Miranda Lambert photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Miranda Lambert releases her third album on Tuesday, and it’s a sign that she’s transitioning in her life.

She titled the CD Revolution, signalling outwardly the inward changes she’s chronicled in the album’s 15 songs.

“When I hear the word revolution, it means things are happening, change is coming,” she told The San Antonio Express-News. “And this record opens the door to new things for me. I was a crazy, wild-eyed kid when I was writing Kerosene, and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend was kind of the same. Now that I’m 25 years old, have a really steady relationship and a great career going, I’m settling into life a little bit. So I wrote about that more.”

Revolution features Miranda’s current single, “White Liar,” and “Dead Flowers,” which is ranked in the Top 10 on GAC’s Top 20 Country Countdown.

To promote the album, she appears in the next 10 days on “The Late Show With David Letterman,” “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon,” “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and “The Bonnie Hunt Show.” In addition, Miranda’s featured Tuesday on GAC Nights at 8 p.m. ET.

ShareThis

Joe Nichols photo by Jon Smith, courtesy of Universal Records South.

Joe Nichols has titled his next album Old Things New, and it’s an appropriate name on several levels. For one, it stylistically balances old-school country with the genre’s current tone. For another, it’s the first time he recorded a CD since he underwent alcohol rehab.

Joe approached his music with a clearer mind than ever before. But that meant that when doubts crept into his mind, he couldn’t use liquor to numb his fears. As a result, it took 11 months to make the album.

“Everything was a sober thought for this album — very clear, very difficult, very difficult,” he told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “A lot of emotions, a lot of questions. At one point in the middle of this album, I was like, ‘Man, can I even sing? I don’t think I can sing anymore. I don’t even think I’m good enough to do this album. This is really bothering me.’ At one point, I was like, ‘Man, I really don’t think I’ve got it anymore at all’ — wondered if I ever did have it or if it was just booze talkin’ to me all the time. But that’s some of the questions that I asked myself through the making of this. That’s part of being clear-thinking. You have to ask tough questions.”

Joe leaned on his wife, Heather, for support and reassurance, and he ultimately came to realize that part of being an artist is feeling the emotions in the material and living with the discomfort they create. Old Things New has some gospel influences, some Merle Haggard threads and a couple of songs that reference his own battle. And it’s the best album he’s yet recorded.

“It’s a special album for a lot more than just the music,” Joe said. “It’s a special album ‘cause this is like a triumph on my part, and my wife’s part. [It’s a] triumph on everybody’s part that we pulled this out the right way.”

Old Things New will be released Oct. 27.

ShareThis

Tim McGraw photo by Danny Clinch, courtesy of Curb Records.

Tim McGraw’s latest single is the title track from his upcoming album, Southern Voice, and it gives credit to such historic figures from Dixie as Hank Williams, Hank Aaron and Rosa Parks.

Each of them rose from modest beginnings to make a significant impact on American culture, and they fit well with Tim’s rootsy vision for the album.

“I hope it’s a record you get lost in,” he told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “I hope it’s a record that you can put on and just sort of melt into. And that’s what the purpose was for it. We wanted a sort of earthiness that when you put this thing on, it just sort of kicks out all over you.”

Southern Voice is set for release Oct. 20. It’s already brought him a hit with “It’s A Business Doing Pleasure With You.”

ShareThis

Carrie Underwood photo by Matthew Rolston, courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Paula Abdul’s departure from “American Idol” changes the texture of the judges on the FOX-TV show, and the emergence of Ellen DeGeneres as her replacement was one of the top entertainment subjects of the last month. Former “Idol” winner Carrie Underwood has a view of the show that only a few people possess, and she believes Ellen was a smart addition.

“I think Paula will be missed just because she was such a fixture for the past million seasons of ‘American Idol,’” Carrie told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville.

“I guess things just evolve and change like everything else, and Ellen … I’ve met her several times being on her show. She’s one of my favorite shows to be on — such a wonderful person, a fun host. Talking to her, she’s really nice. And I think that if they have to replace Paula with somebody, they need to replace her with somebody that’s positive and upbeat. The contestants really need somebody positive there.”

Carrie has her own upcoming TV gig to prepare for. She’ll be co-hosting The 43rd Annual CMA Awards with Brad Paisley on Nov. 11. Carrie’s third album, Play On, comes out Nov. 3.

ShareThis

Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Next month, Keith Urban is headlining a massive All for the Hall benefit concert in Nashville to raise money for the Country Music Hall of Fame. It’s an expression of his appreciation for country music history and for the establishment that chronicles that history.

But it’s also a way for Keith to aid the city he now calls home, even though he was born half a world away.

“Coming to Nashville — that was a time in my life that will always give me a great feeling, because it was really exciting to be a little kid dreaming about Nashville and one day to be driving around here and realizing you’re in it,” he told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “I still remember taking some freeway drives wherever I had to go, and when I would come back to Nashville and I would see seeing those green signs saying ‘Nashville’ on the freeway, and I went, ‘That’s the Nashville.’ It took years for that to really sink in that I’m in the Nashville, not some place that has the same name. This is the one, you know?”

Keith’s fund-raising concert will be held Oct. 13 in downtown Nashville at the Sommet Center. Among his guests at the sold-out show will be Brad Paisley, Taylor Swift, Faith Hill, Little Big Town, Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum and Vince Gill. Vince shares Keith’s appreciation for Nashville, and the All for the Hall event has an interesting twist for him: Vince is the president of the Hall of Fame’s board of directors, and he was part of the committee that oversaw the design of the Sommet Center.

