Highlights from the 48th Annual ACM Awards

April 8th, 2013

At 7:15pm on Sunday, April 7, Luke Bryan tweeted a picture of Blake Shelton and him with the caption, “In the cop car. We are going 110 in downtown Vegas.” From the moment the crazy co-hosts arrived at the ACM Fan Jam in the back of a police car, last night’s ACM Awards festivities comprised an energetic (and tearful) evening full of meaningful moments, exhilarating highlights, and powerful performances.

In one of the most memorable underdog victories of ACM Awards history, Luke Bryan claimed the coveted Entertainer of the Year award. The 36-year-old master of the spring break soundtrack, who recently launched his first headlining arena tour, beat veteran superstars Jason Aldean, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, and Taylor Swift to win the fan-voted title.

Luke tearfully acknowledged his fans: “Thank you so much for making my life what it is. What I always wanted to be was just a country singer who got to ride on a tour bus and show up on a new stage and play music every night.”

Miranda Lambert received substantial honors throughout the evening, earning the designation of the evening’s most-awarded artist with four total awards. Her hit single “Over You” was declared Single Record of the Year as well as Song of the Year, resulting in two awards for Miranda as both artist and composer of the song. The culmination of Miranda’s evening came when she won her fourth Female Vocalist of the Year award, joining ranks with Reba McEntire and Loretta Lynn as the few artists who have ever won Female Vocalist of the Year four or more times.

The Male Vocalist of the Year award went to Jason Aldean, who also took away the prize for Vocal Event of the Year with Luke Bryan and Eric Church for their collaboration on “The Only Way I Know.”

Little Big Town was recognized as Vocal Group of the Year and for their Video of the Year, “Tornado.”

This year’s New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year award went to Florida Georgia Line. The group also won the fan-voted New Artist of the Year award. Not bad for their first ACM Awards show!

Each award announcement was surrounded by stellar musical performances, the most unforgettable being Garth Brooks and George Strait’s tribute to Dick Clark, the recently deceased former executive producer of the show. Their performances of “The Dance” and “The Cowboy Rides Away” were introduced by a noticeably moved Reba McEntire.

“He would slap me if he saw me crying up here,” Reba remarked in Dick’s memory.

The night opened with a rollicking rendition of “Boys ‘Round Here” featuring Blake Shelton and friends Luke Bryan, Brad Paisley, Sheryl Crow, Gwen Sebastian, and Pistol Annies.

Lady Antebellum debuted its latest single “Downtown,” giving band member Hillary Scott a chance to show off her baby bump. Carrie Underwood performed her hit “Two Black Cadillacs” with appropriate props onstage, and Hunter Hayes debuted his new song “I Want Crazy” and invited R&B legend Stevie Wonder to join him in performing Stevie’s classic, “Sir Duke.”

The 2013 ACM Awards was an exciting evening of celebration, talent, creativity, commitment, and, of course, the country music we love so well. We wish all the winners, performers, and producers a most hearty congratulations!

Posted in In Country Music News Today | 1 Comment »

Blake turned wedding preacher, Trace almost gets fired, and more!

April 8th, 2013

by Brad Schmitt

Brad Schmitt is a longtime Nashville entertainment journalist, having shared the goods on Music City’s most interesting people in the newspaper, on TV, and online for more than 15 years. Every week, Brad hits country fans with the latest news from Nashville and the lives of their favorite country artists.

Blake Shelton, country star, TV sensation . . . wedding preacher?

Strange but true: Blake Shelton will be marrying off some of his celebrity friends soon.

That’s according to Kelly Clarkson, who tells Entertainment Tonight that Blake is going to conduct her wedding ceremony when she marries Blake’s manager, Brandon Blackstock.

Well, how did that happen? I’ve got a guess.

You might remember that Blake says he put the pressure on Brandon to propose to Kelly.

In fact, Blake said he would do anything to help out with the wedding. Anything.

