Charles Kelley will appear on ABC’s Good Morning America Monday (October 5th) to talk about his upcoming solo project with the network’s JuJu Chang.

Charles and his bandmates, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood, are featured on ABC’s Nightline. The trio take cameras backstage for an exclusive inside look at their sold-out headlining show during their hometown stop at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

Canaan Smith stopped by the ESPN studios to discuss his love of Tar Heel basketball, why Tony Stewart has always been his favorite NASCAR driver and his father’s early influence on music and sports.

Fans were ecstatic when George Strait announced that he would be heading to Sin City for an exclusive concert series at the Las Vegas Arena in 2016 and releasing his new album, Cold Beer Conversation, last week. The demand for new music from Strait translated to an immediate sellout of all six dates of his “Strait to Vegas” run after tickets went on sale today, with more dates to be added. The staggering response from fans already prompted Strait to add two shows to the series, which is currently scheduled for April 22, April 23, September 9, September 10, December 2 and December 3, 2016. GRAMMY, ACM and CMA Award-winning singer/songwriter Kacey Musgraves will join him as support for the full run.

With the release of the 13-track Cold Beer Conversation, fans and critics alike have made it known that the “King of Country Music” remains at the top of his game. The Plain Dealer proclaims that “the hardest part about reviewing George Strait’s surprise new album, Cold Beer Conversation, is deciding which of the 13 tracks to gush over first” and describes the instantly relatable title cut, which is also the lead single at country radio now, as “a great little ditty about ‘a couple of ol’ boys’ just sharing a few brews, reminiscing about high school football, worrying about aging parents and trying to figure out the world.”

The Associated Press notes, “Cold Beer Conversation is vintage Strait. He has such a strong vocal presence… the highlights prove that Strait remains at the top of his game: From the casual way he captures a meaningful talk between buddies on the title cut to the melodic intimacy of ‘Let It Go’ to the jaunty swing of ‘It Takes All Kinds,’ the album adds another gem to one of country music’s deepest, most entertaining catalogs” and Billboardechoes that reverence, observing that “the key to Strait’s success is that he brings a different flavor and nuance to each song, even if the subject matter is similar. More than 30 years since his MCA Nashville debut (he’s still on the same label after all these decades), his smooth tenor is as clear as ever and each subtlety — a well-placed chuckle, a tiny sigh — still resonates.”

Cold Beer Conversation is available now at Apple Music and Walmart.

With 60 No. 1 singles and nearly 70 million records sold, Strait is the most-nominated artist in CMA Awards history and was the first country music artist honored with Billboard’s “Legend Of Live” Award. His last show, which took place at AT&T Stadium on June 7, 2014, shattered the North American attendance record for an indoor concert with 104,793 ticket-holders.

Stay tuned for information on additional “Strait to Vegas” dates and more at www.georgestrait.com and www.straittovegas.com.

Lauren Alaina has released her self-titled EP, which features five songs co-written by the singer, including her new single, “Next Boyfriend.” She says she wanted to get new music out to the fans since it’s been a few years since she had a song on the radio.

“It’s kind of just a summary of what’s gonna be on the album. We don’t have a release date for the album or anything, but I haven’t had music out in so long that we wanted to give people music now that was ready,” says Lauren. “The music is recorded, but there’s so much more that goes into putting an album together than just recording the music.”

One of the other songs on the EP, “History,” was recorded for ESPN as an exclusive promo track for the network’s college football coverage.

Lauren Alaina, Lauren Alaina EP Track Listing:

1. “Road Less Traveled” (Lauren Alaina, Jesse Frasure, Meghan Trainor)
   2. “Holding The Other” (Lauren Alaina, Emily Weisband, Eric Olson)
   3. “Next Boyfriend” (Lauren Alaina, Emily Weisband, Matt McVaney)
   4. “Painting Pillows” (Lauren Alaina, Lindsay Jack Rimes, Alex Masters)
   5. “History” (Lauren Alaina, Emily Weisband, Jesse Frasure)

Luke Bryan postponed his Thursday night Farm Tour stop in Lexington, Kentucky and Saturday night’s show in Columbia, South Carolina due to weather. The Lexington show will now take place Tuesday (October 6th), while Columbia’s stop has been rescheduled for October 11th. Luke posted a statement on Twitter, saying, “Postponing a show is so difficult for me because I know it is an inconvenience to the people that make my life amazing. The fans. Very sorry!” For more details, go to LukeBryan.com.

