Universal Universal Music Group Nashville Pressroom

Spring Break time is here again! It’s time for a little sunshine and beach time. Luke Bryan will be taking the tour down to Panama City Beach on Tuesday (March 11th) and Wednesday (March 12th) for two FREE shows at Spinnaker Beach Club. Check on the new music — Spring Break 6…Like We Ain’t Ever — on iTunes, available March 11th.

Nashville, TN (March 7, 2014) – EMI Records Nashville’s Eric Paslay (pass-lay) will make his first national television appearances next week in support of his self-titled album which recently debuted at Top 5 on the Billboard Country Albums chart and includes his No. 1 single “Friday Night.”  Eric will perform on ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday (March 10th), Fox & Friends on March 11th and The Queen Latifah Show on March 20th. 

“Friday Night” is Eric’s first No. 1 as an artist and fourth No. 1 as a songwriter.  The Texas native’s three prior No. 1 hits as a songwriter include “Even If It Breaks Your Heart” (Eli Young Band), “Barefoot Blue Jean Night” (Jake Owen) and “Angel Eyes” (Love & Theft).  Eric has been nominated for a Grammy, CMA and ACM award for his songwriting on “Even If It Breaks Your Heart.” 

Eric’s self-titled album was produced by Marshall Altman and Daniel Hill/Billy Lynn for Cal IV Productions.   All 11 tracks on the album where written or co-written by Eric including the inspirational “Less Than Whole” which he wrote with Big Kenny of Big & Rich.  Little Big Town, who Eric has toured with, provide vocals on “Country Side of Heaven.”

This spring, Eric will be on the road with Brantley Gilbert on his Let It Ride Tour.  His current single “Song About A Girl” is climbing the Country radio charts. 

Darius Rucker’s True Believers has been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (R.I.A.A.). It’s his third gold-certified album. It features his new single, “Miss You.”

Lady Antebellum, Kip Moore and Billy Currington will take part in the annual Watershed Music Festival at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Washington August 1st – 3rd. Tim McGraw, Jake Owen, Eli Young Band, Justin Moore, Randy Houser and Cassadee Pope are also scheduled to perform.

Lady Antebellum’s “Compass” is poised to top the country singles charts very soon. They recorded the smash hit last summer after they had already released their Golden album in May, and they believed in the song so much that they put out a Deluxe Edition of Golden in November to include that song, plus 5 other songs.

Lady A’s Charles Kelley says the band can truly relate to the song, just like their fans. “I think the song hits really close to myself, and I know Dave [Haywood], both moved from kinda the normal job circuit (DAVE: “Leap of faith.”). Yeah, leap of faith and took a chance and kind of followed our hearts and moved to Nashville. It was the best decision we ever made,” says Charles. “Our families, though, were there and very encouraging; you know that line, ‘You’ll never be alone.’ And also, ‘Walk, instead of run.’ It’s kind of like, ‘Settle into it.’ You don’t have to chase after it, and I think some people try so hard. It’s like, just let yourself settle in to what you know is what you do best in this world and believe in yourself and let it all happen.”

The trio is nominated for four ACM Awards, including Vocal Group of the Year and Single, Song and Vocal Event of the Year for “Wagon Wheel” with pal Darius Rucker. The 49th Annual ACM Awards will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas April 6th at 8pm ET/PT on CBS.

Lady A (Compass) 4 OC: (Hillary) …don’t rush life. :40
CHARLES: “I think the song hits really close to myself, and I know Dave, both moved from kinda the normal job circuit (DAVE: “Leap of faith.”). Yeah, leap of faith and took a chance and kind of followed our hearts and moved to Nashville. It was the best decision we ever made. Our families, though, were there and very encouraging; you know that line, ‘You’ll never be alone.’ And also, ‘Walk, instead of run.’ It’s kind of like, ‘Settle into it.’ You don’t have to chase after it and I think some people try so hard. It’s like, just let yourself settle in to what you know is what you do best in this world and believe in yourself and let it all happen.” HILLARY: “And don’t rush life.”

Luke Bryan, Keith Urban and George Strait are among the initial performers announced for this year’s ACM Awards. They’re joined by Jason Aldean, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton and The Band Perry.

In addition to his own performance slot and co-hosting duties with pal Blake Shelton, Luke will be whisked over to the Mandalay Bay Events Center during the show for a special performance with Florida Georgia Line at the Fourth Annual ACM Fan Jam.

The 49th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, hosted by Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton, will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas April 6^th at 8pm ET/PT on CBS.

George Strait still has a few months to go on the final leg of his Cowboy Rides Away Tour, and while he’s enjoying every single minute of traveling the country playing for fans, he does see a tropical vacation in his future when it’s all said and done.

“I’m going somewhere. I don’t know where, but I’m going somewhere to celebrate,” says Strait. “I haven’t been to Hawaii in years, so I would love to see it again and try to find my old house over there and all that stuff. And I want to go back to scope the [Army] barracks, I think, too, and see all the old spots [where] I used to hang out. So, I’m gonna do a lot of things.”

George, who’s on the country charts with “I Got a Car,” will take his show, along with Vince Gill, to Louisville on Friday (March 7th) and Chicago on Saturday (March 8th). The trek is scheduled to wrap June 7th at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas with special guests Jason Aldean, Asleep At The Wheel, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Vince Gill, Faith Hill, Alan Jackson, Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride and Lee Ann Womack.

George Strait (vacation after tour) OC: …lot of things. :24
“I’m going somewhere. I don’t know where, but I’m going somewhere to celebrate. I haven’t been to Hawaii in years, so I would love to see it again and try to find my old house over there and all that stuff. And I want to go back to scope the [Army] barracks, I think, too, and see all the old spots [where] I used to hang out. So, I’m gonna do a lot of things.”

