• JON PARDI WILL HIT THE ROAD WITH JUSTIN MOORE NEXT MONTH. (AUDIO)

    Jon Pardiis excited to hit the road with headliner Justin Moore and Dustin Lynch next month. The Outlaws Like Me trek is set to kick off March 14th in Pikeville, Kentucky and is currently set to run through April 20th in Corbin, Kentucky. “It’s [Justin’s] first headlining tour, so I know he’s excited…I know Dustin really well, so it’ll be cool to have him around and hang out and do stuff,” says the California native. “I know it’s gonna be a wild crowd, so it’s gonna be fun. I’m gonna get in there and do my thing.”

    Jon is also getting ready to hit the airwaves with his new single!

    OUTLAWS LIKE ME Tour Dates:
    March 14 — Pikeville, KY – Eastern Kentucky Expo Center
    March 15 — Troy, OH –Hobart Arena
    March 21 — Kearny, NE – Viaero Event Center
    March 22 — St. Joseph, MO – St. Joseph Civic Arena
    March 23 — Farmington, MO – Farmington Civic Center
    March 28 — Davenport, IA – Adler Theatre**
    March 29 — Brookings, ND – Swiftel Center
    March 30 — Bismarck, ND – Bismarck Civic Center
    April 13 — Dodge City, KS – United Wireless Arena**
    April 18 — Erie, PA – Erie Insurance Arena
    April 19 — Johnston, PA – Cambria County War Memorial Arena
    April 20 — Corbin, KY – The Corbin Arena

    ** Jon Pardi will not appear at these dates

    AUDIO: Jon Pardi talks about going on the road with Justin Moore’s Outlaws Like Me Tour.

    Jon Pardi (Justin Moore tour) OC: …do my thing. :20
    “I’m excited and my buddy Dustin Lynch is gonna be on it too. It’s really cool, I don’t know, it’s [Justin’s] first headlining tour, so I know he’s excited and getting me out there was awesome. I know Dustin really well, so it’ll be cool to have him around and hang out and do stuff…I know it’s gonna be a wild crowd, so it’s gonna be fun. I’m gonna get in there and do my thing.”

  • NEWS and NOTES: Lady A, Keith, Little Big Town

    Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott is set to join Adam Levine on the next season of The Voice as a guest mentor. “I was so happy that Hillary was interested in coming on The Voice to mentor my team,” Adam told Access Hollywood. “Maroon 5 and I recorded a song with her for our last studio album and we had a great time collaborating in the studio.” Adding, “She is an incredible performer and artist. I know my team will be able to learn a lot from her.” The Voice” Season 4 premieres on March 25th at 8pm ET on NBC.

    Keith Urban has been added as a presenter at the 55th annual Grammy Awards Sunday, February 10th on CBS. Dierks Bentley will team up with tour mate Miranda Lambert for a performance, while Tim McGraw and Faith Hill are also added as presenters. The show will be broadcast live from the Staples Center in L.A.

    Little Big Town will play a free concert in California on Wednesday (February 6th) to benefit The Dogwood Project, which helps to comfort young children dealing with the death of a parent. The show is in honor of Kimberly Schlapman’s brother-in-law Allen, who was hit and killed by a drunk driver on Thanksgiving.

  • ERIC CHURCH GOES HEAVY METAL! (AUDIO)

    Eric Church has scored a bunch of gold and platinum certifications for a number of his singles from the R.I.A.A. “Hell on the Heart” and “Creepin’” have been certified gold for more than 500,000 downloads, while “Drink in My Hand,” “Smoke a Little Smoke” and “Homeboy” have earned platinum certification for one-million downloads. “Springsteen” picks up double-platinum status for two-million downloads.

    Eric, who is currently on tour in Canada, is nominated for a pair of Grammy Awards, including Best Country Solo Performance and Best Country Song for “Springsteen”. The 55th GRAMMY Awards will air Sunday, February 10th on CBS.

    AUDIO: Eric Church says he owes a lot to his hit, “Smoke a Little Smoke,” from his Carolina album.

