cops were there, and then I remember just at that point something was very wrong. I remember my grandmother picked me up and took me to his house. My dad eventually got to the house. We did not turn on the TV until he got there, but as soon as he turned on the TV every channel had it on. And then it hit you like a freight train, and you just think we’re at war. And then it hits you why we left Atlanta is because nobody knew what was going on, and they thought Atlanta might be attacked. Just the overwhelming like uncertainty hit, and then just the worst part is it hits you that my mom is in D.C. She’s at the Pentagon, and the Pentagon was attacked and we couldn’t get ahold of my mom, but it worked out. It was all good  She was at the hotel. The impact blew out the windows at the hotel, but (pause) we couldn’t get ahold of her for a while, so…it’s weird. It’s still kinda like, makes me…(gets emotional)”

    Audio / Travis Denning continues talking about the events of 9-11 and eventually getting ahold of his mother.

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    Travis Denning (Sept. 11th) 2 OC: …that is nuts. :49
    “So, eventually my dad got ahold of my mom and she was like, ‘Oh yeah. It has hit the fan here. It is so bad.’ They actually walked down to a separate hotel and got onto the roof and they were able to see directly into the Pentagon and see the crash. Ultimately too, she was like, ‘Well, I’m not getting home any time soon.’ And she ended up renting a car and about two days later pulled up in a rental vehicle. I remember everything about it. It was just so nuts. Then going back to school and just everybody talking about it. And on top of that it felt like the kids and the teachers were equally so astonished. It is wild. It’s just crazy that 20 years is coming up. That is nuts.”

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Dierks, Brothers Osborne, Eric, Luke, Mickey, Carrie, Keith, Chris, Josh

    Brothers Osborne / Carrie Underwood / Chris Stapleton / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Josh Turner / Keith Urban / Luke Bryan / Mickey Guyton

    Dierks Bentley, Brothers Osborne, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Mickey Guyton, Darius Rucker and Carrie Underwood are among the artists performing during the upcoming CMA Summer Jam TV special. Filmed at Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater, the CMA Summer Jam is a three-hour television event airing Thursday, September 2nd at 8pm ET/7pm CT on ABC. Luke Combs, Jimmie Allen, Gabby Barrett, BRELAND, Florida Georgia Line, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, Gwen Stefani, Cole Swindell, Thomas Rhett, Lainey Wilson and Dwight Yoakam will also perform.

    Keith Urban is set to perform “Wild Hearts,” among others during the Today Show Summer Concert Series on September 3rd on NBC.

     

    Chris Stapleton performed “Worry Be Gone” on Late Night With Seth Meyers on Wednesday (August 25th). The song is from his latest No. 1 album, Starting Over.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wmc7MnKvD4Q

     

    Josh Turner was surprised by his wife Jennifer and their four sons – Hampton, Colby, Marion and Hawke – after learning that the video for his 2005 chart-topping hit “Your Man,” surpassed 100 million views on Youtube. The video was the first he and his wife filmed together. He took to his socials to share a photo of the celebration, and said, “The ‘Your Man’ video surpassed 100 MILLION views yesterday. It was the first video Jennifer and I shot together, which makes it all that more special. Thanks to y’all for all the watchin’ and support these past 15 years.”

     

     

     

  • LABOR DAY AUDIO 2021

    Audio
    Alan Jackson / Billy Currington / Brandon Lay / Carrie Underwood / Caylee Hammack / Darius Rucker / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Jon Langston / Keith Urban / Kylie Morgan / Luke Bryan / Priscilla Block / Travis Denning

    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 6th, we will once again celebrate the people in every occupation whose work and dedication make this nation great. Labor Day in the United States is a holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September. It is a celebration of the American labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers.

    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.

    To access artist liners, click here.

     

    Audio / Adam Hambrick talks about one of his summer jobs when he was growing up in Arkansas.

