Universal Universal Music Group Nashville Pressroom

The sentimental video centers around a professional bull rider who struggles to get his life back on track as he battles with substance abuse and includes a surprise ending that will tug at your heartstrings.

“We’re very excited to release this emotional example of someone’s life being changed by another,” says John Osborne. “We’re never truly ourselves without the ones we love.” TJ adds, “the directors, Wes and Ryan, knocked this video out of the park. We’re beyond proud of this one.”

The five-time GRAMMY nominees again partnered with directors Wes Edwards and Ryan Silver, the same team from the ACM and CMA Award-winning video for their Top 10 hit “It Ain’t My Fault” as well as their comical “Shoot Me Straight” video.

Climbing the country radio charts, “I Don’t Remember Me (Before You)” is Brothers Osborne’s current single which they recently performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, watch HERE. The wistful and reflective track is featured on their critically-acclaimed sophomore album, Port Saint Joe, which was nominated for Best Country Album at the 2019 GRAMMY Awards and landed on Several Best of 2018 Lists including Esquire, Rolling Stone, NPR, American Songwriter and more. The Washington Post says, “with this second album, Brothers Osborne continue to put their own stamp on country music, fusing Southern rock with outlaw country and it’s been a winning formula.” While Rolling Stone notes, “Port Saint Joe capitalizes on TJ and John Osborne’s strengths, TJ’s earthy baritone that projects vulnerability with John adding dazzling guitar solos.”

The Maryland Natives are currently on the road as part of their headlining world tour which started in the UK and Canada and kicked off the US portion in front of a sold-out crowd in Chicago last month. The duo continues to sell out every venue they’ve played so far including three sold-out nights at the famed Ryman Auditorium this week. The duo will continue to hit over 40 markets through April including upcoming sold-out shows in Washington DC, Milwaukee and St. Louis. Later this year, the singer/songwriters will join Chris Stapleton’s “All-American Road Show” tour.

For a full list of tour dates, news, images and more, visit www.BrothersOsborne.com

Kassi Ashton, one of Nashville’s most compelling rising stars, has released the new music video for her song “Violins” today. A vibrant and entertaining reflection of the song’s empowering lyrics, the piece finds her shutting down an immature suitor amidst the fitting backdrop of a high school gymnasium. Kassi’s creative fingerprint impressively extends beyond the music and into the choreography and fashion elements of the video as well. Throughout, she shows off skillful majorette dance routines and even dons various stylish band outfits that she hand-made herself.

“Violins,” first released on January 25, was produced by Luke Dick and Luke Laird, and co-written by Kassi, Luke Dick and Natalie Hemby. The music video was shot in Nashville and marks Kassi’s first collaboration with director Kristin Barlowe.

“Visuals are so important to me, because that’s the way I understand and explain everything in my life,” Kassi said about the video. “It is no different with my music. When I allowed my brain to think of all the possibilities of what this video could look like, a million ideas soaked in red light came out. Kristin Barlowe, in all her magic, and her entire team perfectly translated my thoughts to the screen.”

About Kassi AshtonKassi Ashton brought a whole new attitude of her own to country music upon arrival in 2017. The California, Missouri singer and songwriter initially touched down with a string of critically acclaimed tracks. Released by UMG Nashville in conjunction with Interscope, her introductory release “California, Missouri” stirred up widespread critical acclaim from Taste of Country, CMT, The Boot, and many more. As her profile grew, she lent her voice to the standout “Drop Top” on Keith Urban’s chart-topping 2018 album, Graffiti U. He went on to describe her as “such a unique, original creature.” Expanding on her confessional and catchy storytelling, she maintained momentum on the summer solo song “Taxidermy.”  Named “Who to Watch” by Huffington Post and The Tennessean, radio personality Bobby Bones included her among his Class of 2018. Rolling Stone lauded her as “a devilish songwriter who isn’t afraid to flip convention on its head,” and Refinery29 also claimed, “she blends pop aesthetics with a presence doused in no-fucks-left-to-give authenticity.” She continues to defy convention and define a signature style on the 2019 single “Violins”—and a whole lot more to come.

http://kassiashton.com/

Facebook.com/KassiAshton

Instagram: @KassiAshton

Twitter: @KassiAshton

George Strait released his new song, “Every Little Honk Tonk Bar,” on Monday (February 11th). The song, which he co-wrote with his son Bubba and tunesmith Dean Dillon, will be featured on his upcoming album, Honky Tonk Time Machine.

