• NEWS AND NOTES: Darius, Sam, Strait, Lady A, Luke

    Darius Rucker appears on the Ellen DeGeneres Show on Tuesday (April 7th) to perform his recent No. 1 hit, “Homegrown Honey.”

    Darius Rucker and Sam Hunt are expected to perform at the 11th Annual Drive for Show, Rock Fore! Dough in Evans, Georgia on Tuesday (April 7th) before the Masters. Proceeds from the show benefit The First Tee of August, which provides young people of all ethnic and economic backgrounds an opportunity to develop, through golf and character education, life-enhancing values such as honesty, integrity and sportsmanship.

    George Strait released his new single, “Let It Go,” on Monday (April 6th). He wrote the song with his son, Bubba Strait, and Keith Gattis.

    Lady Antebellum will perform, along with Kris Kristofferson and Jason Isbell, on Skyville Live Tuesday night (April 7th) at 8pm ET. The show will be streamed exclusively online at skyvillelive.com.

    Lady Antebellum have re-launched their successful 7FOR7 campaign, in which they surprised seven different people by granting their wishes.  This time, seven lucky fans will have their mortgage paid for a year by Quicken Loans, plus they’ll win a trip to a future Lady Antebellum concert and a chance to meet the band.  You have a chance to win through August 20th.

    Luke Bryan not only returns as co-host of the ACM Awards, but he will also once again captain a team to compete against Justin Moore and his group in the 2015 ACM & Cabela’s Great Outdoor Archery Tournament, taking place Saturday, April 18th at the Texas Rangers Youth Ballpark in Arlington, Texas. Dustin Lynch, Tyler Farr and Willie and Jep Robertson (Duck Dynasty) are among the members of Luke’s Team, while Justin’s Team will feature Eric Paslay, Brantley Gilbert, Chase Rice and Jamie Lynn Spears.

  • ERIC, ALAN, KEITH, KIP, LADY A ADDED TO THIS YEAR’S ACM PARTY FOR A CAUSE FESTIVAL.

    Eric Church, Alan Jackson, Kip Moore, Keith Urban and Lady Antebellum are a few of the latest performers announced for the 3rd Annual ACM Party for a Cause Festival, taking place in Arlington, Texas April 17th and 18th. They’re joined by John Anderson, Deana Carter, Brandy Clark, Brett Eldredge, Sara Evans, Brantley Gilbert, Hunter Hayes, Ashley Monroe, David Lee Murphy, Joe Nichols, Jake Owen, Reba, Marty Stuart, Cole Swindell, Brooks & Dunn and The Band Perry.

    Previously announced performers include Darius Rucker, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt, Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Patty Loveless, Ronnie Milsap, Dwight Yoakam, Alabama, Eli Young Band Clint Black and Florida Georgia Line.

    The event will be taped for a two hour special, ACM Presents: Superstar Duets, which will air May 15th on the CBS. Proceeds from ticket sales for the ACM Party for a Cause Festival will benefit ACM Lifting Lives, the charitable arm of the Academy.

     

  • NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL ACM AWARDS 50 YEARS IS AVAILABLE TUESDAY.

    NASHVILLE, TN (March 10, 2015) – NOW That’s What I Call ACM Awards 50 Years, the milestone anniversary collaboration between the Academy of Country Music and NOW That’s What I Call Music!, is released Tuesday, March 31st.

    The collection of recordings celebrate the ACM Awards’ 50-year history and will feature 2 discs as well as a digital collection of ACM award-winning songs. The first disc will feature recent contemporary hits while the second will include timeless classics.

    The complete track listing for NOW That’s What I Call ACM Awards 50 Years includes:

    DISC ONE (1990-2015)

    1. Jason Aldean (with Luke Bryan & Eric Church) The Only Way I Know 2012
    2. Lee Brice I Drive Your Truck 2012
    3. Luke Bryan Country Girl (Shake It For Me) 2011
    4. Blake Shelton Honey Bee 2011
    5. Taylor Swift Mean 2010
    6. Lady Antebellum Need You Now 2010
    7. Miranda Lambert The House That Built Me 2009
    8. Brad Paisley & Keith Urban Start A Band 2008
    9. Reba & Kelly Clarkson Because of You 2007 
    10. George Strait Give It Away 2006
    11. Carrie Underwood Jesus, Take the Wheel 2005
    12. Tim McGraw Live Like You Were Dying 2004
    13. Kenny Chesney The Good Stuff 2002
    14. Lee Ann Womack I Hope You Dance 2000
    15. Faith Hill This Kiss 1998
    16. Alan Jackson Chattahoochee 1993
    17. Brooks & Dunn Boot Scootin’ Boogie 1991

