Universal Universal Music Group Nashville Pressroom

Little Big Town will perform a pair of songs at Tuesday night’s (April 10th) All for the Hall benefit, with backup guitarist and show host, Keith Urban as well as co-host, Vince Gill. One is a new song, ‘Front Porch Thing,’ from their upcoming album, due out later this fall, while the other song will be ‘Boondocks,’ a song Keith showcased during his Get Closer World Tour. Check out the Associated Press‘ coverage of rehearsals below…at the end, you’ll see another hit group rehearsing for the show.

Little Big Town are among the bands taking the stage for Tuesday night’s All for the Hall benefit, hosted by Keith Urban and Vince Gill. Proceeds from the show will go to the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum, which has a special place in the heart of LBT’s Kimberly Schlapman. “When I was 14 we took a family trip and came up to the Hall of Fame which was down here on Demonbreun. And it’s one of the family trips in my whole life that stands out the most. I know what I wore and everything,” explains Kimberly. “It was just so special and so important, and of course, at 14 I had no idea what my life would bring. But country music is important, not only to our community, but to families all over our country who want to see what Nashville is all about.” 

• The event, officially titled All Together Now: Groups Give Their All for the Hall, will also feature performances by Alabama, Lady Antebellum, Diamond Rio, Exile, The Oak Ridge Boys, Rascal Flatts, The Band Perry, Pistol Annies and Thompson Square, among others.
• Little Big Town have finished their upcoming album, featuring their new single, “Pontoon,” which will be released April 30th.

AUDIO: Little Big Town’s Kimberly Schlapman talks about why the Country Music Hall of Fame is so important to her and the rest of the band. 

LBT (Country Music Hall of Fame) OC: …all about. :33

“I think the Country Music Hall of Fame is so important to the whole world of country music. When I was 14 we took a family trip and came up to the Hall of Fame which was down here on Demonbreun. And it’s one of the family trips in my whole life that stands out the most. I know what I wore and everything. It was just so special and so important, and of course, at 14 I had no idea what my life would bring. But country music is important, not only to our community, but to families all over our country who want to see what Nashville is all about.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn.  (April 9, 2012)  Country music superstar Alan Jackson will release his much anticipated album Thirty Miles West on June 5.  It is his debut album on ACR (Alan’s Country Records)/EMI Records Nashville and is produced by long-time producer and friend, Keith Stegall.  Jackson’s current single from the album is “So You Don’t Have To Love Me Anymore.” 

When asked about the unique album title Jackson responds, “There’s this highway that’s been in existence for forever now – it’s called the Dixie Highway and it runs from north of Michigan all the way down to South Florida, and I wrote a song about it that’s on the album. I grew up on Highway 34 outside of Newnan, Georgia, and that’s where we came up with Thirty Miles West. I think we were about thirty miles west of the official part of the Dixie Highway that runs through Georgia.”

 About Alan Jackson

Alan Jackson is one of the most successful and respected singer-songwriters in music.  He is in the elite company of Paul McCartney and John Lennon among songwriters who’ve written more than 20 songs that they’ve recorded and taken to the top of the charts.  Jackson is one of the 10 best-selling artists since the inception of SoundScan, ranking alongside the likes of Eminem and Metallica.  

Jackson has sold nearly 60 million albums worldwide, topped the country singles charts 35 times, and scored more than 50 Top-10 hits.  He has written or co-written 25 of his 35 #1 hit singles.  Jackson is a 17-time ACM Award winner, a 16-time CMA Award recipient, and a two-time Grammy-winning artist whose songwriting has earned him the prestigious ASCAP Founders Award and an induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame as a 2011 Songwriter/Artist inductee. 

Last week, at the 47^th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, Keith Urban debuted “For You”, his song written specifically for the #1 motion picture Act Of Valor. His performance of the song, which concluded with an emotional and rousing standing ovation, paid tribute to our Navy SEALS.  “For You” co-written with Monty Powell and played during the closing credits of the film, will be released today.  It will be the follow up to “You Gonna Fly”, Keith’s third consecutive #1 (“Without You” and “Long Hot Summer”) from his latest CD Get Closer.  (“For You” appears on the Act Of Valor Soundtrack.)

“I felt so privileged and honored to have been given the opportunity to be a part of Act Of Valor and to shine a different kind of light on the work that the SEALS do,” said Urban. 

Urban will donate all of his artist and publishing royalty’s to the Navy SEAL Foundation (http://nswfoundation.org/) which serves to support SEAL families and their parent commands by easing financial burdens, establishing support networks, and funding command sponsored activities. “For You” can be purchased through Urban’s website (www.keithurban.net) and on iTunes and Amazon.   