ShareThis

Joe Nichols photo courtesy of Universal Records South.

Joe Nichols is inspiring country fans around the U.S. with his Top 30 country hit “Believers,” a motivational song that’s supported by a big-sounding gospel choir.

Joe was drawn to the song because of its message and its power to inspire. Released during a downturn in the economy, its uplifting viewpoint comes at a particularly crucial time.

“‘Believers’ is one of those songs about people that look at adversity, look at a really tough situation and say, ‘You know what? I understand this is gonna be tough, I understand this is gonna hurt, but I believe, no matter how much this hurts me, I believe this what I’m movin’ towards,” Joe told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “I think that’s an admirable trait in people. That’s character. And I think we need that. I think people are drawn to that, and I think that’s why the song works, ‘cause I think people are drawn to that type of character.”

The Dalai Lama is apparently among those who are believers in Joe’s performance. Joe is set to deliver the song Wednesday at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis when the Dalai Lama is honored with the Freedom Award. Joe also appears that night with Natalie Cole at the Cannon Center.

ShareThis

Lady Antebellum photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Lady Antebellum got a bit of a surprise this summer when the band was booed by the audience during one of its shows.

Bad performance? Hardly. Instead, the female part of the crowd was signalling its disappointment in lead singer Charles Kelley. He got married to music publicist Cassie McConnell, becoming the first member of the group to tie the knot.

“Years ago, we were like, ‘How weird is it gonna be when we have families and we’re out on the road?’ And this is the first step towards that,” Charles told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “It’s gonna be so interesting to see 5, 10 years from now when we’re still doing this, hopefully, and we have kids out there [on the road] and everything. It’s just gonna be wild to see. And what’s gonna happen? What happens when [Hillary Scott] gets pregnant? It’s a family out there, and everybody is just super-supportive. And it’s the first step towards growing up — here we go!”

Charles hasn’t had a lot of time to stop and smell the roses. The band has been working on its sophomore album and this week debuted its new video, “Need You Now.” Lady A has also picked up a pair of nominations in The 43rd Annual CMA Awards: Vocal Group of the Year and Single of the Year, for “I Run To You.”

ShareThis

Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Kenny Chesney has spent much of this decade headlining stadiums and collecting Entertainer of the Year honors. He’s planning on taking 2010 off from the road, and his own pick for best act to take his slot during the summer might be former touring partner Keith Urban.

“Anybody who hasn’t gone to see Keith Urban is missing it,” Kenny told Entertainment Weekly. “That’s my opinion.”

Keith’s shows are loaded with exhilirating songs and ace guitar work, and he designed the stage for his current Escape Together World Tour so that he can ease into the audience at will and perform amidst the fans. It’s all part of his goal to get the crowd fully engaged.

“If you want to sit down at a concert, that’s cool, but if you want to stand up and go nuts, you should be allowed to do that,” he told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “We’ve had a few places where the security won’t let them do that, and I do my best always to override that. So, let it be said here and now, if you’re told to sit down at a concert, it has nothing to do with me, because I want your ass out of the seat!”

Keith hasn’t yet announced tour plans for 2010. His concert schedule currently closes Dec. 19 in Brisbane, Australia. Kenny meanwhile wraps up his Sun City Carnival Tour Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis with Sugarland, Montgomery Gentry, Miranda Lambert and the Zac Brown Band.

ShareThis

Joe Nichols photo courtesy of Universal Records South.

Last week, Joe Nichols celebrated the second anniversary of his marriage to Heather Singleton. The two were friends for years before they tied the knot, so she knows very well what makes him tick. And because she’s adamant about telling him the truth — even when it hurts — he’s finally made the transition into adulthood.

“The biggest change for me is I’m a grown up now,” he told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “Bein’ a single guy, I wanted to be a child as along as possible, and do just whatever I wanted to do and just live like that. Now … I’m grown up. I take responsibility for things, I try to be on time for things and I really work at what other people around me need more than myself most of the time. I don’t know. I think about others. I definitely think about her before me. Every chance I get. Sometimes I screw up. I’ll get back into my own immature, childish ways. She’s there to kinda go, ‘Hey, man, that ain’t you. What’s goin’ on?’ That’s the biggest change for me, just kinda growin’ up.”

Another change is in store for Joe. He’s set to star on Broadway for the first time in the theatrical adaptation of the George Strait movie Pure Country. Joe will share the stage in the 2010 production with Lorrie Morgan. In the meantime, his new album, Old Things New, comes out Oct. 27.

ShareThis

Dierks Bentley photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

In the years before he got married, Dierks Bentley usually maintained the busiest road schedule of any country hitmaker. He did plenty of partying, but he also made a personal connection with his fan base, and that’s one of the most important elements of his career.

“Everything we do revolves around the road and playing live shows and being in front of people, and that’s why we’re out so much on the road,” he told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. “I really feel like I’ve met everyone who’s bought one of my records. I truly feel like that. We spend so much time out there. We have such hardcore fans that sing along to every song off the record and know the whole new record by heart. I feel really blessed to get out there every night and have them get up and sing these songs back to me.”

Dierks is currently on Brad Paisley’s American Saturday Night Tour with Jimmy Wayne. They play Texas this weekend, hitting Houston on Friday and Dallas on Saturday.

ShareThis