• ERIC PASLAY RECEIVED THE ’10 SONGS I WISH I’D WRITTEN’ AWARD FOR ‘SHE DON’T LOVE YOU’ AT THE NSAI AWARDS THIS WEEK.

    Eric Paslay received the “10 Songs I Wish I’d Written” Award for his artful, breakthrough ballad “She Don’t Love You” at the 2015 Nashville Songwriters Association International Awards on Monday in Nashville, Tenn. On the heels of receiving the high NSAI honor from his songwriting peers, Paslay joined Charles Kelley and Dierks Bentley to perform Kelley’s debut solo single “The Driver” last night on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. View the performance here. In addition to guest appearing on the tune, Paslay co-penned “The Driver” with Kelley and Abe Stoklasa.

    Paslay answered fans’ demands for new music by releasing “High Class”, the lead single from his upcoming sophomore album, earning the No. 1 most added song at country radio in its debut week. Fans will have a chance to hear a preview of the Texas native’s new album when he joins Chris Young on the I’m Comin’ Over World Tour and Brad Paisley on the Country Nation College Tour this fall.

    A Platinum-selling hit songwriter, Paslay has celebrated five No. 1 hits including “Even If It Breaks Your Heart” (Eli Young Band), “Barefoot Blue Jean Night” (Jake Owen), “Angel Eyes” (Love & Theft), “Rewind” (Rascal Flatts) and “Friday Night,” the smash lead single from his critically acclaimed self-titled debut album. Paslay has earned nominations for GRAMMY Best Country Song, ACM Song of the Year and CMA Song Of The Year for “Even If It Breaks Your Heart.” A true artist’s artist, USA Today calls Paslay “flat out-brilliant” and American Songwriter names him an influencer of country music.

     

    Eric Paslay Upcoming Tour Dates

    Oct. 15            University of Georgia                                                  Athens, GA*

    Oct. 16            University of South Carolina                                       Columbia, SC*

    Oct 22             Savannah Civic Center                                              Savannah, GA**

    Oct. 23            Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park         Alpharetta, GA**

    Oct. 24            Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Auditorium                     Chattanooga, TN**

    Oct. 29            Santander Arena                                                         Reading, PA**

    Oct. 30            Erie Insurance Arena                                                  Erie, PA**

    Oct. 31            Big Sandy Superstore Arena                                      Huntington, WV**

    Nov. 13           Emens Auditorium                                                      Muncie, IN**

    Nov. 14           Miller Auditorium                                                         Kalamazoo, MI**

    Nov. 19           1STBANK Center                                                       Broomfield, CO**

    Nov. 20           Rimrock Auto Arena at MetraPark                             Billings, MT**

    Nov. 21           Bismark Event Center Arena                                     Bismarck, ND**

    Dec. 3             AMSOIL Arena                                                           Duluth, MN**

    Dec. 4             Mayo Civic Center Arena                                           Rochester, MN**

    Dec. 5             Resch Center Theatre                                                Green Bay, WI**

    * With Brad Paisley on the “Country Nation College Tour”

    ** With Chris Young on the “I’m Comin’ Over World Tour”

     

     

    For more on Eric Paslay, visit www.EricPaslay.com

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Luke, Eric, Sam, Chris, Lauren, Lady A, Keith

    Luke Bryan and Eric Church, along with Carrie Underwood have been announced as headliners for the 2016 Stagecoach Country Music Festival April 29th and 30th and May 1st. The three-day event in Indio, California, will also include performances by Sam Hunt, Eric Paslay, Little Big Town, Chris Stapleton, Chris Young, The Band Perry, Dustin Lynch, A Thousand Horses and Old Dominion.

    Lauren Alaina was chosen as this year’s hottest bachelorette by Nash Country Weekly readers. Lauren’s self-titled EP is available now, and it includes her single “Next Boyfriend.”

    Keith Urban joined Taylor Swift during her sold-out 1989 Tour stop in Toronto, to perform with the pop superstar. The pair collaborated on his 2002 No. 1 hit “Somebody Like You,” along with his most recent chart-topper, “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16.”

    Lady Antebellum will perform at the NASH Presents Hearts Unsung – a special evening of music benefiting Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals. The event will take place November 9th at Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center and will be part of the full-length feature film, Hearts Unsung in theaters nationwide January 21st.

