Darius Rucker has taken his True Believers Tour overseas, where he’s making (or made) stops in Berlin, Munich, London, Manchester, Glasgow and Dublin (where the trek wraps November 23rd). He loves playing in Europe, mainly due to their historic buildings.

“The thing I really love to do is I love to go around and see old churches and museums and stuff, because we think if something was built in the 1800s, we think it’s old,” says Darius. “Then you go over there and something was built in 39 B.C. [laughs], and it’s still up. I think that’s pretty cool.”

The South Carolina native is climbing the country charts with his latest single, “Homegrown Honey,” which he co-wrote with Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley.

Darius Rucker (overseas trip) OC: …pretty cool. :37
“We’ve got a lot of shows in Germany and in England. I love going over to Europe because the cultures are so different. From here, you go state to state, and there’s differences in accents and everything, and the cultures are a little different. But when you’re in Europe, you go from country to country, just like you go from state to state, and there’s different languages and totally different cultures, and I love being a part of that. The thing I really love to do is I love to go around and see old churches and museums and stuff, because we think if something was built in the 1800s, we think it’s old. Then you go over there and something was built in 39 B.C. [laughs], and it’s still up. I think that’s pretty cool.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Nov. 10, 2014) – Kenny Chesney’s stadium shows are always full-blown concert experiences, none more than his 2013 No Shoes Nation Tour with good friend Eric Church sharing the bill. When the 8-time Entertainer of the Year was readying his Big Revival Tour, he thought about Church’s energy and intensity levels – and asked the Country Music Association and Academy of Country Music Album of the Year winner for the double-platinum Chief to join him for parts of his tour.

“There is something about the way Eric connects with my audience,” says the man whose sold in excess of a million tickets each of his headlining tours, “that left me feeling like he made the No Shoes Nation Tour something special! He attacks the stage with so much force – and his songs really speak to the people who’re fighting the fight to get by – and I love that about what he does onstage.”

The Big Revival Tour dates featuring Church: 

Saturday, May 9         Indianapolis, In. at Lucas Oil Stadium

Saturday, May 30       Pittsburgh, Pa. at Heinz Field

Saturday, June 13       Atlanta, Ga. at The Georgia Dome

Saturday, July 11        Philadelphia, Pa. at Lincoln Financial Field

Saturday, August 22   Detroit, Mich. at Ford Field

“Some of the most fun I’ve ever had on tour was last summer with Kenny,” shares Church.  “He’s an artist that isn’t afraid to let you come full blast and do what you do. It’s rare you get to tour with someone you respect and you are friends with. I can’t wait to do it again.”

Chesney is the only country artist in the Top 10 on Billboard’s Top Touring Acts of the Last 25 Years; impressive given headlining began in 2002. Deemed “The King of the Road” by The Wall Street Journal, his summer concerts are legend – and he’s already begun this touring cycle with his 13th #1 Country Album The Big Revival, which has spawned the multiple-week #1 “American Kids” and “Til It’s Gone,” which hit Billboard’s Country Charts at #18 with a bullet on add date.

Church, whose Chief and The Outsiders both debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart debut –with the latter currently holding the highest country album debut for 2014—is known for an aggressive take on country, one that blurs hard rock and hardcore while capturing the grit of standing one’s ground, making ends meet and never losing one’s dignity in the process. His #1 hits include “Give Me Back My Hometown,” “Drink In My Hand” and “Springsteen,” as well as the envelope-pushing “Homeboy,” “Smoke A Little Smoke,” “Creepin’,” Like Jesus Does” and his latest from The Outsiders, “Talladega.”

“I’m so glad the fans in these five cities will get to rock with Eric this year,” Chesney enthuses. “It’s a wild night when we get together… and it’s something everyone should be a part of!”

Kenny Chesney’s The Big Revival Tour is presented by Corona Light.

AUDIO: Eric Church, who will be on the bill for a handful of stadium dates with Kenny Chesney next year, has a lot of respect for the East Tennessee native. [NOTE: There is a slight crackle noise in the audio.]

