Joe Diffie, Sammy Kershaw & Aaron Tippin’s new album. Photo courtesy of Absolute Publicity.

Aaron Tippin, Joe Diffie and Sammy Kershaw have teamed up release All in the Same Boat, a collaborative album inspired by their current Roots & Boots Tour. The 12-track album will hit stores May 28. It will feature new music as well as a few familiar tracks like Aaron Tippin’s “Kiss This” and Sammy Kershaw’s “She Don’t Know She’s Beautiful.”

“The idea for this album came about after the success of our Roots & Boots Tour,” Sammy Kershaw said. ”Joe and Aaron and I go out together on the road and play and do our hits and the fans go nuts… so we thought, ‘Why not just make this tour an album?’” Continue Reading

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Tate Stevens’ 2013 self-titled debut album. Photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

By Bob Doerschuk

© 2013 CMA Close Up® News Service / Country Music Association®, Inc.

Tate Stevens’ triumph on Season 2 of The X Factor confirms that Country Music is stronger than ever. More important, it heralds the arrival of a performer whose music is in step with what America wants to hear.

Read our review of Tate Stevens’ Self-Titled Debut Album >>

On his self-titled upcoming Syco Music/RCA Nashville debut, Stevens flaunts a raw vocal power. This Missouri native and one-time construction worker has clearly lived the life he sings about. When it comes to connecting to the real world of his fans, this ability to project from real experience can’t be learned in a classroom. Continue Reading

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Tate Stevens’ 2013 self-titled debut album. Photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

A weekend warrior touring when he had a couple days off from his job in construction, Tate Stevens paid some early dues before his career ticked sharply upward in 2012. The second season winner of FOX’s The X Factor, things are moving fast now for the 38-year-old Missouri native as Tate releases his major label debut this week on Tuesday, April 23.

The self-titled project, which was produced by Blake Chancey (Gretchen Wilson, Montgomery Gentry), is an uptempo 11–song set that slides in somewhere between the modernized neo-traditional sounds of Craig Campbell and the hard country, blue-collar attitude of Montgomery Gentry. As he sings confidently on “I Got This” (which Tate co-wrote with his hero “Joe, Joe Joe Diffie“), I’m all about God, our troops and the flag, and on his debut, Tate carves out a niche for himself with a strong, approachable personality.

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Sammy Kershaw

Sammy Kershaw’s Lafayette, Louisiana home sustained heavy smoke damage after a fire broke out in the kitchen on Thursday. Sammy accidentally started the fire when he grabbed cans of homemade spices to deliver to a friend. The box containing the spices slid over the kitchen stove, catching the knobs that ignites the burners. According to Sammy, there were likely flammable items on the stove that caught fire.

Sammy was notified of the blaze through his alarm company and immediately returned home. He threw towels onto the stovetop to help smother the flames. Firefighters arrived at the scene soon after to extinguish the blaze. Continue Reading

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Joe Diffie, Sammy Kershaw & Aaron Tippin.

Joe Diffie, Aaron Tippin and Sammy Kershaw aren’t only going on tour together, they’re recording new music together too! The trio released “All In The Same Boat,” the first single from their upcoming collaborative album, and GAC premiered the music video earlier this week.

In the hilarious clip, Joe, Aaron and Sammy are determined to go fishing, to the dismay of their wives. The three men find themselves ‘in the same boat,’ not only enjoying a fishing trip but also facing three not-so-happy women at home. In the meantime, they enjoy casting a line, drinking a couple of beverages and poking fun at one another.

Watch the video HERE! Continue Reading

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George Jones photo courtesy of Webster PR.

George Jones’ final Nashville concert, set for November 22 at Bridgestone Arena, has expanded once again. Cyndi Lauper, Don McLean and Billy Ray Cyrus have been added to the lineup of the sold-out show. Last week, George announced the additions of Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt, Pam Tillis, Kathy Mattea, Tracy Lawrence, Patty Loveless, Joe Diffie, Mark Chesnutt and T. Graham Brown.