Urban said previously of “For You”, “I loved the challenge of writing for a film. I’ve never done that before. After seeing Act of Valor, my co-writer (Monty Powell) and I wanted to capture the essence of not only what these men and women do so extraordinarily, but how that relates to all of us. ‘Valor’ shows us what they are willing to give their all for, which made me wonder, ‘what am I willing to give my life for?’ ‘For You’ is intended to allow the listener to define who that is for them.” 

Urban’s third annual “We’re All for the Hall” benefit concert for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum will take place on Tuesday (April 10^th) at The Bridgestone Arena. It will feature performances from Urban, Vince Gill and some of the most popular and best loved bands in country music including Rascal Flatts, Lady Antebellum, The Band Perry, Little Big Town, Thompson Square, Miranda Lambert’s trio Pistol Annies, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Alabama, The Oak Ridge Boys, Exile, Diamond Rio, and Blue Sky Riders (Kenny Loggins and Nashville songwriters Gary Burry and Georgia Middleman).  

For more official Keith Urban news and information go to KeithUrban.net. To see the official music video for “For You” click here.

Little Big Town are gearing up to hit the road with Rascal Flatts for the Changed Tour in June. The band had dinner with member Jay DeMarcus while in Las Vegas for the ACM Awards earlier this month and talked about what they’re looking forward to on tour. One topic was music, with both bands having new albums (Rascal Flatts’ Changed hit stores last week, while LBT’s new album will be released this fall). The other topic was what might happen backstage when the groups hit the road this summer. “I think we quoted almost every line of Anchorman, because I guess they love it as much as we do,” says LBT’s Karen Fairchild. “We talked about having an Anchorman party backstage one night and big plasma TVs and margaritas.” 

• The Changed tour is set to kick off June 15th in Hartford, Connecticut and hit numerous cities before it wraps October 27th in West Palm Beach, Florida. In addition to Rascal Flatts and Little Big Town, the trek will also feature the Eli Young Band and Eden’s Edge.  

AUDIO: Little Big Town talk about what could take place backstage when they hit the road with Rascal Flatts. 

LBT (Anchorman party) OC: (Karen) …it’ll be fun. :30

KAREN: “I think we quoted almost every line of Anchorman, because I guess they love it as much as we do.” KIMBERLY: “There’s a sequel coming.” JIMI: “Yes, there is a sequel coming.” KAREN: “We talked about having an Anchorman party backstage one night and big plasma TVs and margaritas and you know the Little Big Town ‘Ritas. So, we were just laughing about that, and we did talk about music of course, ‘cause their record comes out and then ours, so he was wanting to know – we were eating dinner with Jay [DeMarcus] — and he was wanting to know about our record, so it’ll be fun.”

This week’s Urban Developments takes you backstage for Keith Urban‘s soundcheck at the 2012 Academy of Country Music Awards where he performed his new single, ‘For You,’ from the Act of Valor soundtrack.

Eric Church’s latest single, “Springsteen,” has hit the Top 15 on the country charts, and the song has a personal connection for the singer-songwriter. “I was 16-years-old [at] this first concert I went to with a girl in a group as my date. We sat up on the lawn, you know, we had a blanket and all that stuff,” recalls Eric. “The interesting thing is I remember the relationship lasting maybe two weeks, and to this day when I hear that music, I still think of her, and I wonder if she still thinks of me, you know, because that artist became the soundtrack to our relationship as short as it was.” 

Eric is certainly performing his hit single during his Blood, Sweat & Beers Tour; next stop is Thursday (April 12th) in Tupelo, Mississippi. 

AUDIO: Eric Church says he has been the guy he sings about in his latest single, “Springsteen.”

Eric Church (Springsteen personal) OC: …that regard. :29

“I had that happen. I was 16-years-old this first concert I went to with a girl in a group as my date. We sat up on the lawn, you know, we had a blanket and all that stuff. The interesting thing is I remember the relationship lasting maybe two weeks, and to this day when I hear that music, I still think of her, and I wonder if she still thinks of me, you know, because that artist became the soundtrack to our relationship as short as it was. And I just love the power of music in that regard.” 

Alan Jackson is a huge fan of sad country songs, and his latest single, “So You Don’t Have to Love Me Anymore,” is one of the best breakup songs around. Alan, who didn’t write the song, said he loved it the first time he heard it. “First, it raised the hair on my arm when I heard it,” says Alan. “It’s the kinda song that made me want to be in country music, ‘cause I’m such a big fan of that kind of song. And the sad songs, breakup songs and heartache songs are always the best ones to bring that emotion out.”

