Dwight Yoakam photo by Cambria Harkey, courtesy of New West Records.

Dwight Yoakam, Aaron Lewis, Easton Corbin, Casey James, Sara Jean Kelley, THE FARM, The MyClymonts, The Roys, and Thomas Rhett have been added to the Country Thunder lineup. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Country Thunder will take place July 19-22 in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin. Big & Rich, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton and Toby Keith have been announced as headlining acts.

Fans can purchase a 4-day pass to the festival for $120 at www.countrythunder.com or by phone at (866) 802-6418 through March 30. Single tickets will go on sale April 1. Campsites are also available, starting as low as $100 for the entire weekend. Camping and amenity add-ons can be purchased online. Continue Reading

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Country music stars sure love Twitter! This week, Hank Williams Jr. shares one of his favorite photos, Blake Shelton reveals a bittersweet lesson he learned, Chris Young celebrates his ACM nominations, Martina McBride resists a household chore and Sarah Darling takes cover. Here are our picks for the Top 10 Country Tweets Of The Week.

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/hankjr.

Hank Williams Jr. – HankJr: Just came across this pic, such an honor to be on stage with these ol’ boys

Blake Shelton – BlakeShelton: There’s one thing I’ve learned this week… The only thing that’s stronger than a broken heart is opening your heart. I love you dad…

Chris Young – ChrisYoungMusic: Holy crap!!!!! 2 ACM nom’s?!?! Are you freaking kidding me!! #thisisagreatmorning

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/kelliepickler.

Kellie Pickler – KelliePickler: Me & my gang! #NYwillneverbethesame Continue Reading

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Luke Bryan photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Luke Bryan recorded his fourth No. 1 single this week when “I Don’t Want This Night To End” hit the top of the charts. Luke co-wrote the track with fellow Georgia natives Rhett Akins, Dallas Davidson and Ben Hayslip. The song is Luke’s fastest rising single to date and has sold over 1 million downloads, to be certified platinum.

“I Don’t Want This Night To End” also broke the record for the highest audience of any No. 1 single this year with 40 million audience impressions this week. The single follows up his last No. 1 and platinum-certified single, “Country Girl (Shake It For Me).” Luke spent the weekend playing the song for fans as a special guest on Jason Aldean’s sold-out My Kinda Party Tour, which kicked off Friday Night in Greenville, South Carolina.

“I thought ‘Country Girl (Shake It For Me)’ was going to be hard to beat in my shows but watching over 16,000 people jumping with their hands in the air last night just blew me away,” Luke said. “Thank you to radio and the country music fans for continuing to let me have fun with my music. I’m having a blast!” Continue Reading

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Luke Bryan & Eric Church.

Luke Bryan and Eric Church will headline the Fremont Street Experience during ACM Awards Weekend March 30-31. Luke will headline Friday, March 30, and Eric on March 31. The concerts will be part of ‘The Week Vegas Goes Country’  leading up to the 47^th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards.

For the sixth year in a row, the ACM will hold free and open-to-the-public concerts starting at 6:30 p.m. on two stages in downtown Las Vegas. The weekend-long party is sponsored by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and features performances by headliners and emerging artists. Show times, additional performers and stage locations will be announced soon. Continue Reading

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 Top 20 Country Countdown is all new tonight as host Nan Kelley counts down the videos you chose from 20 all the way to 1! Last Week, Taylor Swift’s latest video, “Ours,” topped the charts, with videos from Scotty McCreery, Kellie Pickler, Chris Young and Luke Bryan and rounding out the Top 5. Does Taylor hang on to the top spot? Tune in tonight at 9/8 CT — the new Top 20 air time — to find out. Check the full schedule of all airtimes »

If you missed a few episodes of Top 20 or want to watch some of your favorite interviews again, head over to our Top 20 section for videos, photos and more! You can also catch a few Top 20 Extras, cast your votes, and take a look at the current Top 20 chart to see where your favorite videos land. Visit Top 20! >>

Remember, GAC’s Top 20 Country Countdown is chosen by you, the viewers. Make sure to head over to our voting page and cast your votes daily for your favorite videos!