Eric Church (Kenny Chesney 2014) OC: …treated us. :23
“I have a ton of respect for Kenny and the way he’s built his career. I know how hard it was for us to go from where we were to the arena level, and I can’t imagine to go from where he was to the stadium level. That’s just an amazing amount of commitment and passion, and I have a lot of respect for that, and the work that’s went into it. I also have a lot of respect for the way he treats his crew, his band, the way they treat him and the way he’s treated us.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Monday, November 10, 2014) – Platinum-selling country newcomer Sam Hunt announces his headlining tour, the Lipstick Graffiti Tour, launching Jan. 29 at the Troubadour in West Hollywood, Calif. The tour will run through mid-April making stops across the country from Anaheim, Dallas and Denver to Chicago, Boston, New York and more. (Full tour dates listed below.)

Hunt’s Lipstick Graffiti Tour ticket pre-sale opens this Wednesday, Nov. 12 with public on-sale to follow Friday, Nov. 14. For ticket information, please visit www.SamHunt.com.

Hunt recently scored his first No. 1 as an artist with his Platinum-selling “Leave the Night On,” the lead single off MONTEVALLO, the No. 1 and best-selling debut album for a country artist since 2011. The Washington Post called it “a major-label debut that bends country music toward hip-hop and R&B with an artfulness that bucks trends and defies logic…Montevallo feels like the most seductive, deceptively original and flat-out best album released this year.”

Following the No. 1 “Leave the Night On,” the MCA Nashville recording artist will release new single, “Take Your Time,” impacting country radio Nov. 24.

LIPSTICK GRAFFITI TOUR Dates:

Jan. 29             West Hollywood, Calif.          Troubadour

Jan. 30             Anaheim, Calif.                       House of Blues

Feb. 5              Dallas, Texas                           House of Blues

Feb. 7              Jackson, Miss.                         Hal & Mal’s

Feb. 11            New York, N.Y.                     Irving Plaza

Feb. 12            Boston, Mass.                         Paradise Rock Club

Feb. 13            Burlington, Vt.                        Higher Ground

Feb. 14            Silver Spring, Md.                   The Fillmore

Feb. 19            Knoxville, Tenn.                     Bijou Theatre

Feb. 20            North Myrtle Beach, S.C.       House of Blues

Feb. 21            Charleston, S.C.                      Music Farm

Mar. 12            Columbus, Ohio                      Newport Music Hall

Mar. 13            Grand Rapids, Mich.              The Intersection

Mar. 14            Chicago, Ill.                            Joe’s Bar

Mar. 20            Lincoln, Neb.                          Bourbon Theatre

Mar. 21            Denver, Colo.                          Ogden Theatre

Apr. 2              Fayetteville, Ark.                    George’s Majestic Lounge

Apr. 3              Columbia, Mo.                        The Blue Note

Apr. 4              Milwaukee, Wisc.                   The Rave

*Additional Tour Dates To Be Announced

Support on the Lipstick Graffiti Tour will be Show Dog-Universal Music’s Native Run and Warner Music Nashville’s Michael Ray.

For information, music, images, tour dates and more, visit www.SamHunt.com.

NASHVILLE, TENN. (Nov.10, 2014) — Country music superstar Josh Turner’s first book, Man Stuff: Thoughts on Faith, Family and Fatherhood, is now available at all 633 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® locations. The fan-favorite book features a variety of stories and anecdotes from Turner’s life, often revealing a lesson or piece of advice that the singer/songwriter learned. Focusing on his Christian faith, each of the chapters begins with a scripture verse that relates to the stories being told. As a husband, son, brother, friend, and father of four boys, Turner has had a multitude of experiences which he shares with the readers.

Originally released in April, Man Stuff is published by Thomas Nelson, an imprint of Harper Collins Christian Publishing, and features a forward written by Turner’s friend and “Duck Dynasty” star, Jase Robertson. 

“I was thrilled to hear about Cracker Barrel® wanting to carry Man Stuff,” said Turner. “We’ve had a lot of fun over the past several years. I partnered with Cracker Barrel for the release of my two live albums and they’ve come out on the road with me as my tour sponsor a couple of times. They are good friends and great partners and I am excited to have another project with them.”  

Turner and Cracker Barrel have built a strong relationship over the years. In 2007, his Live at the Ryman CD was released through the Cracker Barrel exclusive music program. Five years later, Cracker Barrel exclusively released his Live Across America CD (featuring 12 songs recorded at 12 different concerts) and sponsored his 2012 tour.

Turner recently released his brand new song “Lay Low” to country radio. “Lay Low” is the lead single off his upcoming sixth studio album due out in early 2015 on MCA Records.  

