• George Strait Debuting New Music at ACM Awards; Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, Florida Georgia Line and More Also Performing

    George Strait may have travelled off the touring horizon with his "The Cowboy Rides Away" farewell concert at AT&T Stadium in Dallas last year but that doesn't mean he's done with performing, or even new music. In fact, the Academy of Country Music confirmed that the icon would be playing just that, new music, when he appears at the ACM Awards on April 19. Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Florida Georgia Line, Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton and Keith Urban will also be performing that night.
  • 5 Celebrity Couples Releasing Albums in Same Year: Ariana Grande vs. Big Sean, Jay Z vs. Beyonce and More

    This week marks a high point for the "power couple" status of Big Sean and Ariana Grande: The former's new album Dark Sky Paradise topped the Billboard 200, selling nearly 140,000 copies in the process. That gives him his first no. 1 album, which matches him with his girlfriend, who topped albums charts with My Everything last year. Grande may have outsold her beau but that doesn't necessarily mean she "wears the pants" in the relationship (it's tough to imagine her ever wearing pants, based on her typical stage apparel). Music Times looked back over the last few years and found couples who had both released new albums within a year of each other, researched who sold more and which album was ultimately better, in deciding who ran the house that year.
  • Grammys 2015 Best Country Duo/Group Performance, Who Should & Will Win

    Bringing in featured talent for a country tune has increased in popularity over the past few years. This year's nominees in the Best Country Duo/Group Performance category are split between solid solo acts calling in their buddies and groups that conquered the charts with no assistance. Keith Urban and Eric Church collaborated on "Raise 'Em Up" while Tim McGraw brought in his wife, Faith Hill, for "Meanwhile Back at Mama's." Then there's the power duo of Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood on "Somethin' Bad." But the two big contenders here are Little Big Town and The Band Perry.
  • Grammys 2015 Best Country Song Nominees, Who Should & Will Win: Glen Campbell's Last Song vs. Miranda Lambert, Eric Church

    Best Country Song at the 2015 Grammys is gearing up to be a hotly contested category. This category, which goes to the songwriters of one of country music's big hits of the last year, is filled with some stunning music this year, courtesy of a genre great (Glen Campbell) and some of the most established artists in the biz today (Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Tim McGraw, Eric Church). So, how to decide who deserves to win?
  • Grammys 2015 Best Country Solo Performance Nominees, Who Should & Will Win

    The Best Country Solo Performance category is a tight one this year. We have two guitar hunks (Eric Church and Keith Urban) versus two of the genre's leading ladies (Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert). Oh, and let's not forget the newcomer (Hunter Hayes) who's representing with his equal parts heartbreaking, encouraging ballad, "Invisible."
  • No Offense to LL Cool J, but 5 Other Options for Grammy Hosting: Beyoncé, Steven Colbert, Blake Shelton and More

    Today the Recording Academy confirmed that LL Cool J will be the host at The Grammys when they go down on February 8. It was hardly a surprise to anyone who's paid attention in recent years: The emcee has hosted the event every year since 2012. That said, it's tough to blame the Academy and CBS for not wanting to shake things up: Although the performer will have now hosted 10 times, the recent results don't lie. The previous three years have featured, respectively, the no. 1, 3, and 2 highest viewerships since the '80s (the 2012 edition got a boost from those tuning in after Whitney Houston's death).
  • Miranda Lambert Says Beyoncé is Her Role Model

    It's no secret that Beyoncé is a boss. Women want to be her. Heck, we'd wager most men want to be her. The international superstar is such a beast that her followers are beginning to cross over into drastically different genres of music. Recently, one such fan spoke out saying that Beyonce is her role model and that fan was none other than Miranda Lambert.
  • Band Perry Working with 'Little Red Wagon' Writer Audra Mae for 'Pioneer' Follow-Up

    The Band Perry recently opened up about their new album, the follow-up to 2013's "Pioneer." The siblings are bringing in up-and-coming songwriter Audra Mae to help out on the record. Mae is known for writing Miranda Lambert's tune "Little Red Wagon." She also collaborated with The Forest Rangers a few times for FX's "Sons of Anarchy" in addition to her solo material. According to Taste of Country, Kimberly Perry called into iHeartRadio's Electric Barnyard with Broadway show to talk about the progress. "[It's] goin' great, you know," she said. "We're slowly but surely recording band here in the Band Perry. I'd say we have about half of it done. It'll definitely — you guys will have new music certainly in the first half of 2015." The trio is especially excited to co-write tunes with Mae. "We have interesting things happening and, you know, the co-writes are one thing that we're really excited about as well," Kimberly added. "A new girl that's been here in Nashville writing, her name is Audra Mae, she's a very spirited young lady. So we've just made a lot of new writing friendships and can't wait for you guys to hear it."
  • Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert to Headline Big Barrel Country Music Festival [LINEUP]

    The good people at Red Frog Events, who put on the Firefly Festival every year, are getting a little country in 2015. The company announced the Big Barrel Country Music Festival today, Dec. 18, which will be held at Firefly's site, Dover International Speedway in Delaware. Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert will headline the event scheduled for June 26 to 28 — the weekend after Firefly. Tickets go on sale today, "Billboard" notes. For a three-day pass ($99), concert-goers will be able to see a mix of popular country artists and acts on the fringes of the genre, like Lynyrd Skynyrd, Sturgill Simpson and Hurray for the Riff Raff. Legends like Loretta Lynn and Merle Haggard will also perform. Additional acts include: Jake Owen, Chris Young, Gary Allen, Eric Paslay, Jon Pardi, Dan + Shay, Cassadee Pope, Charlie Worsham, Jana Kramer, The Oak Ridge Boys, Joel Crouse, Chris Stapleton, The Del McCoury Band, Shakey Graves, Billy Joe Shaver, Nikki Lane, Jackie Lee, Logan Mize, Wade Bowen, Kaitlin Rose, Steven Lee Olsen, The Felice Brothers, The Stray Birds, Sam Lewis and The Deslondes.
  • Little Big Town Add March Dates to 'Pain Killer' Tour [SCHEDULE]

    Though country group Little Big Town finished their Pain Killer Tour last week on Dec. 13, they have already announced a new string of dates for March 2015. The next leg of the tour will kick off March 5 in Savannah, Georgia, and finish up March 28 in Enid, Oklahoma, making stops in Alabama, Tennessee, Indiana, Kentucky, Iowa and Missouri in between. Singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton will be the tour's opening act. You can check out all of Little Big Town's upcoming tour dates here: 03/05: Savannah, GA @ Johnny Mercer Theatre 03/06: Birmingham, AL @ BJCC Concert Hall 03/08: Chattanooga, TN @ Memorial Auditorium 03/12: Evansville, IN @ Old National Events Plaza 03/13: Louisville, KY @ Palace Theatre 03/14: Muncie, IN @ Emens Auditorium 03/19: Davenport, IA @ Adler Theatre 03/20: St. Louis, MO @ Fabulous Fox Theatre 03/27: Sioux City, IA @ Orpheum Theatre 03/28: Enid, OK @ Enid Event Center
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