Carrie Underwood photo by James White, courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Carrie Underwood and Lady Antebellum have been added to the list of country stars who will be a part of the 54^th Annual GRAMMY Awards. Carrie will join Tony Bennett for a performance while Lady A will serve as presenters. A tribute to the late Etta James by Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt has also been added. The GRAMMYs will air on CBS on Sunday, February 12th at 8/7 CT.

Other country artists scheduled to perform include Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Glen Campbell, with Blake Shelton and The Band Perry, Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson and Taylor Swift. Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert and Gwyneth Paltrow will be among GRAMMY presenters. Continue Reading

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Lady Antebellum photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Lady Antebellum is gearing up to own Europe this summer when they take their Own The Night 2012 World Tour across the pond. They will play several shows in six different countries, kicking things off in Dublin, Ireland on July 10. Fans can get more information and start purchasing tickets on February 10 through LadyAntebellum.com.

“Every time we’ve gone over to Europe, the fans there have given us such a warm welcome,” Dave Haywood said. ”It’s an honor for us to be able to travel abroad and share our music with so many other countries. Plus, we love to get out and sightsee and really experience each place we visit.  Europe is going to be a blast!”

Lady A kicked off the U.S. leg of their tour with sold-out and record-breaking shows last week. They will take a break from their tour this weekend to head to the GRAMMY Awards this weekend where they will present and are also nominated for Best Country Album. Continue Reading

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Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Relativity Music Group will release the Act of Valor soundtrack on February 21, featuring original songs written and inspired by the Navy SEAL action-thriller. It will include “For You,” a song written by Keith Urban that is featured in the film’s end credits, as well as music from Lady Antebellum, Sugarland, Trace Adkins, Wynonna Judd, Montgomery Gentry, and more. In theaters February 24, Act of Valor stars a group of active-duty Navy Seals along with actors Roselyn Sanchez, Alex Veadov, Jason Cottle and Nestor Serrano.

Produced and directed by Mike “Mouse” McCoy and Scott Waugh and written by Kurt Johnstad, Act of Valor takes audiences into the secretive world of the most elite, highly-trained force in the modern world as the rescue of a kidnapped CIA operative leads to the discovery of a deadly terrorist plot against the U.S. Inspired by true events, the film combines combat sequences, battlefield technology and heart-pounding emotion.

The track listing for the soundtrack includes Keith’s “For You,” “Guide You Home” (Sugarland), “I Was Here” (Lady Antebellum), “If the Sun Comes Up” (Trace Adkins), “Two Soldiers Coming Home” (Lori McKenna), “The Best I Can” (Jake Owen), “What It Takes”(Montgomery Gentry), “The Best of Me” (Josh Kelley), “Where We Left Off” (Hunter Hayes) and “Whatever Brings You Back” (Wynonna Judd). Continue Reading

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Lady Antebellum photo courtesy of The Green Room PR.

Lady Antebellum kicks off their Own The Night 2012 World Tour tonight, January 27, in Tulsa Oklahoma and have already sold more than half a million tickets for the tour, including sell-outs of some of the nation’s biggest arenas — the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Allstate Arena in Chicago, and American Airlines Center in Dallas.

“We have been really involved in the planning of our tour every step of the way,” Hillary Scott said. “I remember drawing out an idea for our set design on a paper plate, so to now see it come to life is just crazy. We are just so invested in every moment and making it a great experience for the fans, and we’re really excited for everything 2012 has in store.”

“It has only been four years since we were driving around in Charles’ Jeep Cherokee and sharing a hotel room,” Dave Haywood said. “This tour is what we’ve always dreamed of!” Continue Reading

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Country music stars sure love Twitter! This week, Miranda Lambert thanks fans for their support after Blake Shelton’s father passed away, Jake Owen  keeps fans updated on his broken collarbone from the waiting room, Josh Kelley shares a photo of wife Katherine Heigl that may land him in the doghouse and Taylor Swift puts her TV remote in its place. Here are our picks for the Top 10 Country Tweets Of The Week.

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/ladyantebellum.

Lady Antebellum – LadyAntebellum: We are all ready and excited! #OwnTheNightWorldTour

Miranda Lambert – Miranda_Lambert: Thank you all for your kindness and prayer. Our family means everything to us. Blake and I appreciate the support so much.

Jake Owen – JakeOwen: In the Dr. waiting on my sentence.. You know it’s not good when he comes in and says “That break is worse than the football teams”. Damn.

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/joshkelley.

Josh Kelley – JoshBKelley: My girl getting her hair done for ONE FOR THE MONEY movie press Continue Reading

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Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Keith Urban’s third annual All for the Hall benefit concert has been rescheduled for April 10 after having to be postponed while Keith underwent and recovered from successful vocal cord surgery. The concert, which benefits the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s All for the Hall fund, will feature performances by Keith, Vince Gill, Alabama, Alison Krauss & Union Station, The Band Perry, Blue Sky Riders, Diamond Rio, Exile, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, The Oak Ridge Boys,  Pistol Annies, Rascal Flatts and Thompson Square.

