Keith Urban took a few minutes following the #IdolResults show to reveal he’ll be headlining the first U.S. iTunes Festival at #SXSW on March 15th in Austin, Texas!

David Nail is set to release his third album, I’m a Fire, on Tuesday (March 4th), and he’s really excited to get the new music to fans, who he feels will see a difference in him. “Mainly just being at such a pleasant place, I was drawn to songs that were more full of hope and happiness,” says David. “I think that that’s something that is really relatable on this record, is rather than having to go on and on and on about my past and where I am now, I think [through] the music, people can recognize, ‘Hey, that guy is in a different place.”

I’m a Fire is the follow-up to his critically-acclaimed record, The Sound of a Million Dreams, which featured the No.1 song “Let It Rain.” The project’s debut single, “Whatever She’s Got,” topped the country charts and has been certified platinum by the RIAA, signifying sales of more than one million copies.

The Missouri native teamed back up with producers Frank Liddell, Chuck Ainlay and Glenn Worf on the 11-track collection, which features “When They’re Gone (Lyle County)” which features harmonies by past tour mates and labelmates Little Big Town, his new single “Kiss You Tonight,” a song that expresses the strong emotion that we all feel at some point in our lives for another, the steamy “Burnin’ Bed” and one of the most special moments on the album, the cover of Glen Campbell’s “Galveston;” which Nail turns into a duet with Lee Ann Womack.

David Nail (hopes for album) OC: …different place. :56
“I think that this record, hopefully first and foremost, it’s just great music. That’s what we tried to do. I think in the past I’ve looked at everything kind of like a science fair project. You’ve got to have a little piece of everything and together everything makes something. With this, we wanted to start with a collection of songs and let those songs dictate what other songs we recorded. Having been on the road for four or five years now, you kind of get an idea what songs, what kind of recordings come across live. So, mainly just being at such a pleasant place, I was drawn to songs that were more full of hope and happiness. And I think that that’s something that is really relatable on this record is rather than having to go on and on and on about my past and where I am now, I think the music, people can recognize hey, that guy is in a different place.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Feb. 20, 2014) – Since signing with MCA Nashville in 2003, country music superstar Josh Turner has sold more than five million albums, had four singles climb to the top of the charts, entertained fans with sold-out shows across the country, received numerous award nominations, and was one of the youngest artists asked to join the Grand Ole Opry. Throughout this successful and demanding career, his life has remained strongly centered on his Christian faith and his family. Sharing stories from both his life and lessons he’s learned over the years as a son, brother, friend, husband, and father, Turner has written his first book, Man Stuff: Thoughts on Faith, Family, and Fatherhood, which will be released on April 29th with Thomas Nelson, an imprint of Harper Collins Christian Publishing.  

“I was raised in a strong Christian family in a tight-knit community in rural South Carolina,” said Turner in the book’s introduction. “I was taught essential life lessons, like the value of a dollar, what hard work feels like, and how important an education is. I was taught why being thoughtful, respectful, and considerate of others makes life more fulfilling, and why trusting God with your life’s decisions is wise. If all that sounds a little old-fashioned, well, that’s because it is. And I’m okay with that.”

He continues, “In this book you’ll learn a little bit more about how God has shaped and continues to shape me. You’ll also learn about my wife, my boys, and the family I grew up in. I hope you see that the everyday small things in this life really do add up to matter a great deal in the long run. And I hope you’ll smile—even laugh—and gain a little wisdom along the way. Maybe even a lot.”

Jase Robertson, star of A&E’s hit television series Duck Dynasty, will provide the forward for Man Stuff.  Last year, Turner sang a duet with Robertson’s wife Missy on the song “Why I Love Christmas” from the Platinum-certified holiday album, Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas.

