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  • FOREVER COUNTRY: Keith, Darius, Reba

    Audio
    Darius Rucker / Keith Urban

    As announced yesterday (September 13th), in celebration of The 50th Annual CMA Awards, the CMA has created the biggest video in Country Music history. Titled “Forever Country,” the single and accompanying music video features 30 CMA Award-winning acts. This single was produced by CMA Award-winning Board member Shane McAnally and the video was directed by Grammy Award-winning director Joseph Kahn. In another historic move, the single will be unveiled to the public Friday, September 16th in a global roadblock across Country radio, premiering on hundreds of radio stations simultaneously at 8:30 AM/ET across the U.S., in addition to premiering in key international markets.

    The song and music video weave a medley of John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again,” and Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” together.

    “The 50th Annual CMA Awards” will be hosted by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood and broadcast live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Wednesday, November 2nd (8:00-11:00 PM/ET) on ABC.

    For more information on “Forever Country” visit ForeverCountry50.com.

    A radio special about the song, hosted by Luke Bryan (as well as an unhosted version), will be made available to download on ForeverCountry50.com. A second radio special about the video will be available in the coming days.

    Audio / Keith Urban explains why he wanted to take part in the Country Music Association’s 50th Anniversary event, “Forever Country.”

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    Keith Urban (why he wanted to take part in Forever Country) OC: …all about. :29
    “I really wanted to be a part of the CMA’s ‘Forever Country.’ The songs are just so perfect. The fact that they all go together so seamlessly was incredible. I’ve played ‘Country Road’ in my cover band days; I’ve played ‘On the Road Again’ in my cover band days, and you know, I guess for me the reason these songs have stood the test of time is that they’re truth. They’re truth and they’re universal, and no matter where you come from in the world, you know what these songs are all about.”

    Audio / LINER Keith Urban (Forever Country)

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    Audio / Darius Rucker talks about the mashup of the three iconic country songs that make up "Forever Country."

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    Darius Rucker (Forever Country song mashup) OC: …great move. :45
    “I mean, these three songs are so iconic and so big and have been so big so long when I was a young kid I remember singing ‘On the Road Again’ and singing ‘Country Roads’ on the John Denver TV show and all that stuff but they’ve all stood the test of time. ‘I Will Love You’ is one of those songs that just stood the test of time so much that somebody else cut it and made it even bigger and to have the hosts do it together that’s such a cool story to start with ‘On the Road Again’ and that’s what we do as artists we’re on the road again, and then ‘Country Road Take Me Home’ and then you’re singing to the fans ‘I Will Always Love You,’ ‘cause it’s true none of us could be out here doing this if our fans didn’t want to see us play. And so I think the three of those songs together was pretty smart. That was a great move.”

    Audio / Darius Rucker says he's honored to be on "Forever Country."

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    Darius Rucker (Forever Country) 1 OC: …pretty awesome. :19
    “I heard about it when I got a phone call asking me if I was interested in doing it, and they started saying the names that were doing it and am I interested. You know, I’m honored to be asked to be on it. I was excited and hearing all the big names that were doing it and to know that I was gonna be a part of that, and it was pretty awesome.”

    Audio / LINER Darius Rucker (tune in)

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    Audio / Reba McEntire talks about singing "I Will Always Love You" as part of the CMA's "Forever Country."

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    Reba (Forever Country) OC: …huge thrill. :10
    “I get to sing ‘I Will Always Love You,’ and that’s Dolly Parton’s song. It’s been a huge favorite of mine for many, many years, and to get to sing on that with everybody and especially Dolly was a huge thrill.”

    Audio / LINER Reba McEntire (Forever Country)

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    Video / Keith Urban Forever Country

    Video / Darius Rucker Forever Country

    Video / Reba Forever Country

  • KEITH URBAN STANDS UP TO CANCER.