    DISC TWO (1965-1989)

    1. Clint Black Better Man 1989
    2. Hank Williams Jr. There’s a Tear in My Beer 1989
    3. Randy Travis Forever and Ever Amen 1987
    4. The Highwaymen Highwayman 1985
    5. The Judds Why Not Me 1984
    6. Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers Islands in the Stream 1983
    7. Willie Nelson Always on My Mind 1982
    8. Alabama Love in the First Degree 1981
    9. The Oak Ridge Boys Elvira 1981
    10. David Frizzell & Shelly West You’re the Reason God Made Oklahoma 1980
    11. George Jones He Stopped Loving Her Today 1980
    12. Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Bros. All the Gold in California 1979
    13. Don Williams Tulsa Time 1978
    14. Glen Campbell Rhinestone Cowboy 1975
    15. Charlie Rich Behind Closed Doors 1973
    16. Loretta Lynn & Conway Twitty Lead Me On 1971
    17. Merle Haggard Okie From Muskogee 1969

    The album will be released on March 31st, just in time for the 50th Academy of Country Music Awards broadcast LIVE on Sunday, April 19th at 8:00pm ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network. All of the Academy’s proceeds from sales of the album will go to ACM Lifting Lives, the philanthropic arm of the Academy of Country Music, dedicated to improving lives through the power of music.

    NOW That’s What I Call ACM Awards 50 Years is a collaboration between Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and the Academy of Country Music, and the album will be distributed by Universal Music Group Distribution. The NOW That’s What I Call Music! series is a joint venture from Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment.  NOW and NOW That’s What I Call Music!are registered trademarks of Universal Music Group and its affiliates.

    NOW That’s What I Call Music! debuted in the U.S. in 1998, following 15 years of multi-platinum international success. The series has generated sales exceeding 250 million albums worldwide, including more than 94 million in the U.S.  All 53 volumes in NOW’s numeric U.S. series have charted in the top 10 of Billboard’s Album Chart, 19 of which have reached #1.

    The 50th Academy of Country Music Awards is dedicated to honoring and showcasing the biggest names and emerging talent in the country music industry.  The show is produced for television by dick clark productions and will broadcast LIVE from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX on Sunday, April 19, 2015 at 8:00 PM live ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, R.A. Clark and Barry Adelman are executive producers.  Bob Romeo is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music.

    ACM Lifting Lives® is the philanthropic arm of the Academy of Country Music dedicated to improving lives through the power of music.  Through partnerships with artists and strong ties in the music industry, ACM Lifting Lives develops and funds music-related therapy and education programs, and serves members of the community who face unexpected hardships through its Diane Holcomb Emergency Relief Fund. Through generous donations and the support of artists and fans, ACM Lifting Lives is able to fund everything from disaster relief and helping communities in need, to music education in schools and music camps for those with disabilities, to supporting programs that use music therapy as a means to help our veterans and wounded warriors, while providing grants to help them ease back into life. For more information, please visit www.ACMLiftingLives.org.

    Audio / Luke Bryan explains what he loves about his song, “Country Girl (Shake It For Me).”

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    Luke Bryan (loves Country Girl) OC: …tiresome work. :33
    “What I love about the song the most is the verses. I really like how the verses came together. It seems like around every little corner there’s a fun, you know, with the little break-down dance – ‘like a dandelion’ and all that. All that stuff is like ear candy to me. I just felt like it was important, I felt like it was a young, fun song, and I felt like it said right away what we were going after and it’s certainly it’s kind of paced faster than anything I’ve ever had and that’s always rewarding. I think it makes everybody’s hard work, everybody can go, ‘Yeah, it’s worth all the sleepless nights and all the tiresome work.’”

  • NEWS AND NOTES: Church, Kacey, Luke, Vince

    Eric Church will be inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame October 15th in Kannapolis, North Carolina.

