MCA Nashville recording artist Clare Dunn will lend her vocal and musical talents to the 10th Annual 30A Songwriters Festival in South Walton, Fla. this week. An ASCAP songwriter, the “absolutely magnetic” (Rolling Stone) performer will lend her acclaimed voice and “ferocious guitar” playing (Rolling Stone) to two rounds at the famed fest, headlined by Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile, Rosanne Cash and Felix Cavaliere’s Rascals.

A longtime 30A sponsor, ASCAP will hold its popular showcase series at The Lake House at WaterColor, where Clare will perform twice:

– Friday, January 18, 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm, with Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Craig Wiseman, The Cadillac Three’s Jaren Johnston, and Tony Lane.

– Sunday, January 20, 8:00 pm – 9:30 pm, with NSAI Songwriter of the Year Dave Berg, Sarah Allison Turner, and Luke Combs’ tour mate Jameson Rodgers.

To purchase tickets, visit https://www.freshtix.com/events/2019-30a-songwriters-festival.

The 10th Annual 30A Songwriters Festival will take place Jan. 18 – 21, and feature 195 songwriters and over 250 performances at 30 venues along the scenic 30A corridor in South Walton county. Once again, 30A has teamed up with NPR’s Folk Alley on the syndicated Folk Alley Radio Show, and the festival sessions will be  archived at folkalley.com.

100% of the net proceeds raised by the festival go to support the nonprofit Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County. For this year’s 10th annual event, a portion of the net proceeds will be donated to the Hurricane Michael relief efforts organized on behalf of the many who have suffered devastating losses along the Florida panhandle to the east of 30A.

About Clare Dunn:
MCA Nashville singer/songwriter Clare Dunn is known for her transfixing live shows, powerful vocals, and unparalleled guitar playing.  As part of CMT’s 2019 Next Women of Country Tour, Clare will take her “big voice” (The Boston Globe) on the road with Hannah Ellis and Cassadee Pope to cities including New York, Atlanta, Washington D.C. and Boston. The Colorado native who “can do it all” (CMT) with “swaggering confidence and soulful vocals” (Rolling Stone) caught the attention of rock legend Bob Seger who, after hearing her sound check only once, invited her to open his Ride Out Tour. Clare has been named “One to Watch” by USA Today, Billboard, The Boston Globe and Rolling Stone.

Kacey Musgraves is among the first round of performers announced for this year’s GRAMMY Awards. She’ll be joined by Dan + Shay, Cardi B, Post Malone, Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello.

Kacey is nominated for four awards, including overall Album of the Year and Best Country Album for Golden Hour, as well as Best Country Solo Performance (“Butterflies”) and Best Country Song (“Space Cowboy”).

The 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards will be broadcast live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles February 10th at 8pm ET on CBS.

Jon Langston is making his way up the country charts with his debut single, “When It Comes to Loving You,” and while some people may know he’s from Georgia, he used to play football, he was actually signed by Luke Bryan to his own imprint under EMI Nashville and he loves watching and cheering on the Georgia Bulldogs, they may not know other tidbits about this rising star. Here’s Jon explaining what else you need to know about him.

“If I’m not working or I’m not on the road, you can find me in the woods or on the lake. I love my Mom. I love Jesus. I love Mexican food. Mexican food is amazing, and I will eat Mexican food every day of my life, if I need to. I’m a big dog person. I’ve got a couple of dogs, and yeah, they’re my kids.”

Jon has a handful of dates on the books before he joins Luke and several others (including Thomas Rhett, Jake Owen, Lauren Alaina and Travis Denning) at Crash My Playa near the end of the month.

Keith Urban, Toby Keith and Zac Brown Band will headline this year’s Faster Horses Festival July 19th – 21st in Brooklyn, Michigan. Tickets go on sale January 25th for the three-day events, which also features Brothers Osborne, Brett Young, Maren Morris, Michael Ray, Morgan Evans, Old Dominion and many others.

Keith Urban, Darius Rucker, George Strait, Alan Jackson, Kacey Musgraves, Little Big Town and many more will help Loretta Lynn celebrate her 87^th birthday with an all-star concert April 1st at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Jack White and Miranda Lambert among others will also perform. Tickets go on sale Friday (January 18th) with the pre-sale taking place Tuesday (January 15th) with the special code: BIRTHDAY.  “I am so excited to celebrate my 87th birthday with all my friends,” said the Country Music Hall of Famer. “This is the first time I’ve ever had a birthday party! My birthday wish has come true. The only other wish I have is that Keith Urban jumps out of my birthday cake!” The show will benefit the Opry Trust Fund and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Jordan Davis has been on a safari in South Africa. He apparently “ran” into an elephant who really didn’t seem to want his photo taken.

