Keith Urban has the chance to take home several awards going into this year’s CMA Awards, including Entertainer and Male Vocalist of the Year, as well as Single and Music Video of the Year for “Blue Ain’t Your Color.” “Blue” is also nominated for Song of the Year, which would go to songwriters Clint Lagerberg, Hillary Lindsey and Steven Lee Olsen.

The first time he heard “Blue Ain’t Your Color,” Keith knew he wanted to record it. “I just know when I heard ‘Blue Ain’t Your Color’ for the first time, it just struck me as one of those rare songs that encompass so many things in it,” he says. “I couldn’t even label what it was, what style it was. It’s got a bit of soul, it’s got a bit of blues, it’s got a bit of country, it’s got just a big mix of all good things. Lyrically, it’s just an incredible song, incredible song. [It’s got] great melody, great lyric. I was so hopin’ I could do the song justice when we got in the studio.”

The video for “Blue Ain’t Your Color” was actually inspired by a performance he did with Carrie Underwood on American Idol.

“[The inspiration] really came from when I did American Idol with Carrie Underwood, and because it was the finale, I played in a suit, and this whole idea kind of started from the idea of playing in a suit. From there, obviously, the story of the song is pretty strong, and we started building the concept from there. But, the initial spark of inspiration was really about that.”

Keith is scheduled to perform during the 51st Annual CMA Awards, which will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday (November 8th) at 8pm ET on ABC.

Little Big Town will premiere the video for “When Someone Stops Loving You” on VEVO live at 5pm ET/4pm CT on Monday (November 6th).

Monday! We’re premiering the video for “When Someone Stops Loving You” on @Vevo Live at 4pm CT. #whensomeonestopslovingyou pic.twitter.com/nfvQ9XXdm4

— Little Big Town (@littlebigtown) November 4, 2017

LBT scored a handful of CMA Awards nominations this year, including Vocal Group of the Year, Album of the Year for The Breaker, Single, Song and Music Video of the Year for “Better Man.” The Song of the Year award would go to Taylor Swift, who wrote the song.

You can see Little Big Town during this year’s CMA Awards, airing live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 8th at 8pm ET on ABC.

For the past 10 years, Carrie Underwood has talked, joked and sang her way into the hearts of millions as the co-host of the annual CMA Awards. Sharing duties with pal Brad Paisley, she says it’s tough for her to pick specific moments out as a host, saying all of the moments with Brad are wonderful, even though it’s a lot of work being at the helm of the show.

“Our planning time is, it’s a lot of work and it can be stressful, but it’s also fun too getting in the room with Brad and the writers and we’re just kind of swapping ideas – some good, some bad,” she says with a laugh. “But we’re all working together to put on the show, and we want to be respectful and we want to celebrate Country Music, that’s what we’re there for, but I don’t know if I could pick one moment that’s my all-time favorite moment ever.”

However, the Oklahoma native, who cannot believe she and Brad have been hosting the awards for 10 years, says one moment last year did stand out.

“Looking back, we’ve had so many bits and jokes and things like that, but I think my favorite parts of the whole thing are the things that that we get to be involved in that people don’t see,” says Carrie. “You know, like looking back, especially on the 50th Anniversary – that was so amazing being part of that open and kind of having that rehearsal band with my band and Brad’s band and all these legendary artists seeing them all come together and work together and they were swapping stories and laughing with each other because there were so many of them that haven’t seen each other in forever either so, it was just an amazing moment to be a part of. I’d say that’s way high up there on my list of favorite moments for the CMAs.”

In addition to the performances, many people tune in to watch the CMA Awards just so they can see what Carrie is wearing and how many outfit changes she will make over the course of the three-hour show.

