Blake Shelton

December 16, 2015

EXCLUSIVE: Blake Shelton’s Reason(s) For Not Hosting the ACM’s Revealed

Trigger Down with Pop Country 58 Comments

On Tuesday (12-15) it was officially revealed that Blake Shelton would no longer be co-hosting the ACM Awards with Luke Bryan. The ACM’s are scheduled to occur again next in April of 2016. It’s a position Shelton has held for many years. Blake will be replaced by the pilot of the drunken skies, Dierks Bentley. But the decision has left many wondering why Blake would pull out of such a prominent position.

ACM Awards, Blake Shelton, Dierks Bentley, fake news, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert

November 18, 2015

Bad Music, Good People / Good Music, Bad People

Trigger Random Notes 54 Comments

the quality of the music of these do-good artists can sometimes be an entirely different story than the quality of their character. Such an assessment is subjective mind you, both on the musical and personal side. But generally speaking, the generosity of a given celebrity and the standards of their music doesn’t always go hand in hand.

Ben Haggard, Blake Shelton, David Allan Coe, George Jones, Jason Aldean, Joey Feek, Johnny Cash, Luke Bryan, Taylor Swift, Waylon Jennings, Wayne Mills, Willie Nelson

October 18, 2015

Traditionalist Reality Star Jake Worthington Releases New EP (review)

Trigger Reviews 27 Comments

Like so many of these contestants, not much has come of Jake Worthington in regards to industry success after his finale appearance in May of 2014, but he has just released a new EP. Settling somewhere between John Anderson and George Strait, this five-song offering is a straight-laced true country testament from start to finish that leaves little to no doubt where the heart of the young Jake Worthington lies.

American Idol, Blake Shelton, Chris Stapleton, Craig Wayne Boyd, George Strait, Jake Worthington, John Anderson, Johnny Cash, Kacey Musgraves, Review, Scotty McCreery, Sturgill Simpson, The Voice, Wayne Mills

September 9, 2015

2015 CMA Awards Nominees, Picks & Prognostications

Trigger Random Notes 94 Comments

On Wednesday morning (9-9), the nominees for the 49th Annual Country Music Association Awards were announced on ABC’s Good Morning America, with decidedly non-country personalities of Steven Tyler and Kelsea Ballerini helping to make the announcements. The 2014 CMA Awards will happen on Wednesday November 4th on ABC, and will be hosted once again by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood.

Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapleton, CMA Awards, Eric Church, Kacey Musgraves, Kelsea Ballerini, Kenny Chesney, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, Maddie & Tae, Miranda Lambert, Nominees, predicitions, Sam Hunt

July 27, 2015

Lawmaker: Blake Shelton & Miranda Lambert Divorce Violated the Law

Trigger News 18 Comments

While tabloids continue to seize on every last speculative detail of the divorce between A-list country stars Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert, serious new concerns about the legalities of how the divorce was handled by the State of Oklahoma have been raised, and if the celebrity couple benefited from preferential treatment from the judge who filed the paperwork.

Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert

July 24, 2015

Album Review – Ashley Monroe’s “The Blade”

Trigger Reviews 43 Comments

In some respects, broaching a discussion on this album seems nearly futile. Or maybe not futile, but at least frustrating. It’s almost fait accompli that it will fail to achieve the commercial feats and radio success the quality of the material warrants, but that’s just the way it is for women in this particular era of country music. We should be basking in the enjoyment of a new generation of inspiring country music females…

Ashley Monroe, Blake Shelton, Chris Stapleton, Miranda Lambert, Review, The Blade, The Pistol Annies, Vince Gill

July 20, 2015

Will the Blake Shelton & Miranda Lambert Divorce End Their Monopoly on Mainstream Awards?

Trigger Random Notes 117 Comments

Blake Shelton proposed to Miranda Lambert in the woods near their home in Tishomingo, Oklahoma in 2010 after the country music power couple had been dating for some time before. Since then there hasn’t been one single winner of either the CMA’s Male Vocalist of the Year award or Female Vocalist of the Year award not named Blake Shelton or Miranda Lambert.

ACM Awards, Blake Shelton, CMA Awards, divorce, Miranda Lambert

July 15, 2015

An Open Letter to Luke Bryan

Trigger Random Notes 111 Comments

Dear Luke Bryan, Thanks for taking the time to read my letter, if in fact you do so. I can only imagine the time constraints a man of your success has, and you’ve already been taking of your time over the last few days to help clear up a mess that I guess I had some part in creating.