    Eric Church (Smoke a Little Smoke) OC: …that song. :36
    “I think subject-matter wise, it’s another situation where everybody told me…you’re nuts to release that song, there are other things that’ll be easier to get up the chart. I saw the crowd though, I followed the crowd. They’d go crazy on that, and they still do. I mean, I think it’s one of those songs. In our set, what they do during that song, when they tear those walls down and they tear it down, is very, very hard to recover from, show-wise. So, I just followed the crowd on it. And I said, ‘You know, this is what some people think we shouldn’t release, but I’ve seen how people respond to it. Let’s put it out.’ And, it took off. Then the digital part, the sales part, was just huge for that song. I owe a lot to that song.”

  • KIP MOORE SELLS OUT BOSTON SHOW IN 20 MINUTES. (PRESS RELEASE)

    KIP MOORE SELLS OUT HEADLINING BOSTON SHOW IN 20 MINUTES

    New Single “Hey Pretty Girl” At Radio Now

    Nashville, TN— Feb. 1, 2013— MCA recording artist Kip Moore is continuing his streak of sold-out shows selling almost 2,500 tickets for his March 23rd stop in Boston, MA at House of Blues in just 20 minutes this morning. The show follows previous sold-out dates already this year in Norfolk, VA, Raleigh, NC, Athens, GA, Nashville, TN, Starkville, MS and upcoming Grand Rapids, MI.
    “This year is off to a crazy start and it’s only February,” said Kip. “We have been at this awhile, just going out on the road and playing to as many people who would listen. It wasn’t much at first, but thankfully, the number of people listening seems to be getting bigger and bigger. And if you missed out on any tickets, I’m sorry…but I guarantee we’ll be back soon!”

    Kip recently released the third single, “Hey Pretty Girl,” from his debut album UP ALL NIGHT, which was the best selling debut album from any country artist released in 2012. The single follows two consecutive No. 1 singles “Somethin’ ‘Bout A Truck” and “Beer Money.” His first career No. 1 single, “Somethin’ ‘Bout A Truck,” held the top spot on both charts for two weeks making him the first solo artist in four years to have a debut album’s first single go No. 1 for multiple weeks. Previously on tour with Eric Church last fall, Kip is continuing to headline his own dates as well as hitting the road with Brantley Gilbert in February and April. Kip will be opening for Toby Keith this summer starting in May.

    For a full list of tour dates and more information, please visit, www.kipmoore.net.

  • LUKE BRYAN TAKES YOU BEHIND-THE-SCENES OF A PHOTO SHOOT FOR DR. PEPPER ON LBTV! (VIDEO)

    In the latest episode of LBTV, Luke Bryan takes you behind-the-scenes of a photo shoot for Dr. Pepper as part of an ACM Awards promotion. You’ll soon see Luke’s handsome face on cans and cases of Dr. Pepper, as well as find out how you can win a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the ACM Awards in Vegas this spring.

    Video / LBTV Thursdays 2013! Episode 2

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  • FOOTBALL AND TAILGATE FOOD: Darius, Easton, Gary, Keith, Lady A, Little Big Town (AUDIO)

    This Sunday (February 3rd), millions of people around the world will be tuning in to the Super Bowl, including some of your favorite country artists. Some will be rooting for the San Francisco 49ers, while others will be pulling for the Baltimore Ravens to win the Big Game, which has been dubbed the Harbowl, since brothers Jim and John Harbaugh are the head coaches of the opposing teams. Darius Rucker, Luke Bryan, Lady Antebellum, Easton Corbin, Kip Moore, Keith Urban and Little Big Town are definitely fans of football…however, you probably won’t find Gary Allan in front of the tube in his sweats munching down on chips and salsa or buffalo wings, since he usually doesn’t watch television, much less sports on TV. However, the “Every Storm (Runs Out of Rain)” singer may catch a few plays if one of his football-playing buddies is on the field. Check out all the action on the field on Sunday at 6:30pm ET on CBS.

    AUDIO: Darius Rucker is a HUGE football fan, as everyone probably knows by now. He even has a special man cave with probably six or seven (or more) televisions mounted on the wall to catch all of the games being played during the season. He explains why he loves football so much. SIDENOTE: He’s a huge Miami Dolphins fan, and word has it, just to be able to meet then Dolphins quarterback, Dan Marino, he asked him to be in a Hootie & the Blowfish video for “Only Wanna Be With You.”

    Darius Rucker (football) OC: …football season. :20
    “Ever since I was five years old, I’ve loved football, and I love how physical it is. I love the chess match of the game. I love the speed of the game. I love college football, but for me watching pro football is better because the speed is so much more. For me, there’s two times a year, man — football season and waiting for football season.”