Eric Church continues to mystify and delight his fans and critics with the release of a new video for “A Man Who Was Gonna Die Young,” a song from his new album, The Outsiders. While “Give Me Back My Hometown” is his current single, the videos he keeps releasing first to his diehard Church Choir members feature different songs, as well as the same recurring characters and a much bigger storyline. So, pay attention to each video to see what you can discover (such as the karaoke Elvis in the previous video clip singing “Drink in My Hand”).

Little Big Town, the reigning ACM Vocal Group of the Year, has begun work on their next album, the follow-up to the platinum Tornado. However, they’re still climbing the country charts with their latest single, “Sober.”  

For the band’s Kimberly Schlapman, the song is pretty special. “Whether it’s a brand new love or whether it’s a 60 year old love, you don’t want to ever live without it,” she says. “You can’t let it go.” Her bandmate Jimi Westbrook describes it as “hazy sunshine,” and explains that while listening to the song, he thinks of “the boardwalk…those places that have the piers that go out, and they’ve got the Ferris Wheels and people holding hands.”

The video for “Sober,” which was shot throughout their tour last year, includes behind-the-scenes footage of the group on the road.
 

LBT (Sober) OC: (Kimberly) …that song’s special. :51
JIMI: “Sober—like if I was going to describe it, it’s like hazy sunshine.” KIMBERLY: “Oh yeah, that’s good.” JIMI: “[laughs] I don’t know what about it is, but I think of the boardwalk, well, you think about those places that have the piers that go out, and they’ve got the ferris wheels and people holding hands. [laughs] Those are the images that come in my head.” KIMBERLY: “The other night during that song, there was an older couple that caught my eye. I mean, they’d probably been married for 50, 55, 60 years, and he had his arm around her, and by the end of the song, he was singing the lyrics of the song. To me, that’s what that song is. Whether it’s a brand new love or whether it’s a 60 year old love, you don’t want to ever live without it. You can’t let it go, and I think that song’s special.”

Scotty McCreery’s “See You Tonight” has climbed to No. 8 on the country singles charts, and the song was something that seemed to just come together when he was writing it with pals Ashley Gorley (“All-American Girl,” “Then,” “It Won’t Be Like This for Long”) and Zach Crowell (“Cop Car”).

“It was one of those things, it just came out. It wasn’t something we sat there and had to think about for hours and hours about getting this line right or that line right,” says Scotty. “It just kind of flowed, and that’s when you know you’re writing a really cool one when you don’t have to think about it. It’s just coming straight from the heart. So, it was a good one.”

He’ll be performing “See You Tonight,” in addition to other songs from his latest album of the same name when he stops in West Palm Beach, Florida on Saturday (March 8th) and Jacksonville, Florida on Sunday (March 9th).

Scotty McCreery (any stories behind SYT) OC: …a good one. :25
“Everybody’s had that guy or that girl that they want to go see tonight. We got to writing it, though – It was Zach that had a loop going on, and we just kind of started going with it, Zach Crowell. It was one of those things, it just came out. It wasn’t something we sat there and had to think about for hours and hours about getting this line right or that line right. It just kind of flowed, and that’s when you know you’re writing a really cool one when you don’t have to think about it. It’s just coming straight from the heart. So, it was a good one.”

Nashville, TN – March 5, 2014 – With his seventh studio album RISER, award-winning singer/songwriter Dierks Bentley has earned the No. 1 position on the Billboard Country Albums chart this week, selling more than 63,000 copies. RISER also marks his fifth career debut in the top spot on the country charts.
 
While USA Today awarded thealbum four out of four stars, critics across the country also chimed in to praise RISER for its depth and artistry with the Washington Post commending the singer/songwriter for “excelling outside the bro-zone.”
 
“On his latest, Riser, Dierks Bentley again elevates himself above the rest of the country pack.” – People
 
“The chiming guitars and slow-boiling melodies add a simmering passion to Bentley’s distinctive vocal and writing style…the singer/songwriter continues to bring a much needed heft to country music.”  – Associated Press
 
“Dierks Bentley is here to save country music.”  – Washington Times
 
“…revitalizes country music on his greatest album yet.”  – Country Weekly
 
“Dierks Bentley has built impressive success– 10 number one songs– on bedrock concepts that feel more quaint all the time: musicianship, emotional integrity, and hard work.  Those elements again make themselves known on his stirring seventh album ‘Riser.’”   – Boston Globe
 
“Bentley bares his soul in meditations on love and loss, death and rebirth.”  – USA Today
 
This whole album is not Nashville conveyor belt country, and nor is it just chasing hit singles. It is a bunch of the most personal and emotion-filled songs of Dierks’ career to date.”    – Maverick
 
Up next, Bentley will head across the Atlantic for shows at Dublin and London’s O2 arenas (3/14 and 3/15) before launching his 2014 RISER TOUR on May 9th in Charlotte, NC.  Fans can catch Bentley take the stage for CMT Crossroads: OneRepublic and Dierks Bentley airing March 21st at 9:00p CT on CMT.  For more information and for a full list of tour dates, visit www.dierks.com. 

Dierks Bentley (marking new ground on Riser) OC: …inside myself. :19
“Obviously, you’re trying to find a new place to go to as a songwriter and as a record-maker. I don’t want to [plow] the same ground. So, you’re looking — is it pushing the boundaries sonically? What is it that’s gonna make it different. For me, it wasn’t pushing outside; it was more searching inside and going deeper inside myself.”