ashville, TN – April 4, 2014 – Three-time ACM “Vocal Group of the Year” and current nominee Lady Antebellum is giving fans a preview of their upcoming performance with a special release of their song “Golden” featuring Fleetwood Mac‘s Stevie Nicks, available on iTunesnow.
 
“Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought we’d have the chance to perform with Stevie Nicks, let alone develop a friendship like we have on and off stage,” said Lady A’s Hillary Scott. “When we first sat down with her, ‘Golden’ was one of our songs that really touched her, so we recently asked her if she’d be willing to record her vocal for it – and she agreed! The timing ended up being perfect and we may have even worked up a little ACM-twist for Sunday’s performance!”
 
“I love Lady Antebellum, and to me, this song is their ‘Landslide’ because it’s just that spectacular,” said Nicks who wrote Fleetwood Mac’s iconic song, which first debuted on their self-titled album 1975 and has remained a legendary hit for decades.
 
The trio will take the stage Sunday (4/6) with Nicks for the 49th Annual ACM Awards, airing live at 7:00P CT on CBS. For more information, visit www.ladyantebellum.com.

Scroll down and find a recent soundbite of Lady A talking about Stevie Nicks.

Check out the video for Luke Bryan‘s “Play It Again” below.

Luke is up for ACM Entertainer of the Year. Go to voteacm.com to cast your vote right now.

Dierks Bentley performs at the Station Inn with surprise guests Kacey Musgraves and the Sandy Bottom Sisters!

Lady Antebellum will be performing with the legendary Stevie Nicks at Sunday night’s (April 6^th) ACM Awards, where they have four nominations, including Vocal Group of the Year, as well as Vocal Event, Single and Song of the Year for “Wagon Wheel” with Darius Rucker.

The group is very excited to team up with the Fleetwood Mac member once again. Last year, they teamed up with Stevie for CMT Crossroads, which was her idea, and Lady A’s Charles Kelley said last year that it was going to be one of the highlights of their career.

“It actually came from her, man, this is the craziest thing. She had a dream one night she joined Lady Antebellum,” he recalls. “So, we’re on the phone with her and she’s telling us this, and I’m like, ‘Um, do you really want to join Lady Antebellum? ‘Cause you can, if you like.’ And it was just really cool. She’s so inspiring, and it’s gonna be one of the most special things for us in our career by far, so it’ll be something that we’ll be soaking in.”

The foursome will perform “Golden,” which is the title cut from Lady A’s latest album and one of Stevie’s favorites from the record. The trio co-wrote the song with labelmate Eric Paslay.

The 49th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas April 6th at 8pm ET/delayed PT on CBS.

Lady A (Charles on Stevie Nicks) OC: …soaking in. :30
“We’ve been obviously huge fans of Fleetwood Mac for the longest time, and to have that opportunity. It actually came from her, man, this is the craziest thing. She had a dream one night she joined Lady Antebellum. So, we’re on the phone with her and she’s telling us this, and I’m like, ‘Um, do you really want to join Lady Antebellum? ‘Cause you can, if you like.’ And it was just really cool. She’s so inspiring, and it’s gonna be one of the most special things for us in our career by far, so it’ll be something that we’ll be soaking in.”

Reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year George Strait is making his way across the country bidding a fond farewell to fans on his Cowboy Rides Away Tour. While it’s emotional for the Country Music Hall of Famer, it’s very emotional for his fans, one of whom is Toby Keith.

“He’s been a great one and he deserves to do whatever he wants to do,” says Toby. “I’ve always been a big fan, and most people, if you listen to country music, you’ve had a lot of great George Strait songs in your life. But I hope he keeps recording, because it sure would be empty without him.”

Toby — don’t worry! George renewed his deal with MCA Records last fall to make several more albums.

George, who is up for the ACM Entertainer of the Year award on Sunday (April 6th), will wrap his Cowboy Rides Away Tour June 7th at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas (Dallas). His special guests include Eric Church, Alan Jackson, Vince Gill, Jason Aldean, Asleep at the Wheel, Kenny Chesney, Faith Hill, Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride and Lee Ann Womack.

George is currently making his way up the country charts with his latest single, “I Got A Car.”

Toby Keith (George Strait retiring from touring) OC: …without him. :18
“If this were the ‘Cowboy Rides Away,’ good deal, but he’s been a great one and he deserves to do whatever he wants to do. I’ve always been a big fan, and most people, if you listen to country music, you’ve had a lot of great George Strait songs in your life. But I hope he keeps recording, because it sure would be empty without him.”

Luke Bryan will appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Thursday and CBS’s The Talk on Friday to chat about the ACM Awards airing Sunday at 8pm ET on CBS.

George Strait is scheduled to make a special announcement during Sunday night’s ACM Awards surrounding the 50th anniversary of the show. The 49th Annual ACM Awards will air live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas Sunday (April 6th) at 8pm ET on CBS.

Easton Corbin will be performing from the House of Blues in Las Vegas on Friday (April 4th). The show will be streamed by Yahoo Music and #RamCountry Live. Tune in to EastonCorbin.com beginning at 8pm PT/10pm CT.

Luke Bryan, along with Carrie Underwood, are finalists for the Milestone Award at this year’s Billboard Music Awards. The fan-voted award is given to an innovative artist who has achieved a notable chart milestone over the past year. You can vote at Billboard.com/milestone.com. Imagine Dragons, John Legend, OneRepublic and Ellie Goulding are also up for the award. The Billboard Music Awards will air live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas May 18th on ABC.