    Audio / Darius Rucker (football)

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    AUDIO: Keith Urban says his wife, Nicole Kidman, got him interested in football.

    Keith (Nicole and football) OC: …new to me. :04“She
    ’s a big NFL fan, and she sort of turned me on to it.”

    Audio / Keith (football)

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    AUDIO: Easton Corbin says you can’t go on the bus during football season without a game being on the television.

    Easton Corbin (football) OC: …that’s on. :07
    “That’s all that’s on the bus on the weekends. That’s it, and we’ve got three TVs on the bus, so that’s all that’s on.”

    Audio / Easton Corbin (football))

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    AUDIO: Gary Allan isn’t a big TV watcher and the news channels are usually what he’ll watch. So, come Sunday, you probably won’t find him watching the Super Bowl, unless a friend of his is playing.

    Gary Allan (football buddies) OC: …see everybody. [laughs] :25
    “I’ve got buddies that I follow, you know, Jay Cutler, I’m buddies with him, so I like to watch him play. Tony Scheffler. It’s just guys that I know, that’s what’ll make me watch. Jared Allen, I just did something with him. Great guy. So, it’s different if you know somebody out there. It makes it more fun. I’m not a TV person. [laughs] I’d be the guy that you’d invite to the party, and I’d hang out for the first quarter and go, ‘Alright, it’s good to see everybody.” [laughs]

    Audio / Lady A (tailgate food)

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    AUDIO: The members of Lady Antebellum reveal their favorite tailgate foods, just in time for the Big Game.

    Lady A (tailgate food) OC: (Charles) …football watching. :21
    HILLARY: “Honestly, chips and salsa, salsa or cheese dip or something. That’s like what I always go for. I could eat that every meal. No joke.” DAVE: “Best tailgate food is a big ole burger soaked in Dale’s sauce. That’s all you need.” HILLARY: “Or bratwurst. I forgot that. Those are good.” CHARLES: “Cold beer! A couple of little finger foods, but without cold beer, it’s not football watching.”

    Audio / LBT (football story)

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    AUDIO: Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild shows she’s a pretty tough chick in the band’s latest video for “Tornado,” and the beautiful and talented woman was just as big a badass when she was playing quarterback for her powder puff football team when she was growing up.

    LBT (football story) OC: …my lip. :40
    “I was the quarterback to my powder puff team. I was running the ball and I came around the corner – this was in high school – and a foreign exchange student, I think her name was Inga (KIMBERLY: “Inga.”), and I didn’t want to fumble ‘cause my brother and my dad were there, and I come from this very athletic family, so I held onto the ball. I knew I was going to go down, so I let my head hit first and I bit all the way through, but I didn’t fumble and I had a hole in my face, though. The sad thing is that it was just flag football, but I left my flags on and cleats and everything, ‘cause it looked cool, and I had blood running all down my jersey. I went to the emergency room like that, and they sewed up my lip.”

    Audio / Gary Allan (football buddies)

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  • LITTLE BIG TOWN LAUNCHES ‘TORNADO’ TOUR! (AUDIO)

    Little Big Town launch theirTornado Tour in Murray, Kentucky on Thursday night (January 31st). The band is taking special guests Kacey Musgraves and David Nail along for the ride on select dates, and they’re excited about performing songs from their Tornado album. “It’s gonna be so much fun to go out and play more of the songs from the Tornado record and dig deeper in our catalog and play some stuff for our fans,” says LBT’s Phillip Sweet.

    Kacey is on the tour through March 3rd, and David Nail is expected to pick up the rest of the dates through May 9th.

    Little Big Town, whose current single “Tornado” is sitting inside the Top 10, are up for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Pontoon.”

    AUDIO: Little Big Town’s Phillip Sweet talks about the band’s Tornado Tour.

    LBT (tour) OC: …for our fans. :15
    Tornado Tour—we’re bringing out Kacey Musgraves with us on tour, and also David Nail’s gonna play some of the dates, as well. So, it’s gonna be so much fun to go out and play more of the songs from the Tornado record and dig deeper in our catalog and play some stuff for our fans.”