    Audio
    Keith Urban / Little Big Town

    Keith Urban, Little Big Town and Dierks Bentley joined up to perform David Bowie’s “Heroes” for the Stand Up to Cancer event, which will air Friday night (September 9th) at 8pm ET. The three acts taped their performance at last week’s ACM Honors to honor Bowie, who died in January, following a battle with cancer.

    Keith, whose father Robert passed away from cancer last December, said he wanted to sign on because “It hit really close to home with the passing of my father with cancer, as well. [I’m] really honored to be a part of it.”

    Little Big Town’s Jimi Westbrook also lost someone close to him because of cancer when his sister died last year, as well.

    The all-star show will also feature Ben Affleck, Matthew McConaughey, Emma Stone, Celeine Dion, Anna Kendrick, Eric Stonestreet, Alison Sweeney and co-founder Katie Couric and producer Bradley Cooper.

    Audio / Keith Urban says he is honored to take part in the Stand Up to Cancer event.

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    Keith Urban (Stand Up to Cancer) OC: …forward to it. :10
    “It hit really close to home with the passing of my father with cancer, as well. [I’m] really  honored to be a part of it, and the fact that I get to play with Little Big Town, that’s always a blast. I’m really looking forward to it.”

  • THE 10TH ANNUAL ACM HONORS AIRS FRIDAY ON CBS.

    Audio
    Dierks Bentley / Keith Urban / Lady Antebellum / The Band Perry

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    Tune-in alert for Friday (September 9th). The 10th Annual ACM Honors will air tomorrow beginning at 9pm ET/PT on CBS. The two-hour special, hosted by Lady Antebellum, is dedicated to celebrating honorees and off-camera category winners from this year’s ACM Awards. 

    The television special features an all-star lineup of live performances as well as award presentations celebrating honorees, including Special Awards recipients Glen Campbell, Crystal Gayle, Eddie Rabbitt (awarded posthumously), Tanya Tucker, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Jeff Walker (awarded posthumously), Jimmy Webb, Little Big Town and The Statler Brothers. Additionally, Jason Aldean was honored with the ACM Triple Crown Award and Miranda Lambert was presented with the inaugural ACM Merle Haggard Spirit Award. Ross Copperman was also honored as Songwriter of the Year.

    Artists who performed in tribute to the honorees include:

    • Kelsea Ballerini performed “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” in tribute to Crystal Gayle.
    • Dierks Bentley performed “Freedom” in tribute to Ross Copperman, joined onstage by participants of the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp.
    • Luke Bryan and Cole Swindell performed “I Love A Rainy Night” in tribute to Eddie Rabbitt.
    • Alicia Keys and Cam performed a special duet of “Girl Crush” in tribute to Little Big Town.
    • Maren Morris performed “Delta Dawn” in tribute to Tanya Tucker.
    • Chris Young and Dan + Shay performed “Flowers on the Wall” in tribute to The Statler Brothers.
    • The Band Perry performed “MacArthur Park” in tribute to Jimmy Webb.
    • Blake Shelton, Toby Keith, Keith Urban and Dierks Bentley performed an all-star medley in a special tribute to Glen Campbell. The medley consisted of Campbell’s hits “Southern Nights,” “Gentle On My Mind,” “Wichita Linemen,” “By The Time I Get To Phoenix” and the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy.”

    The Academy’s Studio Recording Award winners were celebrated in a pre-televised ceremony, and many served as the house band for the night under the direction of music director Frank Liddell. Backing up artists during performances on the telecast were ACM Guitarist of the Year Derek Wells, ACM Bass Player of the Year Michael Rhodes, ACM Specialty Instruments Player of the Year Danny Rader and ACM Piano/Keyboards Player of the Year Jim “Moose” Brown, who also served as bandleader.  Other Studio Recording Award honorees included Producer of the Year Dave Cobb, Audio Engineer of the Year Justin Niebank, Drummer of the Year Shannon Forrest and Steel Guitar Player of the Year Paul Franklin.

    The ceremony presenters included Blake Shelton, Cole Swindell, Dierks Bentley, Emmylou Harris, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, Maren Morris, Martina McBride, Mike Fisher, Thomas Rhett, and Toby Keith. The event was taped at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN, and sponsored by City National Bank and Kendra Scott.

