Universal Universal Music Group Nashville Pressroom

NASHVILLE, TN (July 15, 2013) – Reigning ACM and CMA Vocal Group of the Year, Little Big Town have had their current album Tornado certified Platinum by the RIAA in recognition of one million units sold. Tornado, which was released in September 2012, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Albums Chart and went on to remain at the top of the chart for five consecutive weeks. Produced by Jay Joyce, the album includes back-to-back #1 singles “Pontoon” and “Tornado,” as well as the current single, “Your Side of the Bed.”

The debut single from Tornado, “Pontoon” spent two weeks at the top of the country radio chart and was the 2012 CMA Single of the Year.  The double Platinum single also earned the band a Grammy award for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Pontoon.”

The album’s title track, “Tornado,” also peaked at #1 on the country radio chart and currently exceeds sales of over 800,000. The official video, which has been viewed over 4 million times, recently won the ACM award for “Video of the Year.”

Current single, “Your Side of the Bed” was written by Little Big Town and Lori McKenna and has been described by USA Today as “stunning” and “…an unusually subtle power ballad.” Billboard magazine writes, “Little Big Town’s compelling new ballad boasts all the ingredients of a country classic…the cut sizzles with emotional tension.” The official music video quickly garnered over one million views since its debut on ABC’s Good Morning America and current digital sales of the track exceed 173,000. 

Little Big Town will join Keith Urban on his Light the Fuse Tour starting this summer.  Earlier this year, they headlined the sold-out Tornado Tour which visited over 25 cities nationwide. 

LBT (album art of letting go) OC: …let go like that. :35
“This was the discipline and art of letting go, this album. It was like learning to be a little more free and not trying to control it so much and letting the music guide us. And we really didn’t have a lot of time on our hands to sift through it. We had to kind of go in the moment and get it and act fast. Go on your gut instinct, and I think that’s what we needed, of course – a challenge for us, because we’d always have time to work out the parts and meticulously spend way more time with it. It was a really fun process to do that, and to let go like that.”

Luke Bryan is among the stars appearing on the forthcoming album, Alabama & Friends, due in September. Supergroup Alabama enlisted his help to record their hit “Love in the First Degree,” on the album, which also features Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean, Tim McGraw, Rascal Flatts, Toby Keith and Trisha Yearwood.

Luke Bryan’s “Crash My Party” has been added to the Choice Country Song nominees at this year’s Teen Choice Awards. The fan-voted awards will be handed out August 11th on FOX.

If you missed GAC’s new installment of Backstory featuring Gary Allan over the weekend, you can catch it as it repeats Monday (July 15th) at 10pm ET, Tuesday (July 16th) at 2am ET, August 17th (4pm ET), August 26th (11pm ET) or August 27th (3am ET).

Kacey Musgraves is scheduled to perform on NBC’s Tonight Show With Jay Leno on July 26th.

Sugarland’s Kristian Bush will take part in the CMA Songwriters Series at Joe’s Bar in Chicago August 1st. Hosted by songwriter Bob DiPiero, the event will also feature Matraca Berg and Bobby Pinson.

Darius Rucker‘s surprise invitation from Brad Paisley to be a member of the Grand Ole Opry is a moment he says he’ll always cherish, and now fans will be able to share that experience with him over and over again. Darius is the video host for one of two new tours that have been added to the Opry’s backstage tour line-up. The new tours are the “VIP Behind The Opry Curtain Tour” and the “Opry House Post-Show Tour,” which he hosts and where he discusses his induction into the Opry last October.

Keith Urban appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America Monday (July 15th), along with Ryan Seacrest and Miley Cyrus to announce the lineup of this year’s iHeart Music Festival, taking place September 20th and 21st at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Tim McGraw, The Band Perry, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars, Elton John and Queen, among others will also perform.

Tickets go on sale Saturday (July 20th) at 1pm ET.

Luke Bryan‘s video for his latest multi-week No. 1 song, “Crash My Party,” is probably the most involved the star has been from concept to finished product on one of his videos. He gives fans an inside look at the making of the video from the set. Check it out below.

“Crash My Party” is the title track from Luke’s forthcoming album, due August 13th. The ACM Entertainer of the Year is offering fans a deluxe edition of the album, which includes four extra songs, including “What Is It With You,” “Sunburnt Lips,” “Better Than My Heart” and “Your Mama Should’ve Named You Whiskey.”