  • ERIC PASLAY’S NEW SINGLE, ‘HIGH CLASS,’ IS THE NO. 1 MOST ADDED SONG AT COUNTRY RADIO THIS WEEK!

    EMI Records Nashville breakthrough country artist Eric Paslay releases his new single “High Class” from the celebrated singer-songwriter’s highly-anticipated sophomore album today. Co-penned by Paslay, Corey Crowder and Jesse Frasure, the back beat-driven groove is the No. 1 most added song at Country radio this week.

    “High Class is a song for everyone. It’s about seizing the moment, putting your worries aside and enjoying a night out as if you have no cares in the world.  I’m excited to release this song as the first look into my second album,” shares Paslay. “I promised myself and my fans that I would always do my best to never record the same song or the same album twice. I feel like I have kept that promise, and I can’t wait for my fans to hear more new music!”

    Since releasing his critically-acclaimed debut self-titled album, Paslay has celebrated a No. 1 with smash Platinum-selling hit “Friday Night” as well as GOLD-certification for “Song About A Girl” and success with his powerful ballad single “She Don’t Love You.” A true artists’ artist, the Texas native co-penned five No. 1 hits as a songwriter including “Even If It Breaks Your Heart” (Eli Young Band), “Barefoot Blue Jean Night” (Jake Owen), “Angel Eyes” (Love & Theft), “Rewind” (Rascal Flatts) and “Friday Night.” An ACM, CMA and GRAMMY-nominee Paslay has been sought after for his songwriting prowess by artists including Steven Tyler, Lady Antebellum and Hunter Hayes.

    Fans have the exclusive opportunity to hear Paslay’s new music first this fall as he joins Chris Young on the cross-country I’m Comin’ Over tour and Brad Paisley for dates on the Country Nation College Tour presented by Zaxby’s playing surprise pop-up shows on college campuses during football season.

    “High Class” is available on all digital retailers now: http://umgn.us/HighClass

    For tickets and additional information on Paslay, visit www.EricPaslay.com

  • ERIC PASLAY PERFORMS FOR THE POPE.

    Eric Paslay performed a handful of songs, including “Less Than Whole,” in Washington, DC on Thursday while the Pope was in town. He got the gig because of his producer Marshall Altman and was the only artist to represent country music. Colbie Caillat was also among the performers. Eric stopped by country station WMZQ, where he chatted about the honor of performing for the Pope.

    Eric recently released his new single, “High Class,” which will be on his forthcoming album due out next year.

    Audio / Eric Paslay tells WMZQ about performing for the Pope.

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    Eric Paslay (performing while Pope was in town) OC: …right now. :41

  • LABOR DAY 2015: AJ, Billy, Canaan, Darius, David, Dierks, Eric (Church & Paslay), Jon, Kip, Lady A, Luke

    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 7th, 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.

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

    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 / AJ (working people songs) OC: … appreciate that. :28

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

    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 / Billy Currington (Labor Day) OC: …record deal. :40

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    Canaan Smith talks about the bad jobs he had before signing a publishing deal and later a record deal.

    Canaan Smith (worst jobs) OC: …of that. [laughs] :54
    “I’ve had some terrible jobs. I was a janitor for a while, and I mopped floors, vacuums all kinds of, picking up dog poop, taking out trash, just basically somebody’s beyatch [laughs], that was my job. I did that for two-and-a-half years before I signed a publishing deal. Before that, actually my very first job, I got fired from. It was some sort of candy/chocolate store. My mom dropped me off one time, and I went to work and I was like I think I can do this, and then two shifts later I just didn’t show up because I didn’t understand the concept of having to look at a schedule to see when you come in. I just didn’t show. I just thought they’d call me, ‘Hey, we need you to come in.’ I didn’t know. I was 15 years old, and never worked and that kind of stuff. I always cut grass when I was a kid and cleaned golf clubs – whatever I could do to make some money. But, yeah, I got fired from my first job. I’m pretty proud of that.” [laughs]

    Audio / Canaan Smith (worst jobs) OC: …of that. [laughs] :54

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

    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 / Darius Rucker (Labor Day) OC: …pizza. :15

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    David Nail recalls his first job at Dairy Queen.