“When I’m trying to make CMA dress decisions, I just want what makes me feel good. That’s it. There’s no ulterior motives or anything. I don’t have a plan when I go in. I just try on a bunch of dresses and I just want to wear what makes me feel good. I feel like as women, that’s just what we do – something that makes us feel confident and be our best selves,” she says. “If I find two dresses that I love, then I’ll be wearing two dresses to the CMAs. If I find 12, I’m gonna try to wear all 12, [laughs] so that’s kind of how we operate. But it’s fun. I’m running around backstage like a mad person for quick changes and things like that, but it kind of just adds this element to the CMAs.”

Carrie is nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year at the 51st Annual CMA Awards, which will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 8th at 8pm ET on ABC.

On November 17th, she will digitally release Carrie Underwood: The Storyteller Tour – Stories In The Round, Live from Madison Square Garden, which will be available digitally on iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, and Qello.

Chris Stapleton is previewing his new album, From A Room: Volume 2, by releasing a few songs ahead of the album’s release on December 1st. On Friday (November 3rd), he revealed “Scarecrow in the Garden.” In October, he put out “Millionaire” – both of which you can listen to below.

The new offering follows the release of From A Room: Volume 1 this past May. Both albums take their name from historic RCA Studio A where he recorded them.

Chris is currently making his way up the country charts with “Broken Halos.”

Pre-Order From A Room: Volume 2
Exclusive Pre-Order Bundles – http://smarturl.it/CSFARVol2
Digital Pre-Order – http://geni.us/FromARoomVol2

The King of Country Music George Strait and long-time friend and Texas businessman Tom Cusick hosted their seventh annual Vaqueros del Mar Invitational golf event last week (Thursday, Oct. 26) at Tapatio Springs Hill Country Resort in Boerne, Texas raising a record $1,533,450 throughout the golf tournament, charity concert, and auction (with additional monies coming in post-check presentation to surpass the previous year’s record of $1.2 million, helping notch over $1.5 million by the night’s end).

The annual event raises funds for Feherty’s Troops First Foundation, which directly benefits those who fight to keep us free, the wounded military service men and women. The foundation was founded by Rick Kell and on-course reporter for the PGA Tour and former professional golfer David Feherty in 2008 after Kell spent time with patients recovering from serious combat injuries.

A known supporter and former member of the U.S. Army himself, Strait teamed up with Cusick and the foundation as a way to give back in a grand way. The Invitational has now raised more than $4.5 million for military personnel wounded in action since it was created in 2011.

“We can never repay our military veterans for their dedicated service, but we hope our partnership with the Troops First Foundation can show how much we appreciate them,” said Strait. “Giving back is a top priority for me, Tom, our friends, and Tapatio Springs.”

The popular event featured a live auction and a star-packed jam session with Strait and several of his friends in the music business including Dean Dillon, Jamey Johnson and Ray Benson of Asleep at the Wheel.

Military support from Strait and Cusick reaches beyond the links. In June, Strait and Cusick cut the ribbon on another project, “The Leon Petry Village of Honor,” which was funded by Feherty’s Troops First Foundation. The Village of Honor is located in Washington D.C. in close proximity to Bethesda Naval Hospital and offers transitional housing for wounded service men and women, and their families free of charge which they undergo the long and painful process of rehabilitation from their combat injuries.

Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America to talk about their 10th year as hosts of the CMA Awards.

Carrie is nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year at the 51st Annual CMA Awards, which will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 8th at 8pm ET on ABC.

Lauren Alaina, nominated for CMA New Artist of the Year, has been announced as a present at this year’s CMA Awards. Luke Combs, Brett Young, NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, model and Kode With Klossy founder Karlie Kloss, star of Freeform’s “Movie Night with Karli Kloss,” country artist Dustin Lynch, actress Lea Michele of ABC’s “The Mayor,” “The Path” actress Michelle Monaghan, actor, director and author Tyler Perry, stars of ABC’s “Kevin (Probably) Saves the World,” Jason Ritter and JoAnna Garcia Swisher, “Pitch Perfect 3” actresses Ruby Rose and Brittany Snow, Trisha Yearwood and radio personality Bobby Bones will also present.

