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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Blake Shelton & Miranda Lambert on the cover of Us Weekly. Photo courtesy of Us Weekly.

There was more than one Royal Wedding in 2011. The world’s eyes may have been on Prince William and Kate Middleton, but the May 14^th wedding of Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert were the nuptials that had country fans buzzing. The couple tied the knot at the Don Strange Ranch in Texas in front of 550 friends and family. The guest list included  Reba McEntire, Cee Lo Green, MartinaMcBride , Dierks Bentley, Lady Antebellum‘s Charles Kelly and the Bellamy Brothers.

Miranda chose to wear her mother’s dress for the ceremony. “My parents have been married for 33 years, so this dress is already a good-luck charm,” she told Us Weekly. Under the dress, Miranda wore custom-made Casadei cowboy boots. She changed into a shorter dress for the reception. Her bridesmaids wore Old Gringo boots and custom-made gowns by Priscilla of Boston’s Mark Bower.

The wedding was full of personal touches by the bride and groom. As the wedding party took their places, Blake sang a song he’d written for the wedding, called “Let’s Grow Old Together.” Bridesmaid and fellow Pistol Annie member Ashley Monroe sang “Makin’ Plans,” a song Miranda wrote for Blake that appears on her Revolution album. “I was thinking about not crying, then when I got close, I didn’t think of anyone else,” Miranda told Us Weekly. “It was just me and Blake.”

Browse photos from some of Blake and Miranda’s most memorable moments »

Even Blake couldn’t hold back the tears on his wedding day. He became emotional when Miranda’s dad, Rick, gave her away. “I couldn’t get over how beautiful she was,” Blake told the magazine.

“Blake is a jokester,” Miranda said, “but he was really serious when he said his vows.” But Blake couldn’t be entirely serious. Within his vows, the pastor included “to put Miranda before hunting,” causing the guests to erupt into laughter. Continue Reading

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Big & Rich photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

Country Thunder is gearing up to celebrate its 20^th anniversary and has announced the lineup for the festival, which takes place July 19-22 in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin. Big & Rich, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton and Toby Keith have been announced as the four headlining acts.

The festival will kick off with Big & Rich headlining Thursday night’s show along with special guest The Farm. Friday night, Jason Aldean is scheduled as the headliner, bringing along tour mate Luke Bryan. Wade Bowen and Steve Holy will also perform Friday night and on Saturday, Blake Shelton takes over headlining duties. Toby Keith will close down the festival on Sunday night, along with performances by Hunter Hayes, Neal McCoy and Brantley Gilbert. Additional artists will be announced soon.

Through January 1, 2012, fans can purchase a 4-day pass for $99. A campsite can be purchased as well, beginning at $100 for the entire weekend. Tickets, camping, and amenity add-ons can all be purchased online at www.countrythunder.com or by phone at (866) 802-6418. Visit www.countrythunder.com or www.facebook.com/countrythunderusa for updated concert lineups, ticket information and more.

In related Big & Rich news, check out their Christmas special tonight on GAC! Christmas In The Black Hills airs Monday, Dec. 12 at 8/7c and also features Thompson Square, Bradley Gaskin, Tracy Lawrence, Andy Gibson, and new trio The Farm. Continue Reading

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Blake Shelton photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

Three-time GRAMMY® nominated artist Blake Shelton is setting sail with some of his country music friends on the “Blake Shelton & Friends Cruise” from October 14-21, 2012. Adding to the already previously-announced acts, Trace Adkins, Easton Corbin and Neal McCoy are Lee Brice, Randy Houser, Justin Moore and Jerrod Niemann. The “Blake Shelton & Friends Cruise” is a seven-day cruise to the Caribbean on board the Norwegian Cruise Lines “Pearl.” For more information on the cruise, visit www.BlakeSheltonCruise.com.

And in a recent development, Flying Dutchmen Travel is pleased to announce that due to a redeployment of ships in their fleet, the Norwegian Cruise Lines are substituting the Norwegian “Pearl” in place of the original ship the “Jewel.” The upgrade will treat guests to one of the cruise lines’ newest ships and includes an array of luxurious improvements. All original cabin reservations will be automatically transferred.

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Neal McCoy photo courtesy of Webster & Assoc.

Neal McCoy released his new single, “A-Ok,” for download at all digital retailers today. The first single from his upcoming album, XII, produced by Blake Shelton,  Miranda Lambert and Brent Rowan, “A-Ok” is the song Neal had been searching for.

