Little Big Town at the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp. Photo credit: Getty Images/Courtesy of ACM Lifting Lives.

The 2nd Annual ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp is underway in Nashville this week and stars including Little Big Town and Carrie Underwood are lending their time to the program. The camp is open to campers with developmental disabilities who are also talented in music and serves as a study of Williams syndrome and other developmental disabilities. ACM Lifting Lives, the charitable arm of the Academy of Country Music, funds the camp, which allows the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities to advance it’s mission of improving the lives of those with developmental disabilities.

On Monday, campers were treated to a songwriting workshop with Gary Allan, Odie Blackmon and Brett James. They crafted a song from concept to final lyrics and will record the song with Carrie and producer Mark Bright. Last year’s song penned by the campers, Chris Young and Brett was performed by campers during the 46th Annual ACM Awards. Later Monday evening, Little Big Town participated in Art N’Music, a session that allowed campers to create Warhol style self-portraits while using music to inspire them. Continue Reading

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l-r: Brett James, Gary Allan & Odie Blackmon. Photo credit: Getty Images/Courtesy of ACM Lifting Lives.

Yesterday morning at the University School of Nashville, Gary Allan, Brett James (co-writer of Carrie Underwood‘s “Jesus Take The Wheel”) and Odie Blackmon (co-writer of George Strait‘s “She’ll Leave You With A Smile”) had a very special co-writing session. The trio of songwriters created a tune called “Harmony” with campers at the 2nd Annual ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp, a week-long residential program open to campers nationwide with developmental disabilities, talented in music. The Camp has a dual purpose of studying Williams syndrome and other developmental disabilities and providing music enrichment through performance and education. ACM Lifting Lives funds the costs of the Camp, enabling the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities to advance its mission of improving the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities and their families through research, training and service.

Just after finishing the song with the campers, Gary chatted with us about why he wanted to be involved with the organization and revealed what the songwriting session was like. After our interview, he went back to the campers and they rehearsed the song (which they’ll sing on the Grand Ole Opry with Darius Rucker this weekend!). At the end of the clip, you’ll hear a snippet of their heartfelt composition, ”Harmony.” Watch it now!

Gary and Darius aren’t the only artists involved with the Music Camp this week. Last night Little Big Town helped the campers create Andy Warhol-style portraits and tonight, Wynonna‘s singing Karaoke with the campers!

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Brad Paisley photo by John Russell, courtesy of the CMA; Alan Jackson photo by Sara Kauss Photography.

Last week, the biggest names in country music were in Nashville for CMA Music Festival. In honor of the festival, the Nashville Scene pondered which acts of today will be legends tomorrow. Will your grandkids roll their eyes when you tell them about seeing Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert and Trace Adkins all perform on the same night just as you might have rolled your eyes at your own grandparents re-living concerts by Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins, or will they still be listening to them on the radio?

To answer the question of which of the artists who are hot right now will still be making music in 30 years, the Scene posed the question: Which of these artists will end up in the Country Music Hall of Fame? Reba McEntire, who was just inducted into the Hall of Fame, performed at LP Field on Friday night and is still making hits. The magazine believes there are two artists who are shoo-ins for the Hall of Fame down the road – Brad Paisley and Alan Jackson.

“They’re great singers, solid songwriters, consistent chart-toppers over a long time, genuinely popular figures on Music Row and critical favorites for the occasional left-field fling (“Murder on Music Row,” “Mercury Blues,” “Whiskey Lullaby” and “Welcome to the Future”),” Geoffrey Himes wrote in the article. “At this point, these guys would have to sign up with al-Qaeda to stay out of the Hall of Fame.” Continue Reading

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Gary Allan photo courtesy of UMG Nashville.

Gary Allan will kick off the Daily Concerts on the Chevrolet Riverfront Stage during this year’s CMA Music Festival with a 10:00 a.m. CT show on June 9. Reflecting 40 years of country music, the stage’s daily lineup will feature past, current, and future superstar artists. The Riverfront Stage concerts are free and open to the public.

“Gary Allan will provide a dynamic start to 2011 CMA Music Festival at the Daily Concerts on the Chevrolet Riverfront Stage,” said Steve Moore, CMA Chief Executive Officer. “This stage is packed with great hit-makers from the ’70s through today, spotlighting all the decades of CMA Music Festival’s existence. And it’s free! We invite everyone to come and enjoy the great music on the Chevrolet Riverfront Stage.”

Darryl Worley will close the Daily Concerts on Friday, June 10, Billy Ray Cyrus on Saturday, June 11 and Terri Clark on Sunday, June 12. Terri last performed at CMA Music Festival in 2007, Billy Ray in 2008 and Darryl in 2010.

The current daily artist lineups in alphabetical order:

Thursday, June 9: Gary Allan, Emerson Drive, Colt Ford, Jack Ingram, Sammy Kershaw, Craig Morgan, James Otto, Jake Owen, Randy Rogers Band, and Steel Magnolia.

