YouTube goes Country Now

Wednesday, February 6, 2013 – YouTube has an original genre channel Country Now, with four original programs.

YouTube and GreenLight Media & Marketing plan to develop several other new series including live music and artist driven programs throughout the coming year.

Hosted by Emmy award winning personality Shane Tallant, and featuring WSIX afternoon drive personality The AntMan and country radio and TV personality Samantha Stephens, "Country Download" has news, reviews and recommendations through the eyes of three very different country music insiders. New episodes will launch each Friday with the first episode of "Country Download" already on the channel

The latest and greatest country music singles are highlighted every Tuesday on "Hear & Now." Tune in each week as Stokes Nielsen provides a video introduction of the new releases, then press play on today's biggest country hits. New music from a variety of artists will be featured with all new episodes debuting every Tuesday.

"OMC" (Oh My Country!) will be hosted Laura Bell Bundy, Brooke Engen, Tiffany Engen and Hugh Howser, focusing on clothing. View the pilot episode now with new episodes debuting every other Wednesday.

"I Love My Country" is a mash up of the classic clip show. The weekly, animated program features different user-submitted lifestyle clips combined with characters and commentary from Jimmy Dale and Cleave, exclusively on the channel. The premiere episode will debut soon with new content then releasing each Monday.

The channel will also feature lifestyle programs on fashion, sports, cars, southern cooking and culture with additional programs launching in the near future.

"We're excited to partner in the coming months and years with a variety of leading country music artists and labels, as well as some of the top creative people in Nashville to deliver a first-of-its-kind Country Music and lifestyle programming experience on YouTube" said GreenLight President Dominic Sandifer.

"YouTube is the dominant digital platform for music lovers, and it's about time there was a dedicated channel just for country music on the platform. We see this as a wonderful opportunity to partner with the country music industry to develop and create a variety of great programming options for country's huge fan base."

"Music is a big part of the ever-growing YouTube community," said Vivien Lewit, Content Partnership Director at YouTube. "Our platform has become a global stage for discovery, where music videos are shared, and fans follow and connect with their favorite artists. We're delighted to provide a venue for the launch of the Country Now channel and look forward to engaging country music fans around the world."

"OMC has been a ton of fun to produce, and we're excited to bring you a show focused on country fashion and style that is both informative and funny," said Bundy. "We've got you covered from Ribfests to Red Carpets."

Editorial: Walking the talk – When names like Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Waylon and the Hag are invoked, you're talking hard core country. These are the touchstones of country , the guys who made country music what it was and still is (or maybe can be). When these folks would sing about being down-and-out and the rough-and-tumble, they knew of what they were singing about. Fast forward a few years to the country singers of today. »»»

Concert Review: Steve Earle doesn't rest (on laurels) – If you didn't realize Steve Earle had a new disc out, "The Low Highway," it would have been no problem realizing that quite and quickly. That was because Earle started the two-hour show with three straight tracks from "The Low Highway," and he would not be done for the night. The title track of was a midtempo effort... »»»

Concert Review: The Howlin' Brothers leave the radar behind – The Howlin' Brothers - this trio, in reality, contains no brothers - are about eight years into their career and on their fifth album. To say they've been under the radar screen may be an understatement. You couldn't even say they've been flying under that screen because they have stuck very close to their Nashville environs.... »»»

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