    About ACM Honors™

    ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Special Awards, Studio Recording Awards and Songwriter of the Year Award winners. The 10th Annual ACM Honors was taped on Tuesday, August 30, 2016 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and – for the first time ever – was produced for television by dick clark productions to be broadcast on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are executive producers. Tiffany Moon is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music. For more information, visit www.ACMcountry.com.

    Photo L-R: Shannon Campbell, Keith Urban, Blake Shelton, Dierks Bentley and Toby Keith performing at the 10th Annual ACM Honors in tribute to Glen Campbell. Photo Credit: John Shearer/Getty Images for ACM/Courtesy of the Academy of Country Music)

    Audio / Luke Bryan talks about honoring the late Eddie Rabbitt at this year's ACM Honors.

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    Luke Bryan (ACM Honors-Eddie Rabbitt) OC: …he had. :24
    Me and Cole Swindell did a version honoring Eddie Rabbitt and we did ‘I Love A Rainy Night.’ It was fun being on stage with Cole. ‘I Love A Rainy Night’ was a song that I covered for years in my band in Georgia so it was like riding a bike up there, I just hopped up there and … And Eddie Rabbitt is one of those artists that you forget just how dynamic of a career that he had.”

    Audio / Toby Keith talks about the legendary Glen Campbell, who he’s paying tribute to at the ACM Honors this week.

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    Toby Keith (Glen Campbell) OC: …to ’75? :57
    “The amazing thing about Glen’s deal is, Glen looks so good. Glen looks 15 years younger than he is, and he has full-blown Alzheimer’s. It’s just really sad to think that he’s in as great a shape as he is physically, except for that debilitating affliction. But, man! He was one of the greatest guitar players of all time, and I don’t think most people realize that. I think most people saw him on the Glen Campbell Good Time Hour and some movies, and they just thought he’s a singer that sings some pop country. But Glen was one of the greatest guitar players of all time too, and even when he couldn’t remember his songs he could still play them without remembering the words. It’s nice that they’re paying tribute to Glen, ‘cause he’s certainly an icon and worked with the Wrecking Crew back in the day in L.A. which is probably the band that played on most of the hits that you heard from ’65 to ’75?”

     

    Audio / Keith Urban says Glen Campbell is one of his biggest musical influences.

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    Keith Urban (Glen Campbell) OC: …guitar player. :22
    “I’ve always been a fan of what I like to call guitartists, you know those guitar-artists like Glen Campbell, who’s probably one of my biggest influences; those guys who knew a good song, had a great voice and played great and just the all-around guys with a guitar, you know? When you think of Glen Campbell, you think of, I think of ‘Galveston,’ ‘Wichita Lineman,’ then I also think of him being a phenomenal guitar player.”

     

  • THE 10TH ANNUAL ACM HONORS ARE SET TO AIR ON FRIDAY.

    Press
    Dierks Bentley / Keith Urban / Lady Antebellum / Little Big Town / Luke Bryan / The Band Perry

    Tune-in Friday, September 9, 2016 at 9:00pm ET/PT on CBS for the television debut of the 10th Annual ACM Honors™. Hosted by multi-ACM Award-winning group Lady Antebellum, the two-hour special is dedicated to celebrating honorees and off-camera category winners from the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards.

     The television special features an all-star lineup of live performances as well as award presentations celebrating honorees including Special Awards recipients Glen Campbell, Crystal Gayle,Eddie Rabbitt (awarded posthumously), Tanya Tucker, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Jeff Walker (awarded posthumously), Jimmy Webb, Little Big Town and The Statler Brothers. Additionally, Jason Aldean was honored with the ACM Triple Crown Award and Miranda Lambert was presented with the inaugural ACM Merle Haggard Spirit Award. Ross Copperman was also honored as Songwriter of the Year.

