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  • THE 2018 CMA NOMINATIONS HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED.

    Audio
    Brothers Osborne / Carrie Underwood / Chris Stapleton / Dierks Bentley / Kacey Musgraves / Keith Urban / Lauren Alaina / Luke Bryan / Maddie & Tae / Vince Gill

    Luke Bryan, Dan + Shay and Sugarland announced the final nominations for The 52nd Annual CMA Awards this morning (August 28th) live on ABC’s Good Morning America from Luke’s 32 Bridge Food + Drink bar located on Lower Broadway in downtown Nashville.

    The artists revealed six categories live on-air, then announced the remaining six categories, along with finalists for the CMA Broadcast Awards, on GoodMorningAmerica.com as well as via “Good Morning America’s” Facebook page through Facebook Live, Twitter and simulcast on “Good Morning America’s” YouTube channel.

    Chris Stapleton tops the list of finalists with five nominations. Producer and musician Dann Huff receives four nominations, the second most nominations this year, while nine artists garner three each—Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley, Dan + Shay, Florida Georgia Line, Chris Janson, Miranda Lambert, Midland, Thomas Rhett and Keith Urban.

    CHRIS STAPLETON – FIVE NOMINATIONS
    Entertainer of the Year, Single of the Year (“Broken Halos”), Album of the Year (From A Room: Volume 2), Song of the Year (“Broken Halos”), Male Vocalist of the Year 

    Stapleton leads this year’s CMA Awards nominations with five, adding to his previous 11 nominations and seven wins. He lands his third consecutive nod for Entertainer of the Year in addition to nominations in the Single and Song of the Year categories for “Broken Halos,” produced by Dave Cobb and Stapleton, mixed by Vance Powell, and written by Mike Henderson and Stapleton. Stapleton earns his third nomination for Album of the Year for From A Room: Volume 2, produced by Cobb and Stapleton. He previously won Album for his first two solo albums, Traveller, awarded in 2015, and From A Room: Volume 1, awarded in 2017. Stapleton also receives his fourth consecutive nomination for Male Vocalist of the Year, a category he remains undefeated in, having won the past three years.

    DIERKS BENTLEY – THREE NOMINATIONS
    Album of the Year (The Mountain), Male Vocalist of the Year, Musical Event of the Year (“Burning Man”)

    Dierks Bentley earns his sixth career nomination for Album of the Year, alongside producers Ross Copperman, Jon Randall Stewart, and Arturo Buenahora Jr., while also marking his fifth consecutive nomination for Male Vocalist of the Year. He also lands a nod alongside Brothers Osborne for Musical Event of the Year for their collaboration “Burning Man,” Bentley’s third nomination in the category. He won Musical Event in 2016 for his song “Different For Girls” (Feat. Elle King). With this year’s nominations, Bentley collects 24 total career nominations.

    KEITH URBAN – THREE NOMINATIONS
    Entertainer of the Year, Album of the Year (Graffiti U), Male Vocalist of the Year

    This year marks Keith Urban’s 14th nomination for Male Vocalist of the Year, 11th nomination in the Entertainer of the Year category, and his sixth nomination in the Album of the Year category for Graffiti U, bringing his career nominations to 45 with 11 total wins. Urban shares the nomination with the album’s producers Dan McCarroll, J.R. Rotem, Josh Kerr, Jason Evigan, Greg Wells, Benny Blanco, Ed Sheeran, Johnny McDaid, Jesse Shatkin, Jimmy Robbins, Oscar Holter, Matt Rad, Eric Valentine, Ian Kirkpatrick, Mike Elizondo, Captain Cuts, Copperman, Huff, and Peter Karlsson. Urban is the reigning Single of the Year winner for his song “Blue Ain’t Your Color,” which he also produced.

    The 52nd Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, will be broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 14th at 8pm ET on ABC.

    For more information and a full list of nominees, visit CMAawards.com.

    The Final Nominees for “The 52nd Annual CMA Awards” (by ballot category order):

    ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
    Jason Aldean
    Luke Bryan
    Kenny Chesney
    Chris Stapleton
    Keith Urban

    SINGLE OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Artist, Producer(s), and Mix Engineer(s))

    Broken Halos – Chris Stapleton
    Producer(s): Dave Cobb, Chris Stapleton
    Mix Engineer(s): Vance Powell

    Drinkin’ Problem – Midland
    Producer(s): Dann Huff, Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne
    Mix Engineer(s): Justin Niebank

    Drowns the Whiskey – Jason Aldean (Feat. Miranda Lambert)
    Producer(s): Michael Knox
    Mix Engineer(s): Jeff Braun

    Meant to Be – Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line
    Producer(s): Willshire
    Mix Engineer(s): Serban Ghenea

    Tequila – Dan + Shay
    Producer(s): Scott Hendricks, Dan Smyers
    Mix Engineer(s): Jeff Juliano

    ALBUM OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Artist and Producer(s))

    From a Room: Volume 2 – Chris Stapleton
    Golden Hour – Kacey Musgraves
    Graffiti U – Keith Urban
    Life Changes – Thomas Rhett
    The Mountain – Dierks Bentley

    SONG OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Songwriter(s))

    “Body Like A Back Road”
    Songwriters: Zach Crowell, Sam Hunt, Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne

    “Broken Halos”
    Songwriters: Mike Henderson, Chris Stapleton

    “Drowns the Whiskey”
    Songwriter: Brandon Kinney, Jeff Middleton, Josh Thompson

