All posts tagged "Pam Tillis"

Dierks Bentley photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

No, they’re not leaving their “day jobs” as country artists, but Dierks Bentley, Pam Tillis and Jim Lauderdale will moonlight as deejays for Nashville’s legendary radio station, 650 AM WSM. On March 15 the station will kick off a series of new midday shows hosted by various award-winning artists. 

The three weekly one-hour shows hosted by Dierks, Pam and Jim will air Monday – Wednesday at 2 p.m. CT.  The shows can also be heard online at http://www.wsmonline.com/ or as podcasts via iTunes.

You’re not likely to hear a strict “Top 40″-type playlist on the shows — these will be songs that the artists want to play, so expect a nice mix of country, bluegrass and Americana music. There may also be in-studio guests and jam sessions. Continue Reading

Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Nearly three weeks after a Jan. 12 earthquake destroyed large swatches of Haiti, the response from country music’s community is heartening. Keith Urban, Taylor Swift, Pam Tillis, Big Kenny, Restless Heart and Toby Keith are just some of the artists who found ways to get involved.

They’ve donated their time, their voices and their money, and in one particular instance, one unintended result was a confirmation that the recording industry has crossed a barrier as it continues to evolve in the digital age. Taylor and Keith were both featured on the multi-network special Help For Haiti Now, which was immediately released as a digital-only album. It quickly sold more than 170,000 copies and came in at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 all-genre albums chart. It marks the first time in history that the top album in the country could not be purchased in a physical format.

Here’s a summary of the ways country stars have reached out to help:

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Tim McGraw photo by Danny Clinch, courtesy of Curb Records.

#10 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 |  View all »

You can count on seeing country music in certain places on television. It’s a 24/7 proposition on GAC. And the daily talk shows — including “The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien” and “The Late Show With David Letterman” — obviously need a good smattering of country acts to fill out the music slots on their programs.

But country artists did an excellent job in 2009 in grabbing a larger share of acting roles and musical moments on TV and in the movies. Led by Tim McGraw’s part as Sandra Bullock’s husband in The Blind Side, by Taylor Swift’s TV acting debut on “CSI” and by the bevy of country stars who appeared on the platinum soundtrack to Hannah Montana: The Movie, the genre was well represented in the visual media in the last 12 months.

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Photo courtesy of Tracy Byrd.

At least three years after shooting began, the independent movie that gave Lee Ann Womack and Tracy Byrd their first significant acting roles debuts this weekend in a limited number of public theaters.

It premieres Friday , KBMT-TV reported, in Beaumont, Texas, where much of the film was shot. It was featured earlier this year in the Nashville Film Festival and has also screened at the Austin Film Festival.

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