Chris Stapleton

November 8, 2015

UPDATED: After CMA Wins, Chris Stapleton’s “Traveller” Sales Spike 6,400%, Goes #1 All Genre

There’s a awards show bump, and then there’s Chris Stapleton’s awards show bump. After shocking the country music world by walking away with wins for New Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Male Vocalist of the Year at the 49th Annual CMA Awards, sales for his debut release Traveller have positively exploded to unprecedented levels, especially considering the general malaise album sales are in across music.

Adele, Chris Stapleton, CMA Awards, Justin Timberlake, Traveller

November 6, 2015

And Now There’s This: Justin Timberlake Is Recording New Music in Nashville

Trigger News 44 Comments

Though there’s no guarantee Timberlake will be using the studio time to make a country record, when you line up the news with quotes like “I still got my eyes set on a Best Country Album. There is time for that,” which Timberlake said to Sirius XM in 2013, all indications are that Timberlake is looking to record at least country flavored music.

Aubrey Preston, Chris Stapleton, Justin Timberlake, Studio 'A'

November 5, 2015

Despite Big Names, Ratings Fall for the 2015 CMA Awards

Trigger News 47 Comments

Despite an incredible amount of publicity for the CMA Awards through ABC, including high-profile appearances all week on the network’s morning show Good Morning America, television ratings for the show took a tumble in 2015. High profile appearances by non country stars such as John Mellencamp, Fall Out Boy, and even the current king of pop Justin Timberlake, could not salvage a night of growth in viewership.

Chris Stapleton, CMA Awards, Fall Out Boy, John Mellencamp, Justin Timberlake

November 5, 2015

On Those Chris Stapleton CMA Wins

Trigger Random Notes 167 Comments

We already knew that Chris Stapleton was an amazing singer, a great songwriter, and an astounding guitar player. Now the rest of the world knows. And where all of this will take country music is something we can only speculate on at the moment, but it certainly is something to be taken as a very good sign, even if you’re just ho hum on Stapleton, or gaze a hairy eyeball at all those pop country songs he wrote for others.

Beck, Chet Flippo, Chris Stapleton, CMA Awards, Dave Cobb, Jamey Johnson, Taylor Swift

November 2, 2015

Chris Stapleton to Perform with Justin Timberlake on the CMA Awards. But That’s Just The Beginning.

Trigger News 69 Comments

Well well well. In yet another bid for you to firmly affix your eyeballs to the boob tube on Wednesday, November 4th for the 49th annual CMA Awards, it has been announced that critic’s favorite and thrice-nominated SteelDriver turned songwriter turned performer Chris Stapleton will be performing with former ‘N Sync member turned solo superstar Justin Timberlake. Though if you’ve been reading Saving Country Music, you probably already knew this.

Chris Stapleton, CMA Awards, David Allan Coe, Dean Dillon, Eric Church, Fall Oyt Boy, Hank Williams Jr., Justin Timberlake, Neil Young, Thomas Rhett

October 28, 2015

Hey Tom Petty, So How About That Chris Stapleton Collaboration?

Trigger Random Notes 36 Comments

Heading into the final couple of months of 2015, there may not be a hotter name in country music among critics and distinguished listeners than Chris Stapleton. The long wait for his often-rumored and much-delayed debut album was finally rewarded on May 5th with the release of the Dave Cobb-produced “Traveller,” and fans were not let down.

Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapleton, Don Henley, Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Mo Pitney, SteelDrivers, Tom Petty, Whitey Morgan

October 27, 2015

Dallas Cowboys Face Another “Devastating” Season Setback After Luke Bryan Named Halftime Performer

Trigger News 44 Comments

In a season that started out so promising for America’s Team, including a 2-0 record with key wins against division opponents and a roster that some believed was good enough to make another run at the Super Bowl, adversity has struck once again. The Dallas Cowboys have received the devastating news that that Bro-Country star Luke Bryan will be performing the halftime show of the team’s annual Thanksgiving game.

Chris Stapleton, Dallas Cowboys, fake news, Jason Isbell, Luke Bryan, sportsball, Sturgill Simpson

October 21, 2015

Back To The Future: 1985 and the Year Country Music Died

Trigger History 53 Comments

So what’s to learn from hitching a ride in Marty McFly’s time machine and traveling back to 1985? That the problems country music is facing today are virtually the same ones that were being faced 30 years ago. It’s all cyclical, as canonized in the old Gospel tune enshrined in the architecture of the Country Music Hall of Fame asking the question, “Will The Circle Be Unbroken?”