    David Nail (Labor Day) OC: …Dilly Bar. :32
    “The first job that I ever had was working at Dairy Queen. One of my very best friends in the world’s mother purchased a franchise, so it was kinda a cool place to work. You put me in an ice cream place, it’s a recipe for disaster. So, Kathy Jeffers, her mother tends to tell people it was a ‘mutual separation,’ but I can vividly remember her saying that they were going to lose money if they continued to let me work, because I was eating more food than I was selling. But, it was a great two days that I spent there, and I had many a Dilly Bar.”

    Audio / David Nail (Labor Day) OC: …Dilly Bar. :32

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

    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 / Dierks Bentley (Labor Day) OC: …generosity. :26

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    Eric Church talks about one of his worst job.

    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 / Eric Church (Labor Day-odd jobs) OC: …bought at 2am. 1:27

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    Eric Paslay talks about his first job…printing logos on fanny packs.

    Eric Paslay (Labor Day) OC: …could print. :34
    “My first official job was working at a screen printing place in Texas during the summer in a metal building that had no AC. We printed on fanny packs – really cool — and these other little bags. And it was eye doctors that, some company if you bought supplies through them, they’d put your logo on fanny packs for your customers to put in a drawer somewhere. Fanny packs are cool, if you like ‘em. You know, we’d like time ourselves to see how many fanny packs you could print.”

    Audio / Eric Paslay (Labor Day) OC: …could print. :34

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

    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 / Jon Pardi (Labor Day) OC: …so bored! :17

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    Kip Moore recalls his worst job…ever.

    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 / Kip Moore (Labor Day-worst job) OC: …than that. :21

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    Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum tells us what he used to do to make a buck before finding success as a musician.

    Lady A (Labor Day) OC: …I had a lot of crummy jobs. :31
    CK “I used to…” HS: “… knock out asbestos walls.” CK: “I did that for a long time. But even before that, I used to do lawn care every summer. Oh, man, I do not miss that. Just glad those days are over. I get out here and play music for a living. It’s a lot more fun. But yeah, I used to do that, and I used to work as a bag boy at a golf course once. I did that for a couple of summers. I had a lot of crummy jobs.”

    Audio / Lady A (Labor Day) OC: …I had a lot of crummy jobs. :31

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

    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 / Luke Bryan (Labor Day-jobs) OC: …Nashville… 1:07

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  • LABOR DAY WEEKEND LINERS: Billy, Brothers, Canaan, Clare, Darius, David, Eric Church, Eric Paslay, Jon, Kacey, Keith, Kelleigh, Kip, LBT, Luke, Sam

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

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

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    LINER Canaan Smith (Labor Day)
    Hey! What’s up, guys? I’m Canaan Smith. Have a great and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio /

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    LINER Clare Dunn (Labor Day)
    Hey! What’s up? This is Clare Dunn, and I hope you have a Happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

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    LINER David Nail (Labor Day)
    Hey guys! It’s David Nail, wishing  you a very happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

    Download

    LINER Eric Paslay (Labor Day)
    Hey! It’s Eric Paslay, and I hope you have a happy and work-free Labor Day weekend.

    Audio /

    Download

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

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

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    LINER Kelleigh Bannen (Labor Day)
    Hi! I’m Kelleigh Bannen, and I hope you have a happy Labor Day weekend.

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

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

    Audio /

    Download

  • FOURTH OF JULY LINERS: AJ, Billy, Brothers Osborne, Canaan, Darius, David, Easton, Church, Paslay, Gary, Jon, Keith, Lady A, Lauren, LBT, Luke, Mickey, Sam, Scotty, Toby

    Audio / LINER AJ (4th of July)

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    “Hey! This is Alan Jackson, wishing you a happy and safe Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Billy Currington (4th of July)

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    “Hey guys! I’m Billy Currington, wishing you a Happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Bros Osborne (Fourth of July)

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    “Hey y’all! I’m John, and I’m TJ, and we are Brothers Osbourne, wish you a very Happy Fourth of July.”

     

    Audio / LINER Canaan Smith (Fourth of July)

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    “Hey! What’s up guys? I’m Canaan Smith, wishing you a safe and happy Fourth of July!”

    Audio / LINER Darius (4th of July)

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    “Hey y’all, what’s up? This is Darius Rucker, wishing you a very, very happy Fourth of July!”

    Audio / LINER Darius (Happy Birthday, America)

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    “Happy Birthday, America!”

    Audio / LINER David Nail (4th of July)

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    “This is David Nail, wishing you a happy Fourth of July!”

