Universal Universal Music Group Nashville Pressroom

Esquire magazine released its list of the Top 10 Best Country Albums of 2018, and UMG Nashville has several on the list including Brothers Osborne’s Port Saint Joe (No. 7), Dierks Bentley’s The Mountain (No. 5), Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour (No. 4) and Eric Church’s Desperate Man (No. 2). Ashley McBryde’s Girl Going Nowhere, John Prine’s The Tree of Forgiveness and Pistol Annies’ Interstate Gospel were also on the list.

Kacey’s CMA Album of the Year, Golden Hour, summed up the last chapter of her life. “The title Golden Hour just seemed to sum up this chapter of my life perfectly. I mean not only am I from a town called Golden, Texas, but leading up to making this record, there’s been a lot of beauty in my atmosphere and in my world. I love the picture that pops in my head when I hear that title. It’s also an actual song on the record, but it’s just this warm, golden feeling that I’m really happy to have in my life, and I found it to be the perfect title for this record.”

Dierks took to the Rocky Mountain resort town of Telluride, Colorado, which every summer plays host to a celebrated bluegrass festival. Owing to his well-documented love of the genre, Bentley has attended the festival multiple times over the years, always making a point to slow down and tune back in to the world around him. But after performing on the festival’s main stage in 2017, the beautiful surroundings became more than a much-needed getaway, it reflected where he is in life; his past, present and future and the album reflected the happiness he felt.

“I think the unifying thread that runs through The Mountain would be just happiness and positivity, just a real kind of vibe of being grateful in the moment that you’re in, you know? The album really started off just as a tiny idea of something to do with the West,” says Dierks. “The album kind of wrote itself to be that story of just songs like ‘Living,’ ‘Can’t Bring Me Down’ and ‘The Mountain,’ just the vibe of just being really grateful and inspired by your surroundings and not just the mountain vibe, but the surroundings on the road too. The people that I meet on the road that are climbing their own personal mountains and the stuff they’re trying to overcome. I hear so many stories backstage at the Meet-and-Greets, and I was unknowingly inspired by those stories, and I think that gives the whole Mountain [album] a great metaphor between the actual mountains and the mountains people are pursuing in their own lives.”

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Sam Hunt is probably creating his own traditions and memories since getting married to his wife Hannah nearly two years ago. Growing up, he and his family would get together with both sides of his family to eat and exchange gifts. Now, he says it’s less about the gifts and food and more about spending time as a family. “I really appreciate the time with my family, it turns into more of a social thing now and less about the gifts and the food and all that sorta stuff.”

One of his favorite gifts as a child was a horse he received one Christmas. “I remember being really excited when, I got into riding horses, and one Christmas I got a Mustang that I named Comanche – a horse – and that was a really exciting time,” he recalls. “I rode all the time after that. Before, I had some friends, a babysitter whose kids had horses, so I’d be able to ride occasionally, but now I was able to ride whenever I wanted to.”

While he’s been writing and recording songs for the follow-up to his multi-platinum Montevallo album, he’s also booked a few festivals for next year, including Stagecoach in April 2019.

Little Big Town paid tribute to the legendary Cher at the Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday night (December 2nd). This year’s honorees include Reba McEntire, Cher, composer and pianist Philip Glass, jazz saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter and Lin-Manuel Miranda and the creators of Hamilton. The Kennedy Center honors will air December 26th at 8pm ET on CBS.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bq6SHTkB5o3/

Shania Twain is scheduled to appear on Live With Kelly & Ryan on Friday (December 7th).

Keith Urban, Luke Bryan, Chris Stapleton, Kacey Musgraves, Shania Twain and Vince Gill are among the artists vying for tour awards at the Pollstar Awards, which will be handed out February 13th in Los Angeles. Keith, Luke, Chris and Shania are up for Best Country Tour, alongside Kenny  Chesney and Thomas Rhett. Kacey is nominated in the all-genre Best Support/Special Guest category for opening Harry Styles’ tour, while Vince up for Best Touring Musician for his stint with the Eagles.

