Sawyer Brown photo courtesy of Webster & Associates.

Sawyer Brown has partnered with world-renowned child advocacy organization, Compassion International, to fight child poverty around the world. The band hopes to inspire fans to sponsor children through Compassion International and will travel with the organization in early 2012 to see the work they are a part of first-hand.

“I always want to be a good steward of the many blessings God has given me,” Mark Miller, lead singer for Sawyer Brown, said. “Being involved with Compassion International will give me the opportunity to give back.”

Compassion International is the world’s largest Christian child development organization that permanently releases children from poverty. Formed in 1952, Compassion has served more than 1.2 million children in 26 of the world’s poorest countries and works with churches to address the individual physical, economic, educational and spiritual needs of children.

“The guys of Sawyer Brown are known for their big hearts, throughout the country music industry and around the world,” Zane King, Artist Relations Regional Director for Compassion International, said. “What a privilege to have them as part of our Compassion team.” Continue Reading

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Rodney Atkins photo courtesy of Curb Nashville.

Chevy: The Official Ride of Country Music will help kick off the 2010 CMA Music Festival on June 9 with “The Sixth Annual CMA Music Festival Kick-Off Parade” at 11:30 a.m. Central through the streets of downtown Nashville.

Brenda Lee will serve as Grand Marshal and other artists participating in the parade include Lynn Anderson, Katie Armiger, Rodney Atkins, The Band Perry, Bo Bice, Ash Bowers, Carter Twins, Jeff Cook, Diana DeGarmo, Fast Ryde, Colt Ford, Brantley Gilbert, Gloriana, Josh Gracin, The Grascals, The Harters, Buddy Jewell, KingBilly, Jesse Lee, LoCash Cowboys, Lonestar, Jerrod Niemann, James Otto, Danielle Peck, Point of Grace, Marty Raybon, Pam Tillis, Trent Tomlinson, and Chuck Wicks. Members of the National Guard will drive artists along the parade route in Chevy vehicles, including the all new 2011 Silverado HD and the Military Specialty Camaro. Continue Reading

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Lady Antebellum on stage at the Ryman Auditorium during the Music City Keep On Playin' benefit concert. Photo credit: Photo by Ed Rode/edrode.biz.

The stars came out in a big way, as did a number of companies and the American people when GAC presented Music City Keep On Playin’ — A Benefit For Flood Relief.

Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum and Dierks Bentley were among the artists who delivered nearly 20 songs during Sunday’s three-hour live special from Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. The event raised more than $1.7 million as of midnight CT and counting.

Music City Keep On Playin’ was the first national fundraiser organized to aid victims of a devastating flood that engulfed much of Nashville two weeks ago. In a scant 48 hours, the city took in over 13 inches of rain, more than the Middle Tennessee ground could absorb. The Cumberland River swelled over its banks, damaging some of the city’s landmarks, including the Grand Ole Opry House, LP Field, Bridgestone Arena and the Country Music Hall of Fame.

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Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox (l) and Marty Raybon at the 2010 Country Radio Seminar on February 24 in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Wendy Newcomer.

With the release of his new album, At His Best, Marty Raybon finds himself at a unique point in life. The CD, released Tuesday, is stocked with songs that grapple with the transitions one encounters as time moves ahead. On Saturday, he’ll travel back in time, a bit, when his old band Shenandoah performs together for the first time in a dozen years.

Much of the album adheres to the changing nature of life and the ways people try to cope. The first single, “Daddy Phone,” struggles with the realignment of a family after a divorce. Other songs recognize the maturing of a son into adulthood, the dreaded mid-life transition and the ultimate segue, the end of life.

Not that Marty intended for At His Best to have a transitional theme when he started working on it.

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Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox (l) and Marty Raybon at the 2010 Country Radio Seminar on February 24 in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Wendy Newcomer.

A mass of performers descended on downtown Nashville last week during the Country Radio Seminar to thank programmers for playing their music — and to remind the radio folks that there’s more music on the way. One guy who benefited greatly from that opportunity was former Shenandoah vocalist Marty Raybon, who not only got a last-minute moment on a big stage but also picked up some unexpected appreciation in the room.

Marty’s got a new album, At His Best, slated for release this spring, so he showed up at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel to do interviews and greet people at the record company’s suite. But CRS also turned into a sort of old-home week as he ran into a bunch of executives that he worked with regularly when Shenandoah was on RCA in the 1990s. One of those execs, Dale Turner, told Marty that his buddies in Rascal Flatts were doing a tenth-anniversary show, and the wheels started turning.

