Universal Universal Music Group Nashville Pressroom

In  the latest episode of DBTV (#44), Dierks Bentley, the Eli Young Band and Jerrod Niemann celebrate the close of the first leg of the Country & Cold Cans Tour. Thanks to everyone who made it out to the shows! For those who couldn’t, be sure to keep an eye out for more dates in 2012. Check out dierks.com for more information on next year’s tour dates.

As the weather outside turns a little frightful and Old Man Winter comes a’calling, Lady Antebellum‘s Hillary Scott happily breaks out her winter clothes and brews up the figurative hot chocolate to sit in front of a blazing fire. “I absolutely love when the air starts to get a little chilly and you get to bundle up in your fun fall clothes and wear scarves,” says Hillary. “I think there’s something so nice about summertime, but there’s something so cozy and wonderful about the winter and being able to turn on the fireplace and cuddle up by the fire.”

Lady A, who just hit the top of the Billboard country chart with “We Owned the Night,” are enjoying the winter weather on the road, as they continue their Own the Night 2011 Tour on Thursday (December 1st) in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Want to star in your own music video, featuring friends and family? Now, you can, and Dierks Bentley will help you put it together. Visit dierksbentleyhome.com to upload personal photos and customize your own music video to the tune of the singer’s latest smash, “Home.” Some of your videos will be featured on Dierks’ own Facebook page.

Dierks Bentley and Darius Rucker were among the artists taking part in the special event, Country Music: In Performance at the White House. Hosted by President and Mrs. Obama, last week’s performance celebrated country music. Check out a couple of the performances, as well as some behind-the-scenes video clips–one of which showcases Dierks as the interviewer.

Lady Antebellum’s “We Owned the Night” has climbed to the top of the Billboard country chart, marking the trio’s sixth career No. one hit. The track has already scored big internationally, having spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Canada country chart.
 
“This is our tour opener, and every night when we start into it, you can definitely feel the support that country radio has given this song.  Everyone is ready for it, and the energy really helps get the night kicked off right and sets the tone,” says Lady A’s Charles Kelley.  “It’s crazy to think we’ve had six No. one hits…we want to send out a big thank you to all of our friends at country radio, our record label and our fans!  We know these don’t come easy…it’s a big group effort!”

“We Owned the Night” is the second No. 1 single off the group’s Platinum certified new album , Own the Night, which became country music’s biggest first week debut this year.

The trio will be honored as one of CMT’s five Artists of the Year in December.

Fans can catch Lady A on the Fall leg of their headlining tour, which was recently extended into next year as the OWN THE NIGHT 2012 WORLD TOUR with Darius Rucker and special guest Thompson Square. 

AUDIO: Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott explains why “We Owned the Night” is one of her favorite songs on the band’s latest album, Own the Night.

Lady A (WOTN) OC: …joy in it. :32

“I love that song. It’s not necessarily with a guy, you know, in a romantic sense, but just nights in college, you know, before I met Charles and Dave and our career took off; like hanging out with my friends and staying out and staying up until four in the morning and laughing and having a great time. It’s not so much about a romantic night to me, so much as just those nights that I remember growing up that were just like, you feel like you could just float off the ground, it was so much fun, and there was so much joy in it.”

Little Big Town have released “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” and the band says it was pretty difficult to choose just one holiday release. “We’re thinking about making a Christmas record, so this was like another start of a Christmas record, and it is so much harder [to choose],” says LBT’s Karen Fairchild. “You just think, ‘Oh, I’ll just pull together all my favorites.’ But when you start looking at all the great classics and how you want to cover ‘em…you don’t want to mess ‘em up.” Karen’s bandmate (and hubby) Jimi Westbrook agrees. “You hear all the versions that, the great versions that artists have done, you know, and you have to do something kind of different, you know, and  make it your own.”

“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is now available on iTunes.