And voila.

Kelly says her wedding won’t be the only one Blake officiates—He’s also set to join Pistol Annies’ Ashley Monroe and her baseball pitcher fiancé in holy matrimony.

Do we smell a new reality show? “Blake Shelton, Hillbilly Wedding Preacher.”

I’d watch it. . . .

Trace barely escapes Trump’s firing finger on Celebrity Apprentice

Whew, that was close.

Trace Adkins, as usual, came up with an awesome marketing campaign on Sunday’s (April 7) episode of Donald Trump’s all-star season of NBC’s Celebrity Apprentice.

The message was simple, the look compelling for a two-page ad for a skin care line created by Donald’s wife, Melania.

One huge problem: The ad misspelled Melania’s name, as “Milania.” The actual misspelling came from a graphic designer that Trace’s team used for the challenge.

But Trace approved the ad, so he ended up on the chopping block (“in the boardroom”) for the first time this season.

“I was responsible for the text,” Trace admitted.

Lucky for Trace, his project manager, ex-NBA bad boy Dennis Rodman, also approved the ad—and Dennis has been on the chopping block before.

So Trump’s firing finger got pointed at Dennis instead of Trace.

And the cowboy rides away unscathed. . . .

Jason says country stars don’t know what to expect from Tim’s TV special

The ACM awards are over, the confetti is being cleaned up and Luke Bryan is still in shock over his first-ever Entertainer of the Year trophy.

But the party’s not over in Vegas: The ACM people are making one more huge show, and this one centers on Tim McGraw.

But it won’t just be a country special. ACM Presents: Tim McGraw’s Superstar Summer Nights, taping Monday (April 8), features rappers Nelly and Pitbull, R&B’s Ne-Yo and rocker John Fogerty mixed in with country superstars like Lady Antebellum and Jason Aldean.

And Jason’s a little unsure about what might happen.

“I think a lot of us are not really a hundred percent sure what it is,” he told reporters.

“We don’t really know what to expect yet,” he says. “But obviously, you’re gonna have a lot of us there, and it should be a fun night.”

You can see the results when the special debuts at 9 p.m. ET May 19 on CBS.

Posted in Schmitt Hits the Fans | No Comments »

Work, Eat, Play. Repeat.

April 5th, 2013

It’s always fun to see what the stars are saying on Twitter, but there’s too much tweeting going on to keep track of it all. Each week, the opry.com staff selects its favorite star “Tweets of the Week” and posts them here to make sure fans don’t miss anything really, really good.

COUNTRY ATHLETES

 

WHATCHA GOT COOKIN’?
 

ACTION SHOTS

Posted in Twitter Chatter | 1 Comment »

Stormy on NASHVILLE: Ho Hey

April 4th, 2013

EPISODE 16

When Stormy Weather, a country character in her own right, watched the first episode of ABC’s NASHVILLE, she knew it was just the kind of show on which she wanted to dish online at opry.com each week. “Fashion. Young love. Old enemies. The potential for a catfight at every turn. Music born in the songwriting rooms of Music City. What’s not to love?” Stormy asks. Visit this page for Stormy’s unbridled thoughts on each episode as the series takes off and as we’re all introduced to Rayna James, Juliette Barnes, and the rest of the characters that make up NASHVILLE.

Ho Hey from Nashville

Are Ray-Ray’s daughters too cute or what? The oldest one talks back to her mother and look what happens? The littles get scooped up and forced to go on tour with Rayna, their mama. Such a sad life. No school. Catered dinner every night. Cool parties with celebrity friends. Yeah, it’s tough being Ray-Ray’s offspring. To Rayna’s credit, she’s smart enough to try, with little success, to redirect her daughters’ attention to something other than Juliette.

