Martina McBride photo by Kristin Barlowe, courtesy of Front Page Publicity.

Brad Paisley poked fun at reality-TV stars in his hit “Celebrity” and used “Online” to make fun of a guy who posed as a studly, all-American guy, masking the nerd that he really was.

In 2010, the themes of those two songs collided weirdly in the latest Internet phenomenon: the Twitter fake star. Plenty of people assumed deliberately phony names — Not Kenny Chesney, Drunk Swifty, Rascal Fats, Bobblehead Brad — and used their online mask as a shield while they poked fun at the stars and the music business in general.

One of those fakes put down Jimmy Wayne’s cross-country charity walk from Phoenix to Nashville, and Jimmy got hopping mad about it. Then Jimmy started looking at the faux versions of the stars a little more closely and changed his tune a bit.

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Country music stars sure love Twitter! Here at GAC, we follow them too. Here are our picks for the Top 10 Country Tweets Of The Week! And yes, this week we gave Brad Paisley two spots on the list because he was so darn funny!

Kellie Pickler:  @kelliepickler I love the fact that I can go ANYWHERE in NC and order sweet tea, grits, and fried okra and they won’t look at me like I’m crazy.

Photo courtesy of twitter.com/jamesotto.

James Otto:  @jamesotto I know I’m completely biased cause I’m her dad but have you ever seen a cuter baby?

Lady Antebellum:  @ladyantebellum My new favorite song, Brad Paisley’s “this is country music”. made me swell up with pride to be a country performer and fan. – charles

Jimmy Wayne:  @JimmyWayne For the 1st time in my life I was asked “huh? What did you say, I couldn’t understand YOU” (due to my southern dialect) “I said I like BRUT”

Blake Shelton @blakeshelton Did I drink at my show last night you ask? Continue Reading

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Sara Evans photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Country artists have a reputation for giving back to the community, and plenty of them are reaching out in the weeks and months ahead with benefit concerts and acts of charity.

Sara Evans, Jimmy Wayne, Kenny Chesney and Jo Dee Messina are among the people finding ways to help out. The causes? A children’s hospital, a community-building agency and a Christmas adoption special.

Here are some of the helpful ways country stars are aiding their neighbors:

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Country music stars sure love Twitter! Here at GAC, we follow them too. Here are our picks for the Top 10 Country Tweets Of The Week!

Keith Urban photo courtesy of twitter.com/KeithUrban.

Keith Urban:  @KeithUrban    On my way to Philadelphia. See you soon!

Martina McBride:  @martinamcbride    Why is it so early? John’s turn to take the girls to school. My turn to go back to sleep. This is how you make a marriage work, folks.

Jaron And The Long Road To Love:  @JaronATLRTL    How is possible that cell phone carriers cover 98% of the country and miraculously I spend most of my life in that 2% they don’t.

LeAnn Rimes' shows off a photo of the Christmas tree in her home. Photo courtesy of twitter.com/leannrimes.

LeAnn Rimes:  @leannrimes    It’s Christmas at our house!!

Jimmy Wayne:  @JimmyWayne    Slept on my phone last night & dialed 27 people.. sorry Fedex guy in Showlow AZ ..bet your wife is wondering who kept callN & hangN up 8Xs! Continue Reading

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Garth Brooks photo by Mark Tucker, courtesy of Pearl Records.

The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame added four new people to its rolls Sunday night. They’re four people whose names are more likely to be in parentheses in an album’s liner notes than on a marquee. But without writers such as Paul Davis, Pat Alger, Steve Cropper and Stephen Foster to come up with the words and the melodies, many of the folks with a microphone in their hands would have nothing to sing.

And the artists know it. That’s why Tanya Tucker, Jimmy Wayne, T. Graham Brown and Garth Brooks were among the acts who took part in Sunday’s induction ceremony at the Nashville Renaissance Hotel.

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David Nail photo courtesy of UMG Nashville.

When David Nail played Jonesboro, Ark., this past weekend, he called the date the “hardest show I’ve ever done.” At the same time, it was “the best show we’ve ever done.”

That mix of highs and lows was not a surprise to him. David has a personal history in the area, a bunch of his friends were in the house, and he even predicted to The Daily Dunklin Democrat that “emotions will be running high” when he took the stage.

David hails from Kennett, Mo., which is a mere 50 miles from Jonesboro. And he attended Arkansas State University, where he was performing as the opening act last weekend for Lady Antebellum. It was David’s first show on campus since he broke out nationally, and it had a bit of a full-circle meaning for him. He had sat in the seats at that same concert hall before — in fact, the very first concert he attended as a fan was a 1992 Garth Brooks show in the same building.