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After taking a few weeks off to celebrate the holidays, Top 20 Country Countdown is back with the first countdown of 2012! Scotty McCreery’s “The Trouble With Girls” was enjoying a run at No. 1 with Kellie Pickler’s “Tough,” Luke Bryan’s “I Don’t Want This Night to End,” and Chris Young’s “You” nipping at his heels when we left off in 2011. Will Scotty keep the top spot or will someone else claim the title? Tune in tonight at 9/8 CT — the new Top 20 air time — to count down the Top 20 videos of the week with host Nan Kelley! Check the full schedule of all airtimes »

If you missed a few episodes of Top 20 or want to re-watch some of your favorite interviews, head over to our Top 20 section for videos, photos and more! You can also catch a few Top 20 Extras, cast your votes, and take a look at the current Top 20 chart to see where your favorite videos land. Visit Top 20! >>

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Luke Bryan photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Faith Hill, Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, and Zac Brown Band have been added to the lineup for the Nightly Concerts at LP Field during this year’s CMA Music Festival. Jason Aldean, The Band Perry and Carrie Underwood were previously announced as performers. This year’s CMA Fest will take place June 7-10 in Nashville.

Faith will be returning to the CMA Fest stage for the first time since 2008 after debuting her current single, “Come Home,” on the CMA Awards, while Eric will be making his LP Field debut. Fans can purchase tickets through Ticketmaster at Ticketmaster.com or 1-(800)-745-3000. They can also purchase them by calling 1-(800)-CMA-FEST (262-3378). Continue Reading

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Jerrod Niemann photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Jerrod Niemann is celebrating the start of 2012 with his first platinum single for his hit “Lover, Lover,” after the song sold more than one million copies. The No. 1 song is from his chart-topping album Judge Jerrod & The Hung Jury, which also features the Top 5 and gold-certified hit, “What Do You Want.”

“To have a platinum single is mind-blowing,” Jerrod said. “It’s just truly a dream come true for me. To know that people have thought ‘Man, I care about this enough to own it,’ whether it’s to get over somebody or just to ignore the words and kick your shoes off in the sun, it doesn’t matter. It’s just amazing to me.”

Jerrod isn’t the only country star starting the New Year off with new wall bling. Dierks Bentley’s “Am I The Only One,” the lead single from his new album, Home, which will be released February 7, was certified gold after more than 500,000 downloads. Continue Reading

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Luke Bryan photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville; Blake Shelton photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton topped the list of dance club hits in 2011, according to the Marco Club Connection’s 8^thannual ranking of Country dance favorites.

Every December, the Nashville-based company surveys a panel of nearly 250 club owners, DJs and dance instructors from across the country to compile its rankings. Overall votes by the panel determine each song’s placement on the list.

“The added emphasis on dance in the music videos for this year’s top club hits was hugely popular with club DJs and choreographers,” says Club Connection Manager of Venue Marketing, Bobbe Morhiser.  “By featuring dancers and dance clubs in the videos, these records leave a lasting connection with fans that dancing and Country music are a natural match.”

The 2011 Marco Club Connection Top Ten Country Dance Club Hits are:

1. Luke Bryan – “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)”  

2. Blake Shelton – “Footloose” 

3. Big & Rich – “Fake ID”

4. Blake Shelton – “Honey Bee”

5. Gloriana – “Wanna Take You Home” 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 2011 based on videos released and added to the GAC playlist from Nov. 1, 2010 to Oct. 31, 2011.

1. Blake Shelton — “God Gave Me You”
2. Jason Aldean w/Kelly Clarkson — “Don’t You Wanna Stay”
3. Keith Urban — “Without You”
4. Jason Aldean — “Dirt Road Anthem”
5. Brad Paisley & Carrie Underwood — “Remind Me”
6. Blake Shelton — “Honey Bee”
7. Lady Antebellum — “Just A Kiss”
8. Alan Jackson — “Long Way To Go”
9. Scotty McCreery — “I Love You This Big”
10. Trace Adkins — “Just Fishin’” Continue Reading

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