Now when it comes to mothers and daughters, which Nashville seems to have plenty of right now, is there anyone more annoying than Jolene? No, there isn’t. Stormy wants to feel some compassion for this woman, but she simply can’t. It’s not Jolene’s fault; she’s just drawn that way. First of all, the name. You’ve got to be bold to carry a name like Jolene. For the love of everything, at least give the woman flaming locks of auburn hair. No. And now Dante (again. where do they get these names?). A real winner he turned out to be. Jolene needs a sober partner whose head can’t be turned by the manipulative daughter. When Juliette suggests that Jolene attend Juliette’s crew’s AA meeting, Jolene should have refused. Stand up for yourself just this once, Jolene. Claim that which is yours, even if it is that pathetic Dante. Instead, Jolene just wanders away. Is it no wonder this woman drinks?

Rayna’s not left the Nashville city limits before Ole Peg shows up at the house to greet Teddy. As quick as Peg can drop her trench coat, she and Teddy are playing house in the mansion that Ray-Ray built. Just when Peg gets cozy, Lamar shows up and makes a strong accusation toward Peg about leaking the Teddy/Rayna story to the tabloids. Gasp! And what is it with Lamar and that stadium? What’s the big deal and who cares? Stormy simply wants to know if Lamar can survive the evil clutches of Ole Peg. Does Peg do him in because Lamar knows too much? Is Peg completely corrupt? Let’s hope so. If Ole Peg can out villain Lamar, this just might get interesting.

And speaking of interesting, Stacy the vet is not at the top of Stormy’s list. Come on, Doc! Throw down with a complete hissy fit at Deacon when you find out–from someone else, no less–that he and Ray-Ray have a history. A quite varied one, at that. Scoop up little Sue and hit the road. Deacon is code for “man hung up on another woman.” Dr. Stacy, get a clue, take Sue and get out of there. Stat.

When will these women learn? Ho hey, indeed.

CLICK HERE for all things NASHVILLE ABC:
www.opry.com/nashvilleabc

Posted in NASHVILLE | No Comments »

Luke to look at Jason for ACM host support, Band Perry’s cupcake o’ love, and more!

April 2nd, 2013

by Brad Schmitt

Brad Schmitt is a longtime Nashville entertainment journalist, having shared the goods on Music City’s most interesting people in the newspaper, on TV, and online for more than 15 years. Every week, Brad hits country fans with the latest news from Nashville and the lives of their favorite country artists.

If Luke gets tongue-tied as host, he’ll look to Jason Aldean for a laugh

We’re less than a week away from the ACM Awards Sunday night (April 7) on CBS.

And that means Luke Bryan is oh-so-close to his first major awards show co-hosting gig; he’ll share those duties with buddy Blake Shelton.

Luke tells reporters he’s relying on “preparation and prayer” to get ready for the big night.

Oh, and if all else fails, Luke says he’ll look at Jason Aldean in the audience.

“When I do start getting tongue-tied, I’ll have to look down at him. I’m sure he’ll wink at me and be bent over laughing in his chair,” Luke says.

“It’ll be a funny moment.”

Trace gets traded to losing team, but still does great on “Celebrity Apprentice”

It’s not hard to tell when Trace Adkins is perturbed.

“I don’t like you very much right now,” Trace boomed at Donald Trump on Sunday’s (March 30) episode of the all-star season of Celebrity Apprentice.

The Donald had just plucked Trace off the winning team that he created at the beginning of the season and put him on the losers’ team, which had reality TV villain Omarosa in its ranks.

Trump wasn’t too concerned about Trace’s declaration: “A lot of people don’t like me,” the billionaire said matter-of-factly.

Turns out Trace needn’t have been worried about the team change either.

Yes, his new team continued to lose, but Trace was safe from elimination: He raised lots o’ money in the art-sale challenge.

Bonus: Omarosa is the celebrity who got fired.

Ding dong, the witch . . . .

Sweet treat: Please pass the Very Perry Chocolate Cherry

The Band Perry releases a new album, Pioneer, tomorrow (April 2), and the trio has a tasty promotion lined up, The Tennessean reports.