    Artists who performed in tribute to the honorees include:

    • Kelsea Ballerini performed “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” in tribute to Crystal Gayle.
    • Dierks Bentley performed “Freedom” in tribute to Ross Copperman, joined onstage by participants of the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp.
    • Luke Bryan and Cole Swindell performed “I Love A Rainy Night” in tribute to Eddie Rabbitt.
    • Alicia Keys and Cam performed a special duet of “Girl Crush” in tribute to Little Big Town.
    • Maren Morris performed “Delta Dawn” in tribute to Tanya Tucker.
    • Chris Young and Dan + Shay performed “Flowers on the Wall” in tribute to The Statler Brothers.
    • The Band Perry performed “MacArthur Park” in tribute to Jimmy Webb.
    • Blake Shelton, Toby Keith, Keith Urban and Dierks Bentley performed an all-star medley in a special tribute to Glen Campbell. The medley consisted of Campbell’s hits “Southern Nights,” “Gentle On My Mind,” “Wichita Linemen,” “By The Time I Get To Phoenix” and the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy.”

     The Academy’s Studio Recording Award winners were celebrated in a pre-televised ceremony, and many served as the house band for the night under the direction of music director Frank Liddell. Backing up artists during performances on the telecast were ACM Guitarist of the Year Derek Wells, ACM Bass Player of the Year Michael Rhodes, ACM Specialty Instruments Player of the Year Danny Rader and ACM Piano/Keyboards Player of the Year Jim “Moose” Brown, who also served as bandleader.  Other Studio Recording Award honorees included Producer of the Year Dave Cobb, Audio Engineer of the Year Justin Niebank, Drummer of the Year Shannon Forrest and Steel Guitar Player of the Year Paul Franklin.

     The ceremony presenters included Blake Shelton, Cole Swindell, Dierks Bentley, Emmylou Harris, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, Maren Morris, Martina McBride, Mike Fisher,Thomas Rhett, and Toby Keith. The event was taped at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN, and sponsored by City National Bank and Kendra Scott.

     About ACM Honors™

    ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Special Awards, Studio Recording Awards and Songwriter of the Year Award winners. The 10th Annual ACM Honors was taped on Tuesday, August 30, 2016 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and – for the first time ever – was produced for television by dick clark productions to be broadcast on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are executive producers. Tiffany Moon is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music. For more information, visit www.ACMcountry.com.

    Photo L-R: Shannon Campbell, Keith Urban, Blake Shelton, Dierks Bentley and Toby Keith performing at the 10th Annual ACM Honors in tribute to Glen Campbell. Photo Credit: John Shearer/Getty Images for ACM/ Courtesy of the Academy of Country Music)

  • CMA AWARDS 2016 NOMINATIONS: Keith Urban

    Audio
    Keith Urban

    Keith Urban received four nominations for this year’s CMA Awards, including Entertainer of the Year, which he won in 2005. Keith’s additional nominations include Male Vocalist and Album of the Year for Ripcord, which had several producers (Dann Huff, Jeff Bhasker, Tyler Johnson, Greg Wills, Nile Rodgers, busbee, K-Kov, Nathan Chapman, Jonny Price and Keith), as well as Musical Event of the Year for “The Fighter” featuring Carrie Underwood. Keith could receive an additional trophy as producer of his album.

    A SIDENOTE: Keith has won the Musical Event category four times including “Start A Band” with Paisley (2009); “Highway Don’t Care” with McGraw and Taylor Swift (2013); “We Were Us” with Miranda Lambert (2014); and “Raise ‘Em Up,” featuring Church (2015).

    With eight CMA Awards already under his belt, he realizes how much has already accomplished. But he also feels like there’s still a lot of gas left in the tank.

    “I feel an immense amount of satisfaction for what I’ve gotten to do so far,” he tells Rolling Stone Country. “But right now, Ripcord and the way it’s been received, it feels like the start of the next chapter. It’s a great feeling.”

    The 50th Annual CMA Awards will be broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 2nd at 8pm ET on ABC.