LBT (picking Christmas single) OC: (Karen) …can’t mute us. [Jimi laughs] :50

KAREN: “It was hard!” KIMBERLY: “It really was. We went through a ton of Christmas songs.” KAREN: “‘Cause we’re thinking about making a Christmas record, so this was like another start of a Christmas record, and it is so much harder. You just think, ‘Oh, I’ll just pull together all my favorites.’ But when you start looking at all the great classics and how you want to cover ‘em and you don’t want to mess ‘em up and you have fond memories.” JIMI: “You hear all the versions that, the great versions that artists have done, you know, and you have to do something kind of different, you know, and  make it your own.” KAREN: “Yeah. But I’m proud of the way this one turned because it is, I think, uniquely ours, and Wayne Kirkpatrick plays the most beautiful acoustic guitar part I think I’ve ever heard. You could just mute us and just listen to him, and it would be gorgeous.” KIMBERLY: “Yeah, it’s like straight from Heaven.” KAREN: “Don’t do that, though. Luckily, you can’t mute us. [Jimi laughs]”

Eric Church will take to the road on his first headlining arena tour, aptly named Blood, Sweat & Beers. The trek, which will feature Brantley Gilbert (“Country Must Be Country Wide”) as a special guest, kicks off in Fort Smith, Arkansas January 19th. Also being featured on various dates are Jon Pardi, Sonia Leigh, Blackberry Smoke, Cadillac Black and Drake White.

“We have been building our entire career for this tour,” says Eric. “It is truly the culmination of a lot of blood, sweat and beer that has brought us to this point in our career. I have always trusted our fans to deliver with their dedication and passion; they have always exceeded my expectations. I have never been more excited to begin a tour than this one. The band and I are committed to emptying the tank every night and delivering the best show we can.”

In addition to the dates already announced (see below), the North Carolina native will reveal 30 more dates in the coming weeks.

Ticket prices will range from $34.75 for reserved seats to $199 for the “Put a Drink in YOUR Hand” VIP Package, which includes premiere seating, a pre-show party, a two-song acoustic performance from Eric and autographed memorabilia. The VIP experience will be made available through all ticketing outlets.

When Eric hits the stage, a metamorphosis seems to take place. “When I put on the hat and sunglasses, it’s a different personality; it’s a different show. I’m like a spring that comes uncoiled and for 90 minutes, or however long it is, it’s a war out there,” the singer-songwriter explains. “It’s a battle between the crowd and myself, and we’re gonna sweat and bleed and scream and everything else…and probably gonna be covered in beer when we leave. It’s that kind of show and I think that’s why they come and relate to us. I’m doing the same thing. I’m there for a release and so are they. That energy exchange, it’s over the music, it’s over passion, but it’s also just getting away from our lives for a while.”

Eric Church’s Blood, Sweat & Beers tour dates:

Jan. 19 Fort Smith, Ark., Fort Smith Convention Center
Jan. 20 Cape Girardeau, Mo., Show Me Center
Jan. 21 Southaven, Miss., Desoto Civic Center
Jan. 26 Madison, Wis., Alliant Energy Center
Jan. 27 Saginaw, Mich., Dow Event Center
Jan. 28 Terre Haute, Ind., ISU Hulman Center
Feb. 2 Savannah, Ga., Savannah Civic Center
Feb. 3 Knoxville, Tenn., Thompson Boling Arena
Feb. 4 Norfolk, Va., Ted Constant Center
Feb. 16 Greenville, S.C., Bi-Lo Center
Feb. 17 Salisbury, Md., Wicomico Civic Center
Feb. 18 Greensboro, N.C., Greensboro Coliseum
Feb. 23 Battle Creek, Mich., Kellogg Arena
Feb. 24 Cleveland, Ohio, Wolstein Center @ CSU
Feb. 25 Ft. Wayne, Ind., Allen County War Memorial Col.
Mar. 1 Portland, Maine, Cumberland County Civic Center
Mar. 2 Lowell, Mass., Tsongas Center at UMASS Lowell
Mar. 3 Indiana, Pa., Kovalchick Center
Mar. 8 Oklahoma City, Okla., Chesapeake Energy Center
Mar. 10 Orange Beach, Ala., Amphitheater at the Wharf 

AUDIO: Eric Church explains the metamorphosis that takes place when he jumps on stage to perform.

