March 30, 2007 - The 2007 Nashville Star Tour is gearing up for about a 40-show nationwide tour this summer. The shows will feature Warner recording artist and the USA Network's 2007 "Nashville Star" winner Angela Hacker along with the three runners up: her brother, Zac Hacker, David St. Romain and Joshua Stevens.... »»»March 30, 2007 - Whisperin' Bill Anderson has been in the studio with producer Steve
Ivey recording his first-ever bluegrass album for IMMI Records. A 3-disc package (still untitled), the project will contain l6 songs along with interview footage from friends and associates plus a music video.
Anderson wrote eight of... »»»March 30, 2007 - Rodney Atkins will appear on NBC's Today Show on April 20th to sing a song. This comes during a particularly busy period for Atkins, who is enjoying much success over the past year a decade into his career. He has two number one singles from his first platinum album and a tour with Martina McBride... »»»March 29, 2007 - The top three songs and albums on the Billboard song and album charts for the week ending April 7 remained the same, and that meant Kenny Chesney's "Beer in Mexico" and Carrie Underwood's "Some Hearts" were both still number one.
Tim McGraw stayed second with "Last Dollar (Fly Away)," while Carrie... »»»March 29, 2007 - Yet another member of Little Big Town got hitched. Phillip Sweet married Rebecca Arthur earlier this week at Cedar Vine Manor, a romantic bed and breakfast located in Lebanon, Tenn., just outside Nashville. The bride is a business owner and wardrobe stylist in Nashville.
Fellow band mates Karen... »»»March 29, 2007 - Taylor Swift will kick off the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball season Monday, performing a live concert with her full band and singing the National Anthem. The 30-minute concert will be held Dodger Stadium and precede the traditional stealth fighter jets, fireworks and first pitch.... »»»March 29, 2007 - Several shows were added for the Tim McGraw and Faith Hill Soul2Soul 2007 tour. A second date was added in Boston in July after the first quickly went clean.
A total of 34 shows had been slated, but now that figure is up to 38. A second show also was added in Omaha, Neb. where the "Jeep Presents... »»»March 28, 2007 - Clay Walker will hit the home opener of the Houston Astros next week by performing an acoustic set during the Monday, April 2nd game against Pittsburgh. He also will sing the National Anthem and a special performance of "God Bless America" during the 7th Inning Stretch.
"I love Houston," said Walker.... »»»March 28, 2007 - Finalists in the MerleFest 2007 songwriting contests were announced in the general, country, bluegrass and gospel categories. The finals will be held during MerleFest on April 27.
Contest chairperson Jim Lauderdale and his committee evaluated 1,088 submitted songs to pick the dozen finalist songs, 3... »»»March 28, 2007 - RCA recording artist Catherine Britt experienced an unusual concert moment for an artist who has not released an album or had a hit single. Over the weekend, while performing at a show for KRTY at Club Rodeo in San Jose, Cal., Britt closed her 45-minute set in 400-plus fans with her self-penned current... »»»March 27, 2007 - Wynonna Judd today filed for divorce against her estranged husband, D.R. Roach, citing irreconcilable differences, according to Judd's web site. Roach was arrested on March 22 in Abilene and charged with three counts of aggravated sexual battery against a minor.
"I am obviously devastated.... »»»March 27, 2007 - Tim McGraw leads the list of new releases out Tuesday with Jack Ingram seeing if he can match the success of his last album, which yielded his first number one ever.
McGraw releases his first studio album in almost three years. "Let It Go" was recorded in Nashville and was co-produced by McGraw,... »»»March 27, 2007 - Kix Brooks leads a slew of nominees for Academy of Music Award categories announced Tuesday. Brooks is among five people vying for the national on-air personality award at the ACMS.
Other nominations include musicians, radio stations, music clubs, producer, engineer and nightclub of the year.... »»»March 27, 2007 - Billy Currington is currently in the studio working on a new album slated for a fall release. He will kick off his summer tour March 31st. Currington will perform at this year's CMA Music Festival on Sunday, June 10th at the Adelphia... »»»March 26, 2007 - Former Alabama member and member of the Country Music Hall of Fame Jeff Cook and newcomer Mitch Glenn inked with Lofton Creek Records. Cook and Glenn's first single will be "Shining Star" and ship in April. Label head Mike Borchetta was on the promotion team that promoted Alabama's first single on GRT... »»»March 26, 2007 - Carmen Rasmusen of American Idol fame signed with Lofton Creek Records. Lofton Creek will ship her first single, "Nothing Like The Summer" to radio early April. Rasmusen started her "Hitch-A Ride" tour on March... »»»March 26, 2007 - Craig Morgan will be in Los Angeles for several media appearances this week, and the producers of American Idol invited him to drop by the show tomorrow night, Tuesday March 27th. Morgan will be a special on-camera celebrity audience member on American Idol, and after the live Idol broadcast he will... »»»March 26, 2007 - Rodney Atkins may have thought he went to hell with "If You're Going Through Hell," but he actually went platinum, signifying sales of more than 1 million units. Atkins enjoyed two back to back multiple week number one singles, two ACM nominations and an RIAA certified Platinum Album.... »»»March 26, 2007 - Brad Paisley will release "5th Gear," his new CD June 19, the follow-up to his hit-filled double platinum CMA and ACM Album of the Year winner, "Time Well Wasted."