  • KIP MOORE HITS THE ROAD WITH BRANTLEY GILBERT. (AUDIO)

    Kip Moore is getting ready to hit the road with Brantley Gilbert on his Hell on Wheels Tour, which kicks off Thursday (January 31st) in Kansas City, Missouri. The Georgia native doesn’t exactly know how to describe his show to folks, except to say, “I feel like you’re definitely gonna sense the fact that all my heart and soul is in my performance, and beyond that I don’t really know what to tell you [what] to expect, but I’m gonna give everything I’ve got every single time.”

    We definitely know at Kip’s show you will hear a couple of number-one songs (“Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck,” “Beer Money”) and his latest single hitting the charts, “Hey Pretty Girl.”

    Kip will also be making an appearance with his tourmate (Brantley Gilbert) during the annual Country Radio Seminar’s New Faces Show next month.

    AUDIO: Kip Moore explains what fans can expect from his live show.

    Kip Moore (what to expect from his live show) OC: …single time. :25
    “People ask me a lot of times, you know, what can we expect from a Kip Moore show, and a lot of times I just, in the self-deprecating way I’ll say, ‘Mediocrity at best.’ I don’t quite know how to answer that. I don’t have things that I’ve planned out that I’m gonna do. There’s not too much stage stuff. I feel like you’re definitely gonna sense the fact that all my heart and soul is in my performance, and beyond that I don’t really know what to tell you to expect, but I’m gonna give everything I’ve got every single time.”

  • KELLEIGH BANNEN LOOKS BACK AT THE MANY ADVENTURES OF HER RADIO TOUR. (VIDEO)

    Kelleigh Bannen revisits the radio tour for her debut single, “Sorry on the Rocks.”

    Video / Kelleigh Bannen on Radio Tours

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  • GARY ALLAN’S ‘SET YOU FREE’ TOPS THE BILLBOARD ALBUM CHART! (PRESS RELEASE & AUDIO)

    Gary Allan’s ninth studio album, Set You Free, is tops at both the country and pop album charts. Selling more than 106,000 albums in its debut week, Set You Free currently sits at number-one overall. This marks Gary’s first No.1 Billboard Top 200 debut and third No. 1 debut on the Billboard Country Albums Chart.

    Furthermore, Allan’s first single off Set You Free, the RIAA Gold certified “Every Storm (Runs Out Of Rain),” reached the top position on the Billboard Country Airplay Chart, Mediabase/Country Aircheck and Music Row charts this week. The California native is no stranger to having a hit at radio. With “Every Storm (Runs Out Of Rain)” reaching the top position, this marks the fifth time Allan has had a No. 1 song, additionally he has had a cool dozen Top 10 hits.

    It has been a long while, but it feels really good,” says Allan. “I would especially like to thank all of my fans and everyone at radio.  I would also like to thank everyone on my team who has helped to get me to this point.  This is a great feeling!”

    On the Billboard Hot 100 chart (which combines airplay, sales and streaming data), “Every Storm” jumped to No. 29 last week — marking Allan’s second-biggest Hot 100 hit ever. Only “Man to Man” went higher — No. 25 — in 2003. It’s expected that “Every Storm” will move up on the Hot 100 when it compiled later today (Jan. 30). 

    UMG Nashville’s Chairman and CEO, Mike Dungan humbly adds “What a gratifying moment for Gary and everyone on his team, including his family here at MCA and the Universal Music Group! This album is a spectacular piece of work, from one of music’s most unique and talented artists.  We are so proud to represent Gary and his music.”

    The excitement for Allan’s Set You Free continues. USA Today gave it FOUR OUT OF FOUR STARS and said “Allan is the outlaw whom country’s new wave dreams of being.” NPR admitted “A great mainstream country vocalist knows how to balance ardor with grit. Gary Allan is a master at that Blend” and the Nashville Scene boldly stated “when it comes to album-making as a serious art form, Neil Young has nothing on Gary Allan.”

    AUDIO: Gary Allan says the title of his latest album, Set You Free, is indicative of where he is at in his life.

    Gary Allan (Set You Free title-feel) OC: …no-brainer. :25
    “To me that’s like encompassing of kind of where I’m at right now. The feel of the album, if you look at the titles, it’s actually a break up from beginning to end. It kicks off with ‘Tough Goodbye’ and it ends with ‘Good as New,’ kind of all the phases that you go through to heal…So [with] Set You Free, I just felt like that was the essence of everything that I was doing. Even when we did the pictures, it kind of seemed to have that feel and it seemed like a no-brainer.”