    “Drunk Girl”
    Songwriter: Scooter Carusoe, Tom Douglas, Chris Janson

    “Tequila”
    Songwriter: Nicolle Galyon, Jordan Reynolds, Dan Smyers

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

    MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
    Dierks Bentley
    Luke Combs
    Thomas Rhett
    Chris Stapleton
    Keith Urban

    VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
    Lady Antebellum
    Lanco
    Little Big Town
    Midland
    Old Dominion

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

    MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to each Artist)

    “Burning Man” – Dierks Bentley Feat. Brothers Osborne
    “Dear Hate” – Maren Morris (Feat. Vince Gill)
    “Drowns the Whiskey” – Jason Aldean (Feat. Miranda Lambert)
    “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” – David Lee Murphy (with Kenny Chesney)
    “Meant to Be” – Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line

    MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
    (Award goes to Artist and Director(s))

    “Babe” – Sugarland (Featuring Taylor Swift)
    Director: Anthony Mandler

    “Cry Pretty” – Carrie Underwood
    Director: Randee St. Nicholas

    “Drunk Girl” – Chris Janson
    Director: Jeff Venable

    “Marry Me” – Thomas Rhett
    Director: TK McKamy

    “Tequila” – Dan + Shay
    Director: Patrick Tracy

    NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
    Lauren Alaina
    Luke Combs
    Chris Janson
    Midland
    Brett Young

    MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR
    Jerry Douglas, Dobro
    Paul Franklin, Steel Guitar
    Dann Huff, Guitar
    Mac McAnally, Guitar
    Derek Wells, Guitar

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Audio / LUKE BRYAN SAY WINNING HIS FIRST CMA ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR AWARD CHANGED HIS LIFE.

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    Luke Bryan (winning 1st CMA Entertainer of the Year) OC: …big deal for me. :55
    “Definitely looking back and winning my first CMA Entertainer of the Year award is something that I’ll never forget. It’s all of those memories of everything it took to get here and all the sacrifices and all the honkytonks and the late-night concerts and moving to Nashville and leaving your family and your friends, it all came together on that night. To get that from your peers of fellow country music artists was pretty amazing. You never forget it. You forever feel vindicated and you feel appreciated and you feel like you’re a member of a club, and you know no matter how long you live that you left an indelible mark on this industry based on how you go about it, how you entertain and perform. It was a big deal for me.”

    Audio / KEITH URBAN PICKED UP HIS FIRST CMA MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR AWARD IN 2004, AND HE SAYS IT WAS A HUMBLING EXPERIENCE FOR HIM. HE WENT ON TO WIN THAT AWARD IN 2005 AND 2006.

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    Keith Urban (winning 1st Male Vocalist award) OC: …my life. :27
    “In 2004, I won Male Vocalist of the Year, and again it was that same feeling I had when I’d won the Horizon Award, but it was like the next level.  It just felt so humbling really. Really to be in that category and then to win was again just one of those sort of moments that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”

    Audio / Keith Urban explains why he felt the need to name his CMA nominated album, Graffiti U.

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    Keith Urban (Graffiti U name) OC: …that to me. :53
    “The previous two albums I did – Fuse and Ripcord – denoted a kind of energy, and so those titles were chosen for that. And I had some energy-driven titles in mind for this album too, but as the record started to reveal itself to me, the word ‘graffiti’ kept coming to me out of the blue. I’ve always loved that word, loved the sound of the word, and then I loved the fact that it’s art-driven. When I think of graffiti, I think of self-expression, personal expression, absolutely personal expression whether you’re painting something on the side of a building in a city or whether you’re painting ‘Billy Bob Loves Charlene’ on the side of an overpass [laughs], it’s all graffiti and it’s all free and pure and very personal, and I thought this record feels like that to me.”

    Audio / Dierks Bentley was inspired by Telluride to write and record his CMA nominated album, The Mountain.

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    Dierks Bentley (album inspired by Telluride) 2 OC: …it was magic. :53
    “I just had this crazy idea to bring some songwriters out there and let them go for hikes and walk around town and just hang and see if they can sense that same intangible vibe that I was sensing, and they did. We jumped right into it and it was really, really special. And everyone immediately starts talking about how can we start getting back out here again, because it’s one of those places you just like never want to leave. Ross said, ‘We should come back out here to make the record,’ and we all kinda laughed about it, but it planted the seed. So, I came back a few months later with a different set of guys and girls, musicians, and we recorded the album out there.” It’s one of those things where you just kind of follow your gut, just keep your heart open to ideas and see what you’re feeling, and once you get that little, tiny feeling, you’ve got to go for it, just like that gut instinct of I want to be a country singer. It’s that little seed that if you believe in it, you’ve got to go for it, try it, so that’s what we did with this album, and it was magic.”

    Audio / Kacey Musgraves talks about the title of her CMA nominated album, Golden Hour.

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    Kacey Musgraves (Golden Hour title) OC: …this record. :34
    “The title Golden Hour just seemed to sum up this chapter of my life perfectly. I mean not only am I from a town called Golden, Texas, but leading up to making this record, there’s been a lot of beauty in my atmosphere and in my world. I love the picture that pops in my head when I hear that title. It’s also an actual song on the record, but it’s just this warm, golden feeling that I’m really happy to have in my life, and I found it to be the perfect title for this record.”

  • LUKE BRYAN ANNOUNCES THE LINE UP FOR HIS 10TH ANNUAL FARM TOUR.