About Josh Turner
With his deep bass voice, Turner has become a favorite and unforgettable hitmaker on country radio with timeless songs like “Long Black Train” and “Time Is Love” as well as his four No. 1 singles “Your Man,” “Would You Go With Me,” “All Over Me,” and “Why Don’t We Just Dance” which also garnered him an ACA Award for Single of the Year: Male. He has sold more than five million records, including the double-Platinum-certified Your Man   A native of South Carolina, Turner has received six Inspirational Country Music Awards, and has been nominated for two GRAMMY Awards, five CMA Awards, two ACM Awards, one CMT Award, and seven ACA Awards. His most recent albums are Live Across America, which is available exclusively at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® and crackerbarrel.com, and Punching Bag, which is available wherever music is sold. To support music and arts education, he created The Josh Turner Scholarship Fund to help students pursue their studies in these fields.  Turner and his wife Jennifer, whom he met as a student at Nashville’s Belmont University, have three sons. For more information, please visit www.joshturner.com.

The members of Lady Antebellum are having the time of their lives on the Take Me Downtown Tour. Check out a sneak peek of all of the fun they’re having in the latest installment of Webisode Wednesday.

Eric Church The Outsiders is spending a second week at the top of the country album charts this week. The Outsiders debuted last week at the top of both the Billboard 200 and country album charts. Luke Bryan’s Crash My Party is No. 3, while Jennifer Nettles’ That Girl rounds out the Top 5.

Eric says there’s a very specific way on how he and producer Jay Joyce laid out the songs on The Outsiders. “There’s a couple moments on this album that if you take the individual song out of place and play it by itself, I don’t love it near as much as I do on the album, and the space that it gives songs in-between it. I’ve not had that before with any of the albums we’ve done,” explains Eric. “I have it at two definite times on this album where I need the song on the album, but when I hear it separate, I don’t get the same thing, and I think that’s a testament to the way we made this thing.”

Eric will be performing songs from The Outsiders during his tour overseas. The next date on the trek is tomorrow night (February 27th) in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, United Kingdom. He’s scheduled to return stateside following his date March 12th in Oslo, Norway.

Eric Church (sequencing songs on the new album) OC: …made this thing. :35
“We really think about how this record should be laid out, and this one way more than any. This way more than any, because there’s a couple moments on this album that if you take the individual song out of place and play it by itself, I don’t love it near as much as I do on the album, and the space that it gives songs in-between it. I’ve not had that before with any of the albums we’ve done. I have it at two definite times on this album where I need the song on the album, but when I hear it separate, I don’t get the same thing, and I think that’s a testament to the way we made this thing.”

After celebrating his recent chart-topping success with “Friday Night,” Eric Paslay has released his new single, “Song About a Girl,” from his self-titled debut album. He co-wrote the tune with Jessi Alexander and Gordie Sampson, which explains that most, if not all, songs are about a girl. 

“At least for most guy writers in country music, it’s a song about a girl. The first lines of the song, ‘This ain’t about tailgates, ain’t about bonfires, ain’t about souped up cars, water towers and drowning a bottle of Jack.’ That’s all things that everybody loves,” says Eric. “The fun thing is there’s nothing sexy about a tailgate, unless your baby is sitting in it. There’s nothing sexy about a bonfire, unless your girl is glowing in it. And I sure don’t think a water tower is sexy unless my girlfriend’s name is written on it…it was just fun writing that song about thinking about not clichés, but in a way, you always talk about these things and it’s all because of the girl.”

He’ll be performing several songs from his debut album when he hits the road on Brantley Gilbert’s Let it Ride Tour, kicking off March 27th in LaCrosse, Wisconsin.

Eric Paslay (Song About a Girl) OC: …shake it with. 1:20
“‘Song About a Girl’ — Jessi Alexander came in with that idea and [we] wrote it with Gordie Sampson. We were just sitting there and just saying that everything we write – Jessi has written tons of songs. Gordie has written tons of songs. They’re both great artists, and I’ve written my share of songs, and we’re just like ‘You know what? They’re all about girls,’ at least for most guy writers in country music, it’s a song about a girl. The first lines of the song, ‘This ain’t about tailgates, ain’t about bonfires, ain’t about souped up cars, water towers and drowning a bottle of Jack.’ That’s all things that everybody loves. And it was just kind of a thing of what can we get to make people go, ‘Huh? What do you say?’ And the fun thing is there’s nothing sexy about a tailgate, unless your babe is sitting in it. There’s nothing sexy about a bonfire unless your girl is glowing in it. And I sure don’t think a water tower is sexy unless my girlfriend’s name is written on it, or if you’re getting over your babe in a bottle of Jack. But it was just fun writing that song about thinking about not clichés, but in a way you always talk about these things and it’s all because of the girl. ‘Every time don’t think too hard, dig too deep or read between the lines, it’s a song about a girl.’ And as a songwriter and as a singer I love singing that song because it’s smart, it’s fun and it’s easy to hold your baby’s hand and shake it with.”