    Audio / LINER Easton Corbin (4th of July)

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    “Hey! This is Easton Corbin. Have a safe and happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Eric Church (4th of July)

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    “Hey this is Eric Church, wishing you a very happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Eric Paslay (4th of July)

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    “Hey! This is Eric Paslay, wishing you a very happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Gary Allan (4th of July)

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    “Hey! This is Gary Allan. Happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Jon Pardi (4th of July)

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    “Hi, it’s Jon Pardi, wishing you a happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Keith Urban (summer)

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    Hey everybody, Keith Urban here, wanting to wish you all a fantastic and safe summer. Enjoy the sunshine. Hopefully, you’ll get to spend some time with the ones you love, and hopefully, we’ll also get to see you out on the road.”

    Audio / LINER Lady A (4th of July)

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    “Hi! This is Charles, Hillary and Dave of Lady Antebellum, wishing you a happy and safe Fourth of July weekend.”

    Audio / LINER Lauren Alaina (4th of July)

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    “Hey! It’s Lauren Alaina. Have a safe and happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER LBT (4th of July)

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    “Hey! We’re Little Big Town. Happy Fourth of July!”

    Audio / LINER Luke Bryan (4th of July)

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    “Hey! This is Luke Bryan, wishing you a very happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Mickey Guyton (4th of July)

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    “Hey! This is Mickey Guyton, wishing you a Happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Sam Hunt (Fourth of July)

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    “Hey everybody! This is Sam Hunt, wishing you a safe and happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Scotty McCreery (Fourth of July)

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    “Hey! This is Scotty McCreery. Have a safe and happy Fourth of July.”

    Audio / LINER Toby Keith (Fourth of July)

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    “Hi! It’s Toby Keith, wishing you a safe Fourth of July.”

  • FATHER’S DAY AUDIO: Canaan, Darius, Dierks, Church, Paslay, Keith, Kip, Lady A, LBT, Sam, Scotty

    Audio / Canaan Smith says his father is a big inspiration.

    Download

    Canaan Smith (Father’s Day) OC: …I love him. :35
    “My dad, I think is just the greatest man. He’s always provided for us. He was always there. He was always a great dad. He worked his butt off, you know, and showed me what it was like to work hard and provide for a family, and I just hope I can do that one day too. We’ve always had a special bond. He’s been a songwriter and a singer too for a long, long time, and so I got to grow up listening to him do his thing, sitting in the other room while they do band rehearsal. I’d be sitting on the couch in the other room just taking it all in, dreaming one day to be behind that microphone, so he’s definitely been an inspiration. I love him.”

    Audio / Canaan Smith says his father taught him quite a bit about being a musician.

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    Canaan Smith (Father’s Day) 2 OC: …learned that too. :45
    “I learned that music scores chicks. [laughs] My dad had a rehearsal one time at his piano player’s house, and I was sitting on the couch in the living room, and the piano player had two daughters that were around my same age, and they were sitting on either side of me on the couch. I thought I was king of the world, you know, watching this rock and roll band and a girl around each arm, and I was like six-years-old, eight-years-old something like that, old enough to know that was pretty awesome! My dad, he taught me hard work too. It took rehearsals. It took dedication. You can’t just get up on a stage and fly by the seat of your pants. You have to be prepared, and so I learned that too.”

    Audio / Darius Rucker says his kids would say he was a fun dad, unless they did something wrong.

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    Darius Rucker (Father’s Day) OC: …loving dad. :41
    “I think if you asked my kids what kind of Dad I was they would probably say…Danny would say that I was a fun Dad. My little daughter would say that I was a fun dad; she thinks I’m a lot of fun. I think if you caught them at the right moment they would say I was mean [laughs] because when I’m home I’m not afraid to discipline them. I’m all fun until it’s not fun anymore and then daddy’s not the fun guy. I think that they’d say that I was a fun Dad, I’m a loving Dad and I think they would say that. I’m gone so much that when I’m home, I just shower love upon my kids. I say ‘I love you’ probably fifty times a day. We hug, we kiss all the time. I’m always wanting them to know how much I love them. So I’d hope they’d say that I was a loving dad.”

    Audio / Dierks Bentley is a father of three, and he said it has changed him significantly.

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    Dierks Bentley (how fatherhood has changed him) OC: …different. :07
    “There’s a whole kind of universe that opens up that I didn’t know existed, and I’m not the center of it, which is really cool. It just makes you look at everything totally different.”