    Eric Church and Kacey Musgraves will perform at Willie Nelson’s annual 4th of July Picnic in Austin, Texas. Merle Haggard, Asleep at the Wheel and Jamey Johnson are also on the bill.

    Kacey Musgraves will perform at the Bonnaroo Music Festival, taking place June 11th – 14th in Manchester, Tennessee. She made her Bonnaroo debut in 2013. Billy Joel, Mumford & Sons and Kendrick Lamar are also scheduled to perform.

    Luke Bryan will return for his second Crash My Playa Caribbean concert in Riviera Maya, Mexico January 22nd – 26th, 2016. Go to CrashMyPlaya.com.

    Vince Gill was recently interviewed by Dan Rather for his show, The Big Interview, on AXS-TV. His feature will air April 21st.

  • LUKE BRYAN CELEBRATES HIS FINAL SPRING BREAK IN STYLE.

    Earlier this month, Luke Bryan celebrated his final Spring Break in Panama City Beach, Florida. Check out the recap below.

    Video / LUKE BRYAN TV-SPRING BREAK FINAL

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  • LUKE BRYAN BOWS AT NO. 1 WITH LATEST SPRING BREAK ALBUM.

    NASHVILLE, TN – (March 18, 2015) – ACM Awards Show co-host and reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year Luke Bryan debuts his final Spring Break album, Spring Break…Checkin’ Out, at #1 today on Billboard’s Country Albums Chart with sales near 89K, making it his second consecutive spring break album to debut at #1. Sales of Luke’s combined seven spring break releases now exceed 1.2 million. The album also lands at #3 on Billboard’s Top 200.

    Luke celebrated the release with two concerts at Spinnaker Beach Club in Panama City Beach, Florida last week with record crowds of more than 400,000 fans. This weekend Luke performs at the Houston Rodeo and in May will wrap his “That’s My Kind of Night Tour.” On May 8, Luke will launch the “Kick The Dust Up Tour.”

    Luke heads into the 50th Academy of Country Music Awards as a co-host and four nominations- Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist, Song of the Year (“Drink A Beer”) and Vocal Event (“This Is How We Roll”) with Florida Georgia Line. This is his third consecutive year to co-host with Blake Shelton and the show will broadcast on April 19 from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX on the CBS Television Network.

    Since the debut of his first album in 2007, Luke Bryan has placed 12 singles at No. 1 and sold 7 million albums with 27 million digital tracks from his four studio albums and has been named Entertainer of the Year for both the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association. Luke achieved the best touring year of his career in 2014 with 1.7 million fans attending his concerts.

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

  • LUKE BRYAN’S ‘SPRING BREAK…CHECKIN’ OUT’ DEBUTS AT NO. 1 ON THE COUNTRY ALBUM CHART.

    Luke Bryan’s Spring Break…Checkin’ Out album debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Chart. His seventh and final Spring Break album sold nearly 89,000 copies to bow at the top of the country charts and at No. 3 overall behind Madonna and the cast soundtrack from the FOX TV show, Empire.

    Sam Hunt’s Montevallo is No. 2, followed by Shania Twain’s Still the One: Live From Vegas CD & DVD collection at No. 3.

    Audio / Luke Bryan talks about the song, “Ol’ Bronco.”

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    Luke Bryan (Ol’ Bronco) OC: …that Bronco. :36
    “My first Spring Break album, the yellow Bronco was – it was on the cover, and I wrote a song about my old Bronco, and it’s pretty cool that it gets immortalized in an album. I think it’s a great smile on your face song, kind of tells you – it’s just a sunny day, roll the windows down, feel good song and glad we got to put my ‘Ol’ Bronco’ on there. The old Bronco has been at every Spring Break show and [we] had a lot of good memories in that Bronco.”

  • LUKE BRYAN AND TODAY SHOW TAKE FANS BEHIND-THE-SCENES OF HIS FINAL SPRING BREAK SHOW.

    Go behind-the-scenes with the Today Show as Jenna Bush shadows Luke Bryan for the day during one of his two final Spring Break shows last week.

    Luke is now in stores with his seventh and final Spring Break album, Checkin’ Out.

    Video / Today Show with Luke Bryan at final Spring Break

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  • LUKE BRYAN CELEBRATES FINAL SPRING BREAK SHOWS WITH MORE THAN 400,000!