    Audio
    Luke Bryan

    Country music superstar and CMA Entertainer of the Year nominee Luke Bryan is celebrating a decade of saluting the American farmer as he takes his tenth annual Farm Tour 2018 to six cities this fall setting up stages in the fields of local farms from Ohio to Florida. Joining Luke as guests this year are Chase Rice, Jon Langston, the Peach Pickers and DJ Rock. 

    Over 100,000 fans have attended the tour each year since its inception in 2009. Luke will continue giving back to the farmers by awarding college scholarships to students from farming families who are attending the local college or university near the tour stops. To date, more than 50 scholarships have been granted.

    Tickets for the “Bayer Presents Luke Bryan Farm Tour 2018” are on sale now at www.lukebryan.com/FarmTour, through Luke’s official App and for Citi® cardmembers at www.CitiPrivatePass.com.

    Sept 27            Irwin, OH                    Ayars Family Farm

    Sept. 28           Pesotum, IL                 Atkins Farm

    Sept. 29           Boone, IA                    Ziel Farm

    Oct. 4               Archer, FL                   Whitehurst Cattle Company

    Oct. 5               North Augusta, SC       Misty Morning Farms

    Oct. 6               Ringgold, GA               Doug Yates Farms

    Listen to Luke’s Farm Tour playlist HERE

    Bayer continues their #HeresToTheFarmer campaign. For every share, Bayer will donate a meal to someone in need through Feeding America®.  In years past nearly 2 million meals have been donated and $140,000 went to area food banks and local farmers in each of the tour cities. Visit HeresToTheFarmer.com to learn more.

    The tour is sponsored by Bayer, Chevrolet, Cabela’s, Can-Am®, Citi®, CID, Monster Energy and Verizon.

    Luke Bryan has once again partnered with CID Entertainment to offer Harvest Time VIP Experiences throughout the 2018 Farm Tour. VIP Experiences include a Farm Tour ticket, VIP viewing area access, private restrooms, and merchandise gifts. To view Luke Bryan Farm Tour VIP Experience details, please visit https://www.cidentertainment.com/events/luke-bryan-farm-tour.

    About Luke Bryan
    Luke is a two-time Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year, a five-time host of the ACM Awards, a NSAI Artist/Songwriter of the Year and was named a CMT Artist of the Year six consecutive years. Luke has more certified digital singles than any other country artist with 40 million tracks and 12 million albums with three Billion music streams and he was the most-streamed country artist from 2012 to 2016. Luke has placed 20 singles at #1, 11 of which he co-wrote, and has headlined arena tours and sold-out stadiums across the U.S. performing for 1.5 Million fans in 2017 alone.  Luke’s “What Makes You Country Tour,” named the 2018 Billboard Music Awards Top Country Tour, will run through the end of October with 40+ concerts and boasting 13 stadiums shows. Luke recently opened Nashville’s only six-floor entertainment facility in the heart of Music City, LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK. In 2019 Luke, along with Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, will return to the judges table for a second season on ABC’s American Idol.

    Visit www.LukeBryan.com or follow Luke on Twitter @LukeBryanOnline, Instagram and Facebook

    Audio / Luke Bryan says he's made a lot of memories over the past nine years of his Farm Tour...and No. 10 will prove more of the same.

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    Luke Bryan (Farm Tour 2018) 1 OC: …country music. :17
    “It’s our 10th anniversary of the Farm Tour. We’ve been able to have a lot of amazing memories and we’ve been able to give some scholarships to kids through the Farm Tour. You know, there’s nothing better than watching 15, 20,000 people in a hayfield have fun and listen to country music.”

    Audio / LUKE BRYAN SAYS HE LOVES GIVING SCHOLARSHIPS TO COLLEGE STUDENTS INTERESTED IN FARMING AND AGRICULTURE.

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    Luke Bryan (education on farming) OC: …roots. :34
    “Anytime we can take a step to help facilitate dreams and agriculture and be smarter in how the food’s being made and being safer and stuff like that, the awareness of that can never be undermined….If I can educate some people on it and that can be my platform, I think I’ll always, the farmers out there and the people in that world will appreciate and they’ll know I’ve kinda stayed true to my roots.”

  • LUKE BRYAN SET TO OPEN LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK BAR, NASHVILLE’S ONLY SIX-FLOOR ENTERTAINMENT FACILITY, IN THE HEART OF MUSIC CITY.

    Press
    Luke Bryan

    Luke Bryan is set to open Nashville’s only six-floor entertainment facility in the heart of Music City, LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK. The must-see hot spot is located in Nashville’s most sought after zip code with a prime location in the downtown district on the corner of 301 Broadway at 3rd Avenue. The 30,000 square foot building features six levels of entertainment space with eight bars, including Broadway’s only multi-level rooftop bars with sushi menu, four stages of live music and two restaurants. The name, LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK, was inspired by Luke’s childhood home near Route 32 Bridge in Lee County, Georgia and is housed in Nashville’s iconic American National Bank Building. The facility, in partnership with TC Restaurant Group, is scheduled to open this month.

    “When I first moved to Nashville I played several of the bars on the ionic Broadway Street,” shared Luke. “I never would have dreamt that I would one day be a part of a place that could offer the same dream to others. Because of Music City and the fans all across the country, the reality of this amazing venue has become possible.”