    Audio / Eric Church describes his father and the qualities he admires in him.

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    Eric Church (Father’s Day) OC: …always admired. :29
    “My dad is a, I’m trying to find the right words to describe him. My dad is a great guy, honest guy, very call it like he sees it, which is where I get a lot of that. No BS. I’m gonna tell you how I feel whether you like it or not. I’m that guy, I’m me…My dad’s that way, so I get a lot of that from him. There’s also an honesty and an integrity that my dad carries himself with that I’ve always admired.”

    Audio / Eric Paslay talks about what his father has taught him.

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    Eric Paslay (Father’s Day) OC: …ceiling fan. :21
    “He just taught me that working hard and sticking it out, even when you know things aren’t right, if you stick it out, it’s worth it in the end. He just taught me to work hard, and there’s a lot of things that you don’t need to pay someone to do, and it feels more rewarding when you’re able to put in new light fixtures or paint your own walls or put in a new ceiling fan.”

    Audio / Keith Urban – father to daughters Sunday and Faith -- says there are a number of things that are at the top of the list of being a dad.

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    Keith Urban (Father’s Day) OC: …experience that. :36
    “The first thing is probably just having someone call you dad. I’m like, ‘Omigosh! I’m her dad! That’s amazing.’ That’s probably the first thing to me. I don’t know, I mean, the different personalities that our two daughters have, that’s amazing. It’s such a long list I think. I always say…I think for the people that haven’t had kids – which I hadn’t for a long, long time. I didn’t have kids ‘til later on, and being around it is not the same as having them, you know? I realize that it’s not something that can be explained until you actually sort of have it, so I’m glad I got to experience that.”

    Audio / Kip Moore talks about his father’s influence on his music career, and how he’d play classics on their fishing trips.

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    Kip Moore (Father’s Day-dad’s influence) OC: …of us singin’ ‘em. :29
    “He would just play all those classic records – Little River Band, Jackson Brown, Springsteen, Seeger, Willie Nelson, the Red-Headed Stranger, Kristofferson, Sam Cook – like classic music. He’d be singing the songs and telling us why it was such good music. And I looked up to him so much, that’s the music I gravitated towards and that’s what I continue to listen to. Whenever I think about those old fishing trips, that’s what I think about is on the way down there, him singing those songs and all of us singin’ ‘em.”

    Audio / Lady Antebellum’s Dave Haywood says his father was a big influence both personally and musically, and he wants to pass along those qualities to his own children someday.

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    Lady A (Father’s Day-Dave) OC: …like that. :39
    “My dad was a really hard worker growing up and was always great, however hard he worked, he’d always make important time for family, important time to be home for dinner and be there for a lot of special moments for us growing up. For all the money he would make, he would always give a portion of it back to charity or to the church, and so that was always important for me to watch. We had a great relationship growing up. My dad plays guitar; he’s very musical. I learned how to play acoustic guitar with him playing ‘Day Tripper’ by the Beatles and all these old songs we’d play together when he’d show me how to play these James Taylor songs and things like that. So, definitely want to pass along music, of course, to my children, as well, like that.”

    Audio / Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott says her father is a great communicator.

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    Lady A (Father’s Day-Hillary) OC: …my children. :33
    “I definitely got my Type-A personality from my dad. He’s the same way, but one thing I’m so appreciative of – especially from a father-daughter relationship – my dad always, always talked to me, even when I didn’t want to talk to him. He would force me to communicate and talk through things, and not always the easy stuff, which is such a rare quality in a man, truthfully. And so, I am very, very thankful for that. I think it helped me find the right husband for me, and I also know that it will help me be that much of a better communicator to my children.”

    Audio / Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley says he’s always idolized his dad.

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    Lady A (Father’s Day-Charles) OC: …rubbed off. :23
    “My father definitely passed down his work ethic to me. I idolized my dad a lot and would always like to be by his side when he did certain projects, and so I learned a lot from him about that, and just always respected him and just the way he could see a project from start to finish with such dedication, and so I’ve taken that into this and into this group, and hopefully, some good has rubbed off.”

    Audio / Little Big Town’s Jimi Westbrook says fatherhood is absolutely beautiful. He and wife Karen Fairchild became parents to Elijah Dylan on March 5, 2010.