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    Adam Hambrick (Labor Day) OC: …that summer. :41
    “I don’t know if I’ve ever had a bad job. I don’t think I had a bad job, ‘cause I actually enjoyed this job ‘cause I was actually sitting in the air conditioning all day over the summer in Arkansas. It was very monotonous, because I was spending every summer day repairing old fallen-apart medical charts in a heart clinic in Little Rock. I would take all these photos of all these records and re-sort them page-by-page and put ‘em back in the manila folder and re-alphabetize ‘em. But I did bring my computer and watch movies while I did it, so I drank a lot of soda and watched a lot of movies that summer.”

    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 / BRANDON LAY SAYS HE’S ALWAYS ENJOYED THE LABOR DAY WEEKEND.

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    Brandon Lay (Labor Day) OC: …a good one. :13
    “You know, I can’t complain too much about Labor Day, ‘cause usually doing landscaping and it had slowed down a little, but the water’s still warm enough to hit the river. I’ve gotten to spend some time out on the lake for Labor Day, so Labor Day’s a good one.”

    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 wen 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 says he's just not cut out for cooking chicken, but he is made for performing on stage.

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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 his worst job.

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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 has never had another job other than performing, and he loves watching people connect to his music.

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    Keith Urban (Labor Day) OC: …amazing. :22
    “Seeing people connect to the music is absolutely, hands-down the biggest reward for me, especially when you go to a place you’ve never been to before and it’s all these people, I mean lots of people out there. You’ve never met a single one of ‘em and they’re singing every word, and you realize that it’s not just a pretty melody and everything, but they get the songs. It’s amazing.”

    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 / Priscilla 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.”

     

     

  • LABOR DAY LINERS 2021

    Audio
    Adam Hambrick / Billy Currington / Boy Named Banjo / Brandon Lay / Brothers Osborne / Carrie Underwood / Caylee Hammack / Darius Rucker / Eric Church / Gary Allan / Jon Langston / Jon Pardi / Jordan Davis / Kacey Musgraves / Keith Urban / Kip Moore / Kylie Morgan / Little Big Town / Luke Bryan / Maddie & Tae / Parker McCollum / Priscilla Block / Sam Hunt / Travis Denning

    Audio / LINER Adam Hambrick (Labor Day)

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    Hey guys! It’s Adam Hambrick, hoping you have a Happy Labor Day weekend.

    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 Boy Named Banjo (Labor Day)

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    Audio / LINER Brandon Lay (Labor Day)

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    Hey y’all! This is Brandon Lay, wishing you a happy and work-free 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 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 Gary Allan (Labor Day)

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    “This is Gary Allan wishing you 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 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.

  • DIERKS, CARRIE, BROTHERS OSBORNE, LUKE, ERIC, MICKEY AND DARIUS WILL BE FEATURED DURING THE THREE-HOUR ABC-TV SPECIAL, CMA SUMMER JAM.

    Press
    Brothers Osborne / Carrie Underwood / Darius Rucker / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Luke Bryan / Mickey Guyton

    The CMA announced a new TV special, CMA Summer Jam, which is a three-hour star-studded concert event on September 2nd at 8pm ET on ABC. Filmed at Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater and other locations at some of the hottest spots in Music City, the special features performances and collaborations curated by the artists themselves.

    Artists such as Dierks Bentley, Brothers Osborne, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Mickey Guyton, Darius Rucker and Carrie Underwood, as well as Jimmie Allen, Gabby Barrett, Breland, Luke Combs, Florida Georgia Line, HARDY, Miranda Lambert, Carly Pearce, Thomas Rhett, Blake Shelton, Gwen Stefani, Cole Swindell, Lainey Wilson and Dwight Yoakam.

  • ERIC CHURCH’S CHIEF IS CELEBRATING ITS 10TH ANNIVERSARY.

    Audio
    Eric Church

    Eric Church celebrates the 10th Anniversary of the release of his third studio album, Chief. The collection, which he says “changed his life,” produced five singles, including Eric’s first two No. 1 hits on the country charts, including “Drink In My Hand” and “Springsteen,” as well as the Top 10 tunes “Creepin’” and “Like Jesus Does” and the Top 20 “Homeboy.”