    Visitors to LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK will enjoy an aw-inspiring view from the multi-level rooftop that features Nashville’s only rooftop Sushi Bar with Chef Nick Phrommala. Chef Tomasz Wosiak helms the LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK signature restaurant where he has created a menu inspired by some of Luke’s favorites with special twists on Southern and American cuisine. Take your pick from hearty favorites Hometown Pulled Pork with Kettle BBQ chips, Black & Blue Salmon Salad, Nashville Hot Chicken to Luke’s Elk Burger with Red Dragon Cheese. Burger fans are set-to-go with the Farmers Burger, featuring locally-sourced, all natural beef with over easy egg, maple bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion and signature sauce. Other go-to dishes are Beet Mixed Green Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette & hand-tossed oven-baked margarita and pepperoni pizza work to fill out a world-class menu.

    LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK will offer one-of-a-kind drinks including some of Luke’s personal choices like “Backstage”- vodka, grapefruit, with or without salt; “Play It Again”- cherries, vanilla bourbon, lemon juice, sugar and “Luke’s Old Fashioned”- muddled cherries & oranges, cubed sugar & bitters, ice, whiskey & water- plus more.

    Go to www.lukes32bridge.com to learn more about LUKE’S 32 BRIDGE FOOD + DRINK.

    Luke is making his way up the country charts with his latest song, “Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset.”

    About Luke Bryan

    Luke is a two-time Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year, a five-time host of the ACM Awards, a NSAI Artist/Songwriter of the Year and he was named a CMT Artist of the Year six consecutive years. Luke has more certified digital singles than any other country artist with 40 million tracks and 12 million albums with three Billion music streams and he was the most-streamed country artist from 2012 to 2016. Luke has placed 20 singles at #1, 11 of which he co-wrote, and has headlined arena tours and sold-out stadiums across the U.S. performing for 1.5 Million fans in 2017 alone. This year, Luke’s “What Makes You Country Tour,” named Billboard Music Awards Top Country Tour, will run through the end of October with 40+ concerts and boasting 13 stadiums shows. And recently announced, Luke, along with Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, will return to the judges table for a second season on ABC’s American Idol.

    Visit www.LukeBryan.com or follow Luke on Twitter @LukeBryanOnline, Instagram and Facebook

  • LUKE BRYAN HEADLINES SOLD-OUT CONCERT AT DODGER STADIUM.

    Press
    Luke Bryan

    Nashville – July 29, 2018 – Four-time Entertainer of the Year Luke Bryan lit up the sky over Los Angeles Saturday night when he SOLD-OUT Dodger Stadium and became the first-ever country music artist to headline there. This was Luke’s eighth stadium show out of 13 planned on his “What Makes You Country Tour XL Stadium Sized.”

    “Stadiums are a lot of work,” Luke shared with Billboard magazine before the Dodger Stadium show. “You’ve gotta try to make 50,000 people feel like [they’re in] an intimate setting and an intimate environment. When you’re playing a 15,000-seat amphitheater, everybody’s right in front of you. When I get done with a stadium, I feel like I ran a marathon. There’s no just getting up there and nonchalantly making a stadium show happen. You gotta work hard at it.”

    Echoing Luke’s sentiment about working hard and reaching the large crowd, the Los Angeles Times said, “Even on the world’s biggest stages, a man alone with an acoustic guitar can still speak with special force.”

     

    Backstage before the concert, BMI presented Luke with eight ‘Million Air Awards’ for his radio airplay. The Million-Air Award is given to songwriters, composers, and publishers whose songs accumulate over one million U.S. broadcast performances. Luke was awarded for “Move” (1 million), “Fast” (1 million), “Huntin’, Fishin’ and Lovin’ Every Day” (1 million), “I See You” (2 Million), “Someone Else Calling You Baby” (2 million), “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye” (2 million) “This Is How We Roll” (2 million) and “Good Directions” (4 million- Luke wrote this #1 hit for Billy Currington). The combined airplay total on these singles is 15 million equaling 85 years of continuous play!

    The “What Makes You Country Tour” plays in Arkansas and Nebraska this week then Luke heads to Denver to perform at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on Saturday, August 4th. Luke first headlined this stadium in 2015 and in 2016 he played back to back stadium dates in Denver’s Dick’s Sporting Good Park.

    “WHAT MAKES YOU COUNTRY TOUR XL STADIUM SIZED”

    8/4/2018          Denver, CO                   Sports Authority Field at Mile High
    8/25/2018        St. Louis, MO                Busch Stadium
    9/1/2018          Chicago, IL                   Wrigley Field

    10/13/2018      Vancouver, BC               BC Place Stadium

    10/26/2018      Detroit, MI                     Ford Field

     

    For all additional tour dates, schedule and tickets go to www.lukebryan.com

  • LUKE BRYAN PLAYS FOUR CONSECUTIVE WEEKENDS OF STADIUM SHOWS.

    Press
    Luke Bryan

    Luke Bryan wrapped up four consecutive weeks of stadium concerts rounding home this weekend as he performed his first concert in Boston’s iconic Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox. Luke was last in Boston when he played back-to-back shows in Gillette Stadium in 2016.

    SAMSUNG CSC

    SAMSUNG CSC

    Watch highlights from Fenway Park HERE

    Over these weeks Luke has made headlines for being ‘a consistent draw to Bryan’s music is its relatability.’ His ‘playful side comes out effortlessly’ as he ‘gets the joy out of movement, these sporadic, un-choreographed bursts of motion.’ The Boston Globe claimed, “Bryan’s verve felt boundless. Even the fireworks that opened and closed his set seemed to burst with less kinetic energy than the singer himself.” They recapped their concert review with reference to Luke’s 20th #1 single and the 2018 Music Row Song of The Year “Most People Are Good”- “To hear tens of thousands belt in unison that ‘this world ain’t half as bad as it looks,’ that somehow ‘most people are good,’ felt cloying and spectacular, an impossible and sublime distillation of our collective capacity for optimism. After all, this is America. And maybe that’s country.”

