Charles Kelley (CMA Christmas special) OC: …pretty fun. :32
“It’s a song that’s actually off of our Christmas album. The funny thing is that Hillary is here tonight with her little sister and Mom. It’s funny — she came backstage and I was like, ‘Omigosh! You need to come up and sing with me on this.’ Her little sister, they really want to see Pentatonix as well, and I don’t know, Hillary is so supportive of what I’m doing right now. I think it’s just so cool. But yeah, this will be the first time, other than Jimmy Fallon the other night, this will be kind of the first TV performance as a solo artist, but it’s a song I know pretty well, so it should be pretty fun.”

Charles Kelley (Christmas-baby) OC: …my family. :47
“This will be my first kid. We found out we’re having a little boy, so really excited. My wife [laughs] my wife was already asking if we should get him a stocking. He doesn’t come until February, and I was like, ‘You are truly nesting on a different level right now, if you want to give the baby a stocking that isn’t here.’ I’m not sure what she decided, but I can’t wait, honestly. It’s funny, in my mind I always pictured having a little girl. I don’t know why, and now that I know it’s a boy, I’m trying to think of all the little things I can teach him and it’s gonna be interesting to see if he’s more like me or more like Cassie. It’ll be fun to see. But, definitely, Christmases for a musician are the time that you probably get the most time off and you’re at home, so that’s gonna be a time I’m sure that I cherish most with my family.”

Darius Rucker (CMA Christmas special) OC: …this year. :26
“Tonight we’re doing ‘Winter Wonderland’ and we’re doing ‘What God Wants for Christmas.’ On these shows, you want to do one of the old standards that you do, and ‘Winter Wonderland’ is such a rockin’ song. It’s perfect, and ‘What God Wants for Christmas,’ I just love that song so much. I’m so proud to be part of writing that song and part of the whole thing. Last year it was funny ‘cause we really wanted to do the Christmas show, and I think I was going to Europe or something, and I couldn’t do it. I’m really excited that I get to do that song this year.”

David Nail (CMA Christmas special) OC: …old-timers. :22
“You know this song I’m singing tonight, I’ve listened to about 43-hundred times, so right now it’s my favorite. ‘This Christmas,’ the Donny Hathaway version. But, I’m a sucker for the old-timey ones, you know, Bing Crosby [etc.]. It’s just anything old-fashioned, so I’m getting up there in age, so I’m a sucker for the old-timers.”

Mickey Guyton (CMA Christmas special) OC: …be Elsa. :09
“I’m singing ‘Do You Want to Build a Snowman, and I just said I wanted to look like a snow princess, and I wanted to wear my hair in a braid and be Elsa.”

Mickey Guyton (CMA Christmas special) 2 OC: …really, really do. :27
“It’s just really exciting. I love this song, and it’s an emotional song. It’s a story about a love between two sisters, and I just think it’s really cool that I get to sing this song. I told my sister I was doing it, and I sent her a copy and all of her kids. She’s a teacher, so all of her kids  just love this song. And everybody, as I was walked through the hall, they’re like, ‘FROZEN!,’ and I’m like, ‘That’s right.’ I love that movie. I really, really do.”

AJ (Thanksgiving) OC: …enjoy it. :19
“My favorite Thanksgiving dish would be the homemade dressin’ that we, cornbread-based kind of dressin’ that we always have with turkey. That recipe is a kind of a combination of my mama, and Denise has taken it and perfected it over the years, so that me and my children really enjoy it.”

Brothers Osborne (misfits Thanksgiving) OC: …going home. :45
“What we’ve done the past several years is because it’s so hard to go home, we would have what we call the Misfit Thanksgiving dinner, and all the people in Nashville who aren’t able to go home to their families, we would just invite them over to our house and have a big potluck style Thanksgiving dinner. We’ll take like a couple of tables and throw them together and throw some sheets on it just to make it look nice. It’s a very redneck display of like tableware, because all the plates don’t match and the forks and knives don’t match, but we don’t care. People will bring wine, and at the end of the day, we’ll probably have 12-15 people all sitting at dinner together that weren’t able to go home with their families, and just enjoy it with friends. It’s been really fun. Definitely a lot less stress than going home.”

Clare Dunn (Thanksgiving dish) OC: …like hers. :21
“I think my favorite Thanksgiving dish [is] my mom makes the best mashed potatoes in the world. I mean, they’re crazy. They’re like garlic and butter and all the good stuff, so that’s probably my favorite Thanksgiving dish. Oh, and she makes great stuffing too, and I’m not a stuffing person, but I like hers.”