• The Georgia native recently re-released his 2006 gospel album, Precious Memories, and his GAC-TV special is set to re-air this Easter weekend – Saturday, April 7th at 10:30p ET, Sunday, April 8th 2:30a ET and 9:30a ET.

AUDIO: Alan Jackson says he was drawn to his latest single, “So You Don’t Have to Love Me Anymore,” because it is such a great country song. 

AJ (drawn to So You Don’t) OC: …to write. :21

“First, it raised the hair on my arm because when I heard it, the demo was a really good version too. It’s just one of those songs, when I first heard it. It’s the kinda song that made me want to be in country music, ‘cause I’m such a big fan of that kind of song. And the sad songs, breakup songs and heartache songs are always the best ones to bring that emotion out and they’re actually the easiest to write.”

Keith Urban, along with his co-host Vince Gill, will play host to several country music bands at this year’s All for the Hall concert. The show, taking place Tuesday, April 10th at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, will feature Alabama, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Diamond Rio, Exile, The Oak Ridge Boys, Rascal Flatts, The Band Perry, Pistol Annies and Thompson Square, among others. Proceeds will benefit the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. The concert, officially titled All Together Now: Groups Give Their All for the Hall, was postponed the concert from earlier this year due to his recovery from vocal cord surgery. Two previous All for the Hall shows have raised more than $1 million. 

Keith usually decides on a theme for the annual show. Last year’s theme was “Heroes,” in which the participants picked a song from one of their musical heroes to perform. This year, he settled on the band theme, because he feels that “our genre’s got such a rich history of bands, and sometimes it doesn’t get the center of attention in our genre.” He adds, “There’s been a lot of new bands and groups and duos emerge on the scene in the last few years, so I thought it just seemed the right theme for this year.” He is looking forward to seeing Hall of Fame members Alabama perform, and he hopes he’ll hear one song in particular. “I put ‘Love in the First Degree’ pretty high on the list of my favorite Alabama songs,” says Keith. “It’s just such a cool lyric, and I think that real distinctive Alabama harmony is so, so captured in that song.” 

Keith is getting ready to hit the airwaves with “For You,” a song he wrote and recorded for the Act of Valor film soundtrack. He has pledged the proceeds from the single as a writer and artist from “For You” to the Navy Seals Foundation. Information on the foundation can be found at nswfoundation.org.

AUDIO: Keith Urban explains why he chose the band theme for this year’s All For the Hall benefit, taking place April 10th. 

Keith Urban (All for the Hall 2012) OC: …for this year. :34

“I think ‘cause our genre’s got such a rich history of bands, and sometimes it doesn’t get the center of attention in our genre. People are more focused on solo artists, and historically, it’s been that way too. But there’s just any amount of great music since the beginning of our genre from bands and groups and vocal groups, and I thought this was the perfect opportunity to showcase a lot of that. There’s been a lot of new bands and groups and duos emerge on the scene in the last few years, so I thought it just seemed the right theme for this year.” 

AUDIO: Keith Urban reveals that Alabama, who will perform at his All for the Hall benefit next week, were a major influence on him musically. 

Keith Urban (Alabama influence) OC: …band’s songs, you know? :36

“Alabama were a big influence on me because of the timing of when I was growing up listening to country, especially through the ‘80s. And there was that real mix of sort of contemporary melodies and the sort of the way the band sounded on records was different than any other band I’d heard before in the genre. So, we covered a lot of songs from ‘Dixieland Delight,’ to, we did ‘Mountain Music’ maybe once or twice. ‘Love in the First Degree’ we used to do. There was a handful of Alabama tunes we did. I loved them, and they just worked in that format. I was in my own band at the time too, and we loved the fact that we could play another band’s songs, you know?” 

AUDIO: Keith Urban talks about his favorite Alabama and Exile songs, which he hopes to hear on Tuesday (April 10th) at the All For the Hall benefit. 

Keith Urban (AFH-Alabama & Exile) OC: …on the night. :22

“I put ‘Love in the First Degree’ pretty high on the list of my favorite Alabama songs. It’s just such a cool lyric, and I think that real distinctive Alabama harmony is so, so captured in that song, particularly. Exile – ‘Kiss You All Over’ I mean, it’s the one that I always think about (finger snap) right off the top of my head, so looking forward to hearing that on the night.”