Alan Jackson, Bill Carter, Bobby Bare, Chris Stapleton, Clint Black, Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, George Strait, Jason Isbell, Keith Whitley, Kris Kristofferson, Mo Pitney, Randy Travis, Ray Charles, Ricky Skaggs, Sturgill Simpson, The Highwaymen, Travis Tritt, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson

October 20, 2015

The Surprising #1 Albums That Trumped Toby Keith in 2015

Trigger Random Notes 39 Comments

“18,700”: This is the number of albums Toby Keith sold upon the debut of his new record 35 MPH Town, and it got me to thinking, which artists and bands have beat that number in a year of unprecedented ascent in independent country music? 2015 is the year it became common to see one of your favorite independent acts and aging legends compete at the top of the album charts.

Aaron Watson, Alan Jackson, Blackberry Smoke, Chris Stapleton, Dave Cobb, Dwight Yoakam, Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Merle Haggard, Turnpike Troubadours, 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

October 14, 2015

How Whitey Morgan Is Fulfilling The Promise of Underground Country

Trigger Random Notes 34 Comments

Like a slow moving thunder roll, Whitey Morgan continues to tour, night in and night out, delivering crisp, throbbing performances every time that leave crowds embedded with Whitey passion in every town they tackle until the crowds are swelling, and the word is spreading about this bearded guy from Flint who refuses to compromise, who has his heart in the right place, and who puts on amazing shows.

Ameripolitan, Chris Stapleton, Dale Watson, Hank3, Jamey Johnson, Jason Isbell, Shooter Jennings, Sturgill Simpson, Wayne Hancock, Whitey Morgan, Whitey Morgan and the 78's

October 10, 2015

Song Review – William Michael Morgan “I Met A Girl”

Trigger Reviews 56 Comments

Quietly, stealthily, some of country music’s major labels are starting to retool with very young, and very country performing talent. Whether they’re hedging their bets, or hoping for a hard country resurgence, Mo Pitney is not just an anomaly anymore, he is one of a number of traditional-leaning performers being groomed for what may be the next big movement in country after the current R&B disco craze invariably crashes.

Chris Stapleton, I Met A Girl, Mo Pitney, Old Dominion, Review, Sam Hunt, Shane McAnally, Trevor Rosen, William Michael Morgan

October 5, 2015

Man Bites Dog: Hank Williams Jr. to Open the CMA Awards with a Waylon Jennings Song

Trigger Reviews 51 Comments

Announced today in press release fashion, the 49th Annual, 2015 CMA Awards will be opened by newly-signed NASH Icon recording artist Hank Williams Jr. singing Waylon’s interpretation of Neil Young’s “Are You Ready For the Country?” first released on an album of the same name by Waylon in 1976. Hank Jr. will be joined by Eric Church in the rendition.

Are You Ready for the Country, Chris Stapleton, CMA Awards, Eric Church, Hank Williams Jr., Kacey Musgraves, Lee Ann Womack, Maddie & Tae, Meghan Trainor, Merle Haggard, Miranda Lambert, NASH, NASH Icon, Neil Young, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson

October 5, 2015

Forget The Headliners, The 2015 Stagecoach Lineup is a Great Study in Who to Watch in Country

Trigger Random Notes 46 Comments

Some independent country fans love to harp on whose name is in the biggest font in the headliner positions, but the names Stagecoach invites each year to fill out the roster gives you great hope for the future of country, and tells you who to look out for in the coming months and years, this year especially.

Aaron Watson, Amanda Shires, Billy Joe Shaver, Chris Stapleton, Cody Jinks, Dale Watson, Emi Sunshine, Emmylou Harris, Jamestown Revival, Jason Boland and the Stragglers, Langhorne Slim and the Law, Luke Bell, Marty Stuart, Mo Pitney, Robert Earl Keen, Sam Outlaw, Stagecoach, Stagecoach 2015, The Deslodes, The Malpass Brothers, The Turnpike Troubadours, Whitey Morgan, William Elliot Whitmore

September 29, 2015

Song Review – Jon Pardi’s “Head Over Boots”

Trigger Reviews 25 Comments

“Head Over Boots” is not a great song, but it’s country, and it’s Jon Pardi, and it suits the ears just fine. The key for Pardi and Laird was to put something together that was positive in nature, but still native to Pardi’s sound, and something still traditional enough to delineate Pardi from radio peers. So they headed to the dance halls of Texas for inspiration.

Chris Stapleton, Dwight Yoakam, Head Over Boots, Jon Pardi, Luke Laird, Mo Pitney, Pete Anderson, Review

September 11, 2015

Why Lee Ann Womack’s 2015 CMA Nomination is Especially Sweet

Trigger Random Notes 27 Comments

“That news hit me pretty hard in the heart,” Lee Ann says about the nomination. She was driving to her mother’s house in east Texas when she received the call. “I am and always will be a country music singer. It’s what I do… It’s what I love… and it’s the thing that truly makes me feel alive. Having the CMA recognize that after the year I’ve had since ‘The Way I’m Livin” came out really does my heart good.”

Chris Stapleton, CMA Awards, Frank Liddell, Lee Ann Womack, Merle Haggard, Miranda Lambert, Willie Nelson

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

August 20, 2015

5 Simple Solutions to Help Save Country Music

Trigger Random Notes 84 Comments

We bitch, we moan, we criticize, we celebrate the symbolic little victories that give us hope that a sea change for country music is imminent, or at least slowly taking hold, even though in many respects things only seem to get worse every year. And we look for ways to implement meaningful solutions to the problems plaguing country music so it can once again become a medium of creativity.

and Sturgill Simpson, Brandy Clark, Chris Stapleton, Jason Aldean, Kacey Musgraves, Luke Bryan, NASH Icon, Randy Travis, Sam Hunt, Thomas Rhett, Waylon Jennings

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 7, 2015

Justin Timberlake Moves One Step Closer to Country, Touts Chris Stapleton

Trigger News 36 Comments

I’m not sure the relevant question anymore is “if,” but “when” Justin Timberlake will go country. And if some recent actions by the pop megastar are any indication, it might be sooner than later, and it might be with music that is not as mainstream oriented as one might think. On June 1st, it was announced that Justin Timberlake had paid $4 million for a 126-acre parcel in philanthropist Aubry Preston’s Lieper’s Fork community.

Chris Stapleton, Justin Timberlake

June 15, 2015

In The Moment with Chris Stapleton – An Interview on “Traveller”

Trigger Random Notes 28 Comments

It isn’t often that a musician achieves an illustrious 15-year career that includes five number one hits, Grammy Award nominations, feature film contributions, producer credits and the respect of his peers before he ever releases his first solo album. But Chris Stapleton isn’t your average musician. The near-universal critical acclaim that has been heaped upon his debut album “Traveller” has been nothing short of amazing.

Adele, Chris Stapleton, Darius Rucker, George Strait, interview, Jason Aldean, Josh Turner, Kenny Chesney, Luke Bryan, The Jompson Brothers, The Steeldrivers

June 10, 2015

Huge Waylon Jennings Tribute Show Announced

Trigger News 64 Comments

A massive Waylon Jennings tribute show in Austin, TX has just been announced, and the lineup is something to salivate over. Set to transpire on July 6th and Austin’s Moody Theater (where Austin City Limits is taped), organizers Blackbird Music Group made use of the fact that many of the big names would already be […]

Austin, Billy Joe Shaver, Buddy Cannon, Chris Stapleton, Don Was, Eric Church, Jamey Johnson, Jessi Colter, Kacey Musgraves, Kris Kristofferson, Lee Ann Womack, Moody Theater, Ryan Bingham, Shooter Jennings, Sturgill Simpson, Toby Keith, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson

June 4, 2015

Logan Brill Talks New Album “Shuteye”

Trigger Random Notes 14 Comments

There’s been much ado about country artists of the fairer sex over the last couple of weeks. For Logan Brill, whose Carnival Records album Shuteye came out on June 2, that debate is all just noise. Sure, she’ll righteously stand up for women artists and songwriters. But for Brill, music is pursued for the passion of good quality songwriting and the artistry of storytelling—everything else comes secondary.

Charlie Worsham, Chris Stapleton, David Nail, Don Schlitz, Dwight Yoakam, Lee Ann Womack, Logan Brill, Merle Haggard, Shuteye

June 1, 2015

The Best Country Albums of 2015 So Far

Trigger Reviews 102 Comments

So we’re close enough to the half way pole in 2015 to start thinking about what the best has been so far, and to get ready for what is sure to be a pretty exciting second half of 2015 for album releases. There’s been some big surprises, a few letdowns, but overall 2015 so far has been a pretty varied season for releases.

Bad Omen, Best albums of 2015, Brandi Carlile, Chris Stapleton, Complicated Game, Cowboys & Sunsets, Fear & Saturday Night, Hold My Beer, James McMurtry, Lonesome Wyatt, Love Story, Rachel Brooke, Randy Rogers, Roo Arcus, Ryan Bingham, Sonic Ranch, The FIrewatcher's Daughter, Traveller, Wade Bowen, Whitey Morgan, Yelawolf

«‹ 17 18 19 20