Darius Rucker (favorite part of Thanksgiving) OC: …my family. :17
“My favorite part of Thanksgiving is easy – it’s food. It’s eating. It’s hanging out with family and getting some great food, ‘cause that’s really what Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving is about giving thanks for all of the great things you’ve got, and I always give thanks for the greatest thing I’ve got and that’s my family.”

Dierks Bentley (Thanksgiving must-have) OC: …for Thanksgiving. :34
“You gotta have a big turkey. Thanksgiving is not possible without a turkey. We cook it traditionally, but when we’re in, a couple of Thanksgivings ago, we were here in Nashville, we did the whole fry the turkey up, and it was great. It just tasted so good; all those juices get locked in there, and I love that too. You really can’t, to me, cook a turkey wrong. I’m gonna eat it any way, and I have over the years. Trust me, I’ve played a lot of county and state fairs, where I’ve seen gigantic turkey legs, you know, I’ve had the flat meat. I’ve done turkey every way you could do it. I’m pretty good any way you want to cook it up, but you’ve got to have a turkey for Thanksgiving.”

Easton Corbin (Thankful) OC: …what I do. :08
“Well, this year I think, as I think every year, I’m so thankful for my family and friends out there and being able to make a living at what I do.”

Eric Church (Thanksgiving) a OC: …want to do it. :23
“A couple of things. I’m thankful for my family and great health. And I’m thankful for from a career standpoint, I’m very thankful for the success we’ve had lately. I’m thankful for what the fans have done. I mean there’s a lot of stuff to be thankful for in that regard. And I’m thankful that I was given the opportunity to do it my own way. I’m thankful that I’m going to get to keep doing this and do it the way that I want to do it.”

Eric Paslay (Turkey) OC: …really does. :09
“My favorite Thanksgiving food, I think, is the tryptophan turkey, ‘cause it really puts me to sleep. No [yawn], it really does.”

Josh Turner (fave side dish) OC: …’em myself. [laughs] :24
“Uh, deviled eggs! [laughs] Where I’m from in South Carolina, I don’t think I’ve tasted a bad deviled egg. It’s like everybody has their own twist on it, but they’re all good, but I always loved it when my mama made ‘em. I’m learning as I get older, making deviled eggs is no easy task. It’s more complicated than it looks, and so that’s probably why I never made ‘em myself.” [laughs]

Kip Moore (Thanksgiving) OC: …with them. :11
“I [usually] go home for Thanksgiving. I love going home to see all them. I have five brothers and sisters and it’s a blast to go home and just catch up on their lives. I get so wrapped up in all this that I lose touch sometimes, and it’s cool to hear everything going on with them.

Lady A (Charles-Thanksgiving eating contest) OC: …five pounds! :25
“One of my most memorable Thanksgiving memories was probably the first year that me and my two brothers decided to start our annual eating contest where we ate throughout the whole day. We started that morning and weighed ourselves and at the very end of the night, we weighed ourselves out and all three of us equally gained five pounds. I wish we had a more accurate scale to decide the winner, but we all tied. Five pounds!”

Lady A (Hillary-Thanksgiving food) OC: …ever tasted. :12
“So, my favorite Thanksgiving food would have to be my grandmother’s sweet potato casserole. There’s just something she puts in it — probably all the love – that makes it better than anything I’ve ever tasted.”

LBT (Thanksgiving) 2 OC: (Kimberly) …and eat. :31
KIMBERLY: “Thanksgiving—we love Thanksgiving, ‘cause we get to be with our families and we don’t often get to spend time with our families, our extended families, until the holidays. I love being around the table with my family and talking and laughing and cooking and eating…” JIMI: “And eating and eating and eating and eating…” PHILLIP: “The laughter around the eating, the good cheer, the celebration, the music…” JIMI: “The eating, going taking a nap, then coming back and eating.” KIMBERLY: “Go to bed with a full belly, take a nap, and then get up and eat.”

Mickey Guyton (favorite Thanksgiving dish) OC: …both so much! :39
“My favorite Thanksgiving dish that has to, has to, has to be at Thanksgiving dinner is dessert. Dessert is my favorite Thanksgiving dish. I mean, it doesn’t matter what it is, as long as it’s sweet. My mom actually makes an Italian cream cake that’s absolutely awesome. It’s homemade, and the entire family, that’s the first thing to go at Thanksgiving dinner. And my Grandma D, she makes a pecan pie that is awesome. She taught me how to make them when I was little, and I just love them, and that’s the other thing that I look forward to at Thanksgiving dinner, and I love them both so much!”