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    Little Big Town (Jimi-Father’s Day) OC: …beautiful. :32
    “It’s still such a new experience for us, and man, I’m telling you, people can tell you all day long how great it’s going to be, but it still never touches it. That little man looking back at me, it’s the most unbelievable feeling. And every day, for me who hates mornings [laughs], waking up to a slap in the face; he’s like pounding on me, then he’s like kissing on me and stuff. It’s unbelievable. It’s absolutely beautiful.”

    Audio / Sam Hunt says his father taught him a lot about being a man and knowing the right thing.

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    Sam Hunt (Father’s Day) OC: …he’s great. :27
    “I’m obviously biased about my parents, but I’ve been around a lot of great men of integrity, but he is by far the best man that I know. He’s just taught me so much about being a man, doing the right thing, knowing the difference between right and wrong. And even though I don’t always follow his lead, I definitely know better because of him, and that means a whole lot to me. I was just really fortunate to have him as a dad, and he’s great.”

    Audio / Scotty McCreery says his father has helped him grow into an adult.

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    Scotty McCreery (Father’s Day) OC: …was to me. :29
    “My father has been incredible to me my whole life. I remember going to the baseball field when I was five-years-old and he played ball in college, so he was always trying to teach me the mechanics, but more so than that, he was teaching me the life lessons growing up. Those are the things you learn on the field – becoming a man out there. So, he’s always had my back and he’s always teaching me those values and those morals that are important to a young kid and also a growing young adult. So, love my daddy, love my father, and I just hope that one day I can be half the dad he was to me.”

  • FATHER’S DAY LINERS: Billy, Canaan, Darius, Easton, Church, Paslay, Gary, Jon, Josh, Kacey, Keith, Lady A, Lauren, LBT, Sam, Scotty, Shania, Vince

    Father’s Day is Sunday (June 21st), and we have liners with many of your favorite country stars! See and download below.


    Audio / LINER Billy Currington (Father’s Day)

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    “Hey everybody! I’m Billy Currington, wishing you a very Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER Canaan Smith (Father’s Day)

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    “Hey! What’s up, guys? I’m Canaan Smith. Happy Father’s Day, Pops!”

    Audio / LINER Darius Rucker (Father’s Day)

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    “Hey! What’s up? This is Darius Rucker wishing you a Happy Father’s Day.”

    Audio / LINER Easton Corbin (Father’s Day)

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    “Hey! This is Easton Corbin. Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER Eric Church (Father’s Day)

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    “Hey! This is Eric Church, wishing you a Happy Father’s Day.”

    Audio / LINER Eric Paslay (Father's Day)

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    “Hey! This is Eric Paslay. To all you fathers, Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER Gary Allan (Father's Day)

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    “Hey! This is Gary Allan, and I want to wish all the dads out there a Happy Father’s Day.”

    Audio / LINER Jon Pardi (Happy Father’s Day)

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    “Jon Pardi here. Happy Father’s Day to all you father’s out there.”

    Audio / LINER Josh Turner (Father’s Day)

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    “Hey y’all! This is Josh Turner, and I just want to wish all you father’s out there a Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER Kacey Musgraves (Father's Day)

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    “Hey! It’s Kacey Musgraves. Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER Keith Urban (Father's Day)

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    “Hey everyone! It’s Keith Urban, wishing all you Dads out there a Happy Father’s Day.”

    Audio / LINER Lady A (Father's Day)

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    “What’s up all you Dads out there? It’s Lady Antebellum, and we just wanted to wish you all a good, Happy Father’s Day. Thanks for being great dads. Hope you get pampered and you don’t have to barbecue. And we hope you get some good ties this year.”

    Audio / LINER Lauren Alaina (Father's Day)

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    “Hey! It’s Lauren Alaina. Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER LBT (Father's Day)

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    “Hi! This is Little Big Town, wishing all you father’s a Happy Father’s Day.”

    Audio / LINER Sam Hunt (Father's Day)

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    “Hey! This is Sam Hunt. To all you fathers out there, Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER Scotty McCreery (Father's Day)

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    “Hey! This is Scotty McCreery. Happy Father’s Day!”

    Audio / LINER Shania Twain (Father's Day)

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    “Hi! This is Shania Twain. Happy Father’s Day.”

    Audio / LINER Vince Gill (Father's Day)

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    “Hey everybody! It’s Vince, and I just wanted to wish you a Happy Father’s Day. Wish mine was still around.”