    The Georgia native has been climbing the country charts with his latest smash, “Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset.”

    For additional dates and information on the “What Makes You Country Tour” go to www.lukebryan.com

    Video /

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  • THE VIDEO FOR LUKE BRYAN’S LATEST HIT, “SUNRISE, SUNBURN, SUNSET,” IS RELEASED TODAY.

    Luke Bryan

    Last weekend, Luke Bryan gave his fans at Target Stadium in Minneapolis a sneak peek of his video for his latest song, “Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset,” from his What Makes You Country album. The video premiered everywhere this morning (July 26th). Check it out below.

    In the meantime, Luke will be performing the song live in concert. He takes his What Makes You Country XL Stadium Tour to Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Saturday. He’s the first country artist to play a show in the famed ballpark, and the show will also feature performances from Sam Hunt, Jon Pardi and Morgan Wallen.

    In other news, Luke had a couple of days off to spend with his family, and at one point they’re in the car going somewhere, and the vehicle Luke is driving…runs out of gas. Real life ensues for the superstar, including glares from his wife Caroline and the two youngest boys — Bo and Tate — start arguing.

    Daily life. Me and @linabryan3.

    A post shared by Luke Bryan Official (@lukebryan) on

     

    Video / Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset video

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  • THE SKY’S THE LIMIT FOR LUKE BRYAN AS THE FIRST COUNTRY ARTIST TO HEADLINE DODGER STADIUM.

    Press
    Luke Bryan

    The ‘sky is the limit’ for four-time Entertainer of the Year Luke Bryan as he becomes the first country music artist to headline Dodger Stadium when he brings his “What Makes You Country Tour XL Stadium Sized” to Los Angeles this Saturday, July 28. Luke has previously played many LA venues including the Hollywood Bowl, Staples Center, The Forum, Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre and Glen Helen Amphitheater. This past weekend Luke played for 40,000 fans in Minneapolis’ Target Field where he debuted his new video for “Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset.”

    In Los Angeles, Luke is teaming up with The Night Sky to offer a unique and personal keepsake from the Dodger Stadium show. Fans attending the concert can text to receive an exclusive digital poster of the night sky over the stadium. Every fan that texts will receive a digital Night Sky poster that is co-branded with the tour date + The Night Sky. The image can be saved and posted to their socials and kept as a personal memento and each fan that participates will be automatically entered to receive a seat upgrade at the Dodger Stadium concert.

     

    “WHAT MAKES YOU COUNTRY TOUR XL STADIUM SIZED”

    7/28/2018        Los Angeles, CA                    Dodger Stadium
    8/4/2018          Denver, CO                             Sports Authority Field at Mile High
    8/25/2018        St. Louis, MO                         Busch Stadium
    9/1/2018          Chicago, IL                             Wrigley Field

    10/13/2018      Vancouver, BC                       BC Place Stadium

    10/26/2018      Detroit, MI                              Ford Field

     

    Additional tour dates, schedule and tickets go to www.lukebryan.com.

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Chris, Kacey, Keith, Luke

    Press
    Chris Stapleton / Kacey Musgraves / Keith Urban / Luke Bryan

    Chris Stapleton and Kacey Musgraves have been added to the lineup for this year’s Farm Aid. The 33rd annual event will also feature performances by the Farm AID board of directors Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Neil Young and Dave Matthews as well as Sturgill Simpson and Margo Price. Tickets for this year’s event, taking place September 22nd at the Xfinity Theatre in Hartford, Connecticut, go on sale Friday (June 29th) at 10am ET.

    Keith Urban performs on NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday night (June 26th). Shaquille O’Neal and Jenna Dewan will also appear on the show, which airs at 11:35a ET.

    Luke Bryan will reunite with his American Idol co-star on ABC’s Live With Kelly and Ryan on Wednesday (June 27th). Adam Sandler (The Wedding Singer, Grown Ups, The Waterboy, Happy Gilmore) and Winston Duke (Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War) are also scheduled guests on the show.

  • DARIUS RUCKER DECIDED TO RECORD ‘STRAIGHT TO HELL’ AFTER SPENDING SOME HANG TIME WITH LADY A’S CHARLES KELLEY.

    Audio
    Charles Kelley / Darius Rucker / Luke Bryan

    Darius Rucker has released his new single, “Straight to Hell,” a remake of the 1989 Drivin’ ‘N Cryin’ hit, featuring his famous friends Luke Bryan, Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum and Jason Aldean. Darius recorded the favorite bar singalong once Charles talked him into it, and he enlisted even more star power once he decided to take it into the studio when working on his new album, When Was the Last Time.

    “It came out in ’89 when I was just playing clubs with Hootie [& the Blowfish]. It was a big song to us. It was a big song to everybody around us. It was a big Southern song, and I always thought it was a country song,” says Darius from the set of the video for “Straight to Hell.”

    “I wanted to cut it and Charles told me I should cut it one day, and I just started calling my friends. I called Charles. I called Jason. I called Luke, and I said, ‘Hey man, I’m doing this song.’ They all loved the song, and we got to do a video for it.”