"Ticks" is the first single from "5th Gear" and has jumped right up the song chart. Penned by Paisley with Kelley Lovelace and Tim Owens,... »»»March 26, 2007 - Marty Stuart will release "Compadres: An Anthology of Duets," June 5, launching his year-long celebration of country music. That week will include the release of the new album, a museum exhibit opening and a concert tour kicking off with "Marty Stuart's 6th Annual Late Night Jam.... »»»March 26, 2007 - When an album release date gets changed, usually it's delayed, but not in the case of a tribute album to June Carter Cash. Its release date is pushed up from June 19 to June 5. "Anchored in Love: A Tribute to June Carter Cash" features performances by Elvis Costello, Brad Paisley, Emmylou Harris,... »»»March 25, 2007 - Tickets for the Soul2Soul 2007 tour featuring husband-and-wife Tim McGraw and Faith Hill started going on sale Friday. The tour will be an in-the-round set design instead of an end stawge set-up.
Tickets went on sale Friday for the following shows:
June 30 Philadelphia - Wachovia Center
July 5... »»»March 23, 2007 - Vince Gill, Willie Nelson and Alison Krauss will participate in the 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival, scheduled for July 28 at Toyota Park in Chicago, hosted by Eric Clapton. This year's festival will feature a full day of musical performances with many guitar collaborations.
Other performers include... »»»March 23, 2007 - The Rascal Flatts music machine will keep on ticking this fall when the band releases its fifth album - as yet untitled - Sept. 25 on Lyric Street.
The trio has enjoyed increasing success including being the best selling artist across all genres of music and playing to more than 1 million fans in 74 cities in 2006.... »»»March 22, 2007 - Carrie Underwood recaptured the top spot on the Billboard country album chart for the week ending March 31 with "Some Hearts." She replaced Gary Allan's "Greatest Hits," which fell to second in its second week on the charts. Kenny Chesney continued to lead the Billboard Hot Country Song chart.... »»»March 22, 2007 - Waylon Jennings's 1980 number 1 single, "Theme from The Dukes of Hazzard (Good Ol' Boys)" became the RIAA's first platinum-certified country Mastertone, recognizing 1 million purchased ringtones, according to his label.
Sony BMG Nashville Chairman Joe Galante said, "For a man whose music and character... »»»March 22, 2007 - Reba McEntire will return as host of the 42nd annual Academy of Country Music Awards when the show is held May 15 in Las Vegas.
"I am so flattered to be asked to host the Academy of Country Music Awards," said McEntire. "I'm thrilled to be heading back to Las Vegas to help put on the greatest show in country music.... »»»March 21, 2007 - Alison Krauss will launch a summer tour in mid-June following on the heels of an album out in April.
The tour is slated to start in Jackson, Miss. June 14 and conclude July 29 in Dayton, Ohio.
Krauss and her Union Station backing band will perform in more than 30 cities throughout the U.S.... »»»March 20, 2007 - Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Ray Price will release their first album together titled "Last of the Breed" March 20 on Lost Highway Records. The two-disc album contains 20 newly recorded classics and 2 new songs. This is the only major release due out.
Bluegrass ace Ricky Skaggs collaborated with... »»»March 20, 2007 - Billy Currington will sing the national anthem prior to the sold-out
Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday, March 25. This will be Currington's first trip to the World's Fastest half mile where he'll sing in front of nearly 160,000 fans.
"I am excited to be part of the tradition at Bristol... »»»March 20, 2007 - Canadian band The Road Hammers signed a record deal with Montage Music Group, a recently activated Nashville-based label. Jason McCoy, (2004 Canadian Country Music Association Male Vocalist of the Year) Clayton Bellamy, Chris Byrne and Corbett Frasz make up this quartet playing country, southern rock and blues.... »»»March 19, 2007 - Joe Nichols was backstage waiting for his hero, George Jones, to go on, but Nichols got more than he bargained for. Jones asked Nichols to join him on stage.