Sam Hunt (Thanksgiving eats) OC: …glass of milk. :34
“When I pile my plate up, it’s mostly turkey and then I’ll put a little dressing on the side, and I’ll usually go ahead and grab my dessert on the first run [laughs] and have it ready before it all disappears. Those are the really the three things. It’s strange, but since I was very young, I’ve always loved drinking milk, my brothers too, we drank lots of milk. My cousins, who grew up down the road, they always looked at us funny when we wanted to drink milk with our Thanksgiving meal. They would have coke or whatever else. So, I still get turkey, dressing, a piece of pecan pie and a big ole glass of milk.”

Scotty McCreery (most thankful) OC: …thankful for her. :28
“[I’m] most thankful for, I’d probably say my girl back home could be. I don’t talk about her too much, because she strives to stay out of the limelight, but with a guy like me who travels as much as I do and I’m away from home, she puts up with a lot. She’s stuck by me and has been my rock, so she’s something to be thankful for every day and Thanksgiving’s just a reminder of that. Somebody like that really keeps me going in life when things get rough and tough and I get tired on the road, she just keeps me going. I’m really thankful for her.”

David Nail (Thanksgiving 2015) OC: …without a doubt. :19
“Without a doubt, the thing I’m most thankful for is the fact that we’re on the verge of, my wife and I, having not only our first child, but our first two children. We are expecting twins; should be here any minute now. So, that is definitely thing that I’m most thankful for, without a doubt.”

David Nail (Thanksgiving 2015) 2 OC: …next year. :25
“Due to the fact that we’re expecting twins, we will not be able to go back home to Missouri and visit and have Thanksgiving with my grandfather. Last Thanksgiving was the first without my grandmother, and so it was a very emotional time. But I know he understands the situation, and we will definitely be there with bells on next year.”

Canaan Smith (pumpkin pie) OC: …Thanksgiving. :14
“Pumpkin pie is where it’s at. My mom makes the best. She got it from her mom, my Nanny. It’s so good. It’s made from scratch. Everything about it, it’s just mouthwatering. I love it. I can’t get enough. If I could get fat, it’d be from pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving.”

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

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

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

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

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

“Happy Birthday, America!”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Mickey Guyton (started with LeAnn) OC: …done. :24
“I was eight-years-old, and my church, I grew up singing in the church, and my church drove to Arlington [Texas] from Waco to go see a Texas Rangers baseball game. We were all the way up in the nosebleed section, and the announcer says, ‘Please rise as 10-year-old LeAnn Rimes sings the National Anthem,’ and that was before ‘Blue’ came out. I was already stuck on her, and then when ‘Blue’ came out, I was just like done.”

Mickey Guyton (on pursuing a career as a singer) OC: …all those people. :50
“It wasn’t like something where I was like, ‘Dad, I want to be a professional singer.’ It wasn’t until I was older when I finally admitted it. When you say something like that, it’s pretty crazy. What are we normally supposed to be? We’re supposed to be a teacher, a doctor, a lawyer, go to school and for me to even say that was just kind of crazy. So, I took an interest in singing. I started doing solos in the church choir or the school had a talent show. I’d bring my boom box, and I’d sing ‘I Will Always Love You.’ I was just mesmerized by big-voiced women, so from LeAnn, I started listening to Dolly and Patsy Cline and Patty Loveless and Reba McEntire and Faith Hill and Martina McBride, all those people.”

Mickey Guyton (glad she went through breakup) OC: …this song. :34
“I now realize why I had to go through that, and I’m happy I went through that, because through this whole process, so many people have reached out to me telling me how this song got them through their day. And I remember when I was going through my breakup, I was listening to Bonnie Raitt’s ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me,’ crying in my room because this guy that I loved so much didn’t love me. And that song is years old and it still helps people through. I’m so grateful that I was able to go through that, so that I could write this song.”

Mickey Guyton (glad she went through breakup) 2 OC: …thankful now. :13
“When I was laying on my best friend’s couch for an entire day sobbing my eyes out over this guy, I never thought that was worth this moment here, and I’m so thankful. I’m so thankful now.”