    “It was funny. We were sitting around one night — ‘cause we hang out all the time, we play a lot of golf — we were drinking and listening to Drivin’ ‘N Cryin’ and ‘Straight to Hell’ came on and I was like, ‘Dude, you could do ‘Straight to Hell,’ recalls Charles. “I was like, man, it kind of reminded me a little bit kind of the phenomenon of ‘Wagon Wheel,’ how big that song is. We had the crazy idea of like, ‘Dude you should do this.’ And he goes, ‘If I’m gonna sing it, you’ve got to be on it.’ And so the next thing you know, we start talking and he goes, ‘We need some other people.’ Literally, I think he reached out to Luke, and the next thing you know – I can’t remember how it all happened – but I think Jason was like, ‘Why didn’t you call me and ask me?’ And so all of a sudden, we have this little foursome, The Troublemakers as Darius likes to call it.”

    Darius will kick off his co-headline Summer Plays On Tour with Lady Antebellum July 19th in Toronto, Ontario.

    Audio / On the set of the video for “Straight to Hell,” Darius Rucker explains how the collaboration all came together.

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    Darius Rucker (STH) OC: …great day. :30
    “This is an old Drivin’ ‘N Cryin’ song. It came out in ’89 when I was just playing clubs with Hootie [& the Blowfish]. It was a big song to us. It was a big song to everybody around us. It was a big Southern song, and I always thought it was a country song. Drivin’ ‘N Cryin’ is a big rock band, and I always thought it was a country song. I wanted to cut it and Charles told me I should cut it one day, and I just started calling my friends. I called Charles. I called Jason. I called Luke, and I said, ‘Hey man, I’m doing this song.’ They all loved the song, and we got to do a video for it. This is really cool, man. It’s been a great day.”

    Audio / On the set of the video for “Straight to Hell,” Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum talks about how The Troublemakers got together for the song.

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    Charles Kelley (STH idea) OC: …call it. :58
    “It was funny. We were sitting around one night — ‘cause we hang out all the time, we play a lot of golf — we were drinking and listening to Drivin’ ‘N Cryin’ and ‘Straight to Hell’ came on and I was like, ‘Dude, you could do ‘Straight to Hell.’ I said, ‘It’s one of those songs that was such a big regional hit, kind of in the Southeast, you know. I went to the University of Georgia, and it was a huge bar band, cover band type of song. But like people like my wife, who went to Arizona State, never had heard of the song. I was like, man, it kind of reminded me a little bit kind of the phenomenon of ‘Wagon Wheel,’ how big that song is. We had the crazy idea of like, ‘Dude you should do this.’ And he goes, ‘If I’m gonna sing it, you’ve got to be on it.’ And so the next thing you know, we start talking and he goes, ‘We need some other people.’ Literally, I think he reached out to Luke, and the next thing you know – I can’t remember how it all happened – but I think Jason was like, ‘Why didn’t you call me and ask me?’ And so all of a sudden, we have this little foursome, The Troublemakers as Darius likes to call it.”

    Audio / On the set of the video for “Straight to Hell,” Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum says it’s “fitting” that the four of them finally do a song together.

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    Charles Kelley (STH idea) 2 OC: …together. :13
    “You know, we kinda started this whole thing. It’s really fun. I hope it leads to something else too. We’ve been laughing…we’ve been such close friends, the four of us, for so many years that I think it’s only fitting that we finally do a song together.”

    Audio / On the set of the video for “Straight to Hell,” Luke Bryan talks about taking part in the vocal collaboration with Darius Rucker, Jason Aldean and Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley.

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    Luke Bryan (STH idea) OC: …and Charles. :16
    “Darius called me up and asked me to be a part of this song. When I was in college, I’m Going ‘Straight to Hell’ was one of the biggest college anthems that there was, and I was honored to be a part of this with Darius and Jason and Charles.”

    Audio / LINER Darius Rucker (Straight to Hell) 1 1

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    Audio / LINER Darius Rucker (Straight to Hell) 2

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    Audio / LINER Darius Rucker (Straight to Hell) 3

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    Video / Straight to Hell video

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  • FOURTH OF JULY 2018 SOUNDBITES

    Audio
    Alan Jackson / Billy Currington / Brandon Lay / Carrie Underwood / Clare Dunn / Darius Rucker / Dierks Bentley / Eric Church / Jordan Davis / Josh Turner / Keith Urban / Lady Antebellum / Little Big Town / Luke Bryan / Maddie & Tae / Sam Hunt / Travis Denning

    Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4th, 1776, declaring independence from Great Britain. The holiday is commonly associated with fireworks displays, parades, barbecues and concerts. Some of your favorite country stars take time to remember their Fourth of July traditions, memories and what the holiday really means to them.

    Several artists will perform during Independence Day celebrations. Keith Urban will take part in the annual Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular, along  with Blake Shelton, Kelly Clarkson and Ricky Martin, which will be broadcast July 4th at 8pm ET on NBC.

    Carrie Underwood will headline the Fourth of July Hot Country Live event, launching Spotify’s new live concert series based on the streaming services Hot Country Playlist. It will take place at the Seaport’s Rooftop at Pier 17 concert venue.

    Lady Antebellum will headline the free July 4th concert in downtown Nashville. The “Let Freedom Sing” concert event will also feature performances by Chris Janson and Lucie Silvas. Following the show, there will be a 30-minute fireworks show, which is touted as one of the biggest in the country and will be synchronized to a live performance from the Nashville Symphony.

    Lauren Alaina will perform during A Capitol Fourth, an annual Independence Day special on PBS. Luke Combs will also perform. A Capitol Fourth, hosted by John Stamos, will air live from the West Lawn of the White House on July 4th at 8pm ET on PBS.

    Audio / Alan Jackson recalls one of the coolest Fourth of July memories he’s ever enjoyed.