Dierks Bentley and Jon Pardi are among the artists who will pay tribute to the late Troy Gentry (Montgomery Gentry)at a benefit concert, C-Ya on the Flip Side. Lee Brice, Tracy Lawrence, Justin Moore, Rascal Flatts and Dustin Lynch, among others will also perform at the event taking place January 9th at the Grand Ole Opry. Proceeds will go to a handful of organizations including the Troy Gentry Foundation, the Opry Trust, T.J. Martell Foundation, Make-A-Wish and many others.

Kacey Musgraves really appreciates homemade gifts that come from the heart. Two of her favorite presents have come from her mother, who is a gifted artist and painter.

“I’ve gotten several really great handmade presents from her that really touched me and you know I still really appreciate. One of them was a portrait of my dog, Pearl, my 3-legged dog, and it was just the most realistic, beautiful painting of her, and then another one was this beautiful guitar,” says Kacey. “It’s a guitar made completely out of found objects, and so like the tuning keys are skeleton keys, old skeleton keys…It’s just there’s something about someone using their hands and their brain to like come up with something that like no one can buy. It’s really special to me.”

Kacey has a couple of favorite Christmas traditions that her family does every year.

“My grandpa has a scavenger hunt puzzle that he does every year. Even though I’m like too old for the puzzle, he’s like, ‘You’re still gonna do it.’ So, every year we do that, and it’s funny ‘cause sometimes you’ll find your present in the bathroom or in a tree or out behind the shed,” says Kacey. “He does a little trail of like either corn or a string to it. It’s very imaginative, and it’s something I look forward to every year.”

Another one of her beloved traditions is the Christmas stocking. “They’re kinda my favorite, ‘cause it’s like all the little goodies in there just are fun.”

A couple of years ago, Kacey released her first holiday collection, A Very Kacey Christmas, which includes several classics and a few originals, including “Present Without a Bow,” featuring Leon Bridges.

George Strait usually spends Christmas at his ranch in Texas, which includes his wife Norma, son Bubba and his family, along with grandson Harvey and granddaughter Jilliann. He’s said the holiday has always centered around family.

“At Christmas time, we always kind of got together at my grandparents and had Christmas there, and it was a lot of fun because you’d see cousins that you hadn’t seen in a while,” says King George. “Those are the memories that I have, getting to spend a few days with them and opening presents and it was just a lot of fun back then.”

The Hall of Famer is scheduled to perform at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Friday (December 7th) and Saturday (December 8th).

Darius Rucker, who released his Christmas album Home for the Holidays a few years ago, loves to take it easy during the holidays after being on the road all year long. One way he winds down with his family is to watch Christmas movies…however, he can’t pick just one favorite.

“That’s such a hard question, favorite Christmas movie, because there are so many great movies that I can think of just off the top of my head that are great Christmas movies,” says Darius. “But it would be a tie between Miracle on 34^th Street, which is still just great acting, great movie. I just love it. I love watching it. I watch it probably four times every Christmas and cry at the end every time. And I love Elf. I just think Elf is one of the absolute great stories and just funniest movies I’ve ever seen, and it just happens to be a Christmas movie. It’s one of my favorite movies.”

The South Carolina native always looks forward to Christmas, not just because he gets a little downtime with his family after being on the road so much, but because he truly enjoys the holiday and all the magic that goes along with it.

He and his family – includes his wife and three children have a routine they pretty much stick to on the big day. “Christmas at the Rucker house is pretty laid-back,” says Darius. “Our kids wake up early – real early – and open their gifts and we hang out, have breakfast, go to church, come home and PLAY, play with toys and hang out and see family who comes by, and we go to see family. It’s just a pretty normal, fun Christmas Day.” Sounds like a great time! But if you happen to receive a gift from Darius, just know he wasn’t the one doing the wrapping! “I buy it and go, ‘Honey, wrap this!’ I don’t wrap, and it definitely doesn’t look like Dillards’ [wrapping],” he admits. “It would be frumpy is what it would be. [laughs]”

Dierks Bentley, who is the father of three children (Evie, Jordan, Knox), says you revert back to your childhood at Christmas when you start having a family of your own.