    Audio / Keith Urban reacts to his CMA Nominations.

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    Keith Urban (CMA 2016 reaction) OC: …this morning. :13
    “Elated. I feel elated that we got these nominations this morning. And I just want to thank everybody who’s involved in my team and behind-the-scenes, the songwriters and producers, everybody who made this possible this morning.”

    Audio / Keith Urban talks about working with different producers on his new album, Ripcord, as well as how songs may end up differently than what they had first thought.

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    Keith Urban (working with multiple producers) OC: …always worth it. 1:10
    “I know when we did a lot of songs on this record and worked with people like Jeff Asker and Dan Huff and Nathan Chapman- people I’ve worked with- particularly Nate and Dan- people I’ve worked with before. There’s a lot of familiarity and comfort level working with them, but you also gotta keep pushing each other to go beyond. Really squeeze everything out of the orange is the goal in the studio. You know, certainly on a song like ‘John Cougar, John Deer, John 3:16’ I could feel the song wanting to be sonically different than what we started out with which was sort of playing guitar and drums and that’s how the song started in the studio was just guitar- acoustic guitar- and drums. But I could feel this strong pull towards… there’s something else. There’s something else. Keep searching. Keep searching and don’t rest on this because if there’s something saying there’s more, you gotta answer that call. It’s just sometimes you can’t be bothered, right? In life. Life is saying you gotta get out of the boat and start swimming and you’re like ‘The boat’s fine!’ and the boat’s getting smaller and capsizing and you’re like ‘That’s alright.’ But every time we get out of it and follow the muse. Every time we follow the muse it is so worth it. As much work as it may be, it’s always worth it.”

     

  • THE 2016 CMA NOMINATIONS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED!

    Press
    Brothers Osborne / Chris Stapleton / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Kacey Musgraves / Keith Urban / Lady Antebellum / Little Big Town / Luke Bryan

    The nominations for the this year’s CMA Awards have been announced, and Eric Church, Chris Stapleton and Maren Morris lead the list with five apiece. Chris could take home six awards, which includes single so he could win as both artist and producer. Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley and Carrie Underwood received four nominations, and Keith could pick up five trophies as he is both artist and producer for his album Ripcord, while Luke Bryan and Brothers Osborne each picked up two nominations.

    For the first time on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” the announcement of the final nominees in six of the 12 CMA Awards categories was made live from the historic stage of the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, which was home to the annual CMA Awards broadcast from 1974 to 2004. The announcement was made by Bentley, Cam, and Urban. Following “Good Morning America” the six remaining categories were announced by the nominated trio of artists on GoodMorningAmerica.com on Yahoo! as well as the “Good Morning America” Facebook page through Facebook Live – making the announcements a complete ABC takeover for the second year.

    The 50th Annual CMA Awards will be broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 2nd at 8pm ET on ABC.

    ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
    Garth Brooks
    Luke Bryan
    Chris Stapleton
    Carrie Underwood
    Keith Urban 

    SINGLE OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Artist, Producer(s), and Mix Engineer(s))
    “Die a Happy Man”
    Thomas Rhett
    Produced by Dann Huff and Jesse Frasure
    Mix Engineered by Justin Niebank
    The Valory Music Co. 

    “Humble and Kind”
    Tim McGraw
    Produced by Byron Gallimore and Tim McGraw
    Mix Engineered by Byron Gallimore
    Big Machine Records 

    “My Church”
    Maren Morris
    Produced by busbee and Maren Morris
    Mix Engineered by Dave Clauss and busbee
    Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

    “Nobody To Blame”
    Chris Stapleton
    Produced by Dave Cobb and Chris Stapleton
    Mix Engineered by Vance Powell
    Mercury Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

    “Record Year”
    Eric Church
    Produced by Jay Joyce
    Mix Engineered by Jay Joyce and Jason Hall
    EMI Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

    ALBUM OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Artist and Producer(s))
    Black
    Dierks Bentley
    Produced by Ross Copperman and Arturo Buenahora, Jr.
    Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville

    Hero
    Maren Morris
    Produced by busbee, Maren Morris, and Brad Hill
    Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

    Mr. Misunderstood
    Eric Church
    Produced by Jay Joyce and Arturo Buenahora, Jr.
    EMI Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

    Ripcord
    Keith Urban
    Produced by Jeff Bhasker, Tyler Johnson, Dann Huff, Greg Wells, Nile Rodgers, busbee, K-Kov, Nathan Chapman, Jonny Price, and Keith Urban
    Hit Red Records/Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

    Storyteller
    Carrie Underwood
    Produced by Jay Joyce, Mark Bright, and Zach Crowell
    19 Recordings/Arista Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

    SONG OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Songwriter(s))
    “Burning House”
    Camaron “Cam” Ochs, Tyler Johnson, Jeff Bhasker

    “Die a Happy Man”
    Sean Douglas, Thomas Rhett, and Joe Spargur 

    “Humble and Kind”
    Lori McKenna 

    “My Church”
    busbee and Maren Morris

    “Record Year”
    Eric Church and Jeff Hyde 

    FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
    Kelsea Ballerini
    Miranda Lambert
    Maren Morris
    Kacey Musgraves
    Carrie Underwood 

    MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
    Dierks Bentley
    Eric Church
    Tim McGraw
    Chris Stapleton
    Keith Urban 

    VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
    Lady Antebellum
    Little Big Town
    Old Dominion
    Rascal Flatts
    Zac Brown Band 

    VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR
    Brothers Osborne
    Dan + Shay
    Florida Georgia Line
    Joey + Rory
    Maddie & Tae 

    MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to each Artist)
    “Different For Girls”
    Dierks Bentley feat. Elle King
    Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville     

    “Home Alone Tonight”
    Luke Bryan featuring Karen Fairchild
    Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

    “The Fighter”
    Keith Urban (featuring Carrie Underwood)
    Hit Red Records/Capitol Records Nashville/Universal Music Group Nashville 

    “Think of You”
    Chris Young (duet with Cassadee Pope)
    RCA Nashville/Sony Music Nashville 

    “You Are My Sunshine”
    Morgane Stapleton with Chris Stapleton
    Low Country Sound/Elektra Records 

    MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Artist and Director(s))
    “Burning House”
    Cam
    Directed by Trey Fanjoy 

    “Fire Away”
    Chris Stapleton
    Directed by Tim Mattia 

    “Humble and Kind”
    Tim McGraw
    Directed by Wes Edwards 

    “Record Year”
    Eric Church
    Directed by John Peets and Reid Long 

    “Somewhere On A Beach”
    Dierks Bentley
    Directed by Wes Edwards 

    NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
    Kelsea Ballerini
    Brothers Osborne
    Maren Morris
    Old Dominion
    Cole Swindell 

     

     

    Video / GMA CMA Announcement

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Keith, Dierks, Vince, Luke, Chris, Lauren

    Press
    Chris Stapleton / Dierks Bentley / Keith Urban / Lauren Alaina / Luke Bryan / Vince Gill

    Don’t forget to tune into ABC’s Good Morning America on Wednesday (August 31st) to watch Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley and Cam announce some of the nominees for this year’s CMA Awards.

    Luke Bryan and Zac Brown Band have been announced as headliners for next year’s We Fest in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. The three-day event, which will celebrate its 35th anniversary in 2017, will take place August 3rd – 5th.

    Vince Gill, along with Patty Loveless, Charlie Worsham and The Time Jumpers are set to perform a free show at Nashville’s Walk of Fame Park September 25th, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the CMA Awards.

    Luke Bryan was just added to the list of artists performing at Charlie Daniels’ Volunteer Jam. The event, to celebrate Charlie’s 80th birthday, will feature additional performances by Chris Stapleton, Kid Rock, Travis Tritt and Larry the Cable Guy and will take place November 30th at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

    Lauren Alaina will perform her hit single, “Road Less Traveled,” on NBC’s Today Show September 8th.