  • CMA MUSIC FEST 2015: Darius, Dierks, Easton, Church, Paslay, Josh, Keith, Lady A, LBT, Luke, Scotty

    It’s that time again! The CMA Music Festival begins this week in Nashville, and the stars are ready to come out to perform and check in with their fans!

    Audio / Darius Rucker is making a couple of appearances during this year’s CMA Music Festival. On Monday (June 8th), he hosts his 6th annual Darius and Friends concert at Nashville’s Wildhorse Saloon and his golf tournament. Proceeds will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Darius is also set to perform at LP Field (home of the Tennessee Titans) on Sunday, June 14th where he will entertain the crowd with his list of hits.

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    Darius Rucker (CMA Music Fest) OC: …awesome. :48
    “Music Fest is like nothing else. I say all the time that country music is the only genre that could have something like that. It’s truly amazing, when I come that weekend, people are everywhere and they want to be your best friend. It’s always cool and I love coming here. The thing that always gets me is the show. The fact that you can get that many superstars at one show all playing for free, for the same goal, to entertain those people that are in that stadium that come here for the whole week from all over the world. They come here for one week to see country music, and it’s amazing that those artists say on Friday and Saturday night, this is country music come on out. That’s awesome.”

    Audio / Dierks Bentley talks about the lengths that fans will go to show their appreciation.

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    Dierks (fans) OC: …commitment. [laughs] :22

    “I know a lot of the early fans by name, because we played a lot of shows at a lot of small venues where we’d be around a lot after the shows. I’m not gonna say her name ‘cause I don’t know if she’d want me to or not, but she has like a dog print of Jake, my dog’s Jake, but she has this dog print on her shoulder with my name in the middle of the tattoo. So, tattoos are always, that’s a big deal when somebody gets your name tattooed on part of their body or something. It’s kind of a scary thing, because it’s kind of a lifelong commitment. [laughs]”

    Audio / Easton Corbin says his fans are very important to him.

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    Easton Corbin (fans) OC: …being here. :24
    “My fans mean a great deal to me, especially the fans that come out to the shows and the ones that make it to every show around their home or in that vicinity. And I even have people come here that I know every time, in this meet-and-greet lines or maybe at that fence over there by the fence where you’re getting off the red carpet, I try to always make it a point to recognize those fans, and just let them know how much that I care and I appreciate them being here.”

    Audio / Eric Church, who’s performing at LP Field (home of the Tennessee Titans) on Sunday (June 14th), says CMA Music Festival is special and unique to country music.

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    Eric Church (CMA Music Fest) OC: …to see. :32

    “Well, I think it’s what makes country music unique. Find me another format that happens in, it’s just not something that happens. I think it’s because country music is really the one format that the fans…the music is really about them. And we’re them; we’re not different than them. You got a lot of rock stars and a lot of the other guys where they’re their own person, they’re their own agenda…they’re not like the people that are listening to them. It’s different in country, we are. We come from there, we are that. I think it’s just a great thing for them to be able to come to our town and to get just this barrage of music.”

    Audio / Eric Paslay recalls the first autograph he ever received.

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    Eric Paslay (1st autograph) OC: …first autograph. :42
    “The first autograph that I ever got was in Branson, Missouri, and it was Shoji Tabuchi, and he’s a great fiddle player, and I always remember that, you know if you go to Branson, you know who he is. But I was a 9, 10 year old kid, and I always remember that. Every time I meet a kid, I don’t know if it’s their first concert. It could be their 100-thousandth, but whenever I sign an autograph for a kid, I really make sure it’s special and memorable, and with anybody, but especially with kids. I still have that Shoji Tabuchi autograph, you know? Because it meant that much to me. I didn’t know who he was until we saw him, but he tore the place down playing the “Orange Blossom Special.”

    Audio / Josh Turner recalls one of the weirdest things he’s ever had to sign from one of his fans.

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    Josh Turner (weirdest thing he’s been asked to sign) OC: …Sharpie, though. :10
    “A toothpick, an unused toothpick, let me throw that out there – an unused toothpick. It was quite challenging, actually, and it didn’t look anything like my autograph. It took a really small Sharpie, though.”

    Audio / Keith Urban, who is performing Sunday night (June 14th) at LP Field (home of the Tennessee Titans), says he loves attending CMA Music Festival.