"I got to perform a few weeks ago with George at the Opry, and I can honestly say it was one of the coolest, most exciting moments of my life," Nichols said.... »»»March 19, 2007 - Lonestar lead singer Richie McDonald is leaving the band at the year of the year for a solo career, the group announced Monday. Lonestar also has left the RCA Label Group.
"The band has the opportunity to pursue other endeavors," a press released from the group said Monday.
Dean Sams, Michael Britt... »»»March 19, 2007 - Brad Paisley will keep his 2007 tour, Hershey's Presents Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour, on the road through November with new dates announced today. Special guests Rodney Atkins and Taylor Swift will open the second leg dates beginning Sept. 6, ending Nov. 17 with a total of 75 dates in the year.... »»»March 19, 2007 - Flush with sickness on being the first rock act to have a number one country hit, Bon Jovi is going the Nashville root for its next CD, "Lost Highway," out June 19 on Island/Mercury Nashville.
Produced by Dann Huff (Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts) and John Shanks (who co-produced Bon Jovi's "Have A Nice... »»»March 19, 2007 - Jason Aldean's new video "Johnny Cash," the lead track off his upcoming sophomore album out in May, will have its world premiere on CMT this Thursday, March 22, and then proceed into hot shot rotation on the network.
The video, directed by Wes Edwards for Ruckus Film, was shot in various Las Vegas... »»»March 17, 2007 - The Raybaw label, which was founded by the MuzikMafia, was folded into Warner.
Raybaw consisted of Cowboy Troy, James Otto and John Anderson. Cowboy Troy, who released, "Black in the Saddle" last year, shifted over to Warner as did Otto. He will release "Sunset Man" April 8 as a joint release with Raybaw and Warner.... »»»March 15, 2007 - The top of the Billboard song and album charts had new leaders for the week ending March 24. Kenny Chesney displaced Trace Adkins on the song chart with "Beer in Mexico," while Gary Allan's "Greatest Hits" is number 1 on the album chart, knocking out the Dixie Chicks' run with "Taking the Long Way.... »»»March 15, 2007 - Tim McGraw was in New York City this week for a performance on Good Morning America to promote his forthcoming disc, "Let It Go." McGraw stopped by The View, which airs Friday, March 23, and the CBS Early Show, which airs Monday, March 26. He performed his new single "Last Dollar" and a few other hits.... »»»March 15, 2007 - Toby Keith will launch the Big Dog Daddy tour in June and continue touring into late September hitting all parts of the country with more than 50 shows scheduled. The summer tour is part of a heavy touring schedule by the country superstar, who has been playing shows since January.... »»»
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Country News Digest
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March 15, 2007 - Gary Allan sits atop the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart this week with "Greatest Hits." With sales of more than 69,600 units its first week in stores,"Greatest Hits" is Allan's second number 1 album in less than 2 years. "Tough All Over" was number 1 upon its October 2005 release.... »»»March 14, 2007 - Terri Clark debut single, "Dirty Girl," was just released. The song by Tom Shapiro and Rivers Rutherford, was previewed by Clar two weeks ago at the annual Country Radio Seminar, The official add date is April 2.
"I had a hand in writing 'Dirty Girl' in a roundabout way," said Clark.... »»»March 14, 2007 - Trent Tomlinson, the best selling debut male country artist of 2006, will return to the Grand Ole Opry this weekend to perform his first top 10 hit, the redemptive "One Wing In The Fire." Tomlinson will also debut his newest single, "Just Might Have Her Radio On," marking the televised debut of the song.... »»»March 14, 2007 - Country music celebrity birdhouses designed or inspired by the likes of Dierks Bentley, Faith Hill, Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban, are being auctioned off as part of the sixth Annual "The Birdhouse Thing" auction, benefiting the W.O. Smith Nashville Community Music School.
Other country music... »»»March 14, 2007 - Chely Wright will head back to the studio in April to begin work on her seventh album with Rodney Crowell, who will produce the project. Wright's last disc was "The Metropolitan Hotel" from 2005 on Dualtone.
The Kansas native just returned from a 10-day Stars & Stripes tour with the military.... »»»March 13, 2007 - Willie Nelson, who will formally announce the formation of his own record label Friday during South by Southwest, will record for Perdanales Recors once his obligations to Lost Highway Records are completed.
