People’s Choice Country Awards Beclowns Itself With 17 Beyoncé Nominations
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Beyoncé does not consider herself a country artist, and she does not consider her 2024 album Cowboy Carter as a country album. Full stop. Saying that Cowboy Carter is a country album is a canard sown out of whole cloth.
ACA’s Prove Illegitimacy with ‘Artists of the Decade’ Award
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I am tired of being embarrassed by being associated with country music. “Country” is our term, and our music. The “American Country Awards” have no right to it. Even more artists should boycott the awards next year, especially the beautiful and talented female artist who was dismissed by their “decade” award, and allow this thing to whiter on the vine.
Mindy McCready Kidnaps Scotty McCreery
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In yet another crazy twist in the unraveling story of country star Mindy McCready, she has now been accused of kidnapping the reigning American Idol champion with a similar-sounding last name. McCreery was last seen lip syncing at a parade in Nashville, when right after his performance, witnesses say he was lured into an unmarked white cargo van…
Saving Country Music’s Best Live Performances of 2011
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When I sat down to name the top 10 live performances of 2011 as seen through my eyes, I didn’t know what a mess I was making for myself, and it wasn’t until then that I realized what a power packed year for live music it has been. My 10 stretched to 15 fast, and I’m still leaving many live acts out.
Album Review – Eilen Jewell “Queen of the Minor Key”
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Before we get too far, I’ll reveal that my take on this album is somewhat contrary from the others you will find. Many folks will preach to you how this is one of the standouts in the roots world for 2011, and though I like this album and it has some great elements, I find myself in a position I never enjoy: attempting to balance the hype.
Tim McGraw’s ‘Emotional Traffic’ Finally Gets Release Date
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After a court win on Wednesday that allowed McGraw to be able to record new music and pursue another label, Curb has apparently capitulated their previous stance that the music on his album Emotional Traffic is not “topical,” and has decided to finally give the album a release date of January 17th, 2012.
Nominees for SCM 2011 Song of the Year
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The two common threads that run through most of the candidates this year, is a progressive approach to the music, and poignancy in the message. These are changing and troubled times, and the songs that speak to us the deepest will act as the soundtrack for our 2011 memories for years to come.
Curb Shows Its Ass By Releasing Single After Court Loss
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Whatever Curb’s motivations or plans, it looks like the tide has turned for Tim McGraw. However the battle is far from over, and fans should not be happy about the single release, they should be wary of its motivations. Mike Curb is shrewd if he is anything, and no doubt this move was pre-calculated to coincide with the court order.
.357 String Band Plays Final Shows & Says Farewell
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Over the weekend the .357 String Band said farewell in the form of a pair of shows in their home state of Wisconsin. Regardless of how obscure they were, along with Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys, Flatt & Scruggs, and a few others, the .357 String Band was one of the greatest, most groundbreaking, and influential bluegrass bands of all time.
Brantley Gilbert’s “Country Must Be Country Wide”
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So. The official country music douche Brantley Gilbert has himself a #1 song in the form of “Country Must Be Country Wide.” Our enemy has a new face friends and neighbors, and that face has a penciled-on beard and hoop earrings. Gilbert, his rising fame, and this song’s success are due in large part to the blurring of genre lines between popular music.
Nominees for 2011 SCM Album of the Year
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There is nothing I take more seriously than naming what I think is the best album of any calendar year. The Album of the Year offers a guidepost for future generations to find the best music that was forgotten by the mainstream, while at the same time being a current ambassador to the mainstream to illustrate what great music they are overlooking.
Curb’s Bogus “Topical” Charge Against Tim McGraw
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On Tuesday, Tim McGraw will be in a Tennessee courtroom as part of the opening salvo in his bid to leave his contract with Curb Records. I’m no Perry Mason, but I thought I would offer the Tim McGraw defense team a little pro bono research work on how Curb Records itself has set a legal precedence that disproves it’s own case.
Film Review – Charlie Louvin ‘Still Rattlin’ The Devil’s Cage’
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The greatest element of this film is that it captures with great wisdom that Charlie Louvin’s life was a victory. The epitaph that it conveys with a bold starkness is simply “He won.” The moral of the story is that victory is within anyone’s reach. That is the everlasting message to go with Charlie Louvin’s everlasting influence on American music.