Eric Church (performing live persona) OC: …for a while. :41

“Well, I think a lot of it is who I am on stage isn’t who I am the rest of the day. And I think, people that come to that show, they’re not that way all day either. When they come they come to that show it’s our time to get away from what we normally do. When I put on the hat and sunglasses, it’s a different personality; it’s a different show. I’m like a spring that comes uncoiled and for 90 minutes, or however long it is, it’s a war out there. It’s a battle between the crowd and myself, and we’re gonna sweat and bleed and scream and everything else…and probably gonna be covered in beer when we leave. It’s that kind of show and I think that’s why they come and relate to us. I’m doing the same thing. I’m there for a release and so are they. That energy exchange, it’s over the music, it’s over passion, but it’s also just getting away from our lives for a while.”

Christmas comes early this year for Little Big Town fans, as the Platinum-selling country group—consisting of members Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman, Phillip Sweet, and Jimi Westbrook— has released their version of the Christmas classic, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.”   The band’s harmonious take on the holiday favorite can be heard on EW.com today by clicking here. The single is available for purchase digitally now.

“This is one of my favorite things we’ve ever done as a band,” says Karen Fairchild. “It’s a great challenge to interpret a classic and make it your own. I’m really proud of the way this turned out and am hoping we make a bunch of folks’ Christmas playlists for years to come.”

Catch Little Big Town perform their rendition of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” and Elvis’ “Santa Clause Is Back In Town,” on the upcoming “CMA Country Christmas,” which is scheduled to air Thursday, Dec. 1 (9:00-11:00 PM/ET) on the ABC Television Network.

For more information, be sure to visit www.littlebigtown.com.

TUNE IN:  LADY ANTEBELLUM PERFORM ON JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE! AND THE

SEASON FINALE OF DANCING WITH THE STARS… Trio Wins American Music Award for

“Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group”

Nashville, TN – Nov. 21, 2011 – Fresh off their American Music Awards win for “Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group” last night, Lady Antebellum are set to perform on Jimmy Kimmel Live!’s outdoor concert stage tonight (November 21st) at 11:00p CT/12:00 aET on ABC. Fans can also catch the trio making the television debut of “Dancin’ Away with My Heart” off their platinum-certified OWN THE NIGHT on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars season finale Tuesday night (November 22nd) at 8:00p CT/9:00 pET.
 
Lady A’s OWN THE NIGHT 2011 TOUR makes stops in Huntsville, AL (11/25), Florence, SC (11/26) and Savannah, GA (11/27) this weekend. For a full list of tour dates and appearances, visit www.ladyantebellum.com.

Congratulations to Lady Antebellum, who picked up the American Music Award for Country Band/Duo/Group of the Year at Sunday night’s (November 20th) show. “First of all, thank you to the fans,” Lady A’s Hillary Scott said. “It starts and ends with you, and we just love you.” 

Catch Alan Jackson on GAC-TV’s Master Series Monday night (November 21^st) at 10pm and 2am ET; and Wednesday (November 23rd) at 11am ET. The show spoke with Alan Jackson at the recent Music City Walk of Fame ceremony.

Eric Church is offering his fans an exclusive limited-edition hardcover photo book, Eric Church: A Song to Sing. The book chronicles Eric’s career so far with more than 350 exclusive photos, and only a limited number are available for order at his website, ericchurch.com. Pages include commentary and quotes directly from Eric, and fans will see everything from intimate moments taken behind the scenes, as well as shots of him on stage. Select autographed copies will be shipped at random, which can be pre-ordered, while it will officially be released  December 9th .

Little Big Town will release “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” on iTunes on Tuesday (November 22nd).

Darius Rucker made a surprise appearance during Taylor Swift’s Speak Now Tour stop in Columbia, South Carolina on Friday (November 18th). “He’s one of the friendliest, coolest, most talented guys, and he comes from South Carolina,” she said prior to bringing out the “I Got Nothin’ singer. “I hope it’s alright with you if we have a guest tonight.” The pair performed Darius’ 2009 hit, “Alright,” as the crowd “went wild.” Check it out below.