UPDATE: Luke has now canceled Friday night’s Farm Tour date in Knoxville. It has yet to be scheduled as of 1:50p CT.

Darius Rucker will appear in The Grand Ole Opry’s first feature film, American Saturday Night: Live From The Grand Ole Opry. The movie will hit select U.S. Carmike Cinemas for a limited engagement beginning December 4th. The concert film will also feature performances by Opry members Brad Paisley and Blake Shelton, as well as The Band Perry and Brett Eldredge.

Dierks Bentley celebrated his 10th anniversary of being a member of the Grand Ole Opry this week, and he brought along a special guest: his dog Jake, who was also on hand when he became a member of the famed institution.

Toby Keith is set to perform on the new TBS series Neighborhood Sessions October 16th. The show was recorded in Toby’s hometown of Moore, Oklahoma, and will feature several of his hits, along with some songs from his new album, 35 mph Town, available October 9th.

Canaan Smith‘s ‘American Muscle’ will be used for ESPN’s College GameDay this season. You can also find the song on his debut album, Bronco.

Luke Bryan takes on the Chicago Bulls’ Jimmy Butler in a basketball game. Guess who wins? Check out the latest episode of LBTV below.

George Strait’s Cold Beer Conversation has a very cool and descriptive title, which hit the Texas native right away, so he decided to call this new collection…Cold Beer Conversation after one of the songs on his brand new album.

“What a perfect title. I never go in to the studio with a title in mind. I always complete the project and then go ‘What am I gonna call this?’ Because you kinda gotta get a feel for that. So, I’m trying to think of something that really says what this album’s about, and it just jumped out at me. ‘Cold Beer Conversations,’” says George. “How many cold beer conversations have you had? That song was perfect for me — about life or about politics or just different things that come up when you’re having a cold beer with one or your buddies or several. I just love the title, I think it fits perfectly.”

George announces the new CD in Las Vegas just a couple of days prior to its release last week, and he also revealed a few shows at the new Las Vegas Arena in 2016. The superstar will play Sin City December 2nd and 3rd, 2016, as well as April 22nd and 23rd and September 9th and 10th, 2016. He’ll be one of the first entertainers to perform at the Las Vegas Arena.

NASHVILLE, Tenn., – October 1, 2015 – The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum will host a special appearance by Luke Bryan on Sunday, November 1st, at 2 p.m., in the museum’s  CMA Theater. The reigning ACM and CMA Entertainer of the Year will discuss his career and perform a short acoustic set in support of the exhibition Luke Bryan: Dirt Road Diary, presented by Citi. The panel will be hosted by Joseph Hudak, Senior Editor at Rolling Stone Country.

The program is included with museum admission and free to museum members. Seating is limited; museum members may reserve via TicketFly.com beginning at 10 a.m. on October 8. Bryan is offering access to pre-sale tickets for his Nuthouse members only, October 8-14. Fans can sign up here to become a member. The general public will be able to reserve tickets beginning at 10 a.m. on October 10. For assistance with reservations, please call 615-416-2001 or email reservations@countrymusichalloffame.org.
Luke Bryan: Dirt Road Diary, which ends its run on November 8th, examines the singer-songwriter’s roots and rise to stardom.

Artifacts on display include:

Little League baseball uniform and glove

Second grade school backpack and denim jacket

First guitar, which his parents gave him when he was fourteen

A script from his high school production of Annie Get Your Gun, in which Luke starred

Handwritten lyrics to his 2014 chart-topping single “I See You”

Stage props from his spring break concerts

Tour posters

Stage clothes worn by Bryan at concerts and award shows

Music awards, including trophies for his ACM and CMA Entertainer of the Year wins

Bow and arrows used by Bryan on the Outdoor Channel reality series Buck Commander: Protected by Under Armour.
Since the debut of his first album in 2007, Luke Bryan has placed 13 singles at #1 and sold nearly 8 million albums with 30 million digital tracks from his five studio albums. He has been named Entertainer of the Year by both the Academy of Country Music (twice) and the Country Music Association. Bryan’s recent album Kill The Lights recently debuted at #1 on both the Billboard Top 200 and Top Country Albums charts. This is Bryan’s third consecutive album to debut at #1 on the Billboard Top 200. Kill The Lights is the third-largest-selling album debut in 2015, after R&B / hip hop releases from Drake and Kendrick Lamar. Kill The Lights is also the highest country album debut in the last two years, since Bryan’s Crash My Party debuted at #1 in August 2013.

