Reba McEntire is set to appear on The Talk on Friday (January 6th) on CBS. She will talk about her new Lifetime movie, The Hammer, which premieres on Saturday (January 7th) at 8pm ET/7pm CT.

Sam Hunt kicked off the New Year by appearing on The Kelly Clarkson Show to perform “Wishful Drinking” with Ingrid Andress earlier this week.

Kicking off the new year with a little #WishfulDrinking from @IngridAndress and @samhuntmusic! pic.twitter.com/B1gJ9oStL4

— The Kelly Clarkson Show (@KellyClarksonTV) January 2, 2023

Dalton Dover has been named one of Amazon Music’s 2023 “Breakthrough Artists to Watch: Country Class.” Jackson Dean, Nate Smith, Madeline Edwards and Megan Moroney, among others. These artists will be featured on Amazon Music “Breakthrough” playlists and on the “Country Heat Weekly” podcast (hosted by Kelly Sutton and Amber Anderson) .

Rising country newcomer Dalton Dover continues to earn accolades and benchmarks among a series of milestones in a pivotal year as Pandora names him a 2023 Artist to Watch while CMT welcomes him as a member of their 2023 LISTEN UP class.

Earlier this month, Dover made his Grand Ole Opry debut with a performance of two new songs, “Giving Up On That” and “Dirt Roads And Jesus,” the latter being the first single he will release in 2023 via Universal Music Group Nashville/Mercury Records, who he signed with earlier this year.

“I never thought in a million years that I’d be standing right here in this circle,” Dover shared on stage. “I brought my family last year, and we walked through on the tour here at the Opry. Little did I know that a year later, I’d be making my Opry debut. It’s pretty special to say the least.”

In August, Dover was on the final night of his Ole Red residency, performing across the Nashville, Gatlinburg and Orlando locations, when legendary country artist Blake Shelton dialed in on the red phone at Ole Red Nashville and interrupted Dover’s set with an invitation to make his Grand Ole Opry debut. He tearfully accepted, replying, “I’ll be there, I promise.”

His debut invitation was a full circle moment for Dover, as Shelton marked one of the first milestones in his career on Season 16 of “The Voice,” where the Georgia native earned a chair turn from the coach for his performance of Keith Whitley’s “Don’t Close Your Eyes.”

After being named a 2022 Spotify Artist to Watch, he released “Hear About A Girl,” earning praise from Billboard noting, “Dover’s voice is both intimate and commanding on this track,” while MusicRow asserts it confirms “we’re in the presence of a master country talent when this man sings…Make him a star. Now.” He followed the song with “Damn Good Life,” with The Boot sharing, “Dover is savoring every moment in his uplifting new single,” while Country Now observes, “Between the optimistic narrative that Dover delivers through his crisp vocals and the carefree tune highlighted by the impressive guitar strum, nothing but a good time can be had when this song comes through the speakers.”

Dover has honed his captivating live show with two performances at CMA Fest, opening for Luke Comb’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium show in Atlanta, Ga. and joining Priscilla Block’s Welcome To The Block Party Tour. In 2023, he prepares to make his international debut in March at C2C: Country to Country Festival’s CMA Songwriters Series before joining Chase Rice on the Way Down Yonder Tour in April.

In addition to a deal with UMG Nashville, Dover has signed with Sony Music Publishing in partnership with Droptine Music Publishing along with United Talent Agency.

CMT revealed its newest lineup of rising artists to watch in its highly anticipated 2023 CMT LISTEN UP program, which recognizes and supports country music’s most promising newcomers across CMT platforms. The year-long initiative is committed to raising support for these artists via full cross-brand support for their music and videos across CMT and CMT Music, CMT Hot 20 Countdown, CMT Hits on Pluto TV, CMT.com and @CMT social platforms, in additional to opportunities with other brands across Paramount Media Network including live events, Paramount Times Square NYC Billboard and more. UMG’s Catie Offerman, Dalton Dover and The War and Treaty are among the artists taking part in the program, which also includes Bailey Zimmerman, Chapel Hart, Jackson Dean and Zach Bryan, among others.

“We’re thrilled to welcome this exciting list of new artists to our 2023 LISTEN UP initiative,” shared Leslie Fram, SVP of Music & Talent at CMT.  “Each of these acts stand out in their authenticity and are already finding an audience with exceptional music. We look forward to amplifying their content across all CMT platforms and building long lasting relationships with this dynamic group of individuals.”