About Josh Turner

MCA Nashville recording artist Josh Turner is one of country music’s most successful artists. With a rich, deep voice and distinctive style, Turner has sold more than five million albums, is a disciple of traditional country music, a mentor to up-and-coming artists —and one of the youngest members of the Grand Ole Opry. From his 2003 Platinum-selling debut Long Black Train to his most recent 2012 Billboard No. 1 release Punching Bag, Turner has received six Inspirational Country Music Awards and garnered multiple GRAMMY, CMA, and ACM nominations. Turner’s hits include “Your Man,” “Time Is Love,” “Why Don’t We Just Dance,” “Firecracker,” “Would You Go with Me” and more.  

This year Turner added author to his list of accomplishments. His first book, Man Stuff: Thoughts on Faith, Family and Fatherhood was released April 29, 2014 and his sixth studio album is expected to follow early next year. The Hannah, S.C. native has been songwriting and performing since he was a young child, and in support of music education, created The Josh Turner Scholarship Fund to assist students interested in pursuing a future in arts and music. As a high school student, Turner had very little access to music education, therefore realizes first-hand the importance of arts education in schools. For more information on Josh Turner, including a list of his upcoming tour dates, visit www.JoshTurner.com.  

Josh Turner (life lessons) OC: …collection of. :56
“I felt like this was a way for me to just really open up and talk about the stories and experiences of my life that I learned from or I gained experience from in certain areas. It was fun for me, and I didn’t reference any other book; I didn’t reference any other project or piece of work from anybody. I just really wanted this to be about me and what I learned and how I can influence somebody else with these stories. These 90 stories are the ones where I felt like, ‘Okay, not only did I learn something from this, but I feel like others can learn from these too.’ And I wanted to keep ‘em short and sweet and simple. I didn’t want to bog people down with too much heavy stuff. I wanted it to be simple life lessons, so that’s basically what this book is a collection of.”

Lady Antebellum has released the video for their latest single, “Freestyle,” and it’s a little different from some of their previous videos. The trio tapped actor/comedian Nathan Barnatt as the star of the clip…or rather his character, Keith Apicary, who is a nerdy Lady A fan who will stop at nothing to get to meet the trio in New York City.

“He’s been in a Flo Rida video. He does all these viral videos and he’s hysterical. I mean, just commits to this character. And whenever you watch this video, he’s literally at the Today Show, and he gets kicked out because he’s freaking people out being there,” says Lady A’s Hillary Scott. “Our team kind of kept it from us. We didn’t really know until that night at our album release show what was really going on, ‘cause this song is so quirky and different for us, so we wanted to carry that over [to the video].”

“Freestyle” is the second single from their 747 album.

The group is nominated for Favorite Band, Duo or Group-Country at this year’s American Music Awards, which will be handed out live November 23rd on ABC.

Lady A (Freestyle video) 1 OC: (Hillary) …that over [to the video]. :34
CHARLES: “His name is Nathan, Nathan Barnett, and he’s got this character called Keith Apicary. He’s got a bunch of characters, right?” HILLARY: “Keith is like his main one. He’s been in a Flo Rida video. He does all these viral videos and he’s hysterical. I mean, just commits to this character. And whenever you watch this video, he’s literally at the Today Show, and he gets kicked out because he’s freaking people out being there.” DAVE: “We didn’t know that at that time.” HILLARY: “No. Our team kind of kept it from us. We didn’t really know until that night at our album release show what was really going on, ‘cause this song is so quirky and different for us, so we wanted to carry that over [to the video].”

Lady Antebellum and Gavin DeGraw are slated to perform on “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2015” live from Music City’s New Year’s Eve Bash on Broadway in downtown Nashville!  They join the biggest live music celebration in show history featuring over 38 performances and 5½ hours of music. “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2015” will air on WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31st beginning at 8pm ET/PT on ABC.

The bi-coastal celebration will include hours of special performances and reports on New Year’s celebrations from around the globe. Ryan Seacrest will lead the traditional countdown to midnight, and before the ball drops on New Year’s Eve, global music sensation Taylor Swift will perform live for over 1 million fans in Times Square.

“Being included in such an iconic music event like Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve further strengthens the Music City brand and Nashville as a destination,” said Nashville Mayor Karl Dean. “We have seen the Jack Daniel’s Bash on Broadway grow tremendously, and its inclusion on a national show is a natural extension of its growth and popularity. Lady A and Gavin DeGraw are great representatives of the music in our city, and we are excited to have them headline the night in Nashville.”