Bryan is taking his “Kick the Dust Up Tour” across North America in 2015 and to date has sold out eight stadium shows. This fall he will embark on his seventh annual Bayer Presents Luke Bryan Farm Tour 2015, performing in eight cities across the South, granting college scholarships to local students from farming families in communities where the tour plays.

For more information about the exhibit, click here. Follow @countrymusichof on Twitter and join the conversation using #ThisIsLukeBryan. Public programming for Luke Bryan: Dirt Road Diary is made possible, in part, by the Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission and Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation.

Lauren Alaina releases her self-titled EP on Friday (October 2nd). All five songs on the collection, which features her new single, “Next Boyfriend,” were co-written by the singer.

“I feel like I’ve been waiting for this day for-ever,” says Lauren. “It’s been two-and-a-half years, and I wrote so much music in that time period that I just am so glad to have these five songs out for people to hear to get them ready for the whole album.”

One of the other songs on the EP, “History,” was recorded for ESPN as an exclusive promo track for the network’s college football coverage. She co-wrote “Road Less Traveled” with Meghan Trainor (“All About That Bass,” “Your Lips Are Movin’”) and Jesse Frasure (“Sun Daze,” “Hangover Tonight”).

Lauren Alaina EP Track Listing:

1. “Road Less Traveled” (Lauren Alaina, Jesse Frasure, Meghan Trainor)
2. “Holding The Other” (Lauren Alaina, Emily Weisband, Eric Olson)
3. “Next Boyfriend” (Lauren Alaina, Emily Weisband, Matt McVaney)
4. “Painting Pillows” (Lauren Alaina, Lindsay Jack Rimes, Alex Masters)
5. “History” (Lauren Alaina, Emily Weisband, Jesse Frasure)

Lauren Alaina just released her new single, “Next Boyfriend,” and during her shows, she always “picks” a guy to come on stage while she sings the song. Most of them do not fit the part of her “next boyfriend,” though. Check out the newest installment of her SWAK videos below.

P.S. Lauren does actually have a boyfriend, and his name is Alex.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Sept. 29, 2015) – As soon as George Strait announced he would be taking the stage for select dates at the Las Vegas Arena in 2016, fans started lighting up social media with their plans to see the “King of Country Music” perform in Sin City. Due to overwhelming demand for the four shows announced last week, Strait will be adding December 2nd and 3rd, 2016 to the schedule.

The Country Music Hall of Fame inductee will be among the first entertainers to perform at the Las Vegas Arena, with a series of exclusive worldwide concert engagements on April 22, April 23, September 9, September 10, December 2 and December 3, 2016. GRAMMY, ACM and CMA Award-winning singer/songwriter Kacey Musgraves, who recently released her second studio album Pageant Material to critical acclaim, will open for Strait on all dates.

“I said all along I wasn’t going to tour anymore, but I also said that I wasn’t retiring by any means and I still wanted to do some dates,” said Strait. “I’m very excited to be coming back out and playing for the fans out there. I’m looking forward to it so much, singing those songs that I love so much and haven’t done in a while. I’m really, really looking forward to being able to play in the new Las Vegas Arena. I hear it’s just unbelievable. I can’t wait.”

Strait’s new album, Cold Beer Conversation, is available now at Apple Music and Walmart and features 13 songs including his latest single, “Cold Beer Conversation.” It is the first new studio album in two years from the MCA Nashville recording artist. His last studio album was the Gold-certified Love is Everything, which featured the Platinum-certified No. 1 hit (and 60th No. 1 hit of his career) “Give It All We Got Tonight” as well as the Gold-certified hit “I Got A Car.”

Tickets for the 2016 concert series will go on sale this Friday (October 2nd) at 10:00 a.m. PT via www.straittovegas.com and range in price from $75 to $200 plus applicable fees. American Express® Card Members can purchase tickets for the December 2 and 3 shows before the general public from now until Thursday, Oct. 1 at 10 p.m. PT.