    The title of the album was a combination of his nickname on the road, as well as his grandfather’s title as he was the Chief of Police in Granite Falls, North Carolina. “The initial inception was, my contacts would fall out, pop out on stage, and I would be blind for half the show, so I started wearing sunglasses. Then I put on a hat to stop the sweat and it just became this thing, and we got in bigger venues, I tried to adjust that, but people in the crowds would have on hats and sunglasses and wouldn’t let me adjust that, so it just became this thing naturally. So, that was show time, it was kind of my uniform. The band started joking with me, when I put the hat and sunglasses on, they go ‘Alright, its Chief time, Chief’s here.’ But I laughed about it, it was a joke,” says Eric. “But what they didn’t know, the really cool part of the story, my grandpa was the chief of police in Granite Falls, North Carolina, and everybody called him Chief. Everybody, my dad called him chief as his son-in-law, so it was just very neat to me, that across generations, it became my nickname naturally and nobody knew about it being my grandpa’s nickname, nobody. When it came time to title the record, because it felt live, and because it was something I wanted to show — a part of the live show, Chief was the right title from my point of view, but also because of my grandfather and what he meant to me.”

    When it came time to record the album, Church had a sound that felt different from his first two releases, Sinners Like Me and the gold-certified Carolina. “This record, more than anything else I’ve done, is breathing and alive,” he says. “There’s a wildness to it. It’s untamed and not very harnessed.”

    Chief  Track List:

    1. “Creepin” (Eric Church, Marv Green)
      2. “Drink In My Hand” (Eric Church, Michael P. Heeney, Luke Laird)
      3. “Keep On” (Eric Church, Ryan Tyndell)
      4. “Like Jesus Does” (Casey Beathard ,Monty Criswell)
      5. “Hungover & Hard Up” (Eric Church, Luke Laird)
      6. “Homeboy” (Eric Church, Casey Beathard)
      7. “Country Music Jesus” (Eric Church, Jeremy Spillman)
      8. “Jack Daniels” (Eric Church, Jeff Hyde, Lynn Hutton)
      9. “Springsteen” (Eric Church, Jeff Hyde, Ryan Tyndell)
      10. “I’m Gettin’ Stoned” (Eric Church, Jeff Hyde, Casey Beathard, Jeremy Cradey)
      11. “Over When It’s Over” (Eric Church, Luke Laird)

     

     

     

    Eric is currently making his way up the country charts with his new single, “Heart On Fire.”

     

    Audio / Eric Church talks about how he came up with the title of his album, Chief.

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    Eric Church (title of Chief) OC: …title to me. 1:25
    “Well, Chief became my nickname on the road, really as a joke, um, for the last couple years, maybe 3 years now, we have been playing a lot of little bars and clubs and honkytonks where the lights are about a foot from your face. And I wore contacts, where this all started, the initial inception was, my contacts would fall out, pop out on stage, and I would be blind for half the show, so I started wearing sunglasses, then I put on a hat to stop the sweat and it just became this thing, and we got in bigger venues, I tried to adjust that, but people in the crowds would have on hats and sunglasses and wouldn’t let me adjust that, so it just became this thing naturally. So, that was show time, it was kind of my uniform. The band starting joking with me, when I put the hat and sunglasses on, they go ‘Alright, its Chief time, Chief’s here.’ But I laughed about it, it was a joke. But what they didn’t know, the really cool part of the story, my grandpa was the chief of police in Granite Falls, North Carolina, and everybody called him Chief. Everybody, my dad called him chief as his son-in-law, so it was just very neat to me, that across generations, it became my nickname naturally and nobody knew about it being my grandpa’s nickname, nobody. When it came time to title the record, because it felt live, and because it was something I wanted to show — a part of the live show, Chief was the right title from my point of view, but also because of my grandfather and what he meant to me. And I just thought it was the right title, and you know it happened so naturally, it happened so not thought out, you know. When I said the title of the record, I had to explain to everyone why, you know. They were going, ‘What’s chief?’ ‘Well, Chief’s a nickname.’ Then it became a cool thing when they heard about it being my grandfather’s nickname, too. It just felt like the perfect title to me.”

