Making News This Week

Tim Mcgraw plans to record a duets album with his wife Faith Hill, he says it will happen but not until he fufills his contract with Curb Records. He owes his label one more record before he can leave. Then he is unsure if he will start his own or sign with a different one, but when that happens first on his list is a duets album. The two have had great success with the duets that they have already released such as, Let's Make Love, I Need You and It's Your Love.

"You know, (it's) labels and all these things," McGraw said of the delay. "Once we clear the woods a little bit, we'll (record an album), for sure."

Easton Corbin scored the first number 1 of his career with A Little More Country Than That taking over the top of the Billboard country songs chart for the week ending April 3, while Lady Antebellum regained the honor as the best selling CD in the country with "Need You Now."

Don't forget that ACM voting will start April 1st and run through the 18th. Categories that you will be able to vote for include Best New Artist, and Entertainer Of The Year. voteACM

Country's Top 5 Biggest Happenings Of The Decade: #5 Kenny Chesney

Kenny Chesney Hits the Ground Touring
Kenny Chesney has become synonymous with "Stadium Tours" in the 2000's. Starting out as an opening act for Tim McGraw, he saw what it took and how much more it could become and ran with it. Bringing multiple acts and turning a concert into more of a all day sporting event including tailgating and everthing that comes with it.

Chesney has won the Billboard Touring Award for Top Package Tour four consecutive years between 2005 and 2008; Somewhere In The Sun Tour 2005, The Road & The Radio Tour 2006, Flip-Flop Summer Tour 2007, and The Poets & Pirates Tour 2008. not sure where Sun City Carnival Tour 2009 will end up this year just yet, but don't be surprised.

These tours have brought him some major accolades including four consecutive ACM Entertainer of the Year Awards, and four CMA Entertainer of the Year Awards in five years. Shockingly his streak was broken at both this year both by young women, Carrie Underwood took home the ACM trophy, and Taylor Swift the CMA.

Chesney announced this year will be his first break from touring, while he will do some shows he will not be putting on the usual production.

Carrie Underwood And Daughtry's CMA Perfromances Steel Swifts Sweep

They've come and gone, and they were good. Though with every good thing there comes some bad, nothing major just a few awards were undeserving. For now I'll just cover the performaces and the awards recap will follow. The performances for the most part were good, the sound in Somment Centre has never been very good when telecast. We saw Tim Mcgraw return after four years to perform, maybe next year he will be nominated for some.

The show opened with Taylor Swift performing a recycled performance from the AMA's last year. Call my crazy but when you are up for four awards and the big on of the night, and you are opening the show shouldn't you give a fresh performance to your so called peers. She threw a chair from a platform, slid down a pole, sang while on her knees and banging her head around, all the while sounding not so good live, but we have come accustom to that. Ladies and Gents your Entertainer and Female Vocalist of the year. As Faith Hill would say "WHAT"!!! She also performed "Fifteen" up in the grand stands surrounded by a sea of teens who were to my ears delight singing louder then her.

The show quickly recovered with one of the best monologues I've seen since Billy Crystal on the Oscars. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood are a great comedic combination of class and whit. The video speaks for it's self. The parodies written by Brad accompanied by Carrie's voice made for the best part of their co-hosting, I think they may have a lock on this job for a while. The videos speak for themselves.



Carrie's Swine Flu parody to tune of LeAnee Rimes "Blue" makes you wish she would cover it.



Standout performers that you should check out included;

Daughtry featuring Vince Gill, I'm not sure if this is an attempt at a cross over or if it is just the title of the song accompanied by Vince that got them on the show "Tennesse", but they were good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAH3uPH9Qo0

Zac Brown Band covering Charlie Daniels "Devil Went Down To Georgia".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcauKlJCwvo

Sugarland, This may be an attempt to match "Stay", regardless they were good, but I don't think it will be as big of a hit but it is nice song, "Keep You".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKF_BwrE_HE

The biggest and most talked about performance came from the co-host Carrie Underwood, with her newly 11th, #1 single "Cowboy Casanova" she stepped out of her comfort zone and put on a show stopping production. It mimicked the video, with Underwood strutting her stuff and showing off her moves, sass and gams. As always the vocals from Underwood were flawless. The following day that performance was all the talk all over the net.



Award summary coming soon, stay tuned.

ABC Is Going Country For Fall

ABC GOES COUNTRY WITH PROGRAMMING AND APPEARANCES LEADING UP TO THE "THE 43rd ANNUAL CMA AWARDS"


ABC, the official broadcast home of "Country Music's Biggest Night," is getting the festivities started early with programming celebrating the best of Country Music leading up to the big gala, "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards." The show will be broadcast live from the Sommet Center in Nashville, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11 (8:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

From Primetime to Daytime, ABC is going Country! Highlights include:

Tuesday, October 27 (9:00-10:01 p.m., ET) "Dancing with the Stars Results Show" It's Country Music night at "Dancing" when Taylor Swift, who sold more records in 2008 than any artist in the world, makes a very special appearance on the release date of the Platinum Edition of her "Fearless" album to premiere a brand-new single, "Jump, Then Fall," as well as perform her worldwide chart-topping hit, "Love Story." Taylor, who at 19 is the youngest artist in history to be nominated for the Country Music Association's prestigious Entertainer of the Year Award, is currently nominated for four Country Music Association Awards and 6 American Music Awards.

Tuesday, November 3 (7:00-9:00 a.m., ET) "Good Morning America" CMA Awards co-host and five-time CMA Award winner and the first country music artist in history to achieve 10 No.-1 singles from their first two albums, Carrie Underwood will be stopping in New York to make an appearance on "Good Morning America." Her highly anticipated new album, "Play On," featuring the current smash single, "Cowboy Casanova," is being released on November 3.

Sunday, November 8 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" Country Music sensation Kellie Pickler joins the "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" team in Beavercreek, Ohio, to tell James Terpenning, a wheelchair sports champion and mentor to disabled Iraqi War veterans, that he and his family will have their home rebuilt in seven days. Kellie will be the celebrity volunteer for this build and will perform her new song at the family's reveal.

Tuesday, November 10 (10:01-11:00 p.m., ET) "In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts: Bright Lights. Big Stars. All Access Nashville." ABC News' Robin Roberts sits down wish some of Country Music's hottest stars in this hour-long special. In addition to interviews with legendary artists Loretta Lynn, Vince Gill and Rosanne Cash, Carrie Underwood takes Roberts back to her hometown in Oklahoma where Underwood surprises her former high-school with a very big, musical surprise; Tim McGraw takes Roberts horseback riding on his family farm and opens up about his challenging childhood; and Robin Roberts joins Martina McBride and her family in their Nashville home and also spends time with the country superstar at Blackbird Studios.

Tuesday, November 10 (7:00-9:00 a.m., ET) "Good Morning America" Returning CMA co-hosts Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will perform live outside the Sommet Center in Nashville. This concert is free and open to the public.

Tuesday, November 10 ABCNEWS.com ABCNEWS.com will feature a special section for "In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts: Bright Lights. Big Stars. All Access Nashville." The section will feature extended interviews with Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw and Martina McBride, as well as additional photos and music. Viewers will be able to log onto ABCNEWS.com and vote for their favorite country song immediately following the special on Tuesday evening. America's favorite country song will be revealed live on "Good Morning America" the following morning.

Country Music's superstars and the industry's elite will gather to recognize and celebrate the best and brightest performers, songwriters, record producers and music video directors on "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards." Some of the performers will include Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood, who are hosting the gala for the second time, Kenny Chesney and Dave Matthews, Jason Aldean, Brooks & Dunn, Billy Currington, Vince Gill and Daughtry, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker, George Strait, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban and Zac Brown Band. Additional artists and presenters will be added to the lineup and announced soon.

Music News Monday

-Dave Matthews will perform with Kenny Chesney on the 43rd annual CMA Awards, event organizers announced Monday (Oct. 19). It marks Matthews' first appearance on the show that will include several previously-announced performers, including Jason Aldean, Brooks & Dunn, Billy Currington, Vince Gill and Daughtry, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker, George Strait, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and the Zac Brown Band. Chesney co-wrote "I'm Alive" with Dean Dillon and Mark Tamburino. The song was first recorded by Willie Nelson, but Chesney and Matthews recorded their version for Chesney's Lucky Old Sun album. It also appears on Chesney's Greatest Hits II and has already climbed to No. 8 on the Billboard country songs chart. CMT News


-Toby Keith and Taylor Swift were honored by their songwriter peers Sunday night (Oct. 18) during the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame dinner and induction ceremony.

Keith was named songwriter-artist of the decade for his lengthy string of No. 1 hits. Keith earned NSAI's songwriter artist of the year award in 2003, 2004 and 2006 and was named BMI's songwriter of the year in 2001, 2004 and 2006.

At this year's banquet, Swift received the NSAI's songwriter-artist of the year award for having written hits such as "Love Story" and "Our Song."


-Brad Paisley has teamed with actor Zach Quinto, producer Mark Schwann and writers Neal Dodson and Matt Bomer to create and co-produce a TV show for the CW Network, tentatively titled Nashville. According to a press release, the drama will focus on "an aspiring young female singer destined for stardom and a male songwriter whose career isn't as certain." The show is scheduled to begin airing on the CW network next season. "I'm very excited to portray the country music world of my favorite town, Nashville, by showing the exciting life of musicians, songwriters and performers -- all very talented people," Paisley said. "Look for some of your favorite country music stars to make their acting debuts on the show -- either by playing themselves or as a character in the script. Country songs are like great scripts already, and it's going to be fun to see how some unfold on the show."

Also in Brad TV news, he recently taped a skit for Carrie Underwood's holiday variety special, in which he is a guest.


-Little Big Town's Karen Fairchild and Jimi Westbrook are expecting their first child in March.


-Taylor Swift will host Saturday Night Live on Nov. 7 and will also perform during the show. In an interview with The Associated Press, Swift said she's been thinking about comedy ideas based on her life. "There are definitely some hilarious things that have happened to me over the past couple of months that I think will be pretty substantial skits," she said.


-Carrie Underwood performed Friday evening at the official opening of Singapore's newest shopping mall, ION Orchard.

Her showcase in Singapore was her first public performance in an Asian country, and Underwood said she hopes to be back during her tour next year.

"I would love to (come back here)! It was so much fun," she gushed. "People were singing along with me and I was surprised! I mean, country music I know is not that big outside the US, so coming here and seeing people singing along was a real treat!"

And from the reaction of her audience, this all-American girl is a flavour with a lasting taste.

CMT to air the largest debut of videos!

Carrie Underwood "Cowboy Casanova

Tim McGraw "Southern Voice"


Kenny Chesney (ft. Dave Matthews)"I'm Alive"


Keith Urban "Hit the Ground Runnin'"

Sugarland "Keep You"


Reba "Consider Me Gone"

Miranda Lambert "White Liar"

Billy Currington "That's the Way Country Boys Roll"

Michelle Branch "Sooner or Later"

Taylor Swift "Fifteen" Review

Taylor Swift - "Fifteen

Swift has some words of advice for all those teens heading to high school for the first time, and I'm sure they will listen.

"Fifteen" sounds as though it is coming from personal experience, and I'm sure it is. She mentions her best friend Abigail in it, how they met, and both of their first loves, and heartbreaks.

The song reminds teens that life goes on after the pain of being in high school, being an outsider, that there is love after your first. This is one of Swift's better written songs that will most definitely hit home with teens particularly the female ones. Although most of Swift's songs to date have been targeted to the more immature listeners and what life stories they will most likely endure, this one is a bit different. It carries the same theme as the rest of her singles, with the exemption that I think the adults can listen and it will bring you back to your younger years, the reminders that it brings with it can be helpful, in advising your own children.

This song as all of hers has a catchy melody that will make you want to sing along, but this one is also easier to listen to then some of her others where her vocals are not so strong. "Fifteen" has the type of tempo and melody that compliments the few strong points of her voice. As in "Tim McGraw", this is a softer song more of a Songbird than a Belter. Swift pulls this one off well

Grade - B

Check it out...

Tuesday Randoms

* Well the whole Internet community has manage to drown the Taylor Swift story into the ground, and I'm sure her label will capitalize.

I feel bad for what he did but it happened, the news covered it, apology happened, move on to other news! CMT on overloading with Swift

* Carrie Underwood and Tim McGraw have recently taped intimate episodes for CMT Invitation Only. They both previewed some new stuff from their upcoming albums and played some of their fan favs. There was also Q&A session. When Carrie was asked which of her new songs is her favorite, she chose "Temporary Home," saying "It was inspired by the book Purpose Driven Life. I feel like I was supposed to write and sing this song."

Carrie Underwood's episode will debut on the Dish Network on November 3, with the CMT debut taking place in December.

Tim McGraw's episode doesn't have a date yet.

* Luke Bryan is scheduled to launch his first headlining tour in late October.

* Jason Aldean has taken his "Big Green Tractor," to the No. 1 spot for a very impressive four weeks straight.

This is the first song to do so since Brad Paisley’s "Letter To Me" occupied the No. 1 slot for four weeks in February 2008.