All the information on the 51st Annual ACM Awards in one place, including the presenters, the performers, the collaborations, the nominees, special awards, and other things to watch for. Will Chris Stapleton have another big night? What can traditional country fans have to look forward to? And why have so many of the awards been handed out already?
Saving Country Music posted a total of 27 articles about I Saw The Light before it’s release. This will make #28. The reason such dedicated interest was shown to the film was because of the potential it carried for exposing the music and the legacy of Hank Williams to an entirely new generation, and to preserve and promote his legacy for generations to come.
Margo Price has now officially pulled off the mother of all coup d’états for an independent country artist. Announced on Thursday (3/31), she will be the featured musical guest on Saturday Night Live on April 9th. But I have to be honest with you: this all feels like too much, too soon for Margo Price.
Now there’s some news, though it’s of a convoluted variety. On Wednesday (3-31), it was announced that Gary Allan had “re-signed” with Universal Music Group Nashville—the parent company of MCA Nashville. The press release spoke about how Gary had been with the label for the entirety of his 20-year career, which is true. But one very important distinction in the press release is that Gary is no longer being promoted by MCA Nashville.
It was nearly five years ago now that Saving Country Music first delved into the subject of whether there was indeed a legitimate fourth generation member of the most legendary name in country music history: Hank Williams. Of course we all know about the original Hank Williams, whose birth name was actually Hiram King Williams, and who was country music’s first superstar.
As first announced by Saving Country Music in December, country music’s most famous supergroup, The Highwaymen, will be getting their own American Masters television special. The Highwaymen: Friends Till the End will air Friday, May 27th, at 9 p.m. on most PBS stations. Just announced, accompanying the documentary will be the release of a four-disc CD/DVD live box set.
The CMA has officially released the Nissan Stadium lineup for the CMA Music Festival coming up the 2nd week in June, and despite all of the talk of diversity and the inclusion of female acts in country, the lineup remains painfully lacking in female representation once again. Carrie Underwood thinks she knows why.
It all just feels so achingly predictable: successful and well-off actor gets bored and wants to explore his country music fantasy. The predictability of it all is almost as hard to overlook as staring down Kiefer Sutherland in a cowboy hat and not seeing Jack Bower or that vampire with the bleached mullet he played in Lost Boys. It’s like watching Garth Brooks trying out for the Mets.
Dave Cobb’s win for Producer of the Year speaks to just what kind of inroads more independently-minded and organic country music is making in the industry. Compared to the heavy-handed production practices that prevail throughout the country music industry, Dave Cobb took a very relaxed approach to producing Chris Stapleton’s ‘Traveller,’ and you can’t argue with the results.
Tuesday morning (3-29) found country music dignitaries and CMA executives gathered in the rotunda of the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville to announce the newest members to the storied institution. The event was hosted by the fiery Brenda Lee. The 2016 Country Music Hall of Fame inductees were: — Randy Travis in the […]
Before there was Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson, Clint Black, Brooks & Dunn, and the other big commercial powerhouses of country music in the late 80’s and early 90’s, there was Randy Travis setting the table for them all, revitalizing the neotraditional sound in country music, opening the door for a new era where country music would reach its commercial pinnacle, and playing a pivotal role in the history of the genre.
How to purchase music is a very convoluted subject, is specific to each artist, and it can drive you crazy thinking about it. But despite some rare cases and unusual exceptions, there are a few hard and fast maxims about the best ways to purchase or stream music to make sure you’re supporting your favorite artists as best you can.
“Noise” is not a bad song. It’s not a good one either, and it’s certainly not country. But it’s not bad. And is it better than Bro-Country or some island ballad? I guess it is, but only as the lesser of evils. The problem here is that the song takes itself too seriously, and it’s built from the same stupid formula Kenny Chesney has used before.
“His record label flew us down to Panama City,” they explain. “We pulled off the prank, we executed it. He was doing a meet and greet with the sorority girls, hundreds of girls. We were playing two guys in the sorority so excited to meet Luke Bryan. The company set us up with a one on one. He was wasted. He was plowed. So I just start naming off everybody else’s music.
The Purcell, Oklahoma native has that rich, songwriting blood of the central plains we’ve seen in artists like John Moreland, John Fullbright, Evan Felker of the Turnpike Troubadours, and so many more. And growing up in an evangelical community also imparts that indelible country gospel foundation to his music. But more than anything else Parker Millsap is a blues singer.
The new Hank Williams biopic I Saw The Light finally opened in select theaters in New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville on Friday, March 25th, and will be released nationwide on April 1st, and the controversy and criticism of the film continues. I Saw The Light originally debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival on […]
For the last few years, one of the fixtures of East Nashville has been country throwback singer and songwriter Margo Price. And thanks to another oddball of the Nashville music scene—Jack White and his Third Man Records—Margo was plucked out of The 5 Spot and the other East Nashville dives, and is getting her shot at the big time.
There is no signs of slowing down for Chris Stapleton, and now he’s entered a very elite class in country music. His debut album ‘Traveller’ has officially sold over 1 million copies—actually 1.05 million copies to be exact, with another 27,000 copies sold last week according to Billboard. What does this mean? Aside from adding another digit to the odometer, it puts Stapleton at the very top of the genre in album sales.
“In Bloom” is an indictment of ones own fans, and is based in part on judgement and assumption. Sturgill gives the song a slight twist by adding the addendum, “But he don’t know what it means, knows not what it means…to love someone,” but despite the more bright feel of the music of Sturgill’s version, the message remains the same.
The two largest radio station owners in the United States—iHeartMedia (formerly Clear Channel) and Cumulus Media—both have billions in debt, are both looking to restructure that debt to avoid bankruptcy or default, and are both dealing with dwindling profitability. Even when the companies are able to post strong quarterly earnings, the interest on the debt they owe makes it impossible to see a way forward.
We’ve seen flames adorning The Reverend Horton Heat’s Nudie suits, flames painted on Jimbo’s standup bass, flames painted on many of the hot rods you might see pull up to a Horton Heat show, and Jim Heath can blaze on his signature Gretsch guitar like few others. But flames coming out of the side of their tour bus while smoke fills the cabin full of sleeping band and crew members is not the style the band was going for.
Well so much for drama, pomp and circumstance, or anticipation. As informally as sticking a post-it note to the office billboard right beside a reminder to clean the microwave after each use in the breakroom, the ACM Awards have announced the apparent winners of the 2016 “New Artist” categories. Though during certain years, the ACM’s […]
Touring and Merle Haggard have been an interesting proposition lately, ever since he was diagnosed with a double pneumonia back in December. It’s been on again, and off again. As soon as you hear it’s on, he cancels a show last minute due to heath. Then when you hear he’s still recovering, all of a sudden he decides to play a few dates. This has left some fans confused and frustrated, and many concerned.
The big news in country music Tuesday (3-22) was that critically-acclaimed songwriter and performer Brandy Clark would be releasing her sophomore studio album ‘Big Day in a Small Town’ on June 10th. But one question some Brandy Clark fans are asking is why the album has been delayed. It was originally scheduled to be released on April 1st.