“Now, people may not know this, but I have been a fan of Cyndi’s since I first saw her years ago at the Grammy awards, what a thrill it was to hear she will be part of this final celebration,” George said. “Don McLean and I first met in the ‘70s, here in Nashville, and I love his singing, his songwriting, and I know his performance will be just as special as when I first saw him sing. Billy Ray is an old friend and someone I have spent many times together, bless his heart for wanting to be with me on this show. I love and respect all these singers.” Continue Reading

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George Jones photo courtesy of Webster PR.

George Jones’ final Nashville concert, set for November 22 at Bridgestone Arena, is officially sold out and the lineup keeps getting bigger. Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt, Pam Tillis, Kathy Mattea, Tracy Lawrence, Patty Loveless, Joe Diffie, Mark Chesnutt and T. Graham Brown are the latest additions to concert lineup.

Additionally, Brenda Lee, John Conlee, Lee Greenwood, Eddy Raven, The Roys, Janie Fricke, T.G. Sheppard, Dailey & Vincent, Gary Morris, Jessi Colter, Bobby Bare, Jim Ed Brown, Little Jimmy Dickens, Stonewall Jackson and more will all take the stage during the finale performance. Continue Reading

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Sammy Kershaw

Sammy Kershaw, Aaron Tippin and Joe Diffie have teamed up for the Roots & Boots Tour. The trio will take the stage together to perform acoustic versions of their more than 40 combined Top 10 hit songs. They will also share stories behind the songs and the roots of their music.

“The ‘Roots & Boots’ tour is three friends who love country music having a good time, telling jokes about each other and telling jokes on each other,” Sammy Kershaw said.  ”We tell stories behind all of our songs. It’s a great show, so don’t be square, be there!”

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Tate Stevens photo by Sony Music Nashville.

Tate Stevens, winner of FOX’s The X Factor Season 2, will release his debut album April 23. The self-titled project is produced by Blake Chancey and will include three songs co-written by Tate alongside Joe Diffie, Wade Kirby, Phil O’Donnell, Shane Minor and David Lee Murphy.

“For someone that has dreamt of recording and releasing music for over a decade, to say I’m excited is an understatement,” Tate said. “I feel like the songs we selected for the album are a real reflection of my personality—they range from fun-loving to serious and everything in between.  I’m so proud of this album and can’t wait for the fans to hear it! ” Continue Reading

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Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/Jason_Aldean.

Jason Aldean’s new single, “1994,” is a fun, nostalgic look back at the year Jason was a senior in high school, Joe Diffie had a mullet, Justin Bieber was born, the OJ Simpson trial was headline news and a gallon of gas was $1.09. To celebrate the release of “1994,” Jason took to Twitter to ask fans to submit their photos from 1994. It didn’t take him long to bring his country star friends on board.

Luke Bryan was one of Jason’s first targets. Jason tweeted a school photo of himself from 1994 and asked Luke an important question. “Hey @LukeBryanOnline were ur jeans as tight in #1994 as they are now? I gotta see a pic! Here’s mine. I had a pager!”

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/LukeBryanOnline

In the name of friendship, Luke replied with an answer – and photographic evidence that he too used to wear a cowboy hat! “buddy, I’d say they aren’t as tight but they are just as cool. #1994,” he wrote. 

Jason also reached out to Keith Urban – to thank him for his support and ask for his throwback photo. “Hey @KeithUrban thanks for all the love on the new song. You’ve always had style. Show us your #1994 look!”

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/KeithUrban

Keith was kind enough to reply – with a photo. “I was rockin the oversize thrift store jacket in #1994!!!!!” he tweeted.

Jason revealed some dirt on Dierks Bentley to get him to offer up a photo of his 1994 look. “I heard @DierksBentley was a big Billy Idol fan around #1994 and he had the look to match! I know the ladies would love to see that, DB!” Jason wrote. Continue Reading

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