    2015 Spring Break KP Entertainment

    2015 Spring Break aerial 2 Monaco
    NASHVILLE, TN – (March 13, 2015)  – Luke Bryan wrapped his seventh and final year of two-day Spring Break concerts at the Spinnaker Beach Club in Panama City Beach, Florida yesterday.  Record breaking crowds swelled the beach area east and west of the club’s over flow and also bled to the Gulf water’s edge.  Local officials estimated over 200,000 fans gathered each day.
    The spring break albums and concerts began in 2009 as a way to get new music out to Luke’s fans between studio releases.  This year’s release, Spring Break…Checkin’ Out, is available in record stores, as well as digitally, now and contains five new songs all co-written by Luke plus all six songs from last year’s EP.  Luke’s collection of all six previous Spring Break releases combined have over 1.1 million sales to date.
     
    Today’s Jenna Bush was on hand to cover the final event with a story airing this coming Monday, March 16.  CMT’sHOT 20 show was also on tap with Katie Cook.   Fans can tune-in to watch the fun on CMT on March 21 & 22.
    Since the debut of his first album in 2007, Luke Bryan has placed 12 singles at No. 1 and sold nearly 7 million albums with 27 million digital tracks from his four studio albums, and has been named Entertainer of the Year for both the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association.  In 2014, he achieved the best touring year of his career with 1.7 million fans attending his concerts.  
    In the past two-weeks Luke played his first-ever shows in Europe and on May 22 the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum will open a summer exhibit “Luke Bryan: Dirt Road Diary.  On May 8, Luke will kick-off his new “Kick The Dust Up Tour.”   
    Luke is the reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year and will co-host the 50th Academy of Country Music Awards with Blake Shelton for a third consecutive year on April 19, 2015.
     
    Visit www.LukeBryan.com or follow Luke on Twitter @LukeBryanOnline, Instagram and Facebook.

    Audio / Luke Bryan talks about the title track of his new Spring Break album, Checkin’ Out.

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    Luke Bryan (Checkin’ Out) OC: …the album. :47
    “‘Checkin’ Out’ is kind of a tricky name for the last Spring Break album, but the song ‘Checkin’ Out’ it’s kind of like checking into…the payoff line is checking in to like a good time but checking out of kind of reality in the real world, and it’s kind of involving – anyway, it’s a fun song. We took a different route on this one. We typically go big drums, big guitars, big instruments and we kind of did an acoustic version of this thing. Really, really broke down. We did put an electric guitar in it. But it was fun to let the band just kind of jam and pick and I think it turned out great and it obviously was a song that was the right song for the title of the album.”

  • LUKE BRYAN LEAVES BEHIND A LEGACY OF FUN DURING HIS SPRING BREAK SHOWS.

    Luke Bryan played his final Spring Break show Thursday night (March 12th), and the legacy he will leave will be of fun.

    “When they’re having kids, they’re telling their kids how we used to go stand on the beach to see a free show that I put on, and that’s their memory,” says Luke. “That’s their time of their life where they’re having the most fun – they don’t know it’s the most fun period of their life – but it’s gonna be cool that forever if you were at any of those shows through any of those years, I think you can take away that day and that moment and remember being there forever, which is cool. That’s a great legacy. I think it doesn’t have to be really any more complex than, ‘Man, I was there, just being young and having fun. I met your mama there.’ [laughs]”

    Luke covered Bruno Mars‘ “Uptown Funk” during his Wednesday show in Panama City Beach, Florida.

    Luke just released his seventh and final Spring Break album, Checkin’ Out.

    Audio / Luke Bryan talks about the legacy his Spring Break shows will leave once he’s done.

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    Luke Bryan (Spring Break legacy) OC: …mama there. [laughs] :38
    “When they’re having kids, they’re telling their kids how we used to go stand on the beach to see a free show that I put on, and that’s their memory. That’s their time of their life where they’re having the most fun – they don’t know it’s the most fun period of their life – but it’s gonna be cool that forever if you were at any of those shows through any of those years, I think you can take away that day and that moment and remember being there forever, which is cool. That’s a great legacy. I think it doesn’t have to be really any more complex than, ‘Man, I was there, just being young and having fun. I met your mama there.’ [laughs]”

    Video / Luke Bryan Spring Breakdown

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