Kimberly Perry and her two brothers have teamed up with Nashville-based Gigi’s Cupcakes to create a new product this week – the Very Perry Chocolate Cherry cupcake.

“Cherry” comes from Kimberly’s fave character from the coming-of-age book/movie The Outsiders, and that’s how Cherry got into one of the songs on the album – and into the name of the cupcake promoting the album.

If you followed that, you should get a free cupcake.

Sure, Kimberly, Neil, and Reid love making music, but they also liked having a hand in creating a tasty treat.

“That was another thing on our bucket list, a cupcake,” Reid reveals.

Check!

THE BAND PERRY is in the opry.com New Music Spotlight with their new album PIONEER:  Click here to enter to win concert tickets and a meet and greet with the band, listen to the album, and more!


Posted in Schmitt Hits the Fans | No Comments »

Say Hello to The Henningsens

April 1st, 2013

On February 2, 2013, The Henningsens made their Grand Ole Opry debut. We caught up with the sibling trio shortly afterwards to chat about their experiences.

While growing up with 10 children on a farm in Illinois, how did you all find enough downtime to write songs?

During the winter/farming down time, we’d go down to Tennessee to our house in the country and we’d write in the evenings. Aaron and Dad would work construction and write on the way to their jobs. I’d sneak out to the porch and write!

Do you have a favorite song out of those you’ve written thus far?

Brian: “Down.” Aaron: “I Miss You.” Clara: “American Beautiful.”

How did the idea for “American Beautiful” come about?

The title, “American Beautiful,” was Aaron’s idea. When we got together to write with Brett Beavers, we thought it sounded like a love story and an American spirit song. So we combined the two!

There have been many great family groups in country music from The Carter Family to The Whites to The Band Perry. Was there anyone in particular who had a big influence on your dreams of a career in music?

Country music has strong family roots, and we are certainly honored to continue that tradition. We’ve admired many family groups, from the classic songwriting and harmonies of The Carter Family, to the Kendalls, the Judds and our friends The Band Perry. Sometimes it’s the easiest thing in the world to work closely with your family and sometimes it’s the hardest, but it’s really been worth it!

If you could perform one song with an artist (past or present), who would it be and what song would you choose?

“Sweet Baby James” with James Taylor. That’d be a dream come true!

If we looked at your iPod or turned on the radio in your car, what would we be likely to hear?

Anything from Queen to Glen Campbell to Miranda Lambert.

Are there any other Henningsens we can expect to hear music from in the future?

That’s a story in the making.

Did you listen to or watch the Grand Ole Opry growing up? Who’s your favorite performer?

Sometimes at night up in Illinois you can get 650 AM on the radio. One of Dad’s favorite Opry shows was when he got to see Jack Greene sing “Statue of a Fool.” That was a real highlight for him.

How did you find out you were invited to play the Grand Ole Opry? What were your first thoughts?

Our manager called us to let us know, and we were so excited. February 2, 2013 will always be a special day for The Henningsens!

Who were you most excited to cross paths with backstage at the Opry?

Of course The Band Perry, and it was definitely a highlight meeting John Conlee and Holly Williams!

Did anything else interesting or unexpected happen behind the scenes that night that fans would like to know about?

The Band Perry brought us some wonderful cupcakes . . . They were tasty!

We heard you brought quite the crowd with you that night. Were all of the other siblings able to make it?

Yes, ALL ten brothers and sisters of the Henningsen family were there, including their spouses and children. It was such a cool thing to experience the Opry with our whole family!

In five words or less, how would you describe your Opry experience?

Adrenaline rush. Historic moment. Honored. Humbled.

What is one thing that you would want country fans to remember about The Henningsens?

For the time being, just how to pronounce our name. Haha.

The Henningsens will return to the Opry stage on Tuesday, April 9 along with Dailey & Vincent, Jimmy Wayne, and more. Get your tickets here!

