Those that know Waylon Jennings know that one of the primary contributions he brought to country music was importing a little bit of across-the-tracks rock ‘n’ roll influence into the genre. Unlike many modern country performers, Waylon did it with a respect for the original roots of country music, but he undoubtedly did it.
Hold My Beer Vol. 2 is like a love letter to classic country from a Texas perspective. In many respects, it’s a country music album about country music. Along the way though, Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen don’t forget to have some fun. After all, that’s the underlying reason for this project.
A blazing tune of bootleg, intrigue, and power, it lives up to Kyle Nix’s promise that storytelling will be the centerpiece of his debut album, while the brazen and galloping tempo reminds one of Turnpike’s “Before The Devil Knows We’re Dead,” partly due to members of the Turnpike Troubadours itself being behind the effort.
Few debut artists and albums have taken us off guard recently like This Highway did from Zephaniah OHora. The Countrypolitan throwback sound with a hint of early Merle Haggard offered such perfect interpretations of the classic era of country, it was eerie how much the words and music took you back to when country music was country music.
“I’m trying to make Luke Bryan money singing Chris Knight-caliber songs,” Parker McCollum says. Parker says he’s taking his cues from folks like Chris Stapleton and Kacey Musgraves who’ve found huge reception for their music despite a cold shoulder from country radio.
If your trek led you to North Carolina and the moonshining swamps of Johnston County, and you rooted around in the honky tonks or queried the locals where to turn for the best country music from the region, Jonathan Park is probably who would be the leading vote getter.
If you’ve been hankering hard for anything Turnpike Troubadours related, it appears your prayers are about to be answered, and in a huge way. Turnpike fiddle player Kyle Nix is preparing to release a solo record, and we’re not talking about some slapped-together bedroom EP.
Dwight Yoakam’s done got hitched. In an extremely rare glimpse into his personal life, the 63-year-old announced in a statement on Monday (5-4) that he has married his long time fiancee Emily Joyce. The two had been dating since 2010. The private ceremony was held at the St. Monica Catholic Church in Santa Monica, CA.
Teeming with Shooter Jennings as producer, B.J. and American Aquarium capture ‘Lamentations’ as a postscript to the broken American Dream, sent through the filter of a Southern perspective, and stamped into 10 songs that are sure to compel your consideration.
The song Florida Georgia Line played a snippet of appeared to have the title of “Feels Good.” But apparently Carrie Underwood was not feeling good about any of it. Underwood never replied or even addressed the duo’s proposal publicly, which left many speculating if Carrie had snubbed them.
Quite a few country fans were left angered and agog when they saw that Gwen Stefani would be receiving an Opry berth when many more deserving country artists—including some who could benefit from both performing during this period of hardship—are once again being passed over
Lori McKenna is a hit country songwriter and a heralded Americana performer, and whenever a new song emerges with her name on it, you’re smart to take a pause from whatever trifle you’re busy with, and listen. This will be music for adults, by adults.
Multiple dates on the tour had sold out, and certain cities had second shows added, proving the pairing could reach arena capacity. But ultimately, only 12 of the original 43 dates were fulfilled, with the final show happening in Charleston, South Carolina on March 10th.
The fear when we heard that the Dixie Chicks had employed producer Jack Antonoff for their first record in 14 years was that instead of hearing the acoustic instrumentation that made the Dixie Chicks so vital in the late 90’s, we’d get the three women huddled around Antonoff’s laptop staring intently at pixels on a screen.
Stuff a sock down your pants, unearth your razor shades, bust out the acid wash, and get ready to party like it’s 1989 because what started as a cover band stage gag back in 2015 has now become a full-blown major label release with original songs and radio single. It’s called Hot Country Knights.
Beyond making a really bad amalgam of derivative and formulaic rap pop by ripping off the styles of Drake and trap beat artists to only then turn around and sell it as country to the gullible masses, Sam Hunt is also superlative at turning hip-hop, pop, and indie rock writers into certified country music experts.
George Strait is getting his own SiriusXM radio channel, at least for a limited time. And for a limited time, you can listen to it for free as the satellite radio provider extends a current promotion allowing anyone to listen free of charge through their app. Called Ace in the Hole Radio after the iconic singer’s touring band.
It was June of 2014, and an unsolicited submission came into my inbox from an artist named Luke Bell, accompanied by a BandCamp link to an album called ‘Don’t Mind If I Do.’ Nearly six years later, the most common query that lands into that same inbox that Luke Bell first submitted his music to is “Where is Luke Bell?”
Like everyone else, most of Eric Church’s music plans have been put on ice due to the Coronavirus. But he is planning on releasing new music sooner than later, though any tour plans will be coming later than sooner.
Originally scheduled to occur on Sunday, April 5th in Las Vegas, the ACM Awards will now be held at The Grand Ole Opry House, the Ryman Auditorium, and the Bluebird Cafe on September 16th, 2020. However, that’s the same night and location of the Americana Awards.
A honky tonk sweetheart and certified heartbreaker originally from Canada, for the second record in a row, Whitney Rose has eased off her original traditional country sound that pegged the honky tonk meter at “10” to add a little more old school rock ‘n roll flavor and fervor to her music.
The empire Zac Brown built during his big run in the 2000’s continues to be threatened among critical takes on his new music, and dwindling tour revenue due to the Coronavirus. Now Brown has listed his iconic Southern Ground recording studio in Nashville on the market.
In some ways, bass singers are like the superheroes of music. The rarest of all the vocal ranges, they can doing things the rest of us just can’t do. But when nobody’s looking, when we’re behind the wheel or home alone, we try and pretend we can. Because singing bass is super cool. It’s the air guitar of vocal ranges.
The Saturday night Grand Ole Opry tradition continues even during the COVID-19 pandemic with two official Opry members—one older, and one new—taking the stage together Saturday, April 25th, keeping the circle unbroken once again. This week Luke Combs and Craig Morgan will do the honors.