This is how a elephant says get lost…
👇👇👇 pic.twitter.com/T1dUiDepJp

— Jordan Davis Music (@JordanCWDavis) January 7, 2019

Catch Jordan, who is making his way to the top of the country charts with “Take It From Me,” when he hits the road next week with Old Dominon on their Make It Sweet Tour.

Eric Church is looking forward to kicking off his 2019 Double Down Tour on Friday and Saturday (January 18th and 19th) in Omaha, Nebraska. He’ll play two nights in each city (except for Nashville in which he’ll play Nissan Stadium) and perform six albums worth of material. Unlike his Holdin’ My Own Tour in 2017 where he would sometimes play four different cities in less than a week (a trek that nearly killed him), he has spaced out his shows to a city a week. You might want to catch both nights on tour, since he’s planning on changing his set list between Friday and Saturday.

“Some people may be surprised to learn that there’s only about five songs from our back catalog that are gonna be both nights. I’m going to play most of the Desperate Man over the two nights; probably six a night for those, but they’re not gonna be what they think. So, we’ll play ‘Smoke a Little Smoke’ one night, but you won’t get it the next. You’ll get ‘Drink in My Hand’ the next, but you won’t get it the first one,” says Eric. “So, we’re gonna make this a little bit where they’ll be those songs in there, but they won’t be both nights unless you go to both nights. It’s just the way we’re gonna do it. I think we can do it. I think our catalog will let us do it. If you come, you’re gonna hear ‘Sinners Like Me’ one night, but not both nights. And I think that it’ll make it interesting for the people that are coming, and it’ll make the show fun for us.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BsoH5IWhqEF/

Eric is hitting the airwaves with his new song, “Some of It,” from his recent album, Desperate Man.

Eric Church’s 2019 Double Down Tour Dates:
January 18, 2019     Omaha, NE                CHI Health Center+
January 19, 2019     Omaha, NE                CHI Health Center+
January 25, 2019     St. Louis, MO            Enterprise Center+
January 26, 2019     St. Louis, MO            Enterprise Center+
February 1, 2019     Boston, MA               TD Garden+
February 2, 2019     Boston, MA               TD Garden+
February 8, 2019     Minneapolis, MN      Target Center+
February 9, 2019     Minneapolis, MN      Target Center+
February 15, 2019   Detroit, MI                 Little Caesars Arena+
February 16, 2019   Detroit, MI                 Little Caesars Arena+
February 22, 2019   Cincinnati, OH           U.S. Bank Arena*
February 23, 2019   Cincinnati, OH           U.S. Bank Arena*
March 1, 2019         Kansas City, MO        Sprint Center+
March 2, 2019         Kansas City, MO        Sprint Center+
March 8, 2019         Toronto, ON               Scotiabank Arena+
March 9, 2019         Toronto, ON               Scotiabank Arena+
March 15, 2019       Greensboro, NC         Greensboro Coliseum+
March 16, 2019       Greensboro, NC         Greensboro Coliseum+
March 22, 2019       Chicago, IL                Allstate Arena*
March 23, 2019       Chicago, IL                Allstate Arena*
March 29, 2019       Milwaukee, WI          Fiserv Forum+
March 30, 2019       Milwaukee, WI          Fiserv Forum+
April 12, 2019         Dallas, TX                 American Airlines Center*
April 13, 2019         Dallas, TX                 American Airlines Center*
April 19, 2019         Cleveland, OH           Quicken Loans Arena*
April 20, 2019         Cleveland, OH           Quicken Loans Arena*
April 26, 2019         Greenville, SC           Bon Secours Wellness Arena*
April 27, 2019         Greenville, SC           Bon Secours Wellness Arena*
May 3, 2019            Pittsburgh, PA            PPG Paints Arena+
May 4, 2019            Pittsburgh, PA            PPG Paints Arena+
May 10, 2019          Denver, CO                Pepsi Center*
May 11, 2019          Denver, CO                Pepsi Center*
May 17, 2019          Los Angeles, CA       STAPLES Center*
May 18, 2019          Los Angeles, CA       STAPLES Center*
May 25, 2019          Nashville, TN            Nissan Stadium#
June 28, 2019          George, WA               The Gorge Amphitheatre#
June 29, 2019          George, WA               The Gorge Amphitheatre#

Dierks Bentley is gearing up for his Burning Man Tour 2019, which kicks off Thursday (January 17th) in Hamilton, Ontario. He’s taking pal Jon Pardi along for the ride for the third time, and Dierks recalls he was “nuts” over hearing Jon perform for the first time nearly 10 years ago.