“We were down at my ranch in south Texas writing and it was kind of towards the end of the night and we were pretty much done,” recalls George. “I was tired and ready to go to bed, but we were going, ‘Does anybody have anything else?’ Bubba goes, ‘Whiskey is the gasoline that lights the fire that burns the bridge.’ And Dean and I go, ‘What? Where did that come from?’ [laughs] So, anyway, that’s how it started and we finished it that night.”

Honky Tonk Time Machine will be available March 29th. Comprised of 12 original titles plus Strait’s version of the Johnny Paycheck classic “Old Violin,” Honky Tonk Time Machine marks an incredible 30th career studio album for Strait. Strait, who produced the album alongside Chuck Ainlay, wrote eight of the 13 tracks including “Sing One with Willie” featuring Willie Nelson that the pair happily debuted at a recent Nashville show marking the first time the two country icons have ever shared the stage.

With an unmatched 60 singles hitting the top of the charts – more than any other artist in any genre – during the span of his 30-year career, Strait is the undeniable “King of Country Music.” He has collected 33 Platinum or multi-Platinum-selling albums, more than any country artist and ranking third across all genres behind only The Beatles and Elvis Presley. Strait is the only act in history to have a Top 10 hit every year for over three decades and has sold nearly 70 million albums and earned more than 60 major entertainment industry awards, including induction in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2006.

Iconic pop-rockers Hootie & the Blowfish thrilled fans by announcing a return to full-time touring with the Group Therapy Tour in support of their forthcoming album under a new record deal with Universal Music Group Nashville and supporters have been quick to express their excitement through an overwhelming demand for tickets. Today, the band announced the addition of a second Madison Square Garden date on Sunday, August 11 in response to the initial Saturday, August 10 date’s sell out.

Critics have also celebrated the band’s return to the road, with Billboard declaring “Hootie & the Blowfish are back and better than ever” and “we’re ready for it” while Esquire proclaimed “welcome back, Hootie… it is our duty as Americans to show up.” USA Today noted that “1990s nostalgia will invade North America [this] summer” while Consequence of Sound included the Group Therapy Tour in their “30 Most Anticipated Tours of 2019.”

The additional Madison Square Garden show marks the second added date on the Live Nation-produced tour, with the band already having doubled down in Columbia, South Carolina for a homecoming finale. Several other stops on the tour are also sold out months in advance with tickets available in limited quantities for many remaining shows. Visit www.hootie.com for more information regarding specific dates.

“Madison Square Garden, for any musician, is Mecca,” lead singer Darius Rucker recently shared with ESPN’s Paul Finebaum of the legendary venue. “When you’ve played the Garden and you’ve sold out the Garden, you know you’ve made it. You’ve done something.”

Citi is the official pre-sale credit card for the Group Therapy Tour. As such, Citi cardmembers will have access to purchase pre-sale tickets to the August 11 Madison Square Garden show beginning today, February 11. For complete Citi pre-sale details visit www.citiprivatepass.com. Hootie & the Blowfish fan club members can also purchase pre-sale tickets today, with the Barenaked Ladies fan club presale to follow on Wednesday, February 13 and the Live Nation and venue pre-sales on Thursday February 14. All pre-sales begin at 10 a.m. ET and conclude on Thursday, February 14 at 10 p.m. ET in advance of the general public onsale this Friday, February 15 at 10 a.m. ET.
 
Group Therapy Tour
May 30             Virginia Beach, Va. | Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater
May 31             Raleigh, N.C. | Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
 
June 1               Atlanta, Ga. | Cellairis Amphitheatre at Lakewood
June 6               Orange Beach, Ala. | The Wharf
June 7               Tampa, Fla. | MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
June 8               West Palm Beach, Fla. | Coral Sky Amphitheatre
June 13             Austin, Texas | Austin360 Amphitheater
June 14             Houston, Texas | Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion presented by Huntsman
June 15             Dallas, Texas | Dos Equis Pavilion
June 19             Phoenix, Ariz. | Ak-Chin Pavilion
June 21             Chula Vista, Calif. | North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
June 22             Las Vegas, Nev. | T-Mobile Arena
June 23             Irvine, Calif. | FivePoint Amphitheatre presented by Mercury Insurance
June 25             Los Angeles, Calif. | Hollywood Bowl
June 28             Wheatland, Calif. | Toyota Amphitheatre
June 29             Mountain View, Calif. | Shoreline Amphitheatre
 