Nelson also signed his sons,guitarist and singer Lukas Nelson and drummer Micah Nelson, to the... »»»March 12, 2007 - Kim Richey will release her first album in five years in July on Vanguard Records. "Chinese Boxes," recorded in London at Eastcote Studios and Air Studios
Lyndhurst, will be out July 10.
Giles Martin, whose most recent project was The
Beatles Love album, produced Richey. "Chinese Boxes" is the follow... »»»March 12, 2007 - Gretchen Wilson will release her third album, "One of the Boys," May 15. Wilson produced the disc with Mark Wright and John Rich, both of whom produced Wilson's first two discs. She also had a hand in writing 9 of the 11 songs. Rich helped write 4 songs.
"I am very proud of this album and can't wait... »»»March 12, 2007 - Tim McGraw's new single "Last Dollar" from his upcoming "Let It Go" disc, due March 27, flies to the top of the Canadian Country singles chart reports Radio and Records. Now in its 2nd week atop the charts, "Last Dollar" is McGraw's 19th number 1 single in Canada, setting a record for the most chart... »»»March 12, 2007 - Little Big Town's "The Road To Here" was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of more than 1 million copies, it was disclosed Monday.
"This is a tremendous accomplishment for Little Big Town," said Equity Music Group president Mike Kraski.... »»»March 12, 2007 - Carrie Underwood will become the fifth country music artist to appear in the past 20 years on Saturday Night Live when she performs on March 24. Underwood will sing hits from her 5 million selling album "Some Hearts."
Underwood's career has garnered two awards apiece from the Grammy Awards, Country... »»»March 11, 2007 - George Strait, who was scheduled to perform two shows at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Conn. over the weekend, was forced to reschedule the dates because of a severe bout of laryngitis, according to his web site. The concerts now will be held Thursday and Friday, April 26 and 27.... »»»March 8, 2007 - Little Big Town's Kimberly Roads announced she is pregnant. "I'm having a baby, and I'm just over the moon about it, so excited. We're all excited about having a Little Big Town baby," she said in an audio on the band's web site.
The baby is due in late August. Rhoads married Stephen Schlapman over... »»»March 8, 2007 - Dierks Bentley will take off on a five-city tour to promote his newest project, a live concert DVD, "Live and Loud at the Fillmore," out March 20.
Bentley will screen the DVD in eight cities across the country including Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Philadelphia and Providence.... »»»March 8, 2007 - Trace Adkins remained atop the Billboard country song chart for the week ending March 17 with "Ladies Love Country Boys," while the Dixie Chicks' stayed in first on the album chart with "Taking the Long Way." The Chicks continue to benefit apparently from taking five Grammys last month.... »»»March 8, 2007 - Little Big Town will kick off on Monday the premiere episode of Academy of Country Music and GAC Present, a nine-week series highlighting the careers of country acts. Band members Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Roads, Phillip Sweet and Jimi Westbrook sat down with Lorianne Crook, who will host the series.... »»»March 8, 2007 - Joe Nichols is in the studio working on the follow-up to "III" with co-producers Mark Wright and Brent Rowan. Nichols fourth release for Universal Records South will street later this year.
Nichols has enjoyed much success with "III." The current single is "I'll Wait For You." He already has had a lot... »»»March 7, 2007 - Bucky Covington will make his Grand Ole Opry debut this Friday, March 9th. Covington will perform his debut single, "A Different World." Covington will also premiere new material from his self-titled debut CD, set for release April 17th on Lyric Street... »»»March 7, 2007 - Jason Aldean's self-titled debut release was certified platinum for sales of 1 million units by the RIAA. The CD spawned three chart-topping radio hits, "Hicktown" (number nine), "Why" (number one) and "Amarillo Sky" (number four). Aldean becomes the first platinum artist for Nashville independent... »»»March 7, 2007 - The Soul2Soul Tour 2007 of Faith Hill and Tim McGraw will kick off June 6 in Omaha, Neb. and conclude two months later in Anaheim, Cal., totaling 34 shows. Last year's tour was the most successful in country music history.
The tour, sponsored by Jeep, will hit Canada for the first time.... »»»March 7, 2007 - Jo Dee Messina will appear on the March 11th episode of ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" where the Tipton-Smith family from Waleska, Ga. will be getting a new home. During the show, taped Jan. 17, Messina performed "Heaven Was Needing A Hero," in honor of 16 year old Ransom Tipton-Smith who lost... »»»March 6, 2007 - Rural Rhythm Records has had domestic "brick & mortar" distribution with RYKO Distribution for more than 10 years and now will distribute their musically digtially through Ryko as well.