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    AJ (fave 4th of July memory) OC: …very cool. :58
    Well, this one is hard to beat. A couple of years ago, maybe longer than that now, I had an old boat in Florida. It’s like an old antique motor yacht, and it was kind of a cool old boat. I had taken that boat, I’ve always wanted to take it up north like to New York and up in that area, up in the northeast where it’s so pretty. So, we took the boat up there and Denise and the girls, we all went up. They like going to New York City, which I don’t really care about going to the city. So, I got to stay in my boat there at the harbor tied up, which was cool anyway. So they spent time in the city a few days and then that was Fourth of July, and we went out in the Hudson River that night and they shot the fireworks off and we were anchored out in front of the Statue of Liberty and New York City was behind us, and the Statue of Liberty and the fireworks were going off sitting on that boat. That was the coolest thing and my girls still talk about that. I mean, that was the coolest thing on Fourth of July I can ever remember. I can’t top that one probably. It was emotional sitting there watching the Statue of Liberty and thinking about all that. It was very cool.”

     

    Audio / Billy Currington talks about his favorite Fourth of July memories.

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    Billy Currington (4th of July) OC: …of my life. :16
    “My best memories would be hanging out with my mom, brother and sister on the beach on Tybee Island right off the coast of Savannah, Georgia. We’d go there every year, and we’d light our own fireworks and watch the ones that they had for us. They were the best times, some of the best times of my life.”

    Audio / Brandon Lay talks about his memories of the Fourth of July growing up in Jackson, Tennessee.

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    Brandon Lay (Fourth of July) OC: …good times. :47
    “I remember everybody hanging out at my grandmother’s and we would drive down the road to a fireworks stand off the side of Highway 45 out there in Jackson [Tennessee]. Just getting the bottle rockets and Black Cats and bringing ‘em back to the house, it felt like it was an eternity before it got dark. We just kept wanting to light ‘em and our parents would tell us it ain’t time, but just how exhilarating it was to see ‘em shoot up. We’re not talking big time fireworks here, but you would’ve thought that it was. It’s funny just how you remember things, but I just remember a screen door at my grandmother’s, running in and out, in and out, in and out and four wild little cousins running around. It was good times.”

     

    Audio / Clare Dunn and her family are usually in the midst of harvesting their crops during the Fourth of July holiday, but she says it's one of her favorite memories growing up since that was when they were all together as a family.

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    Clare Dunn (Fourth of July) OC: …with your family. 1:12
    “Fourth of July is probably one of the biggest memories for me, because it’s always during harvest time. And harvest time, being a farmer, is your most important time of the year. It’s always nine-o. It’s always busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, but we always go into town, depending on what field we’re at. A lot of my memories are South Grenada, Colorado, we farm just south of that town, and we go into town and get Mexican food, a great Mexican food place called Shorty’s, and we get tostados and enchiladas and we take them back out to the field. And everybody stops for a second and we eat on the hoods or the tailgates of pickups, and we’re just all out there in the field taking a brief moment to eat dinner and then get back to cutting. And if you’re lucky you’ll see some fireworks from town. Those are some of my favorite memories growing up because you’re all out there working. You’re together, and it’s just the moment of pride, of getting the harvest in and getting to be with your family.”

    Audio / Darius Rucker enjoys setting off fireworks.

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    Darius Rucker (fireworks) OC: …off once. :15
    “Oh, I love fireworks. We had the bottle rocket fights and all that good stuff. I was the typical little crazy kid, you know. In South Carolina, it was always legal, so we shot fireworks when it was legal. We did all that sort of stuff. I almost blew my hand off once.”

    Audio / Dierks Bentley says the people of this country are what define America.

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    Dierks (people are America) OC: …all about. :17
    “The definition of America to me, you know, getting a chance to travel across the country on a tour bus, stepping upon stages whether it be county fairs, state fairs, arenas, rock bars, the Opry stage, anywhere across the country and looking out at that crowd and seeing people. The people, to me, are what America’s all about.”

    Audio / Eric Church recalls his family activities on the Fourth of July holiday.

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    Eric Church (4th of July) OC: …freedoms. 1:17
    “The Fourth of July for me, growing up we would always go to the lake, we didn’t live on the lake but we would all go to the lake. Had a buddy who had a pontoon and we would always get on the pontoon and you go out and you’d tie all the pontoons together and just have a big time. This was before, I was younger then, the adults were having more fun than we were, you know it was just to go swim in the water and shoot off fireworks. Basically, water tailgating is what it was. And then as we got older, same thing…we would just, us younger kids had our own boat and we had as much fun as the adults.”

    Audio / Jordan Davis talks about some of his favorite childhood Fourth of July memories.

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    Jordan Davis (Fourth of July) 2 OC: …really cool. :17
    “Probably baseball games, firework shows at baseball games. We’d go to Shreveport Captains games, so yeah, we’d do that or barbecues and fireworks. I can remember being on the lake for a couple of Fourth of Julys. We’d take the boat out and we’d watch the downtown fireworks show from the boat, which was really cool.”

    Audio / Josh Turner, who will perform in Demorest, Georgia on Independence Day, talks about the fireworks “wars” his family would have when he was growing up.

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    Josh Turner (fireworks) OC: …of money. [laughs] :20
    “Yeah, we had fireworks around, especially my Daddy’s family. All the individual families had a lot of competition with each other and tried to outdo each other to try to see who had the biggest and baddest fireworks and all that. [laughs] My daddy, I think, was the smartest one. He just went out and bought maybe $25 worth of fireworks and let everybody else put on the big show, so he saved a lot of money.” [laughs]

    Audio / Keith Urban recalls coming over to America for the first time.