Little Big Town kick off their tour Saturday (November 8th) in Youngstown, Ohio, and they’re taking along special guests Brett Eldredge and Brothers Osborne. The 13-city trek follows up the release of the band’s Pain Killer album and their third consecutive win for CMA Vocal Group of the Year. The band is really excited to hit the road with both Brett and TJ and John Osborne.

“Brett Eldredge, he’s killing it right now, having some big hits. We did some shows with him with Keith a few months ago, and he’s got great charisma on stage. He’s a great entertainer, so we’re excited about that,” says LBT’s Jimi Westbrook. “I’ve been a fan of Brothers Osborne since, gosh, I think we did the label show back when Tornado was coming out, and we heard them play with just an acoustic guitar and were just blown away. They’re the real deal; super talented guys, and I think it’s gonna be a lot of fun out on the road.”

The tour is not going to be all fun and games for them – they do plan on getting in a little workout time with their two special guests, as well.

The good thing is we like to all play basketball, so we’ll stay in shape too,” says Phillip Sweet.

Pain Killer Tour dates:

November 8 – Youngstown, Ohio
November 9 – Cincinnati

November 13 – Roanoke, Virginia

November 14 – Knoxville, Tennessee

November 15 – Atlanta

November 20 – Denver

November 21 – Wichita, Kansas

November 22 – Dallas

December 4 – Detroit

December 5 – Chicago

December 6 – Mt. Pleasant, Michigan

December 12 – Rochester, Minnesota

December 13 – Rockford, Illinois

LBT (Pain Killer Tour) OC: (Jimi) …on the road. :41
JIMI: “Yeah, I’m really excited about this tour with the people that are going to be out with us. Brett Eldredge, he’s killing it right now, having some big hits. We did some shows with him with Keith a few months ago, and he’s got great charisma on stage. He’s a great entertainer, so we’re excited about that. And I’ve been a fan of Brothers Osborne since, gosh, I think we did the label show back when Tornado was coming out, and [KAREN: “We heard them.”] we heard them play with just an acoustic guitar and were just blown away. They’re the real deal; super talented guys, and I think it’s gonna be a lot of fun out on the road.”

LBT (Pain Killer Tour) 2 OC: (Kimberly) …yeah. :18
JIMI: “I got a video message from Brett the other night [laughs], and he was in a bar somewhere, and he was going, ‘This is gonna be awesome, man!’ [laughs] And I was thinking, ‘Oh Lord, this is gonna be a big party.’’ [laughs] PHILLIP: “The good thing is we like to all play basketball, [JIMI: “That’ll be fun.”] so we’ll stay in shape too.” KIMBERLY: “Yeah.”

MCA Nashville’s Sam Hunt’s debut Montevallo debuted at the top of the Country Album Chart this week with nearly 70,000 albums sold. The album also is No. 3 overall on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart and is the best-selling debut album for a country artist since 2011. Montevallo is also the No. 2 Digital Album overall.

Sam’s platinum-selling lead single “Leave the Night On” is the current No. 1 song at country radio and is the first new artist debut title to top the charts in nearly two years. Rolling Stone includes Hunt as one of its “Artists You Need to Know,” and Associated Press tags Hunt as “a more sensitive and distinctive newcomer than most of his peers.”

Produced by Zach Crowell and Shane McAnally, MONTEVALLO is earning praise across the board. Billboard gives the album four out of five stars and The Washington Post calls MONTEVALLO “the most seductive, deceptively original and flat-out best album released this year.”

Hunt recently performed on ABC’s “Good Morning America” and tonight, he will be a presenter on the 48th Annual CMA Awards, airing live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena at 8pm ET on ABC.

For more information, tour dates, images and music, please visit www.SamHunt.com. 

www.SamHunt.com | facebook.com/SamHuntMusic | twitter.com/SamHuntMusic | instagram.com/SamHuntMusic

Sam Hunt (Montevallo expectations) OC: …makes them feel. :43
“I hope that people, if the give the full album a chance, will have the ability to see what I want to represent as an artist, they will be able to get out of this music what I get out of music that I love, you know? The record is hopefully diverse enough to reach people of several different tastes. If there is something I could say to someone that was about to listen to this record for the first time, I would hope that they could put aside any preconceived notions or any direction that whatever they have stumbled across before has given them, they could open their mind and just listen to the music with an open mind and open heart and just see how they feel about it; see how it makes them feel.”