Follow the lives of the townspeople of San Destino. This is the follow up to Eric Church‘s music video for “Give Me Back My Hometown.”

Dierks Bentley releases his new album, Riser, on Tuesday (February 25th), and it’s a project that is very close to his heart and soul. It’s the first album since the death of his father and the birth of his son, and all of the emotions about those two life-altering experiences, as well as the balance between being on the road and being a family man, are reflected in Riser. With such songs as “I Hold On,” “Riser” and “Here on Earth,” coupled with “Five,” “Drunk on a Plane,” “Sounds of Summer” and “Back Porch,” Dierks runs the gamut of life, love, loss, resilience and renewal.

“Once I kind of knew what I was feeling with my dad and just all this stuff, I had a template to start from for writing and listening for stuff to kind of fit that mold,” says Dierks. “I had this tour on the road which my true colors actually came out. And that feeling was able to be brought into the album…these fun songs that kind of encapsulate who I am, as well as a father and a son who has lost his father. So, yeah, it’s [been] a pretty incredible journey the last two years. It’s been amazing.”

Catch Dierks on Tuesday (February 25th) on ABC’s Good Morning America, NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live on Wednesday (February 26th), as well as The View on Thursday (February 27th).

Dierks Bentley (Riser album songs) OC: …been amazing. :44
“Once I kind of knew what I was feeling with my dad and just all this stuff, I had a template to start from for writing and listening for stuff to kind of fit that mold. Luckily for me, there was enough gap between my dad passing away and my son being born that we were able to go out, I had this tour on the road which my true colors actually came out. And that feeling was able to be brought into the album with songs like ‘Back Porch,’ ‘Chillin’ on a Back Porch,’ and ‘Drunk on a Plane,’ and ‘Sounds of Summer,’ these fun songs that kind of encapsulate who I am, as well as a father and a son who has lost his father. So, yeah, It’s [been] a pretty incredible journey the last two years. It’s been amazing.”

Dierks Bentley (Riser album excitement) OC: …excited about it. :21
“I’ve never been more excited about an album, you know? I was actually just thinking earlier about all the press we have to do surrounding albums can be fatiguing, but for some reason, even though I’m totally exhausted, I’m just really engaged in this whole process because — I don’t know what it is. I think I just really feel great about the album and believe in it and generally just excited about it.”

CUPERTINO, California―February 19, 2014―Keith Urban will perform at the first U.S. iTunes® Festival, which will be held March 11th – 15th. Taking place at ACL Live at the Moody Theater, home of Austin City Limits, the iTunes Festival at SXSW will also feature performances by Coldplay, Imagine Dragons, Pitbull, ZEDD and more. All five nights of the iTunes Festival will be available to enjoy for free as a live and on-demand stream via the iTunes Store® on your iPhone®, iPad®, iPod touch®, Mac® or PC. Performances can also be seen in the iTunes Festival app on your iOS device or with Apple TV® in stunning HD.

“The iTunes Festival in London has become an incredible way for Apple to share its love of music with our customers,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “We’re excited about the incredible lineup of artists performing and SXSW is the perfect place to debut the first iTunes Festival in the US.”

At the iTunes Festival in London over 400 artists have performed in front of more than 430,000 fans and tens of millions more online. Performances are available for purchase and download on the iTunes Store. For additional details on the lineup for the iTunes Festival check out www.itunes.com/festival.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad.

George Strait and Lady Antebellum are among the first artists announced for ACM Presents: An All-Star Salute to the Troops, a television special paying tribute to members of the U.S. armed forces.

The special will be taped April 7th, the night after the Academy of Country Music Awards, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It will air May 20th (CBS, 9pm ET/PT) and also will feature Merle Haggard, Carrie Underwood, the Band Perry and Florida Georgia Line. 

Proceeds from ticket sales will benefit ACM Lifting Lives.