“Christmas didn’t lose any of its real meaning, as far as its religious meaning with Jesus’ birthday,” says Dierks. “But as far as like the whole tree and all of the Christmas spirit stuff, the secular stuff, it just kind of goes away, to be honest. But then you have a family, and all of a sudden it’s like I’m all Clark Griswold out there decorating the tree, putting lights up around the house, you know. So, all of those things that you did as a kid and appreciated as a kid, you get a chance to do over again when you have kids, because you kinda become one again.”

He says his middle child, daughter Jordan, sometimes gets a raw deal since her birthday falls on Christmas. “It’s tough kind of for Jordan because her birthday IS on Christmas, so it’s kind of one of those things where we try to give her an extra present or two,” says Dierks. “It’s kind of tough to share your birthday with Jesus. You can get a little overshadowed on that one, but she’s good about it, but we just tell her, ‘All these Christmas trees and lights, these are all for you.’”

Dierks, who has hit the Top 10 with “Burning Man” featuring Brothers Osborne, is celebrating the holidays, but he’s also starting pre-production on his latest outing, The Burning Man Tour, kicking off January 17th in Hamilton, Ontario.

Travis Denning is among a handful of new artists who have signed on to Opry NextStage, a yearlong collaboration which includes live performances, strategic marketing support and short-form documentaries.

The #Opry stands for everything I love about country music — its past, present, and future. I couldn't be more proud to be a part of #OpryNextStage!

Check it out: https://t.co/xGYafeA072 pic.twitter.com/fSYOO6PoVn

— Travis Denning (@Travis_Denning) November 27, 2018

The primary goal of Opry NextStage is to create a meaningful connection between this group of exciting, talented and diverse young artists – Travis, Riley Green, Tegan Marie and Tenille Townes — and the Opry’s passionate audience. Throughout the year, Opry Entertainment will work closely with artist teams to amplify their initiatives using assets from across the company’s brands, venues and channels.

Each Opry NextStage artist will perform on the Grand Ole Opry at the legendary Ryman Auditorium in December. Tenille Townes will perform both shows at Opry at the Ryman on December 7th. Tegan Marie is scheduled for December 8th. Riley Green will make his Opry debut on December 11th, and Travis, who just made his Grand Ole Opry debut last week, will return to Opry at the Ryman on December 15th. More Opry appearances will be scheduled in 2019. Tenille Townes’ My Opry Debut video is available now HERE on the Opry’s YouTube channel. Additional Opry NextStage artist videos will be produced and released throughout 2019.

Opry NextStage will officially launch with a kickoff party and concert featuring performances by the inaugural class at Ole Red Nashville on January 8th, 2019. Tickets go on sale Thursday (November 29th) at 10am CT. To purchase tickets, go to https://www.opry.com/nextstage.

For over nine decades, the Grand Ole Opry has created opportunities for artists throughout the country music spectrum to make strong connections with fans and fellow artists – on its stages and across its channels – from terrestrial radio to network television to the digital universe. Audiences throughout the world look to the Opry to showcase the very best in country music. Opry NextStage presents four diverse artists making incredible music at the forefront of their careers. Through the Opry’s marketing platforms, Opry Entertainment will partner with Opry NextStage artists to tell their stories and expand their audiences.

Opportunities for each Opry NextStage artist include but are not limited to:

• Performances on the Grand Ole Opry at the Grand Ole Opry House and Ryman Auditorium

• Performances at Ole Red locations in Nashville and Gatlinburg, TN.

• Short form documentary video series produced by Opry Entertainment’s award-winning content team

• Customized digital activations utilizing Opry web and social assets including Opry.com, OleRed.com, WSMOnline.com as well as Opry Entertainment’s millions of combined social followers

• Other opportunities include outdoor advertising, special event performances, 650 WSM-AM /wsmonline.com podcasts and radio specials

For more information about Opry NextStage and its first class, visit opry.com/nextstage.

Travis is on the country charts with his debut single “David Ashley Parker From Powder Springs,” an upbeat coming-of-age song that paints a picture of a young man reminiscing on his carefree college memories. The singer/songwriter has previously opened shows for Cole Swindell, Alan Jackson, Chase Rice as well as Justin Moore and is currently on the road with LANCO as part of the “Hallelujah Nights” tour. He’s currently in the studio working on his debut album.