Aaron Watson, Blackberry Smoke, Blake Shelton, Dallas Davidson, Florida Georgia Line, Gary Overton, George Strait, Kacey Musgraves, Keith Hill, Luke Bryan, Merle Haggard, Sam Hunt, Sturgill Simpson, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson

June 29, 2015

“I Say, Include Women.” An opinion piece by Lindi Ortega

Trigger Random Notes 91 Comments

Gone are the days of Loretta Lynn singing “One’s On The Way.” Gone are the days of adult issues like divorce, resonating with mature audiences. Gone are the days of originality, not only in style but in songwriting. In that classic era you could tell the difference between Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings. Artists were easily discernible and legends arose because of their unique qualities…

Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill, Johnny Cash, Keith Hill, Lindi Ortega, Loretta Lynn, Martina McBride, Miranda Lambert, Neko Case, Ray Price, Shania Twain, Waylon Jennings

June 11, 2015

So How Are All of Those Trend Chasing Country Songs Doing Anyway?

Trigger Random Notes 89 Comments

If you’re going to release a country music song that is likely to completely alienate the core of your fan base and cut against the grain of all of the long-standing principles of your career, it better be commercially successful. Otherwise you’ve angered the constituency that helped create your success in the first place, and you haven’t even added any new members to your fandom.

A Thousand Horses, Ashley Monroe, Blake Shelton, Cole Swindell, Eli Young Band, Eric Paslay, Florida Georgia Line, Gary Allan, Jerrod Niemann, Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt

May 19, 2015

Pop Country Lyrics Score at a 3rd Grade Level According to New Study

Trigger Random Notes 50 Comments

We hypothesize often that the lyrics of popular country songs and other popular hits are slowly becoming more simplified and dumbed down, but now there is a study that puts data behind this hypothesis. Andrew Powell-Morse of Seat Smart recently took 225 different songs compiled in 4 separate genre datasets from 2005 to 2014, and analyzed them according to Readability Score.

Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood, Florida Georgia Line, Rascal Flatts

May 12, 2015

Why It’s Unfair for Meghan Linsey to Win “The Voice”

Trigger Random Notes 75 Comments

The reason why these reality TV singing competitions, dancing competitions, and talent shows have worked so well over the last 15 years is because they tap into the innate desire of every human to be plucked out of the morass of obscurity and get the chance to become a superstar. The children of America and beyond are ingrained with a rock & roll fantasy that some day they can become famous.

Big Machine Records, Blake Shelton, Meghan Linsey, Scott Borchetta, Steel Magnolia, The Voice

April 22, 2015

Sturgill Simpson Beats Out Big Acts as One Of Stagecoach’s Most Popular

Trigger News 54 Comments

This weekend in sunny Southern California, Sturgill Simpson will be taking the stage at the annual Stagecoach Festival in Indio—the country music cousin of the massive 2-weekend Coachella gathering. Sturgill Simpson is one of the few to ever play both the Coachella and Stagecoach weekends. Even more surprising is where Sturgill Simpson is ranked as far as popularity when it comes to Stagecoach attendees.

Blake Shelton, Kacey Musgraves, Merle Haggard, Miranda Lambert, Sturgill Simpson, The Lone Bellow, Tim McGraw

March 22, 2015

Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard to Release “Django & Jimmie” Album

Trigger News 34 Comments

Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard are pairing up once again. This was the one nugget of important information squeezed between pot jokes when Willie Nelson made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Friday evening (3-21) as part of South by Southwest (SXSW) festivities in Austin, TX. It won’t be the first time the two country music legends have released an album together, and it may not be the last.

Blake Shelton, Django and Jimmie, Django Reinhardt, Jimmie Rodgers, Jimmy Kimmel, Kris Kristofferson, Merle Haggard, Ray Price, Townes Van Zandt, Willie Nelson

March 6, 2015

Chris Ferrell Found Guilty of 2nd Degree Murder in Wayne Mills Case

Trigger News 55 Comments

Chris Ferrell shot country music artist Wayne Mills at the Pit and Barrel bar Ferrell owned in Nashville on November 23rd., 2013. Wayne Mills was attending an after hours party at the Pit and Barrel when a dispute about smoking inside caused the two friends to get into a verbal argument. The argument escalated until Wayne Mills verbally threatened Chris Ferrell, and out of fear, the bar owner pulled a .22 pistol…

Blake Shelton, Chris Ferrell, Craig Wayne Boyd, Jamey Johnson, The Voice, Wayne Mills

March 2, 2015

Jury Selection in Wayne Mills Murder Trial Becomes a Marathon (#2)

Trigger News 6 Comments

What should have been a mostly routine procedural event turned into a marathon court session as the prosecution and defense in the Wayne Mills murder trial tried to fill 12 juror slots and two alternates to hear the 2nd Degree Murder charges against bar owner Christopher Ferrell in a trial set to start the evidence phase Tuesday morning.

Blake Shelton, Chris Ferrell, David Raybin, Jamey Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Shooter Jennings, Waylon Jennings, Wayne Mills

March 2, 2015

New Details Revealed in Wayne Mills Murder Trial Early Motions (#1)

Trigger News 24 Comments

Though Monday is to be primarily focused on jury selection, in pretrial motions before jury selection, some previously-unknown details about the case were revealed to the public, along with some of the stances the defense is likely to take in attempting to prove Chris Ferrell acted in self-defense. We also learned about some of the witnesses likely to be called in the trial.