    Audio / Before Chief was released, Eric Church explained how his first No. 1 song, "Drink In My Hand," was inspired by his fan

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    Eric Church (Drink in my Hand) OC: …play that one. :42

    “‘Drink in My Hand’ is absolutely, when we wrote this song …we were on tour, this is a song that was written after the cabin, and we were out on tour. I think we were on tour with Miranda at the time, and I was on the bus with a couple of co-writers of mine, and we had just walked offstage and saw the crowd, saw our fans and saw ‘em put their beers in the air. You could just tell that they had worked all week and this was their moment to let all that wash away. And that was where the title was born from really. ‘Everything’s OK now, I’ve got a drink in my hand, and I’m relaxing and I’m chilling.’ That just became a really good song born from our fans. They’re the ones that inspired that, and it was on tour. It was on a tour bus, and I’ll never forget it. I’m happy it turned out the way it did, and I think our fans are gonna love putting their beer, or whatever they’re drinking, up in the air when we play that one.”

    Video /

    View

    Video /

  • ERIC CHURCH IS MOST ADDED WITH NEW SINGLE “HEART ON FIRE.”

    Press
    Eric Church

    On the heels of his recent 11th career No. 1 at Country radio, Eric Church earns most added distinction today with his latest single, “Heart On Fire,” the greasy, rock-infused anthem which serves as the lead track on his Jay Joyce-produced Heart & Soul trilogy, already named among the year’s best projects by Rolling Stone and Billboard on their respective mid-year lists.

    Written solo by the reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year, “Heart On Fire” offers nostalgic musical references to everything from Elvis’s “All Shook Up” to Guns N’ Roses “Paradise City” over a driving guitar and piano melody.

    “A turned up radio but the static was heavy / Couldn’t make out any words but ‘take me to the levee’ / That look on your face was full of wild desire / Soakin’ my soul in gas and settin’ my heart on fire,” Church belts in the chorus of the song praised by Entertainment Weekly as a “fan favorite in waiting” and “some of the most liberating and freewheeling work of the 44-year-old Country star’s career… [which] reflects the lightning-in-a-bottle energy of the sessions that made it.”

    The single arrives at Country radio today having already earned a well-received spot in the set list at recent live shows as Church gears up for The Gather Again Tour this fall. Making the most of the long-awaited opportunity to “gather again,” for the first time in his career Church will adopt an in-the-round set up, with the stage at the center of each arena floor in order to accommodate as many fans as possible. The tour kicks off September 17 in Lexington, Ky. and visits 55 cities across the U.S. and Canada before a grand finale at the iconic Madison Square Garden in the spring of 2022. Tickets are on sale now at www.EricChurch.com.

    Church will also make a headlining appearance alongside George Strait on November 5 for a special “The King & The Chief” show as part of the newly announced ATLive festival at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. He has passionately taken a leadership role in the industry’s return to touring, appearing on the cover of Billboard getting his own second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine after consulting with epidemiologists and industry experts. A full list of all upcoming concert dates is available HERE.

    For more information, visit www.ericchurch.com and follow on Facebook and Twitter @ericchurch and Instagram @ericchurchmusic.

