Dwight Yoakam photo by Cambria Harkey, courtesy of New West Records.

Dwight Yoakam, Aaron Lewis, Easton Corbin, Casey James, Sara Jean Kelley, THE FARM, The MyClymonts, The Roys, and Thomas Rhett have been added to the Country Thunder lineup. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Country Thunder will take place July 19-22 in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin. Big & Rich, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton and Toby Keith have been announced as headlining acts.

Fans can purchase a 4-day pass to the festival for $120 at www.countrythunder.com or by phone at (866) 802-6418 through March 30. Single tickets will go on sale April 1. Campsites are also available, starting as low as $100 for the entire weekend. Camping and amenity add-ons can be purchased online. Continue Reading

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Tom T Hall

Tom T. Hall, Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear, Country Music Highway committee members, and TourSEKY announced two new initiatives surrounding famed highway U.S. Route 23. Known as the ‘Country Music Highway,’ the stretch of road winding along the eastern corridor of Kentucky, has given rise to several country stars including The Judds, Billy Ray Cyrus, Ricky Skaggs, Keith Whitley, Dwight Yoakam, Patty Loveless, Crystal Gayle, Loretta Lynn, Rebecca Lynn Howard and more.

The new initiatives will include a talent competition to discover the next generation of artists from the area, as well as the development of a charitable organization, the ‘Country Music Highway Arts Education Fund,’ which will support music programs in Kentucky schools and aid children in discovering their passion for music. The initiatives are aimed to bring awareness of the highway’s significance to the next generation.

“I am certain that Governor Beshear will agree with me when I say how proud we are to honor the rich musical heritage springing from the State of Kentucky,” Jeff Crowe, President and CEO of Tour SEKY, said. “Our youth is teeming with musical talent and I am excited to see the impact the program will have upon them.”

The Country Music Highway Road to Fame competition will begin in mid-March. The winner will receive a scholarship to participate in career development and coaching under the direction of PCG Nashville, an acoustic guitar, and a plaque recognizing their achievement. The contest is open to artists 13-35 years old from the 15 counties that border the highway. More information can be found at www.cmhroadtofame.com.

“I’m really excited about the competition because it will show that some of the best talent can be found in the hills of Eastern Kentucky,” Tom T. Hall, a native of the area, said. Continue Reading

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Randy Travis photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

The GRAMMY Museum will host “An Evening With Randy Travis” on September 21. The event will honor Randy’s 25-year career with Randy on hand for a special discussion and acoustic performance. Randy recently released Anniversary Celebration, a duets CD featuring artists such as Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, George Jones, Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood among others as well as new songs from Randy.

5 Things You Don’t Know About Randy Travis >>

Over the span of his career, Randy has sold more than 20 million albums. He has had 18 No. 1 singles, won 7 GRAMMY Awards, 10 ACM Awards, 5 CMA Awards and has a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame, among other honors. He will sit down with GRAMMY Foundation Vice President Scott Goldman to discuss his career and new album before participating in an audience Q&A and performing two songs acoustically. Continue Reading

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Justin Moore photo by Kristin Barlowe, courtesy of The Valory Music Co.

Justin Moore understands if a fan is starstruck when they meet him. He’s been there too. A few years ago, the Poyen, Arkansas native had the opportunity to tour with Hank Williams Jr. and Lynyrd Skynyrd. It was an opportunity Justin didn’t know could happen until he walked out on the stage during their tour.

“There’ve been a lot of guys that I’ve met that it’s been a really big deal to me, but those guys were heroes of mine long before I even started playing music,” Justin said. “Growing up in the South, I drank hot beer and kissed my first girl cranking ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ or ‘Country Boy Can Survive.’ And then when I started playing music, they become even a bigger influence for different reasons.” Continue Reading

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Sean Patrick McGraw's 2011 EP, My So Called Life.

Sean Patrick McGraw just may be one of country music’s best-kept secrets, but don’t expect that to last for too long after the release of his second EP, My So Called Life, which came out in late April.