  • KEITH URBAN, TOBY KEITH AND DIERKS BENTLEY PAY TRIBUTE TO GLEN CAMPBELL.

    Audio
    Dierks Bentley / Keith Urban

    Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley, Toby Keith and Blake Shelton will pay tribute to Glen Campbell at the 10th Annual ACM Honors Tuesday night (August 30th). The legendary performer will be honored with the ACM Career Achievement Award, and the artists will perform an all-star medley of Glen’s greatest hits, finishing with a group performance of the hit “Rhinestone Cowboy.”

    Keith says Glen is one of his biggest influences, mainly because he’s a “guitartist.” “I’ve always been a fan of what I like to call guitartists, you know those guitar-artists like Glen Campbell, who’s probably one of my biggest influences; those guys who knew a good song, had a great voice and played great and just the all-around guys with a guitar,’ says Keith. “When you think of Glen Campbell, you think of, I think of ‘Galveston,’ ‘Wichita Lineman,’ then I also think of him being a phenomenal guitar player.”

    Toby says despite his debilitating illness with Alzheimer’s, he’s still an amazing guitar player. “He was one of the greatest guitar players of all time, and I don’t think most people realize that. I think most people saw him on the Glen Campbell Good Time Hour and some movies, and they just thought he’s a singer that sings some pop country,” says Toby. “But Glen was one of the greatest guitar players of all time too, and even when he couldn’t remember his songs he could still play them without remembering the words. It’s nice that they’re paying tribute to Glen.”

    Last week, Dierks told us, “I’m honored to get the chance to perform on this tribute show for the ACMs [Honors], to be a part of this tribute. I’ve always felt connected to his music, grew up listening to it. I’m honored to be a part of it.”

    Kim Campbell will accept the award on behalf of her husband of 35 years.

    Previously announced performers include Luke Bryan, The Band Perry, Jason Aldean, Kelsea Ballerini, Cole Swindell, Maren Morris, Cam, Chris Young, Miranda Lambert and the night’s hosts Lady Antebellum, among others.

    The ACM Honors is dedicated to celebrating all of the special honorees and off-camera category winners from this year’s ACM Awards. The two-hour special tapes Tuesday (August 30th) at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and will air September 9th at 9pm ET/PT on CBS.

    Audio / Keith Urban says Glen Campbell is one of his biggest musical influences.

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    Keith Urban (Glen Campbell) OC: …guitar player. :22
    “I’ve always been a fan of what I like to call guitartists, you know those guitar-artists like Glen Campbell, who’s probably one of my biggest influences; those guys who knew a good song, had a great voice and played great and just the all-around guys with a guitar, you know? When you think of Glen Campbell, you think of, I think of ‘Galveston,’ ‘Wichita Lineman,’ then I also think of him being a phenomenal guitar player.”

     

    Audio / Toby Keith talks about the legendary Glen Campbell, who he’s paying tribute to at the ACM Honors this week.

    Download

    Toby Keith (Glen Campbell) OC: …to ’75? :57
    “The amazing thing about Glen’s deal is, Glen looks so good. Glen looks 15 years younger than he is, and he has full-blown Alzheimer’s. It’s just really sad to think that he’s in as great a shape as he is physically, except for that debilitating affliction. But, man! He was one of the greatest guitar players of all time, and I don’t think most people realize that. I think most people saw him on the Glen Campbell Good Time Hour and some movies, and they just thought he’s a singer that sings some pop country. But Glen was one of the greatest guitar players of all time too, and even when he couldn’t remember his songs he could still play them without remembering the words. It’s nice that they’re paying tribute to Glen, ‘cause he’s certainly an icon and worked with the Wrecking Crew back in the day in L.A. which is probably the band that played on most of the hits that you heard from ’65 to ’75?”

     

  • DIERKS BENTLEY AND KEITH URBAN WILL ANNOUNCE THE NOMINEES FOR THIS YEAR’S CMA AWARDS.