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Rascal Flatts at the 2010 Country Radio Seminar on February 24 in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Wendy Newcomer.

Traditionally, one might give a gift of aluminum and tin to celebrate a 10th wedding anniversary. But to celebrate the decade-long union between the multi-platinum Rascal Flatts and country radio, only a custom Rascal Flatts 10-year commemorative Les Paul guitar would do. Gary LeVox, Jay DeMarcus and Joe Don Rooney gathered in the Grand Ballroom of Nashville’s Renaissance Hotel during the Country Radio Seminar on Wednesday, Feb. 26, to relive the band’s favorite memories with country radio and thank them for their support.

“We have so many friends we’ve made over the last 10 years,” said Jay from the stage, “and it’s so humbling to be here 10 years later. We never dreamed we’d be able to experience some of the things we’ve experienced – and it’s all because of you guys. When we first came to your radio stations, we were so green and we had no idea what lay ahead. Ten years later, all we have to say is, ‘Thank you’ – sincerely, from the bottom of our hearts.”

The band followed up their heartfelt speeches with a humorous walk down memory lane, including a slide show of their early gigs. Both band and audience got a kick out of seeing photos of Rascal Flatts playing a mattress store opening and a joint called Bub’s Burgers.

After the group played their debut single, “Prayin’ For Daylight,” they said they wanted to play the first song they ever officially performed under the name Rascal Flatts — the Shenandoah 1989 No. 1, “Church On Cumberland Road.” Just before the song began, Shenandoah’s lead singer, Marty Raybon, walked onstage. Continue Reading

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Bridgette Tatum photo courtesy of Route Forty-Nine Records.

The Country Radio Seminar is a tough nut for a new artist to crack. Between the official performances, the unofficial side events and general hanging about by the genre’s stars, an attendee can catch the likes of Alan Jackson, John Rich, Rascal Flatts, Taylor Swift, Craig Morgan or Darius Rucker. How does an artist who hasn’t even released an album get some attention?

In the case of Bridgette Tatum, working her feisty single “(I Like My) Cowboys Dirty,” you rename the hotel’s Bridge Bar as the Bridgette Bar. You slap your video on the club’s screens, throw over-sized banners along the glass walls, set out Bridgette Tatum placards on all the tables and put the waitresses in “(I Like My) Cowboys Dirty” T-shirts — or, better put, dirty T-shirts. Not enough? It helps that your record company is owned in part by NASCAR driver Ryan Newman — bring him in to race in a video game with guests and promise attendees you have a special “Dirty” drink just for them.

Bridgette’s already started making a name for herself as a co-writer of the massive Jason Aldean power-chord special “She’s Country,” but even with those credentials, CRS is a tough sell. She wasn’t even the only artist in the Bridgette Bar on Wednesday night. You could spot former Shenandoah vocalist Marty Raybon, newcomer Katie Armiger and even much-publicized Mindy McCready. And Kix Brooks might well have been headed for the Bridgette Bar when he rolled into the lobby of the Renaissance Nashville Hotel around 11 p.m.

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Miranda Lambert photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Christmas time’s a-comin’, to quote a song made famous by the late Bill Monroe. In fact, the big day is almost here. And just as country fans will be celebrating the holidays, so will the genre’s most familiar artists, including Miranda Lambert, Sugarland, Alan Jackson, Montgomery Gentry and Brad Paisley.

Whether it’s decorating trees, hiding presents, singing carols or watching ‘A Christmas Story,’ the stars’ plans for December — and their memories of holidays past — are probably a lot like yours.

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Taylor Swift photo courtesy of Big Machine Records.

The American Music Awards! The Musicians Hall of Fame! The CMA Broadcast Awards! The Inspirational Country Music Awards!

Another wave of awards news rolled in this week. As always (unless Kanye West is involved), that means something good for Taylor Swift. This time around is no exception: Taylor snagged a total of six nominations Tuesday in the American Music Awards, putting her ahead of Michael Jackson, Eminem and a gaggle of pop and rock stars in the all-genre competition.

Taylor entertained her way into the Pop or Rock Music field and the Adult Contemporary category in addition to garnering expected country tabs. The Zac Brown Band snared a pair of country nods plus a nomination for T-Mobile Breakthrough Artist. Rascal Flatts was also a double nominee for the show, which airs on ABC Nov. 22.

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