CBS This Morning national correspondent Jan Crawford traveled to Darius Rucker‘s hometown of Charleston, South Carolina to discuss his country music career and being a Grand Ole Opry member.

Encino, CA (April 2, 2014) – The Academy of Country Music and dick clark productions announced today that Dierks Bentley with Sheryl Crow, Lee Brice, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker and Rascal Flatts will all perform on the 49^th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards. It was also announced that presenters including Thea Andrews, Guy Fieri, LL COOL J, Jewel, Olivia Munn, Nancy O’Dell, Chris O’Donnell, Clay Walker and Trisha Yearwood will appear on the ceremony which will be co-hosted by Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton and broadcast from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Sunday, April 6, 2014 at 8:00 PM live ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network.

All of these artists join previously announced performers including Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Brett Eldredge, Hunter Hayes, Miranda Lambert, Toby Keith, Justin Moore, Kip Moore, Shakira, George Strait, Keith Urban, The Band Perry, Florida Georgia Line and Lady Antebellum with legendary musician Stevie Nicks, as well as previously announced presenters including Garth Brooks and Florida Georgia Line.

Dierks Bentley and Sheryl Crow will perform, “I Hold On,” Lee Brice will perform his hit single, “I Drive Your Truck,” Brad Paisley will make the national television debut of his new single “River Bank” from his forthcoming album with a special performance at MGM Grand’s Talent Pool, Darius Rucker will perform “Wagon Wheel,” and Rascal Flatts will be performing “Rewind” at the 4^th Annual ACM Fan Jam via live remote at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

For more information on the ACM Awards and all ACM events, visit www.ACMcountry.com, www.ACMAwards.com, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter at @ACMawards for more immediate updates.  

Kacey Musgraves and Katy Perry are a musical match made in Heaven. Not only will they hit the road together on the Pop singer’s Prismatic Tour later this summer, but they’ve now been announced as the latest pairing for CMT Crossroads. The show takes a country artist and teams them up with an act from a different genre, frequently trading vocals on each other’s songs.

The invitation-only event – CMT’s 50th episode – will tape in Los Angeles later this month and air on CMT June 13th.

“From the moment I heard ‘Merry Go Round’ by Kacey Musgraves, I knew we were cut from the same songwriter’s cloth,” Perry tells Billboard in a statement. “I have been a fan and a friend of hers from the beginning, always championing her prolific songs every opportunity I get. To me, Kacey Musgraves is an artist that should be a household name because she offers a unique perspective with her writing style.  It’s going to be a BLAST to play on each other’s songs this Crossroads. It will be a preview to our Prismatic World Tour road trip this summer WHICH I CAN’T WAIT FOR!”

Musgraves adds in a statement, “I’ve been such a HUGE fan of Katy and her vision since I found out about her. And since she’s found out about me she’s been an amazing light and friend to me. So, joining forces with her for Crossroads is going to be incredible. In some ways we’re on opposite ends of the spectrum, but in a lot of ways our music makes total sense together. Her songs, while having grit, are so fun and it’ll be a cool challenge to throw a little country on ’em. I love her brain and her heart and I can’t wait for our two musical worlds to collide!”

The two singer-songwriters have already been collaborating on stage and off, with Kacey appearance at Katy’s We Can Survive charity concert last October to a handful of writing sessions.

For the first time, Crossroads will air on CMT’s sister Viacom networks — VH1, MTV, MTV Hits and Palladia — at later dates to be announced soon. 

Previous Crossroads pairings include Dierks Bentley and One Republic, Lady Antebellum with Stevie Nicks, Keith Urban and John Mayer, Luke Bryan and The Doobie Brothers and Sugarland with Bon Jovi.

Kacey, who is up for several ACM Awards, is currently making her way up the country charts with her latest single, “Keep It To Yourself.”

NOTE: Kacey tweeted the news, as well.

“SAVE THE DATE, Y’ALL! @katyperry & I are going to be on #CMTcrossroads June 13 sangin each other’s songs on @CMT!” pic.twitter.com/kwjuKJrf0N

Kacey Musgraves is going into this month’s ACM Awards with a truckload of nominations, including Female Vocalist, Album of the Year (Same Trailer Different Park), Video of the Year (”Blowin’ Smoke”) and Song of the Year (co-writing “Mama’s Broken Heart”). She’s already picked up the CMA New Artist of the Year award, as well as a pair of Grammys.

Kacey has been at the forefront of the handful of country female artists, with her forthright lyrics and traditional/neo-traditional songs and melodies. She’s definitely a quadruple threat – smart, sassy, beautiful and very talented — which finds her following in the footsteps of her music idols.

“I’m so excited to be part of the women in country music movement. I mean, I look at people like Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton – songwriters who were sassy and beautiful and also intelligent and humorous. They inspired me,” says Kacey.  “I just think it’s a great time for women in country music, but it’s also a good time for music in general. And I’m just really proud to be existing in this time period and being a part of it all.”

Kacey, who is currently on tour with Lady Antebellum, is making her way up the country charts with her latest single “Keep It To Yourself.”

AUDIO: Kacey Musgraves talks about being a woman in Country Music.

Kacey Musgraves (women in Country) OC: …of it all. :37
“I’m so excited to be part of the women in country music movement. I mean, I look at people like Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton – songwriters who were sassy and beautiful and also intelligent and humorous. They inspired me, and if I can be at all any part of that in carrying that on, that is just icing on the cake for me and I feel like I’ve done my job. You know, I just think it’s a great time for women in country music, but it’s also a good time for music in general. And I’m just really proud to be existing in this time period and being a part of it all.”