    Press
    Dierks Bentley / Keith Urban

    Dierks Bentley and Keith Urban, along with newcomer Cam, will reveal the final nominees for this year’s CMA Awards live from the Grand Ole Opry House on ABC’s Good Morning America Wednesday (August 31st).

    The location of this year’s announcement adds to the already auspicious occasion as the Grand Ole Opry House served as home to the CMA Awards from 1974 until 2004, making it the longest running backdrop of the Awards and home to some of its most iconic moments. Bentley and Urban, with a combined 50 nominations and 12 wins across 8 CMA Awards categories, will be live with Cam from the Opry House stage adding another special moment to that history.

    Following the announcements on GMA, the remaining categories will be revealed live on GoodMorningAmerica.com, as well as via Good Morning America’s Facebook page through Facebook Live.

    CMA will then release the full list of CMA Awards nominees.

    The full list of nominees will be available at CMAawards50.com immediately following announcement.

    The 50th Annual CMA Awards will air live from Nashville November 2nd at 8pm ET on ABC.

  • DIERKS, TOBY AND KEITH WILL PAY SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO GLEN CAMPBELL AT THIS YEAR’S ACM HONORS.

    Audio
    Dierks Bentley / Keith Urban / Lady Antebellum / Luke Bryan

    The Academy of Country Music® (ACM) announced that Dierks Bentley, Toby Keith, Blake Shelton and Keith Urban will take the stage at the 10TH ANNUAL ACM HONORS™ for a special tribute to Glen Campbell, who as previously announced will be honored with the ACM Career Achievement Award. The country music luminaries will perform an all-star medley of Campbell’s greatest hits, culminating to an ensemble performance of the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy.” Kim Campbell will accept the award on behalf of her husband (of 35 years).

    Toby Keith and Blake Shelton join previously announced performers Jason Aldean, Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Cam, Maren Morris, Cole Swindell, Keith Urban and hosts Lady Antebellum. Additional performers and presenters will be announced.

    The 10TH ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to celebrating the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards. Hosted by multi-ACM Award-winning group Lady Antebellum, the two-hour special will tape on Tuesday, August 30 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium, and make its television debut on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Tickets for the special taping are available for purchase to the general public now at Ticketmaster.com.

    For more information on the Academy of Country Music and the ACM Honors, please visit www.acmcountry.com.

    About ACM Honors™
    ACM Honors™ is an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from the Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Special Awards, Studio Recording Awards and Songwriter of the Year Award winners. The 10th Annual ACM Honors takes place Tuesday, August 30, 2016 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and – for the first time ever – will be produced for television by dick clark productions to be broadcast on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are executive producers. Tiffany Moon is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music. Tickets to ACM Honors are priced at $60 and $100 and will go on sale to the general public at Ticketmaster.com and the Ryman box office at 10:00 AM CT on Wednesday, August 10, 2016. For more information, visit www.ACMcountry.com.

    Audio / Dierks Bentley talks about being a part of the Glen Campbell tribute at this year's ACM Honors.

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    Dierks Bentley (Glen Campbell tribute) OC: …part  of it. 1:05
    “He’s got some ties to Arizona and someboy who spent some time there, and when I moved to Nashville and got into bluegrass music and I discovered ‘Gentle on My Mind’ was a big song that John Hartford had written, so he had a little bit of world in the bluegrass community. But some of these bigger hits are so good and so classic and they’re so different than anything else out there. And he just has a way of performing that I’ve always felt like he’s one of those guys that if all of the power went out and there was no PA system and no band behind you and it just had to be just you and a guitar, he could entertain that crowd just as well as if they had all of the lights and production, and it’s Glen. He’s such a great singer, great musician and so funny, and such a great storyteller. He really carved out his niche. There’s no one that’ll ever sound like him – a classic legend. I’m honored to get the chance to perform on this tribute show for the ACMs [Honors], to be a part of this tribute. I’ve always felt connected to his music, grew up listening to it. I’m honored to be a part of it.”