“Everybody wants to find that song that hits the sweet spot, which is pretty much them, but everybody else, too,” he said. “I think I finally found that song!” Continue Reading

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Neal McCoy returns to his former job as shoe salesman on GAC's Day Jobs.

Before Neal McCoy made his mark in the country music industry, he was a shoe salesman specializing in women’s footwear. In the latest episode of GAC’s Day Jobs, Neal returns to his former 9-5 lifestyle  to see if he still has what it takes. The episode premieres on October 16 at 8/7 CT.

On Day Jobs, today’s top country stars return to their former day jobs to see if they can still cut it in the occupations that once helped make ends meet as they dreamed of the spotlight. They discover just how far they’ve come and realize just how much those early jobs helped shape their lives today.

Neal spent three years working as a shoe salesmen at a local department store before his music career took off. It was the first place he came into contact with the general public. “It’s good grooming for you,” he said. “In the music business, you have to deal with different folks every day, different personalities all the time.” Continue Reading

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Neal McCoy photo courtesy of Webster & Assoc.

Neal McCoy has been a busy man! In the next three months, Neal will release two new projects. In November, DPTV Media will release a concert CD and DVD collaboration that pairs Neal with Les Brown Jr. and his Band of Renown. Music of Your Life with Les Brown Jr. and His Band of Renown, Starring Neal McCoy, and Special Guests Charley Pride and Janie Fricke will be released November 8 and will include a 13-song CD and 21-song DVD.

In January, Neal will release an album called XII. Produced by Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton and Brent Rowan, this will be Neal’s 12^th studio album and his first on his new label home, Blaster Records. His first single from the album, “A-OK,” written by Barry Dean, Luke Laird and Brett Eldredge, will be released this month.

“My DPTV project with Les Brown gave me the opportunity to do something I always wanted to do, sing with horns and a Big Band,” Neal said. “And I’d like to do more of that. Having Miranda and Blake involved in ‘XII’, the first project at my new label, Blaster Records, is huge for me. Not only do they have great vision, but they know when to have fun and when to get serious along with being fantastic musicians. I’m so excited about everything that’s coming up.” Continue Reading

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Trace Adkins on the set of Day Jobs.

Before the hit songs, awards and thousands of screaming fans, country stars held day jobs just like those who love their music. In Day Jobs, an original series premiering on Sunday, October 2 at 8 PM/ET, several of today’s top stars step away from the stage lights and put in a full day’s work the way they did before they made it big.

Each one-hour episode of Day Jobs follows three stars as they work a shift in a variety of jobs ranging from offshore oil rig roughneck to cattle rancher, women’s shoe salesman, pilot and waitress. As they work, they realize just how far they’ve come and how those early jobs helped shaped their life today.

Every participant agreed to put in a full eight-hour day and some had to undergo additional training. Before Trace Adkins returned to his former job as a roughneck on an offshore oil rig, he had to spend a day in safety training. Joe Nichols had to become certified to drive a forklift before spending a day loading pallets and filling orders in a warehouse. Continue Reading

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GAC asked you, the fans, to help us pick the Top 50 Videos of the ’90s and all this week host Neal McCoy counted  them down! Here’s the final list — we hope each song title brings back lots of good memories! See the re-air times for the series HERE.  Check out the list below and leave us a comment to tell us about your favorite video from the ’90s.

GAC’s Top 50 Videos of the ’90s: Continue Reading

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Tim McGraw in his 1994 video, "Indian Outlaw."

Tim McGraw’s “Indian Outlaw” came in at No. 49 on GAC’s Top 50 Videos of the ’90s and with good reason. In the video, directed by Sherman Halsey, a long-haired Tim is center stage for most of it, performing the song - with some killer dance moves – while couples tear up the dance floor around him. In other scenes, he takes off on a motorcycle, a female friend along for the ride. The song was a Top 10 hit for Tim in 1994, but if producer James Stroud had had his way, the song would have never been recorded.

“I hated that song,” James told GAC. “I told Tim not to cut that song. I begged him not to cut it. He said, ‘Look it’s my career, I’ll cut it, let’s cut it.’ So I cut it. I thought it was the worst thing in the world. Of course we fought about it. He said I want it for the first single anyway. The bottom line was, we went and did this song. We worked on it as hard as we could.”

James ate his words when the song became a hit – in more ways than one. “We put the record out,” he said. “I told him it wasn’t going to be a hit. I was absolutely wrong. The thing blew up. And of course he has this big, huge hit called “Indian Outlaw” now. Then I realized, after all this, that I published it. So, I really like it now.”

Check out the video below Continue Reading

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