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    Keith Urban (CMA Music Fest) OC: …always love it. :25
    “I love it! It’s like summer camp. I mean, it is! It’s just a chance to obviously see a lot of people I don’t normally see, I don’t know. It’s just palpable. Since Fan Fair, it’s just been that sort of week-plus of energy, the whole town just explodes, and what it is we love about this genre and the community aspect of it. I always love it.”

    Audio / Lady Antebellum, who are scheduled to perform at LP Field on Friday (June 12th) in front of a sold-out crowd, talk about performing on the big stage during CMA Music Fest.

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    Lady Antebellum (Music Fest) 1 OC: …over the world. :14

    “The electricity in LP Field every year for that, you can’t really beat it. It’s so much fun to be there, and to have a stadium full of the most die-hard country fans you could ever imagine, from all over the world.”

    Audio / Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott talks about her early Fan Fair (now CMA Music Festival) memories.

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    Lady A (Fan Fair Memory – Hillary) OC: …extra special. :23
    “I have been raised as being at the fairgrounds with no air conditioning and actually helping take photos of the fans with my mom. I would like stand and take everybody’s camera, so I was a part of it. And actually in high school, I volunteered at the City of Hope, the softball game, for a couple of years. So, I mean, born and raised in Nashville, this has been a part of my life, my whole life, so now to be a part of it as an artist is extra special.”

    Audio / Little Big Town recall their first appearance at Fan Fair (aka CMA Music Festival). The group will be making several appearances, including their performance at LP Field on Saturday (June 13th).

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    Little Big Town (CMA Music Fest) OC: (Phillip) …the best, man. 1:43
    KIMBERLY: “We played at the fairgrounds. I guess it was the last year at the fairgrounds. We had just gotten our record deal.” PHILLIP: “I remember we were just about to walk out on stage, and we had to play acoustic. I mean there was no backing band.” KIMBERLY: “We were at Mercury. They wanted us to play before Wynonna sang.” PHILLIP: “I remember, my hair was short and Wynonna walked by and tuffed my hair and was like, ‘Oh that’s cute…cute red hair boy.’ [laugh] I was like, ‘Oh great.’ Like little puppy dog, ‘You’re gonna be OK, kid.'” KIMBERLY: “We were nervous.” KAREN: “Oh my gosh, were so nervous. We were so green.” KIMBERLY: “We didn’t have many songs at that point. Maybe three songs, which is what we sang. It was all we knew at the time which is what we had worked up. Because literally we got our record deal in May, and that was June.” KAREN: “And they were like, ‘Why don’t you guys sing a couple songs?’ And, we’re like, ‘Good, because a couple is what we know.’ That was fun. And then moving form that to the stadium shows, to me that the most fun you can ever have…CMA Fest, Stadium shows. It is an energy unlike anything else. It was over the top and I could just come out of my skin at those moments. KIMBERLY: “Me too.” KAREN: “It’s like you just want to float.” PHILLIP: “And it’s like the best country crowd you could ever compile. Every country fan from all over the world wants to be there. That’s like the crux of country music awesomeness. I’m telling you it is the best fun.” KAREN: “It’s the best feeling out there.” KIMBERLY: “They let them line up and all come across the stage so you have all these people that are so giddy, crazy giddy, because they get to walk up close to the stage.” PHILLIP: “And they’re waving and their arms are about to fall off. They’re just so excited. It’s the best.”

    Audio / Luke Bryan, who performs at Nashville’s LP Field on Friday (June 12th), explains the name of his fan club.

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    Luke Bryan (fan club name) OC: …words, you know. :13
    “That’s the name of my fan club – the Nut House, because they’re nutty and my Daddy’s a peanut farmer. I figured I spent my whole life hauling around peanuts, I would name…just a play on words, you know.”

    Audio / Scotty McCreery talks about his fans.

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    Scotty McCreery (fan support) OC: …back to us. :31
    “My fans are incredible. I tell them that every night on stage, and a lot of artists say thanks to the fans and ‘you’re the reason I’m here,’ but for me, it’s literal because they voted me through (American Idol), they’ve been with me since then. They’ve helped make the album platinum, the album gold, come to my concerts. In a sense, I really owe all this to them. They’ve really kind of helped make me who I am. I enjoy the chance to go out there and make music for them. I enjoy going out there to sing a concert for them. The biggest thing for me is when I look out and see the fans and they’re smiling, having a good time. Dancing, singing the songs back to us.”