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    Keith Urban (coming to America 1st time) OC: …as I could. :39
    “1989 was the first year I came to the States, and it had always been my goal, but I had no plan on how to get here. It was just a case of keep playing, keep getting better at what you do, and then hopefully, somehow, some way I’ll end up over here. The guy who was managing me at the time, we just planned a trip over here – it was actually for the New Music Seminar in New York. And we came over for that, and then we did a trip down to Nashville, and I was shopping my little demo around. I think I humored everybody more than anything else [laughs] with my tragic, ill-fitting demo for the time. So, I left there, but I was just so committed to coming back as quick as I could.”

    Audio / Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott talks about her favorite Fourth of July memories.

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    Lady A (4th of July-Hillary) OC: …on my hand. :29
    “For many, many years in a row, we would be up at the lake for Fourth of July, and having those memories of being on the boat and going tubing and skiing and enjoying being out in the summertime, great weather on the water. But, then for me, Fourth of July was when [husband] Chris [Tyrell] proposed. So, I got proposed to on July 2nd up at the lake, the same lake I grew up going to, and so that’s probably the biggest highlight of Fourth of July to me – getting a rock on my hand.”

    Audio / Every year, Lady Antebellum’s Dave Haywood celebrates his birthday along with America’s big day.

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    Lady A (Fourth of July-Dave) OC: …and America. :45
    “July fourth is always, for me, my birthday week. My birthday is July 5th so we grew up going on family trips to the beach. We would always go to Hilton Head, South Carolina and always take trips for my birthday, so that’s always a fun time of the year…watch fireworks. I think my best memory would be my birthday party when I was 9 or 10 years old. We went to the batting cages and I remember I was swinging so hard, it was 100 degrees outside, I was swinging in the batting cage and ended up passing out right there in the batting cage. You’re trying so hard to hit the ball, you’re a kid and you really don’t realize how much water you should be drinking and [CHARLES: “Dave was that kid.”] I was that kid who was on the ground in the batting cage, people fanning and pouring water all over my face. Happy Birthday to me and America.”

    Audio / Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild talks about the big sacrifices the military AND their families make to keep this country free.

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    LBT (military) OC: (Karen) …whenever we can. (Kimberly: “Yeah.”) :22
    “It’s such a huge sacrifice what these men and women do for us, and not only the ones that are serving, but the families that are left here at home. I mean, it’s just a huge commitment that they make, and what an honor. We love to be able to sing for them and entertain them and to say thank you whenever we can.” (Kimberly: “Yeah.”)

    Audio / Luke Bryan recalls one of his favorite Fourth of July memories.

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    Luke Bryan (4th of July memories) OC: …we used to. :21
    “Some of my favorite Fourth of July memories were spent on Lake Blackshear down in Georgia with my family. I was always kind of in charge of driving home from Tennessee and picking up all the fireworks and my nieces and nephews always got excited when I rolled in because they knew I had all the fireworks. But, it was always a great memory, and I miss not getting to do that as much as we used to.”

    Audio / Maddie & Tae talk about their Fourth of July traditions.

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    Maddie & Tae (Fourth of July) OC: …it’s perfect. :29
    TAE: “One of my favorite Fourth of July traditions – I’d say it’s a tradition ‘cause it happens every year, but I’m not always able to make it – is that we go to my grandparents in Oklahoma, and we all line up lawn chairs right in front of their garage and we just light fireworks. We always do it far away and then we light it, and we always run back and watch the fireworks, but that’s probably one of my favorite memories.” MADDIE: “My birthday is July 7th, so I always get built-in fireworks for my birthday, and sometimes we actually celebrate it on the 4th, because there’s fireworks everywhere, so it’s perfect.”

    Audio / Sam Hunt talks about what he and his family did over the Fourth of July holiday when he was growing up in Georgia.

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    Sam Hunt (Fourth of July) OC: …good time. :39
    “My granddad on the other side of my family, he would always take a lot of pride…fireworks were actually, I’m from Georgia, and most of them were illegal, I’m pretty sure, growing up. But over in Alabama, that’s where all the firework stands were, and we only had to drive 10, 15 minutes to get to the Alabama line, so we could go get a bundle of fireworks pretty easy. But he would always take a lot of pride in going and finding all the good stuff, and coming back with a  big pile. He’d have his torch out there at the end of the driveway and we’d all eat homemade ice cream and put down towels on the driveway and he’d shoot off fireworks for 30-45 minutes. Such a good time.”

    Audio / Travis Denning talks about the Fourth of July events his hometown of Warner Robins, Georgia would throw every year.

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    Travis Denning (Fourth of July) OC: …will love. :51
    “Fourth of July in Warner Robins, Georgia is an event. It’s something else. In fact, forever they’ve thrown an Independence Day concert, and back in the day, it was huge. It was the biggest thing they did all year. They would actually have the concert in the MAC (McConnell-Talbert Stadium), which was the high school football stadium that Warner Robins and Northside and Houston County shared. I mean, one year they had Wynonna play and then they had Josh Turner one year, Darius Rucker. I mean it was like a big deal, and there’d be 15,000, 20,000 people there, and I think it’s so cool that there’s a little bit of a legacy of people coming together in that town and making something happen, you know? I’ll never forget going to those shows and thinking, I was more proud of what the city had done. I was like, ‘That’s just so cool that they could put together a show like this, an event that everybody will love.”