July 11              Englewood, Colo. | Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre
July 13              Maryland Heights, Mo. | Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
July 14              Rogers, Ark. | Walmart AMP
July 19              Monticello, Iowa | Great Jones County Fair
July 20              Cincinnati, Ohio | Riverbend Music Center
July 21              Burgettstown, Penn. | KeyBank Pavilion
July 26              Cleveland, Ohio | Blossom Music Center
July 27              Bristow, Va. | Jiffy Lube Live
July 28              Camden, N.J. | BB&T Pavilion
 
August 2           Guilford, N.H. | Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
August 3           Mansfield, Mass. | Xfinity Center
August 4           Saratoga Springs, N.Y. | Saratoga Performing Arts Center
August 8           Columbia, Md. | Merriweather Post Pavilion
August 9           Canandaigua, N.Y. | Constellation Brands-Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center: CMAC
August 10         New York, N.Y. | Madison Square Garden
August 11         New York, N.Y. | Madison Square Garden
August 16         Detroit, Mich. | DTE Energy Music Theatre
August 17         Noblesville, Ind. | Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center
August 18         Des Moines, Iowa | Iowa State Fair
August 22         St. Paul, Minn. | Minnesota State Fair
August 23         East Troy, Wis. | Alpine Valley Music Theatre
August 24         Tinley Park, Ill. | Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
August 29         Toronto, Ont. | Budweiser Stage
August 30         Hershey, Penn. | Hersheypark Stadium
August 31         Hartford, Conn. | XFINITY Theatre
 
September 5      Charlotte, N.C. | PNC Music Pavilion 
September 6      Birmingham, Ala. | Oak Mountain Amphitheatre
September 7      Nashville, Tenn. | Bridgestone Arena
September 12    Columbia, S.C. | Colonial Life Arena
September 13    Columbia, S.C. | Colonial Life Arena

For more information, visit www.hootie.com of follow on Facebook @hootieandtheblowfish, Twitter @HootieTweets and Instagram @hootieofficial.

About Hootie & the Blowfish
With the rich, bluesy vocals of Darius Rucker and gleeful harmonies of guitarist Mark Bryan, bassist Dean Felber and drummer Jim “Soni” Sonefeld, Hootie & the Blowfish have sold over 25 million records worldwide to date after their infectious melodies hit the airwaves in 1994 with hits such as “Hold My Hand,” “Let Her Cry” and “Only Wanna Be With You.”

The quartet met at the University of South Carolina where endless gigs at frat houses and local bars built a major local buzz. Their blend of pop, folk, blues, soul and rock made them hard to pigeonhole, but easily accessible to anyone who loved good music.

Atlantic Records, impressed by their regional draw, signed them and released Cracked Rear View in 1994. The album had been out for six months before the band played on the Late Show with David Letterman which sent sales skyrocketing, eventually landing at No. 1 on the Billboard chart the following spring. Cracked Rear View and the band went on to win two GRAMMY Awards, an MTV Video Music Award, a Billboard Music Award, and multiple People’s Choice Awards. Cracked Rear View went on to earn the band Billboard‘s Band of the Year Award in 1996 and the RIAA’s Diamond Award for sales in excess of 10 million units. Cracked Rear View remains the 5th most certified studio album in music business history.

The band remained a top draw nationwide and released five more albums for Atlantic: Fairweather Johnson, Musical Chairs, Scattered, Smothered & Covered, Hootie & The Blowfish and The Best of Hootie & The Blowfish, as well as Looking For Lucky on their own Sneaky Long Records and LIVE in Charleston, The Homegrown Concert Event DVD and CD. The band took a break from full-time touring in 2007, reuniting annually for a variety of philanthropic events while also pursuing solo projects. 2019 will mark the band’s first full-time touring year in over a decade as they embark on the Group Therapy Tour in support of forthcoming new music under a new record deal with Universal Music Group Nashville.

It has been a monumental year for critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter Kacey Musgraves, who took home four GRAMMY Awards including Album of The Year and Best Country Album for her #1 third studio album Golden Hour, Best Country Solo Performance for “Butterflies,” and Best Country Song for “Space Cowboy.” People predicted that “Kacey Musgraves just might be the GRAMMY Awards’ golden girl this year,” and Kacey has now made history as the first female solo artist to win Best Country Album twice. These wins bring Kacey’s career total up to six.

