Carrie Underwood photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Thanksgiving is officially a holiday, but that won’t stop many of country music’s top stars from working while the rest of us eat.

Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and James Otto are a few of the artists who have Turkey Day activities planned. Some of those appearances — including Taylor’s first-ever network special — were already shot. But others, such as Gloriana’s appearance in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, indeed occur in real time.

Here’s a roundup of country-related Thanksgiving stuff:

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Jewel visits with host Nan Kelley on the set of Top 20 Country Countdown. Photo by GAC staff.

Two years ago, Jewel released her first country album, Perfectly Clear, which made her an unintended part of a trend.

Her shift from pop singer-songwriter to country came at the same time that Darius Rucker and Jessica Simpson both attempted that move. Darius went gonzo with four hits from his album Learn To Live, which went platinum and led him to the Country Music Association’s New Artist of the Year award. Jessica never quite connected and moved along to other parts of the entertainment business.

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Jessica Simpson photo courtesy of Sony BMG Nashville.

When Jessica Simpson started promoting her first country album last year, she repeatedly told interviewers she had always been a country singer and she was finally making a commitment to the genre. She went so far last summer as to tell The Tennessean she would make country albums in the future, even if she lost her label deal and had to finance them herself.

Now it appears she has a chance to prove whether she was sincere in that statement or if it was promotional gab. A small blog, Country Music Tattle Tale, pointed out Tuesday that her image and materials were no longer available on the Sony BMG Nashville website. The day was filled with rumors of her departure from country music, and indeed, a publicist told Country Aircheck that she was no longer associated with the label’s country division, though she is still in the fold at Epic Records. Continue Reading

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