They join previously announced performers Tim McGraw & Faith Hill, Kelsea Ballerini & Reba McEntire, Dierks Bentley & Rascal Flatts, Maren Morris & Niall Horan, Brad Paisley & Kane Brown as well as performers Garth Brooks, Brothers Osborne, Luke Bryan, Alan Jackson, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Old Dominion, Jon Pardi, P!NK, Chris Stapleton, Thomas Rhett, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban. Keith will also be joined by Eric Church, Lady Antebellum and Darius Rucker for an unprecedented opening collaboration as well.

The 51st Annual CMA Awards will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena November 8th at 8pm ET on ABC.

Darius Rucker had a blast when he stopped by the Harry Connick Jr. show on Wednesday (November 1st). They decided to jump in an elevator and serenade people getting on and off in the building.

Darius just released his new album, When Was the Last  Time, and is climbing the charts with his latest song, “For the First Time,” which follows his recent No. 1 hit “If I Told You.”

Sam Hunt has a pair of CMA Awards nominations for Single and Song of the Year due to his huge hit, “Body Like a Back Road.” The song remained at the top of Billboard’s Hot Country Songs for 34 Weeks, breaking records and being certified 4x platinum by the RIAA.

Sam, who co-wrote the song with Zach Crowell, Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne, explains that “Body Like a Back Road” all started with a phrase.

“I try to think of titles or lines that’ll cross my mind and I’ll put ‘em in my phone, and this was one that I wanted to write for a while – the title ‘Body Like a Back Road’ – or use it as a lyric, do something with it. I didn’t have a melody, but one night this melody got stuck in my head and the phrase ‘Body Like a Back Road’ sang perfectly to it and the chorus came out pretty quick,” said Sam. “And then we went in and started working on the song with the producer and a couple of writing buddies, and I wanted to write it because I thought it was a fun song, but I didn’t know for sure if I wanted to put it out. I didn’t want it to come across as objectifying women or be too, to lack depth and just, I don’t know. So, anyway, I had some concerns, but I tried to make it fun to offset any risks of those things happening, which made writing it fun, and I think that came across in the lyric and in the way we recorded it and everything else. When we finally finished it, it finally hit me as ‘Ok. Wait a minute. Maybe I underestimated the potential of this song. I think this could be a fun song and it will connect with folks.’”

The 51st Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, will be broadcast live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Area November 8th at 8pm ET on ABC.

Sam is also nominated for two American Music Awards for Favorite Male Artist – Country and Favorite Song – Country for “Body Like a Backroad.” The American Music Awards will air live from the Microsoft Theater in LA November 19th at 8pm ET on ABC.

Little Big Town scored a handful of CMA Awards nominations this year, including Vocal Group of the Year, Album of the Year for The Breaker, Single, Song and Music Video of the Year for “Better Man.” The Song of the Year award would go to Taylor Swift, who wrote the song and sent it to the band.

The band kept the fact that Taylor wrote “Better Man” a secret for a while, because they wanted people to hear the song on its own merits. “We just played it for her after we finished it, and she was really, really excited. We said, ‘Hey, you know we’re not just gonna blab this that you wrote this immediately.’ She said, ‘You know what? That’s the greatest honor as a songwriter you could ever give me is that you don’t want anybody to know that I wrote this.’ We knew we would tell eventually, but and it was a hard question to dodge for a while,” said LBT’s Karen Fairchild. “The only reason why we didn’t say is because we wanted you to hear the song for what it’s worth, and it’s a beautiful song. And at her heart, she is the biggest pop star in the world, but she’s a songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee, and she likes to tell a story, and we didn’t want you to have any subtext there, other than to hear this song.”

You can see Little Big Town during this year’s CMA Awards, which will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Area November 8th at 8pm ET on ABC.

The band is making their way up the country charts with their latest single, “When Someone Stops Loving You.”