KACEY MUSGRAVES will embark on her first ever Australian headline tour in May. Musgraves’ anticipated dates will begin at Brisbane’s The Tivoli on Friday 10th May, before heading through Sydney’s Enmore Theatre on Sunday 12th May and Melbourne’s Palais Theatre on Tuesday 14th May. Tickets go on sale Friday (November 30th).

For the first time since 2015, when Kacey played a one-off sold-out show at Sydney’s Oxford Art Factory, the stunning hit-maker will bring her distinctive pop-country songs and crystalline vocals to local audiences.

This year has been an epic journey, which has seen Musgraves release her third studio album, ‘GOLDEN HOUR‘, achieving the perfect blend of country and pop in what Pitchfork describes as “her most accessible record and her most ambitious”. The album debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart in the U.S., and has been hailed as of the best albums of 2018 by outlets across all genres from NPR, TIME, Rolling Stone, Variety and Entertainment Weekly to Consequence of Sound, Complex, Stereogum, and BuzzFeed. USA Today asserted “‘Golden Hour’ may be 2018’s best album yet,” Noisey declared, “it’s clear that the Texan is still the most talented songwriter in mainstream pop-country,” and Vanity Fair proclaimed “Musgraves is a country star through and through.” 

Earlier this month, ‘GOLDEN HOUR‘ picked up the coveted award for Album of the Year at the 52nd Annual Country Music Awards in Nashville, distinguishing Kacey as the first female in 4 years to win the award, and only the sixth in the show’s history to do so. Kacey was additionally nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year. Delivering a dazzling live performance of ‘Slow Burn’ at the star-studded event, Musgraves is a star on an incredible trajectory.

Golden Hour follows the massive success of Kacey’s critically-acclaimed albums Same Trailer Different Park, Pageant Material, and her Christmas album, A Very Kacey Christmas. Both Same Trailer Different Park and Pageant Material debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart, with Kacey becoming the first solo female in 5 years to top the chart with a rookie release.

With a live show known for its sense of intimacy, Musgraves invites audiences into her world. Following her tours earlier this year with Little Big Town and Harry Styles, and her highly-coveted second slot at this year’s Stagecoach after headliner Keith Urban, Kacey has recently completed the European leg of her headlining Oh, What A World: Tour, including a sold-out night at London’s iconic Wembley Arena. 

The Telegraph awarded Kacey’s live show a 4-star review, stating “The whole event unfurled with this kind of blissed-out languor… Musgraves filled that big stage with a serious confidence…,” and The Guardian pronounced “… her full-blown pop moments are frequently fabulous. High Time sounds utterly blissful tonight, a megawatt cinematic torch song about remembering who you are.”

Kacey will go on to perform at Global Citizen Festival: Mandela 100 in Johannesburg, South Africa on 2 December and will be honoured at Billboard’s Women In Music event as “Innovator of the Year” on 6 December before kicking off her 2019 Oh, What A World: Tour dates. The North American leg of the tour will begin 9 January, with dates already sold out in major cities across the U.S. and Canada including Toronto, Boston, Washington, DC, Chicago, Seattle, 2 nights each in New York City and Los Angeles, and 4 nights in Nashville.

In addition to making her debut on Saturday Night Live, Kacey performed music from Golden Hour on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, TODAY, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Late Late Show with James Corden, Late Night with Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Austin City Limits.

Kacey will be joined by prolific Canadian singer-songwriter BAHAMAS on her upcoming dates.

Keith Urban will host a Twitter Q&A Tuesday (Monday in the U.S.) to discuss his hosting duties at this year’s ARIA Awards (Australia’s equivalent of the GRAMMYS).

Brothers Osborne have added a THIRD show at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium on February 13th due to overwhelming demand and two sold-out shows on February 15th and 16th.  Tickets go on sale this Friday.

The lineup for the 2018 Country Thunder Wisconsin has been announced with Chris Stapleton serving as one of the headliners for the four-day festival, taking place July 18th-21st. Tim McGraw and Jake Owen will also headline.