“When you’re building an album you try to make the songs work together as a whole, but we also wanted to save a few special songs for the Target edition. My producer and I thought one of my favorite songs from the album, “What Is It With You,” would be perfect for Target,” Luke tells abullseyeview.com. “Honestly, I’m just so proud of all the songs on the album, and happy to give fans four more on the Target edition. The songs are like 17 of my children—I love each and every one of them.” You can pre-order the collection here.

Alan Jackson will release an album he’s always wanted to make, and it’s titled The Bluegrass Album. The album, recorded in April in a studio near Nashville, was produced by Keith Stegall and Alan’s nephew, Adam Wright, and will include eight original songs, along with covers of Bill Monroe‘s “Blue Moon of Kentucky,” John Anderson‘s “Wild and Blue” and The Dillards‘ “There is a Time.”

The Bluegrass Album will be released September 24th.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – On the heels of his RIAA Platinum-selling, two-week No. 1 smash single, “Wagon Wheel,” Capitol recording artist Darius Rucker heads to New York City, N.Y. to debut “Radio,” the second release off his latest album TRUE BELIEVERS, which debuted at No. 1 in May.  In preparation for the “Radio” release, Rucker will make appearances and perform the single on NBC’s “Today Show” and CBS’ “Late Show with David Letterman,” airing this Thursday, July 11th. (Check local listings for times.) 

“Radio” officially hits country airwaves Monday, July 22nd.

Rucker recently wrapped the first leg of his TRUE BELIEVERS TOUR, his first-ever as a solo headliner.  Joining him on the road were Rodney Atkins, Jana Kramer and Justin Moore.  Additional tour dates are available on www.DariusRucker.com with fall TRUE BELIEVERS TOUR dates and details to be announced in the upcoming weeks.

Upon Rucker’s return to Nashville next week, he’ll be stopping by his home-away-from-home with a five-song set at the Grand Ole Opry on Tuesday, July 16th.  Rucker fulfilled a lifelong dream when he was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry last October.

For more information, please visit www.DariusRucker.com.

Darius Rucker (Radio) OC: …as you can. :11
“The song, ‘Radio,’ I want somebody to go, ‘I know exactly what he’s talking about.’ When I was in high school, that’s what we did. We got in the car, we listened to the radio, and you went out and played with your friends. Every time you heard a song you loved, you turned it up as loud as you can.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Country Music Hall of Fame member and MCA Nashville recording artist George Strait has released “I Believe” as the new single from his current album Love Is Everything and the follow-up to his 60th No. 1 “Give It All We Got Tonight” which named Strait the first musician in music history to achieve the milestone. The May 2013 release is his 40th studio album, produced by Strait and Tony Brown.

Strait co-wrote the new single with his son, Bubba Strait, and legendary songwriter Dean Dillon after watching the news coverage of the tragic school massacre in Newtown, Conn. last December.  Having lost his daughter at a young age, George felt as if it was a song he needed to write.  Yet, when he was working on the album, he didn’t initially record the song.  After listening to the playback of the album, Strait’s wife Norma insisted that he record the song so at the end of the session he asked the band to record one more.

“Like everybody, I was watching the coverage on TV,” said Strait in an interview that can be viewed HERE. “I know what these parents are going through. It’s the worst thing that can happen to you in your life. To lose a child….there’s nothing worse than that. So I started thinking about saying something about it.” He continues, “It’s a statement of faith, is really what it is. It turned out beautiful.”

The critics agree:

• “Carefully rendered and unabashed in optimism, ‘I Believe’ is as personal as anything Strait has ever recorded.” Los Angeles Times 
• “’I Believe’…puts his faith on display as never before. On this album, Strait shows a few different moods, and it’s kind of rare to hear him at such a despondent place. At the same time, that fear is lifted by his faith in a higher power – which helps get him through the rough waters.” – Billboard
• “‘I Believe’ is a strong ballad about faith – a rare moment of variety – and the message will leave many with goosebumps.”  – Taste of Country

Earlier this year Strait kicked off in high gear during the first leg of his The Cowboy Rides Away Tour. The tour earned Strait the title as the highest ranked country act on Pollstar’s 2013 Worldwide Tickets Chart, and he is expected to announce details and dates for the 2014 leg of his tour, kicking off early next year, later this fall.

For more information on Strait, Love Is Everything, The Cowboy Rides Away Tour and more, visit www.GeorgeStrait.com.