“My goal for the concert, is really the same as the halls,” Keith said. “To help country fans connect the dots – to find out where their music came from, how its evolved and is still evolving and to hear the artists that have influenced their favorite artists. Country music is like a big beautiful strange family tree and nowhere is that more honored than at the Country Music Hall Of Fame and Museum.”

“The first two We’re All for the Hall concerts have been landmarks for this institution,” said Museum Director Kyle Young.  “They have been the most successful fundraisers in the museum’s history, together raising roughly $1 million.  And they have not only set a new standard for fundraising and event coordination, but also brought together an entire community and helped us to see what can be done by individuals when there is a collective passion for a cause. Continue Reading

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Luke Bryan photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Faith Hill, Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, and Zac Brown Band have been added to the lineup for the Nightly Concerts at LP Field during this year’s CMA Music Festival. Jason Aldean, The Band Perry and Carrie Underwood were previously announced as performers. This year’s CMA Fest will take place June 7-10 in Nashville.

Faith will be returning to the CMA Fest stage for the first time since 2008 after debuting her current single, “Come Home,” on the CMA Awards, while Eric will be making his LP Field debut. Fans can purchase tickets through Ticketmaster at Ticketmaster.com or 1-(800)-745-3000. They can also purchase them by calling 1-(800)-CMA-FEST (262-3378). Continue Reading

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Lady Antebellum's Hillary Scott & husband Chris Tyrell. Photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Congratulations to Lady Antebellum‘s Hillary Scott and Chris Tyrell, who announced to their fans they are officially married through a video posted on the band’s website on Sunday, January 8.

“I’d like to introduce you to Mrs. Hillary Scott Tyrell,” said Chris, as Hillary showed off her new wedding ring.

“We got married, and we just wanted you to hear it from us first,” added Hillary. “We love you, and we’re so excited to be starting our life together, and we just had to let you in on the exciting news.”

The pair were married on Saturday, January 7 during an intimate ceremony surrounded by family and close friends. Hillary and Chris exchanged vows just before sunset in upstate New York. The bride wore a custom Vera Wang strapless mermaid dress with abstract all-over lace underlay, layered tulle skirt with horsehair banding and hand-cut corded lace applique with hand-applied crystal and pearl beading. She complemented the gown with a mantilla veil with hand-cut chantilly lace applique. The groom donned a gray Ermenegildo Zegna suit. According to People.com, Contemporary Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman performed for the couple’s first dance.

Hillary and Chris met in 2010 on Tim McGraw’s Southern Voice Tour when Lady A was the special guest, and Chris played drums for Love & Theft.The couple was engaged last summer around the Fourth of July weekend.

Hillary shared the advice she received from fellow newlyweds. “If I ask(ed) advice to newlyweds, most of them have literally said, ‘At a point during the reception, sneak away, the two of you sneak away and hide behind a wall and look through a window and just observe what’s going on and just see everyone enjoying it and having a great time. It’s like to have that visual, to have that mental picture for the rest of your life.’”

“My only advice, and I’ve told her and told them,” said Hillary’s band mate, Charles Kelley, “[is] I think the first year, it was definitely a learning experience and learning, ‘Getting to know you,’” he sang. “It was just learning how to compromise, and I feel like after that, it really got just easy. And so, just be patient and love each other…”as hard as you can love…,” he sang.

“Oh, boy!” laughed Hillary.

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Lady Antebellum photo courtesy of The Green Room PR.

Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott is working with a Franklin, Tennessee family to start an orphanage in Haiti, reports The Tennessean. Missy and Mike Wilson adopted one child from Haiti and are in the process of adopting another. The two girls, Tia and Naika, are two of six Wilson children.

The Wilsons have previously been involved with Haiti via ministries. One of the Wilson’s children, Katie Erie, traveled to Haiti to participate in an internship at a children’s home in 2010. Just eight days after her arrival, she was left stranded with 48 children and 12 other workers after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked the island. Since then, the Wilsons have made dozens of trips to Haiti to deliver goods and help.

Hillary has traveled with the family to Haiti and pledged her help both financially and emotionally. “To watch how the Wilson children have adapted, it’s a model we want to take into Haiti,” she said. Continue Reading

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Blake Shelton photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

Each year GAC asks fans to help us choose the best of the best country music videos released during the prior 12 months for our year end Top 50 Videos of the Year countdown. Here are the voting results for 2011 based on videos released and added to the GAC playlist from Nov. 1, 2010 to Oct. 31, 2011.

1. Blake Shelton — “God Gave Me You”
2. Jason Aldean w/Kelly Clarkson — “Don’t You Wanna Stay”
3. Keith Urban — “Without You”
4. Jason Aldean — “Dirt Road Anthem”
5. Brad Paisley & Carrie Underwood — “Remind Me”
6. Blake Shelton — “Honey Bee”
7. Lady Antebellum — “Just A Kiss”
8. Alan Jackson — “Long Way To Go”
9. Scotty McCreery — “I Love You This Big”
10. Trace Adkins — “Just Fishin’” Continue Reading

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