In tandem with her breathtaking performance of new single “Rainbow” on the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards, Kacey has shared the song’s official video. The cinematic visual is a heartfelt message of hope for anyone facing adversity, echoing the song’s lyrics that “it’ll all be alright.” Upon Golden Hour’s release, GQ declared the track “arguably the best song she’s ever recorded,” describing it as “an emotional wallop that’ll knock you sideways if you’re not prepared,” and Noisey pronounced it “a stunner, which makes majesty out of familiar balladry.” The single has been serviced simultaneously to AC, Hot AC, Triple A and Country radio. Listen to and watch “Rainbow” here: http://strm.to/Rainbow.

Golden Hour has received overwhelming praise and support since its release in March 2018, and Variety notes, “it’s hard to imagine that within the next couple of years Kacey Musgraves won’t be one of the biggest stars in music.” Kacey made her debut on Saturday Night Live with “High Horse” and “Slow Burn,” and made additional high-profile TV appearances surrounding Golden Hour’s release, including The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, TODAY, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Late Late Show with James Corden, and Jimmy Kimmel Live! Golden Hour, which earned Kacey her third #1 debut on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart, was named Apple Music’s Global Album of the Year, and has been celebrated as one of the best albums of 2018 by outlets across the board including NPR, The Associated Press, Time, Rolling Stone, Billboard, Pitchfork, Entertainment Weekly, Esquire, Complex, Consequence of Sound, USA Today, Noisey, Stereogum, People, and Vulture, among others. The album continues to break boundaries, historically winning Album of the Year at the CMA Awards, with Kacey becoming the first female to win the category in 4 years and only the sixth female to do so in the show’s 52-year history. This April, Kacey will become the first-ever female country artist to play Coachella.

Kacey is currently on the North American leg of her Oh, What a World: Tour, recently adding 17 new shows in response to overwhelming demand see full list of dates at  http://www.kaceymusgraves.com/tour.

After hosting sold-out crowds across Canada during the launch of his 2019 BURNING MAN TOUR, multi-Platinum singer/songwriter Dierks Bentley is extending the full-throttle run into the summer with 31 additional dates. “The show that delivers” (Country Aircheck) will continue with special guests Jon Pardi, Tenille Townes and the Hot Country Knights, and its final weekend will include Caylee Hammack. Fans can purchase tickets now for select cities as part of Live Nation’s Country Megaticket at www.Megaticket.com or beginning Friday, February 15th in select cities. Additional dates will continue to rollout over the coming weeks.

“The Burning Man Tour is off to a killer start…I’ve loved standing side stage to watch Pardi and Tennille and to feel the energy bottled up in these arenas before we go on,” said Bentley. “We are making the most of every minute out there – on stage and off – and I’m excited to announce we are going to roll it through the summer.”

Bentley “is stealthily one of Country music’s most adventurous artists” (Billboard) and his live show has long been applauded by critics as “he presents himself and his work with such genuine enthusiasm” (Winnipeg Free Press). The 2019 BURNING MAN TOUR will run through September and kicks it up a notch this weekend with its first run of shows in the U.S. (Ontario, CA, 2/14, Fresno, CA, 2/15, and Reno, NC 2/16). He will continue to make notable stops throughout the country including his return to Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena next week after making a sold-out headlining debut in 2016.

Upcoming 2019 BURNING MAN TOUR Dates:
2/14/19  Ontario, CA
2/15/19  Fresno, CA
2/16/19  Reno, NV
2/21/19  Lexington, KY
2/22/19  Nashville, TN
2/23/19  Columbia, MO
2/28/19  Sioux Fall, SD
3/01/19  Wichita, KS
3/02/19  Omaha, NE
3/07/19  Moline, IL
3/08/19  Duluth, MN
3/09/19  Grand Forks, ND
3/28/19  Toledo, OH
3/29/19  Columbus, OH
3/30/19  Grand Rapids, MI
5/30/19  Cincinnati, OH
5/31/19  Indianapolis, IN
6/01/19  St. Louis, MO
6/13/19  Brandon, MS
6/14/19  Alpharetta, GA
6/15/19  Orange Beach, AL
6/29/19  Clarkston, MI
6/30/19  Syracuse, NY
7/18/19  Jacksonville, FL
7/25/19  Cleveland, OH
7/11/19  Raleigh, NC
7/12/19  Virginia Beach, VA
7/13/19  Bristow, VA
7/19/19  West Palm Beach, FL
7/20/19  Tampa, FL
7/26/19  Holmdel, NJ
7/27/19  Burgettstown, PA
8/01/19  Darien Center, NY
8/02/19  Wantagh, NY
8/03/19  Scranton, PA
8/08/19  Charlotte, NC
8/09/19  Tuscaloosa, AL
8/10/19  Dallas, TX
8/15/19  Hartford, CT
8/16/19  Boston, MA
8/17/19  Philadelphia, PA
8/22/19  Kansas City, MO
8/23/19  Chicago, IL
9/06/19  Irvine, CA*
9/07/19  Mountain View, CA*
9/08/19  Sacramento, CA**