For the constant road-warrior (McGraw and his band keep pace with 150+ shows annually), the release of My So Called Life comes just as several key accomplishments are stacking up. Clear Channel named him a 2011 “NEW: Artist To Watch.” He recently finished a stretch opening for Dierks Bentley on the Jagermeister Country Music Tour. Two of his songs were used during the 2010 season of the hit HBO-series “True Blood,” and “Git Yer Cowboy On,” the hard-charging party track that opens My So Called Life, was used to kickoff Westwood One’s presentation of the 2011 Super Bowl. Yes, it seems this may start becoming McGraw’s “so called life.”

McGraw, no relation to Tim, co-wrote all nine songs on the EP in addition to getting behind the control deck as producer. Continue Reading

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Country music stars sure love Twitter! Here at GAC, we follow them too. This week, Kenny Chesney kicks off his 2011 Goin’ Coastal Tour, Kellie Pickler feels the morning after pain, post-St. Patrick’s Day and Steel Magnolia finds they have a famous follower. Here are our picks for the Top 10 Country Tweets Of The Week.

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/kennychesney.

Kenny Chesney:  @kennychesney    kickin it off

Martina McBride:  @martinamcbride    Been on vacation a week. Have “baby bump” Not pregnant. If it’s twins I’m naming them “Mai Tai” and “French Fry”.

Danny Gokey:  @dannygokey    Top Tip Of The Week: When going through airport customs & u are asked “do you have any firearms with you?” do not reply “what do you need?”

Sarah Darling:  @SarahDarling    My grandparents are adorable! They call me every time they hear me on the radio. So sweet.

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/blakeshelton.

Blake Shelton:  @blakeshelton    Ya see!!! I can be a manger too!!! 

Steel Magnolia:  @steelmagnolia11    Just went to follow @DwightYoakam and realized he’s already following us! Made my day! I’m such a HUGE fan!! Xo Meg Continue Reading

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Rascal Flatts photo courtesy of Big Machine Records.

April marks the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War, and Rascal Flatts is one of several country acts that will remember that moment in American history by appearing in a mini-series.

“To Appomattox” is named after the site where the South eventually surrendered, and the project will employ the guys in a couple of ways. They’ve been enlisted to produce the soundtrack, according to a website devoted to the production. And they’ll also have roles as soldiers. That’s a little bit different than their last attempt at acting, when they appeared as themselves on the CBS drama “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.”

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Darius Rucker photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

When Darius Rucker put together his second country album, he decided to title it Charleston, SC 1966 as a method of paying tribute to one of his biggest influences in country music: Radney Foster.

Radney came to prominence in the late 1980s as one-half of a duo, Foster & Lloyd, and in recent years, he’s earned success as a songwriter of Sara Evans’ “A Real Fine Place To Start” and Keith Urban’s “Raining On Sunday” and “I’m In.” But Radney’s also a fine solo performer, and his first album after leaving Foster & Lloyd was named after the city and year of his birth, Del Rio, Texas 1959.

Darius’ Charleston, SC 1966 very closely resembles that template, a sort of monument to Radney’s inspiration, which led Darius to discover a whole world of country sounds.

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Tim McGraw photo courtesy of timmcgraw.com.

There’ve been a series of Tim McGraw greatest-hits packages released already, but if you’re looking to pick up a copy of his current single, you might want to invest in his new, slightly different best-of compilation.

His Number One Hits is a two-CD album set for release on Nov. 30. It will include 22 songs that hit the top of the Billboard country chart during Tim’s career in addition to two bonus cuts: new release “Felt Good On My Lips” and a dance remix of Tim’s very first hit, “Indian Outlaw.”

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Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

The building that houses country music’s family treasures just got a big infusion of cash.

Keith Urban and Vince Gill played hosts Tuesday night at All For The Hall, a multi-artist concert at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Country Music Hall of Fame. The arena and the hall share an intersection in Music City, and the artists who paraded across the Bridgestone stage shared a love for the district’s best-known genre.

Billy Currington threw judicious moments of vocal ferocity into his version of Kenny Rogers’ “Sweet Music Man,” Martina McBride emulated Reba McEntire well with a few well-placed trills at the close of “Is There Life Out There,” and Dolly Parton resurrected George Jones’ funereal “He Stopped Loving Her Today.”

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