The following 20 artists join CMT’s prestigious 2023 LISTEN UP roster:

• Ashley Cooke
• Bailey Zimmerman
• Brandon Ratcliff
• Catie Offerman
• Chapel Hart
• Cody Belew
• Conner Smith
• Corey Kent
• Dalton Dover
• Drake Milligan
• Hannah Ellis
• Ian Munsick
• Jackson Dean
• Kameron Marlowe
• Madeline Edwards
• Nate Smith
• Pillbox Patti
• The War And Treaty
• Warren Zeiders
• Zach Bryan

Since 2011, CMT’s LISTEN UP franchise has introduced new talent to the brand’s passionate fan base and has helped launch the careers of many country sensations. Some notable alumni of the franchise include: Ashley McBryde, Blanco Brown, BRELAND, Brett Eldredge, Brittney Spencer, Carly Pearce, Dan + Shay, Gabby Barrett, Ingrid Andress, Jimmie Allen, Jon Pardi, Kacey Musgraves, Kelsea Ballerini, Lily Rose, Luke Combs, Maren Morris, Morgan Wade, Thomas Rhett, Walker Hayes and Yola among others.

For updates and more information, visit CMT.com, follow @CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok and use #CMTListenUP to join the conversation.

Carrie Underwood was named The Country Artist of 2022 at Tuesday night’s (December 6th) People’s Choice Awards. In her acceptance speech, she made it all about the fans. “This whole night is all about the fans, and I certainly have just the most incredible fans. You guys have supported me for many years, especially out on the road this year. So, thank you guys so much for all the love. Thank you for this. What a wonderful early Christmas gift! I can’t thank you enough.”

https://twitter.com/peopleschoice/status/1600339558037495808

Shania Twain performed a medley of her hits at Tuesday night’s People’s Choice Awards, including “Any Man Of Mine,” “That Don’t Impress Me” (exchanging Brad Pitt’s name for the present — and delighted — Ryan Reynolds) and “Man! I Feel Like A Woman” before accepting the much-deserved 2022 Music Icon Award.

https://twitter.com/ShaniaTwain/status/1600475214026051584

I can’t think of a more iconic, smart and beautiful person to not impress all that much. Thank you for an amazing night, @ShaniaTwain ❤️ https://t.co/od2KsUoo2s

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) December 7, 2022

Mickey Guyton was named TIME Magazine’s Breakthrough Artist of the Year for 2022. She talked to the iconic outlet about her year of growth, singing the National Anthem at this year’s Super Bowl, why LeAnn Rimes feeds her soul, motherhood and so much more.

Thank you so much @TIME for this incredible honor. I’m so grateful. My cup overflows. Look at God. https://t.co/PlGBB2Gpl6

— Mickey Guyton (@MickeyGuyton) December 6, 2022

Brothers Osborne‘s John Osborne joined AshleyMcBryde on NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday night (December 6th) to perform her song “Gospel Night at the Strip Club,” from Ashley’s album, Lindeville.

Caylee Hammack and newcomer Dalton Dover have been tapped to perform during the CMA’s series as part of next year’s C2C: Country to Country festival in the U.K. Serving as the official kickoff leading into C2C, Dalton will be part of the CMA Songwriters Series show on March 9th, which will also include Lainey Wilson and Nate Smith. Caylee will be joined by Alana Springsteen and Tyler Braden for the series Introducing Nashville as the festivals opening set at The O2 in London March 10th, The Ovo Hydro in Glasgow, March 11th, and 3Arena in Dublin March 12th.

Country newcomer Dalton Dover signs with Universal Music Group Nashville. Dover, who has earned praise as a “master country talent,” will release his highly anticipated new music via Mercury Nashville.

“All of us at UMG have been fans of Dalton for a long time,” says Mike Dungan, chairman and CEO of Universal Music Group Nashville. “For months our staff has filled the rooms at almost every one of his live performances in Nashville.  As we worked our way through the legal process, our four label promotion teams were fighting over which label he would go to and who got to work with him.  We are thrilled that he chose to be a member of our family and anxious to release the first taste of music with the Mercury logo on it.”

“I’m so excited to join the Mercury and UMG Nashville family,” shares Dover. “I wouldn’t be here without the support from my wonderful wife and family, my team, and the fans who have listened to and shared the songs we’ve released so far. This is just the beginning, and we can’t wait to show you what we’ve been working on!”

Dover first achieved prominence after appearing on Season 16 of “The Voice,” where he earned a chair turn from legendary country artist Blake Shelton. Two years later, Dover has continued to build his fan base on TikTok, garnering millions of views with his popular #CatchMeOffGuard series of cover song mashups. The series has earned the praise of country artists including Jimmie Allen, Luke Combs, Kidd G and Kameron Marlowe. Dover’s songs “You Got A Small Town” and “Baby I Am” helped the 23-year-old earn a place on Spotify’s Hot Country 2022 Artists to Watch, along with a spotlight as Billboard’s February Country Rookie of the Month and a nod for MusicRow’s 2022 Discovery Artist of the Year. His TikTok track “Baby I Am” had nearly 500k streams and 1.1k downloads in its first week.

Front Row: Mike Harris, Mike Dungan, Dalton Dover, Cindy Mabe, Brian Wright
Back Row: Charly Salvatore, Bruce Phillips, Matt McVaney

Photo Credit: Chris Hollo