Blake Shelton, Chris Ferrell, George Jones, Jamey Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Wayne Mills

February 28, 2015

The Wayne Mills Murder Trial – A Complete Preview

Trigger Random Notes 16 Comments

Country music artist Wayne Mills was shot in the back of the head at a far range by Chris Ferrell on the morning of November 23rd, 2013 at the Pit & Barrel bar in Nashville, TN. The shooting happened near 5:00 AM. Both men were at the Pit & Barrel attending an after hours party held after the memorial ceremony and concert held for George Jones at the Bridgestone Arena in downtown Nashville.

Blake Shelton, Chris Ferrell, Craig Wayne Boyd, George Jones, Jamey Johnson, Wayne Mills

February 21, 2015

Song Review – Ashley Monroe’s “On To Something Good”

Trigger Reviews 33 Comments

Ashley Monroe has all the assets that it takes to be a top tier female country music star, and in an environment where the industry seems to be desperately looking to anoint them. A beautiful, astounding singer, excellent songwriter, yet three years into her major label deal and she still feels like the consummate critical darling/commercial outsider.

Ashley Monroe, Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson, Martina McBride, Miranda Lambert, On To Something Good, Taylor Swift, The Pistol Annies

January 7, 2015

Mashup Illustrates How Many Country Hits Are The Same

Trigger Random Notes 149 Comments

We complain all the time about how today’s popular country music pretty much all sounds the same, but is this really true from a technical standpoint? That is what one enterprising Audiophile and songwriter set out to illustrate by making a mashup of some of Bro-Country’s biggest singles over the last couple of years in a pretty mind-blowing and revealing video.

Blake Shelton, Chase Rice, Cole Swindell, Florida Georgia Line, Greg Todd, Luke Bryan, Parmalee

January 6, 2015

The Opry Trends Older As Newer Stars Shirk Obligations

Trigger Random Notes 74 Comments

Out of the 67 current members of the Opry, only 25 of them fulfilled their 10 appearance obligation, and three of those died during the year. 11 members didn’t make any appearances at all. But what may be more interesting is who is appearing on the Opry to take up the slack. Of the Top 11 performing members at the Grand Ole Opry in 2014, the average age was 79-years-old.

Bill Anderson, Blake Shelton, Bobby Osborne, Brad Paisley, Byron Fay, Carrie Underwood, Chris Jansen, Connie Smith, Craig Morgan, Darius Rucker, Elizabeth Cook, George Hamilton IV, Jean Shepard, Jeannie Seely, Jesse McReynolds, Jim Ed Brown, Jimmy C. Newman, John Conley, Little Big Town, Little Jimmy Dickens, Lorrie Morgan, Mike Snider, Old Crow Medicine Show, Pete Fisher, Rascal Flatts, Riders In The Sky, Sarah Darling, The Grand Ole Opry, The Henningsens, The Whites, Vince Gill, WSM

January 6, 2015

Craig Wayne Boyd’s “My Baby’s Got A Smile On Her Face”

Trigger Reviews 27 Comments

Boyd’s “My Baby’s Got A Smile On Her Face” became only the second single to debut at #1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart ever. The other #1 debut was Garth Brooks’ “More Than A Memory” from 2007. This development had the media going crazy, ready to annoint Craig as the genre’s next superstar. this week it has completely dropped out of the Top 25. Poof, it’s gone. Sales of the song dropped a whopping 94%.

Big Machine Records, Blake Shelton, Craig Wayne Boyd, Dot Records, Garth Brooks, Hank Williams Jr. Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, My Baby's Got A Smile On Her Face, Scott Borchetta, The Voice

December 31, 2014

Flight Diverted After Blake Shelton’s “Boys ‘Round Here” Causes Problem

Trigger News 48 Comments

We already knew Blake Shelton’s awful country rap song “Boys ‘Round Here” was one of the worst “country” songs ever, causing undue strain and consternation amongst true country fans and fans of all decent music. But now there’s a story of just how disturbing the song was for one holiday season commute at 30,000 feet.

Blake Shelton, Boys 'Round Here

December 22, 2014

Craig Wayne Boyd’s New Challenge: Abject Obscurity

Trigger Random Notes 39 Comments

Forget that The Voice is one of the highest-rated shows on NBC, and one of the most popular shows in all of television. The legacy of the competition is for the winners to sink right back down into obscurity after the season finale. If Craig Wayne Boyd becomes a successful music star as a champion of ‘The Voice,’ he’d arguably the the first in the show’s history.

Blake Shelton, Craig Wayne Boyd, Jake Worthington, Johnny Cash, The Voice, Wayne Mills

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