Posted in In Country Music News Today | 1 Comment »

Stormy On NASHVILLE: Puppy Love or Something Dang Near Like It

March 29th, 2013

EPISODE 15

When Stormy Weather, a country character in her own right, watched the first episode of ABC’s NASHVILLE, she knew it was just the kind of show on which she wanted to dish online at opry.com each week. “Fashion. Young love. Old enemies. The potential for a catfight at every turn. Music born in the songwriting rooms of Music City. What’s not to love?” Stormy asks. Visit this page for Stormy’s unbridled thoughts on each episode as the series takes off and as we’re all introduced to Rayna James, Juliette Barnes, and the rest of the characters that make up NASHVILLE.

Let’s see, where are we now? Deacon learned the power of a cute puppy. No woman can resist a guy with a furry friend. Will Deacon finally find love at the veterinarian’s office? At the very least, the vet gave Deacon a little check-up, and she wasn’t looking for heartworm. Hug that little puppy, Deacon. Boom-chica-bow wow!

Rayna and Teddy are sharing the family home, and Rayna laid down the law about Ol’ Peg–Teddy’s not to bring his special projects home from the office. Teddy knows better than to cross Rayna. If anything, spreadsheets are the only thing Teddy and Peggy should be sharing in the house that Rayna built.

Lamar barged into Teddy’s office, obviously intent on reminding Teddy that Teddy’s the puppet, and Lamar is the puppeteer. Teddy’s not having it, though. Lamar storms out. How is Lamar going to take Mayor Conrad down a notch? Reel him in? Teddy’s just drunk with power. Lamar’s not happy–and he doesn’t even know that his granddaughter got cracked in the head by a completely empty and out-of-place-looking shelf.

After calling Rayna the b-word, young Mattie defies her mother and attends Juliette’s downtown concert–the Melee in the Gulch–where she was clocked in the head by the aforementioned shelf. Deacon immediately spots her in the sea of people just in time to come to her rescue once the crowd spirals out of control. “She’s like family,” Deacon tells Rayna at the hospital while their daughter is getting a CAT Scan. And the Understatement of the Year Award goes to  . . . Deacon. Come on, Rayna, how much longer are you going to leave this poor man in the dark? Rayna takes the opportunity to give Juliette a stern wakeup call, literally a reality check via a phone call where Rayna talks hard to the little diva. Later, Rayna gets all sentimental at the door of their once-shared home with Teddy. Dear, me, woman. Move on; you looked desperate.

Guilt over his brother is consuming Gunnar while Avery is discovering what a jagged little pill regret is to swallow. The men in Scarlett’s life have got some kind of trouble. One’s drinkin’ alone in the middle of the day; one’s lighting big fires in a dark alley. Maybe it’s time Scarlett widens her social circle. Or, at the very least, go hang out with Deacon’s puppy. A little puppy breath cures a world of hurt.

Oh, the drama of a parking lot confession from Deacon, spilling his heart out to Gunnar. Once Scarlett and Gunnar get home, Gunnar is under the impression that Scarlett is going to console him. Wrong! She sends Gunnar to his room. Well, he did screw up the showcase, after all. Their separation is short-lived and, ironically, underscored by Avery’s heartfelt song. Scarlett awakens to a phone call from Mr. Bucky announcing that Rayna wants to sign Scarlett to a solo recording contract. Gunnar’s going to wake up in Scarlett’s bed only to discover he’s out in the cold. Will Scarlett sign and leave Gunnar behind? Will she pass on a contract with Rayna so she can seal the deal with Gunnar? Will Avery ever comb his hair?

Rayna headed off to the Katie Couric show where Katie asks some hard-hitting questions. Deacon sees Rayna talking about her divorce and it compels him to go back to the vet. The vet whose already given him a complete check-up. Now these two are going to date, at Coleman’s recommendation. Based on the previews of next week’s episode, it looks like the vet prescribes some self-evaluation for our buddy Deacon. Someone’s bound to be barking up the wrong tree next week.