Sam Passamano, President of Rural Rhythm, said, "Our goal is to provide our artists and catalog the most... »»»March 6, 2007 - Miranda Lambert recently shot the video for her first single off her latest album. "Famous in a Small Town" hits radio on March 19 with the video debuting shortly after. The song reflects Lambert's own experience growing up in the small town of Lindale, Texas.
In the last two years, Lambert has toured... »»»March 6, 2007 - "It's All Relative: Mel and Pam Tillis" is an exhibition that just opened, honoring the careers of Mel Tillis and his daughter Pam Tillis at the Country Music Hall of Fameand Museum.
Mel Tillis began his career as a songwriter in the 1950s and over the next two decades penned classic hits for Bobby... »»»March 5, 2007 - Arista Nashville agreed to release Phil Vassar from his contract, in order for him to sign with newly reorganized Universal Records South.
"Arista's been my record label from the beginning, and it's been an amazing
seven years - from 'Carlene' on to last year's 'Greatest Hits' and going
number one... »»»March 5, 2007 - The late Chris LeDoux will be honored by a statue that will be the centerpiece of the planned, "Chris LeDoux Memorial Park" in Kaycee, Wyo. D Michael Thomas created the sculpture.
The bronze titled "Good Ride Cowboy" depicts LeDoux's 1976 world championship ride, on Stormy Weather, and further... »»»March 5, 2007 - It should come as no surprise, but every artist who commented on their Academy of Country Music award nomination Monday was happy.
"We are grateful that we continue to be recognized by our peers and the Academy," said Rascal Flatts' lead singer Gary LeVox. "This will never, ever get old.... »»»March 5, 2007 - Willie Nelson will announce the formation of Pedernales Records at a press conference during the annual South By Southwest Music & Media Conference, his publicist said Monday. Nelson will introduce his company, top executives and the first artists signed to the independent label.... »»»March 5, 2007 - George Strait topped the list for the Academy of Country Music nominations announced Monday with eight, including entertainer and male vocalist of the year.
Brooks & Dunn were next with seven nominations plus being named the Home Depot Humanitarian of the Year winners. Rascal Flatts garnered six nominations.... »»»March 5, 2007 - A lawsuit filed last fall by Jerry Jeff Walker against a Texas music label, Palo Duro Records, was settled. The result is that Palo Duro will re-release an album recorded live in Luckenbach, Texas last year. The label did not distribute the album after the suit was filed.
Palo Duro Records said Monday... »»»March 3, 2007 - Nearly two years after its release, Miranda Lambert went platinum with "Kerosene," signifying sales of 1 million units, her label announced Saturday.
Sony BMG Nashville Chairman Joe Galante surprised Lambert with a plaque signifying the achievement following her performance in front of several thousand... »»»March 2, 2007 - Angela Hacker, of Muscle Shoals, Ala., won the fifth edition of Nashville Star Thursday. Hacker, 29, bested her brother Zac and David St. Romain of Baton Rouge, La. Hacker will get a record deal with Warner Nashville with a disc slated to hit stores April 3.
The series, which was broadcasat on USA... »»»March 2, 2007 - The video for newcomer Bucky Covingtoin's first single, "A Different World," debuted this week in the number one position atop CMT's fan-voted CMT Pure Country video playlist. The video debuted this week at number 36 on Yahoo Music's all-genre video chart, putting Covington in the company of fellow... »»»March 2, 2007 - Josh Turner was certified double platinum with his sophomore release "Your Man," his label announced Friday. Three country releases from 2006 achieved this status: Rascal Flatts' "Me And My Gang," Dixie Chicks' "Takin' the Long Way Home" and Turner.
Turner has racked up more than 3 million in sales.... »»»March 1, 2007 - Trace Adkins learned that more than "Ladies Love Country Boys" because his song went to the top of the Billboard country song chart for the week ending March 10, replacing George Strait's "It Just Comes Natural," which fell to fourth.
On the album chart, the Dixie Chicks remained first with "Taking the... »»»March 1, 2007 - Bluegrass band Cherryholmes may have a new disc out in June on Skaggs Family Record. The family band, which won the IBMA bluegrass entertainer of the year award in 2005, finished mixing their second disc for the label Thursday. The project remains untitled, according to a label official.... »»»March 1, 2007 - Brooks & Dunn, Pat Green and Kellie Pickler were named Thursday by the American Red Cross to its sixth annual National Celebrity Cabinet.
They are among 20 new members involved in promoting awareness of Red Cross services. Activities will include taping public service announcements; donating their... »»»
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