    The Gather Again Tour
    Sept. 17, 2021                   Rupp Arena                                          Lexington, Ky.
    Sept. 18, 2021                   Nationwide Arena                                Columbus, Ohio
    Sept. 24, 2021                   Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse               Cleveland, Ohio
    Sept. 25, 2021                   KeyBank Center                                   Buffalo, N.Y.
    Oct. 1, 2021                      Alerus Center                                       Grand Forks, N.D.
    Oct. 2, 2021                      Canadian Life Centre                           Winnipeg, Manitoba
    Oct. 8, 2021                      PPG Paints Arena                                 Pittsburgh, Pa.
    Oct. 9, 2021                      Wells Fargo Center                               Philadelphia, Pa.
    Oct. 15, 2021                    Ball Arena                                            Denver, Colo.
    Oct. 22, 2021                    Scotiabank Saddledome                       Calgary, Alberta
    Oct. 23, 2021                    SaskTel Centre                                     Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
    Oct. 29, 2021                    Rogers Arena                                       Vancouver, British Columbia
    Oct. 30, 2021                    Climate Pledge Arena                          Seattle, Wash.
    Nov. 12, 2021                   Thompson-Boling Arena                     Knoxville, Tenn.
    Nov. 13, 2021                   Ford Center                                          Evansville, Ind.
    Dec. 3, 2021                     SNHU Arena                                        Manchester, N.H.
    Dec. 4, 2021                     UBS Arena                                           Belmont Park, N.Y.
    Dec. 10, 2021                   The Anthem                                         Washington, D.C.
    Dec. 11, 2021                   The Anthem                                         Washington, D.C.
    Dec. 17, 2021                   Bon Secours Wellness Arena               Greenville, S.C.
    Dec. 18, 2021                   Greensboro Coliseum                          Greensboro, N.C.
    Jan. 7, 2022                      Pinnacle Bank Arena                            Lincoln, Neb.
    Jan. 8, 2022                      Denny Sanford PREMIER Center       Sioux Falls, S.D.
    Jan. 14, 2022                    Scotiabank Arena                                 Toronto, Ontario
    Jan. 15, 2022                    Canadian Tire Centre                           Ottawa, Ontario
    Jan. 21, 2022                    Van Andel Arena                                  Grand Rapids, Mich.
    Jan. 22, 2022                    Little Caesars Arena                             Detroit, Mich.
    Feb. 4, 2022                     KFC Yum! Center                                 Louisville, Ky.
    Feb. 5, 2022                     Bankers Life Fieldhouse                       Indianapolis, Ind.
    Feb. 11, 2022                   CHI Health Center Omaha                   Omaha, Neb.
    Feb. 12, 2022                   Wells Fargo Arena                                Des Moines, Iowa
    Feb. 18, 2022                   T-Mobile Center                                    Kansas City, Mo.
    Feb 19, 2022                    BOK Center                                          Tulsa, Okla.
    Feb. 25, 2022                   Hampton Coliseum                               Hampton, Va.
    Feb. 26, 2022                   Spectrum Center                                   Charlotte, N.C.
    March 4, 2022                 Amway Center                                      Orlando, Fla.
    March 5, 2022                 Amalie Arena                                        Tampa, Fla.
    March 11, 2022               United Center                                        Chicago, Ill.
    March 12, 2022               Enterprise Center                                  St. Louis, Mo.
    March 18, 2022               Resch Center                                        Green Bay, Wis.
    March 19, 2022               Resch Center                                        Green Bay, Wis.
    March 25, 2022               Legacy Arena at the BJCC                   Birmingham, Ala.
    March 26, 2022               Simmons Bank Arena                           Little Rock, Ark.
    April 1, 2022                   Dickies Arena                                       Fort Worth, Texas
    April 2, 2022                   AT&T Center                                        San Antonio, Texas
    April 8, 2022                   Toyota Center                                       Houston, Texas
    April 9, 2022                   Smoothie King Center                          New Orleans, La.
    April 15, 2022                 Moda Center                                         Portland, Ore.
    April 16, 2022                 Spokane Arena                                      Spokane, Wash.
    April 29, 2022                 ExtraMile Arena                                   Boise, Idaho
    April 30, 2022                 Vivint Arena                                         Salt Lake City, Utah
    May 6, 2022                    Pechanga Arena                                    San Diego, Calif.
    May 7, 2022                    STAPLES Center                                  Los Angeles, Calif.
    May 11, 2022                  Golden 1 Center                                    Sacramento, Calif.
    May 13, 2022                  T-Mobile Arena                                     Las Vegas, Nev.
    May 14, 2022                  Gila River Arena                                   Glendale, Ariz.
    May 20, 2022                  Madison Square Garden                       New York, N.Y.

    For audio & liners, click here.