CLICK HERE for all things NASHVILLE ABC:
www.opry.com/nashvilleabc

Posted in NASHVILLE | No Comments »

Life Appreciation Day

March 29th, 2013

It’s always fun to see what the stars are saying on Twitter, but there’s too much tweeting going on to keep track of it all. Each week, the opry.com staff selects its favorite star “Tweets of the Week” and posts them here to make sure fans don’t miss anything really, really good.

YOU’LL ALWAYS HAVE FAMILY

A DAY IN THE LIFE


IT’S THE LITTLE THINGS

Posted in Twitter Chatter | 1 Comment »

Trace Adkins does NOT wash his hair with lard, Blake picks on new Voice judges, and More!

March 25th, 2013

by Brad Schmitt

Brad Schmitt is a longtime Nashville entertainment journalist, having shared the goods on Music City’s most interesting people in the newspaper, on TV, and online for more than 15 years. Every week, Brad hits country fans with the latest news from Nashville and the lives of their favorite country artists.

Blake launches new season of The Voice—with a little name calling

So things are gonna be a little different when NBC’s The Voice launches Monday night (March 25).

Shakira and Usher are replacing judges Cee Lo Green and Christina Aguilera, for now, anyway.

So Blake Shelton is getting in there to pick on the new kids.

“They’re smart, those two. I’ve got to hand it to ‘em,” Blake told reporters. “I mean, they’re losers, but they’re smart.”

And here we go!

But seriously, folks, Blake thinks the tone might be a little bit different.

“I have always just kind of lollygagged through this thing and just kind of not taken it too seriously, you know. Just had fun with it. I tell you what,” Blake said.

“We got in those blind auditions, and Shakira and Usher, it wasn’t play time. They were very serious. They were determined to win this thing, you know,” Blake said.

“And I wouldn’t be surprised if one of ‘em does, because they’re putting a lot of time and effort into it.”

Do NOT tell Trace he washes his hair with lard

Anyone else feel like Stephen Baldwin is lucky to be alive after poking repeatedly at angry bear Trace Adkins on last night’s (March 24) episode of the all-star season of Celebrity Apprentice?

Trace and Stephen are actually on the same team, though it didn’t feel like it when they were working on a challenge to promote a hair care product.

In dismissing Trace’s ideas, Stephen came up with this humdinger:

“Trace lives in Tennessee. Trace washes his hair with lard.”

That prompted one of several profane words and gestures from Trace throughout the challenge.

“I don’t mean to be a jerk,” Stephen said at one point.

“Too late,” Trace fired back.

The good news: Despite feuding, Trace’s team won the challenge, and Trace lives to compete for another episode.

Little Big Town says Keith is breaking country stereotypes on American Idol

Folks, ya can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a major TV network show that has a country star on it.

Trace Adkins is on Celebrity Apprentice, Blake Shelton is on The Voice, Kellie Pickler and Wynonna are on Dancing With The Stars—and Keith Urban is the country rep on the judges panel on American Idol.

The folks in Little Big Town have big love for Keith on Idol.

“He represents country music very well, too, because people stereotype us sometimes,” Jimi Westbrook tells ABC News Radio.

“I think his intelligence shows through, and I love it. I loved watching him in that moment. He’s really great at it.”

Go Keith!

Posted in Schmitt Hits the Fans | No Comments »

Springtime and Those Sweet Faces

March 22nd, 2013

It’s always fun to see what the stars are saying on Twitter, but there’s too much tweeting going on to keep track of it all. Each week, the opry.com staff selects its favorite star “Tweets of the Week” and posts them here to make sure fans don’t miss anything really, really good.

THE SIGNS OF SPRING

 
BABIES, ANIMALS, AND BABIES WITH ANIMALS
 

Posted in Twitter Chatter | No Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »