All posts in "Garth Brooks"

"I Run to You," performed by Lady Antebellum and produced by Victoria Shaw and Paul Worley, wins Single of the Year and the group wins Vocal Group of the Year at "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards," on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009, live from the Sommet Center in Nashville on the ABC Television Network. Photographer: Jim Hagans / CMA.

Taylor Swift might have gotten the most ink, but she wasn’t the only act to win more than one trophy at Wednesday’s CMA Awards. So did double-winners Brad Paisley and Lady Antebellum, and all three of those artists will be among the guests appearing on GAC’s Top 20 Country Countdown after chatting with host Nan Kelley backstage at the awards.

Lady A had a particularly good night. Their first Vocal Group of the Year win ended a six-year run in that category for Rascal Flatts. And when they picked up the Single of the Year honor for “I Run To You,” Lady A followed in the footsteps of such classic hits as Alan Jackson’s “Chattahoochee,” Garth Brooks’ “Friends In Low Places,” Willie Nelson’s “Always On My Mind” and George Jones’ “He Stopped Loving Her Today.”

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Taylor Swift performs “Forever & Always” at “The 43rd Annual CMA Awards,” on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009, live from the Sommet Center in Nashville on the ABC Television Network. Photographer: John Russell / CMA. Provided by Country Music Association.

Judging from the early online comments from GACTV.com readers, Taylor Swift’s four wins at the 43rd annual Country Music Association Awards will be accompanied by controversy. She won Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist, Album and Music Video, setting records as the first teen victor in each category and ending streaks of three-year reigns for Kenny Chesney and Carrie Underwood.

Taylor is not a traditional artist in any sense of the word — not in sound, not in age and not in the demographic she appeals to. So when her band and record company president, Scott Borchetta, gave her a group hug at the end of the evening, it was a physical manifestation of the embrace she got at the ballot box from the country business.

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Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood rehearse on Sunday, Nov. 8 at the Sommet Center in Downtown Nashville for "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards," which will broadcast live on the ABC Television Network on Wed., Nov. 11th, 8-11PM/ET. Photographer: John Russell / CMA

The Country Music Association presents its 43rd annual awards in Nashville on Wednesday, and Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood are already repeats — whether they win trophies or not.

The two co-hosted the 2008 show for the first time, and the ceremony went well enough they’re back to do it again. Each of them is taking their duties seriously. After all, they’re at the center of all the action on one of the most important nights for country music in the entire year. But they also recognize that it’s a big night for every single person that gets to make an acceptance speech.

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Toby Keith photo courtesy of Show Dog Nashville.

Toby Keith will top 1 million ticket sales,  Jimmy Wayne had an onstage drop-in from a legendary pop artist, and Kenny Chesney had the summer’s top tour.

In addition to the weekend’s previously reported mass of ticket sales for the new Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift dates, there’s still plenty of country concert news to skim.

What’s up on the road:

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Kenny Chesney performs at the VAULT Concert Stage at LP Field in Downtown Nashville Sunday, June 14 during the 2009 CMA Music Festival. Photo courtesy of the Country Music Association.

Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift are making big news by quickly selling out their upcoming tours — but Kenny Chesney’s still at the top of the list for now.

USA Today reported on the strongest tours in the country and found that Kenny is No. 1 in all genres.

“You know,” says Kenny of the honor, “to me, it’s about rocking the fans… and I never want to have a ticket price that keeps the people who buy my records or listen to my songs in their truck from coming out and partying with us. If I can make sure there are always seats people can afford – and even try to keep the best seats where they’re reasonable for what they are – then I feel like I can keep having the party of the summer when I go out. Again, to me, it’s about that moment and having fun with your buddies.  Continue Reading

Taylor Swift photo courtesy of Big Machine Records.

It’s an interesting juxtaposition of country music’s best-selling artists from two different eras. When Taylor Swift was born, Garth Brooks had hit No. 1 for the first time just days earlier with “If Tomorrow Never Comes.” When her first album came out in the fall of 2006, Garth was just days away from a bevy of certifications that would push his career album sales over 120 million.

Both artists sold a ton of concert tickets at the end of last week. With her single “Fifteen” in the Top 15, Taylor put 15 arena shows up for sale on Friday, and all of them sold out in minutes. Garth, who was already retired when she Swiftly became the genre’s new top seller, put his comeback tickets in Las Vegas on the market Saturday, and after overloading the Wynn Las Vegas website, his first 20 performances sold out as well.

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Carrie Underwood was in Singapore last week visiting with Asian media, performing and promoting her upcoming album release, PLAY ON . Photo Credit: ION, Richard Kang, October 16, 2009

Country music has expanded its mission in recent years to include conquering international fans. Usually, that means potential music buyers in the United Kingdom, continental Europe and Australia. But several country acts — Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood and Carrie Underwood — have put Asia on their personal calendars of late.

Last week, Carrie visited Singapore to spend time with Asian media in advance of her forthcoming album, Play On. While there, she played at the opening of the ION Orchard shopping mall, a sheltered, open-air venue.

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Trisha Yearwood attends the October 15, 2009 press conference for husband Garth Brooks where he announced his new one-man show at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Nev. Photo courtesy of garthbrooks.com.

When Trisha Yearwood left Nashville to become part of Garth Brooks’ family in Oklahoma, she committed to helping him raise his three daughters, effectively giving her own career a lower priority.

Now that Garth has agreed to a five-year deal with Wynn Las Vegas, Trisha will wait even longer before she eventually pursues her current dream of landing a gig on the Great White Way. Trisha will join him on stage periodically during his engagement, which has him playing five weekends a year beginning Dec. 11.

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Garth Brooks is all smiles as he announces his new one-man show at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Nev. during a press conference on October 15, 2009. Photo courtesy of garthbrooks.com.

This morning at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Garth Brooks announced the end of his self-imposed retirement. In October 2000, he said he was retiring until the youngest of his three daughters had graduated from high school.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean fans will be getting a new album this year. At the Opry House, Garth said, “If we ever do tour again, if we ever put out new music again, it’s going to be another five years,” he said, reminding the audience that his youngest daughter, Allie, is only 13.

Garth revealed more of his future plans this afternoon at a press conference at the Wynn in Las Vegas. Continue Reading

Loretta Lynn photo courtesy of Interscope Records.

Anyone who’s seen the Loretta Lynn biopic Coal Miner’s Daughter knows she earned her first hit single when she and her husband, Oliver “Doolittle” Lynn, drove around the country visiting radio stations in a cramped automobile.

That was in 1960. Almost 50 years later, she’s still working regularly, though she gets to pick and choose when, where and how often she does.

“I don’t have to work, so I work when I want to,” she told The Birmingham News. “I stay home and it bothers me… But I have it good on the road now, not like when I started. I have my bus fixed up just like a home, with five TVs in it. There’s a complete kitchen, a complete bathroom and a half-bathroom. It’s all my own.”

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