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Dierks Bentley photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

When Dierks Bentley booked his Miles & Music For Kids charity motorcycle ride for rainy Seattle, he had to know it was a possibility that the event would get drenched.

That possibility became reality. The city was hit with a heavy downpour last Saturday, but the good folks of Washington State still came out in full force. They raised $50,000 for Seattle Children’s Hospital, as Dierks continues his work for kids charities. Since he established the Music & Miles program in 2006, he’s raised a whopping $1.3 million in all.

“Rainy days aren’t typically when most people are itching to get out the motorcycle for a leisurely afternoon ride,” Dierks says. “But we’ve come to learn over the last few years of putting these rides on that motorcycle riders may look big and bad, but they have a heart of gold, and it would take a lot more than a little rain to deter them.”

Dierks has another Miles & Music date on the horizon, but it’s just one of numerous charity events that country stars are undertaking in the near future. They include:

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(l-r) Brad Tursi, Dave Pahanish, Marcel & Jimmy Wayne in Nashville, TN. Photo by Beth Brinker.

Music City is a town that celebrates the songwriter…especially when it comes to a milestone birthday.

Tuesday, September 7, country artists and friends came out to surprise hit songwriter Dave Pahanish (“American Ride” – Toby Keith, “I Will” – Jimmy Wayne) for his 40th birthday at Third & Lindsley Bar & Grill in Nashville. The stage was a revolving door of talent, with performances by duo Buxton Hughes (Sarah Buxton and Jedd Hughes,) Jonathan Singleton, Brad Tursi, Hugh Mitchell, Eric Paslay, Marcel, Jessica Andrews, Emily West, Jimmy Wayne and more!

Dave’s wife, Kristin Lee Pahanish, had been quietly scheming for weeks while she arranged the superstar guest list of Dave’s friends, fans and artist admirers. One of Dave’s biggest fans is Jimmy, who performed “Sara Smile” and the No. 1 song “Do You Believe Me Now,” also written by Dave.

“He’s so creative and talented and it’s a shame that Dave Pahanish is not out there on the road touring as an amazing superstar,” Jimmy  praised.

Dave and his band, The Rust Belt, rocked the night away. He was humbled by the surprise party-turned-show in his honor.

“I love you all and I’m so honored to call you my friends. Thanks for being a part of one of the best days of my life,” Dave said.

For the play by play of the evening, go to Jimmy Wayne’s Twitter feed. Also, check out Dave’s music on his MySpace page.

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Country music stars sure love Twitter! Here at GAC, we follow them too. Here are our picks for the Top 10 Country Tweets Of The Week!

Jimmy Wayne photo courtesy of https://twitter.com/JimmyWayne.

Jimmy Wayne: @JimmyWayne    G’am! (see photo above)

Jerrod Niemann: @jrodfromoz    I wish I was a cyclops, then I’d only have to rub one dry ass eye this morning.

Blake Shelton: @blakeshelton  Sooo.. If anyone finds a lanky/beer belly-ish looking guy with more salt than pepper hair passed out behind the Ryman tonight.. Wake me up!

Craig Morgan:  @cmorganmusic  Next week I’m in NC doing a turkey hunt and a free fall jump

Kellie Pickler: @kelliepickler   Watching “Date Night” on my bus. Love Steve Carrell and Tina Fey. Continue Reading

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Jimmy Wayne at the moment he crossed the finish line, August 1, 2010, on his 1,700 mile Meet Me Halfway campaign. Photo courtesy of The Valory Music Co.

When most people consider the connection between a boot and country music, they usually have a western cut in mind. But when Jimmy Wayne finished his 1,700-mile Meet Me Halfway walk on Sunday, the boot he wore came not from a leather manufacturer but from the doctor’s office.

Jimmy reached HomeBase Youth Services in Phoenix Sunday, concluding a walk he started exactly seven months earlier in Nashville with the specific goal of bringing awareness to the plight of teens who age out of the foster-care system and end up living on the streets. The journey lasted much longer than he expected, but with the finish line in sight, he picked up the pace last week, walking 20.5 miles in a single day.

Alas, walking down the side of a mountain just east of Phoenix, he apparently fractured his right ankle, heightening the storyline to an already dramatic effort. The foot swelled up while he was walking Friday, and he used trash bags to pack ice around the injury.

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