“The first time I heard Jon I was sitting on my bus, we were playing a show out in California somewhere, kind of a random gig, and I heard this voice and I heard the band. I hear a lot of music over the course of a year on the road, and there’s just that one small thing that makes something stand out to you. I remember hearing it on my bus, through the walls of my bus, we were pretty far from the stage, and going, ‘Okay, there’s something really cool going on,’” says Dierks. “I got off the bus and went down there and watched this guy, and he was brand new. He had a steel guitar player that had a pet squirrel that lived inside his shirt. You can’t make this stuff up. I mean, it was a rogue band. It was early on, and this guy he’s out there just slaying it, slinging these words out there and playing telecaster. I was like, ‘This guy is going to be someone.’ I called my booking agent Jay Williams and said, ‘This guy’s great, man,’ and this is probably 10 years ago.”

Newcomer Tenille Townes will also be on the road with Dierks and Jon.

Dierks is sitting inside the Top 5 on the country charts with his current hit, “Burning Man,” featuring Brothers Osborne.

Travis Denning has released his brand new song, “After A Few,” which he wrote with Kelly Archer and Justin Weaver.

Travis says everyone can relate to the song’s message. “I think this song really is just about that story that a lot of people can relate to – being attracted to someone that probably logically in your head is not real, but something in your heart keeps taking you back,” he says. “I mean I know that’s a subject we talk about all the time, but we do it because it’s real.”

Travis joins Luke Bryan, Lauren Alaina, Jon Langston, Thomas Rhett, Luke Combs, Chris Janson, Jake Owen, Dustin Lynch, Chris Janson and Mitchell Tenpenny, among others at this year’s Crash My Playa event at the end of the month.

On Wednesday, January 16, Vince Gill will take the stage with five exceptionally talented, young guitar players at Nashville’s 3rd & Lindsley. Ever the steward of musical excellence, the 21-time Grammy award-winning artist is excited to share the spotlight with emerging artists in what will surely be a show to remember.

The players — Claudio Tristano, Justus West, Stephan Hogan, Tony Pierce of Pierce Avenue and Arielle — were all participants in the Guitar Center’s OnStage contest held in Los Angeles in 2016. Tristano, the winner of the competition, was awarded an opening slot on one of Gill’s tour dates. In true Gill form, he extended his generosity to the remaining four competitors and eventually the concept evolved into one joint concert. Each artist will bring their own distinct sound – from rangy, emotive solos to hot country licks and hard-rocking rhythms.

“Vince Gill and 5 Guitar Players He’s Crazy About” will take place at 3rd & Lindsley on January 16 at 8pm CT.

Lauren Alaina’s job is to entertain people with her voice, her music and sometimes her laugh. When she’s making people smile or laugh, she says she’s at her happiest.

“I am such a people person. I just love people. I love being around people,” says Lauren. “I love to make people smile. I love to make people laugh. I love to be the goofball that’s like lifting people’s spirits, because that makes me happy. Making other people happy makes me happy. I know that sounds cheesy, but it is the truth. I signed up for the best job in the world because I get to meet lots and lots of people and it makes me so happy.”

Lauren, who is currently making her way up the country charts with “Ladies in the ‘90s,” will make lots of people happy when she hits the road with Blake Shelton on the Friends and Heroes Tour. The trek, which also features Trace Adkins and the Bellamy Brothers, will kick off February 14th in Oklahoma City.

Keith Urban released a couple of new songs as part of Spotify Singles, which includes a new recording of his latest song, “Never Coming Down,” as well as the current Dance/Electronic No. 1 song, “Happier,” by Marshmello, featuring Bastille. You can find them in the “Latest Release” section on Keith’s Spotify profile.

Lauren Alaina will be the featured performer at the 2019 Symphony Fashion Show May 14th at Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center.

Songs from Vince Gill, Keith Urban, George Strait, Alan Jackson, Taylor Swift, Trisha Yearwood, Johnny Cash and many more will be included in the new Time Life collection, CMA Awards Live: Greatest Moments 1968-2015, a 3-DVD collector’s set.

Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, Kacey Musgraves, George Strait and many more have teamed up with the legendary Ronnie Milsap to record some of his biggest hits for the new collection, Ronnie Milsap: The Duets. The 13-track album will be released January 18th.