Friday, June 10: Frankie Ballard, Bucky Covington, Brett Eldredge, Jo Dee Messina, Randy Montana, Heidi Newfield, Sawyer Brown, Phil Vassar, James Wesley, and  Darryl Worley.

Saturday, June 11: Crystal Bowersox, Jason Michael Carroll, Billy Ray Cyrus, Steve Holy, Lonestar, David Nail, Corey Smith,  Mel Tillis, and Chuck Wicks.

Sunday, June 12: The Bellamy Brothers, Terri Clark, Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers, Josh Kelley, LoCash Cowboys, Jerrod Niemann, Troy Olsen, and Sunny Sweeney.

Performance order will be listed on CMAfest.com, the official website of CMA Music Festival, closer to the event. Additional artists will be announced. Artists and dates subject to change.

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Harley Allen photo courtesy of MySpace.com/harleyallenmusic.

GAC extends condolences to the loved ones of singer/songwriter Harley Allen, who died today after fighting lung cancer. Harley came from a musical family; his father was bluegrass artist Red Allen. Harley was an artist on Mercury Records in 1996 and his album Another River contained the song “Between The Devil And Me,” which Alan Jackson recorded a year later.

Harley’s body of work will be enjoyed for years to come. The list of country hits penned by him is long, but includes:

Blake Shelton’s “The Baby”
Alan Jackson’s “Everything I Love” and “The Angels Cried” Continue Reading

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Josh Turner & Laura Bell Bundy clown around on the set of GAC's Top 20 Lovin' and Leavin' Songs.

Whether you’re lovin’ or leavin’ this Valentine’s Day, GAC has the videos for you. We asked you to vote on your favorite love songs and break up songs for a special Top 20 countdown, counting down the top 10 in each category. The results are in! It looks like your favorite song to snuggle up to is Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson’s “Don’t You Wanna Stay,” while Blake Shelton’s “She Wouldn’t Be Gone” is your soundtrack for the lonely side of love.  You can catch the full countdown when Josh Turner and Laura Bell Bundy  host  GAC’s Top 20 Lovin’ & Leavin’ Videos .  Check airtimes here »

You can check out the complete list of results below: 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 2010 based on videos released and added to the GAC playlist from Nov. 1, 2009 to Oct. 31, 2010.

1. Blake Shelton — “Who Are You When I’m Not Looking”
2. Miranda Lambert — “The House That Built Me”
3. Blake Shelton — “All About Tonight”
4. Carrie Underwood — “Mama’s Song”
5. Carrie Underwood — “Temporary Home”
6. Taylor Swift — “Mine”
7. Carrie Underwood — “Undo It”
8. Taylor Swift — “Fearless”
9. Sugarland — “Stuck Like Glue”
10. Lady Antebellum — “American Honey” Continue Reading

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Brooks & Dunn photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

When they first came to national attention with “Brand New Man” in 1991, Brooks & Dunn were an unlikely combo — a couple of guys who moved to Nashville with dreams of becoming solo performers who were sort of glued together by a Music Row executive.

By the time Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn wound it down with the Last Rodeo Tour in 2010, they had become the most commercially successful duo in country music history — better known than Country Music Hall of Famers the Louvin Brothers with more hits than Hall of Famers the Everly Brothers.

The Brooks & Dunn breakup ranks No. 5 as GAC counts down the dozen top stories of the past year.

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Lady Antebellum's Need You Now CD. Photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Billboard.com has just released its year-end charts for 2010. Here are the 50 most popular country albums for the year (based on album sales). Congrats to Lady Antebellum for taking the top spot!

1. Need You Now - Lady Antebellum
2. Fearless – Taylor Swift
3. Speak Now- Taylor Swift
4. Play On – Carrie Underwood
5. The Foundation – Zac Brown Band
6. Lady Antebellum – Lady Antebellum
7. Revolution – Miranda Lambert
8. Wide Open – Jason Aldean
9. Southern Voice – Tim McGraw
10. The Incredible Machine – Sugarland Continue Reading

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Lady Antebellum photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

“Need You Now” lofted Lady Antebellum from a well-regarded band within country music to one that’s recognized across multiple genres, and it already won Single Record and Song of the Year during the Academy of Country Music Awards in April.

With the Country Music Association set to hand out its trophies on Wednesday, “Need You Now” claimed yet another victory Monday when it won Song of the Year from SESAC and — combined with “I Run To You” and “Our Kind Of Love” — earned group member Hillary Scott recognition as the performing-rights organization’s Songwriter of the Year in a black-tie event on Music Row.

SESAC is one of three American PROs, responsible for collecting and distributing money for songwriters, so its recognition is symbolic of just how financially rewarding the song has been.

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