*with Jon Pardi, Caylee Hammack and the Hot Country Knights
**with Caylee Hammack and the Hot Country Knights

Bentley “has built a reputation as an authentic artist who often takes fearless stylistic detours with his music” (Music Row) and continues to be a dominant voice for the genre with over 8.6 billion overall digital streams. Reaching a new creative high as a co-writer on 10 of 13 tracks off THE MOUNTAIN (Capitol Records Nashville), Bentley earned the highest debut sales of his career as the record now boasts over 245 million streams. Critics continue to applaud his seventh chart-topping album as it was featured as one of “2018 Best Albums” by Esquire, USA Today, Rolling Stone, The Tennessean and more, while it was one of the only Country albums on Billboard’s all-genre year end list. Bentley has amassed countless nominations from the  ACMs, CMAs, Billboard Music Awards and more, while earning 13 GRAMMY nominations. For more information, visit www.dierks.com.

Kacey Musgraves has released “Rainbow,” which she performed on Sunday night’s GRAMMY Awards.  Kacey co-wrote the melodic tune with Shane McAnally and Natalie Hemby and appears on her acclaimed album, Golden Hour.

“The song ‘Rainbow’ was actually written a handful of years ago as sort of a little bit of a memo to myself. I think we can all get stuck in a mindset that things are never gonna improve or you can easily focus on kind of the bad parts of whatever you’re going through and not really realize that if you pulled your head above the water you’d see that the sun is actually shining and that everything’s actually okay,” she says. “I think one of the reasons that people may relate to the song a lot is because, though it was written to myself, I think that it can take the shape of like whatever someone’s going through – whether it’s coming out and not having the support or just any kind of a situation that they don’t feel like they may make it through.”

She also dropped the video for the song tonight. She premiered a clip of the video during E!’s Red Carpet special prior to the GRAMMY Awards.

Kacey won four GRAMMY Awards, including Best Album and Best Country Album (Golden Hour), Best Country Song for “Space Cowboy” with co-writers Luke Laird and Shane McAnally and Best Country Solo Performance for “Butterflies.”

Kacey Musgraves is having a “golden” night at this year’s GRAMMY Awards. In addition to Best Country Song (“Space Cowboy”) and Best Country Solo Performance (“Butterflies”), Kacey also picked up the award for Best Country Song for Golden Hour.

“I never dreamed that this record would be met with such love, such warmth,” she said, accepting with co-producers Daniel Tashian and Ian Fitchuk. “I love country music with everything that I am and I’ve very proud to get to share my version of that with the world.”

Kacey Musgraves has picked up TWO early GRAMMY Awards already. She won Best Country Song for “Space Cowboy” (co-writers Luke Laird and Shane McAnally) and Best Country Solo Performance for “Butterflies” – both of which are on her GRAMMY-nominated album, Golden Hour.

Kacey will perform twice during tonight’s show, including during a tribute for the MusiCares Person of the Year, Dolly Parton.

Kacey has previously won Best Country Song for “Merry Go ‘Round” and Best Country Album for Same Trailer Different Park.

Each year on February 14th, many people exchange cards, candy, gifts or flowers with their special someone. The day of romance we call Valentine’s Day is named for a Christian martyr and dates back to the 5th century.

Over 150 million Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged annually, making Valentine’s Day the second-most popular greeting-card-giving occasion; 2.2 million marriages take place in the United States annually, which breaks down to more than 6,000 a day.

Thursday is Valentine’s Day (February 14th), and we’ve got some thoughts and feelings and more about love, romance and marriage from several of your favorite country artists. A few are new and some have become our favorites over the years. Which country stars are romantic? Which ones aren’t? Which ones have a good reason to celebrate the holiday that’s all about love?