Josh Kelley (l) and his brother, Lady Antebellum's Charles Kelley. Josh Kelley photo courtesy of Prima PR; Charles Kelley photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Most diehard Lady Antebellum fans know that Hillary Scott’s mother is singer Linda Davis. But Lady A’s Charles Kelley comes from a musical family too. His brother Josh had a debut pop hit in 2003 with “Amazing” and another Top 10  in 2005 with “Only You.”

Now Josh is coming over to the country. Record label UMG — home to Sugarland, Josh Turner, Lee Ann Womack and Jamey Johnson — announced that Josh signed a record deal with them in September and currently in the studio recording his forthcoming album, due in 2010.

“Universal is a perfect home for me and my music,” says Josh. “They have an awesome track record of allowing artists to be who they really are, and have already been so supportive of my new music. I’m stoked to be part of such a talented group of artists and staff.”

Prior to marrying his wife, Grey’s Anatomy actress Katherine Heigl, Josh made his home in Nashville.

Joe Nichols recently visited troops on US military bases in Kuwait and Iraq. His trip was filmed for the GAC special, Joe Nichols: My Military Diary, premiering Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009 at 10 p.m. Eastern.

Joe Nichols spent a week this summer singing for American troops in the Middle East, and the good vibes from that trip are getting coverage on GAC, in the special Joe Nichols: My Military Diary.

Joe made some new friends on his overseas visit, and he was particularly impressed by the dedication the service men and women demonstrate on a daily basis. Their lives are on the line every hour, and they’re forced to be away from home for months at a time during their tour of duty.

Joe wishes a few more of his fellow entertainers would leave their homeland long enough to brighten things for the troops on assignment.

“I’m kind of embarrassed that a lot of very successful country music artists that don’t need the money right now, that are doing very well, haven’t even sniffed the possibility of goin’ to Iraq or Afghanistan,” he says. “Why not? It takes two weeks of your time, it doesn’t cost you a dime, what you get out of it is worlds of appreciation — and who doesn’t want that?”

Joe’s not disparaging their success — or country stars’ well-known dedication to doing charity work. He’d just like to see a little more of that be directed toward the people who make the biggest sacrifices to ensure the climate at home that allows country performers to tour and prosper.

“Be cool over here, have hit records and everything like that,” Joe continues. “But take two weeks, for cryin’ out loud… We talk about charities that are popular over here, and I think they’re convenient sometimes, but I can’t think of a better charity right now than going over and saving some thousands of troops from a little bit of misery.”

Joe Nichols: My Military Diary encores on GAC at 10 p.m. ET on Monday and 2 a.m. ET on Tuesday.

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill arrive on the Red Carpet for "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards," on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009, live from the Sommet Center in Nashville on the ABC Television Network.Photographer: Jim Hagans / CMA.

The much-talked-about movie The Blind Side, in which Tim McGraw plays the husband of Sandra Bullock, finally hits theaters on Friday. Tim was at first reticent to get involved in a film that would have him play the father of a high school football player. That is, he reasoned, the same kind of role he had in the picture Friday Night Lights.

But when Tim read the script and realized how powerful the movie could become, he changed his mind. It certainly helped that he felt a kinship to his character, whose wife has the same kind of strength that Tim’s wife, Faith Hill, exerts in his real-life family.

“In our family, my wife Faith Hill is very much in control of our life,” he told Parade magazine. “She works out everybody’s schedule. I wouldn’t be able to function without her. So I can totally relate to a wife like that, and I feel that it is a blessing for me because I would be a mess without her giving me that kind of structure.”

Music remains Tim’s primary interest, though he’s taken on more acting jobs and has expressed a long-term interest in politics. Nonetheless, his biggest current career expansion is one that’s still firmly connected to his first vocation.

“My songwriting used to suck,” he conceded. “After 18 years that I’ve been touring and recording so many songs, I think I’ve gotten to a point in my life where I feel like I’ve garnered enough knowledge to sit down and write some music. I think that’s the next progression in my career, I’ve started writing more and recording more songs that I write.”

Tim kicks off the next segment of his Southern Voice Tour Feb. 11 in Omaha with Lady Antebellum and the Lost Trailers on the bill. Two months later, the Trailers’ slot in the lineup will be taken over by Love And Theft.

Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

The dust has barely settled here in Nashville from last week’s 43rd Annual CMA Awards Show and here we go again, sort of…

The 2009 American Music Awards will air this Sunday, November 22 at 8 p.m. CT on ABC LIVE from the NOKIA Theatre in L.A.  The AMA’s honor artists in the categories of Pop/Rock, Country, Rap/Hip-Hop, Soul/R&B, Alternative, Adult Contemporary, Latin and Contemporary Inspirational.   For the third year in a row, the winners are determined by fan voting.  Voting has already closed for all the major categories with the exception of the “Breakthrough Artist Award.”  Fans that want to show their love of country can vote for Gloriana in this category all the way up until show time.

Both Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban are slated to perform during the show which will also feature marquee performances by artists like Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston, Jay-Z, Daughtry, Green Day and more.

Here is a complete list of all the categories that have a country tie or fall directly into the country category:

ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Kings of Leon
Taylor Swift
Lady Gaga
Eminem
Michael Jackson

POP/ROCK – Favorite Female Artist
Beyonce
Lady Gaga
Taylor Swift

COUNTRY – Favorite Male Artist
Jason Aldean
Darius Rucker
Keith Urban

COUNTRY – Favorite Female Artist
Reba McEntire
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

COUNTRY – Favorite Band, Duo or Group
Rascal Flatts
Sugarland
Zac Brown Band

COUNTRY – Favorite Album
Unstoppable – Rascal Flatts
Fearless – Taylor Swift
Foundation – Zac Brown Band

SOUNDTRACKS – Favorite Album
Hannah Montana: The Movie
Hannah Montana 3
Twilight Soundtrack

You can find a complete list of all the featured categories, nominees and performers at the official American Music Awards website »

Who do you think will take home the big AMA Awards in the country categories?  Let me know and let another round of debates begin!

John has not historically recorded a lot of collaborations so this record was a bit of an exception for him.  In fact, he has never put a song out with another artist’s name under the title.

John had this to say in a recent interview with Access Hollywood, “I don’t normally make records to share tracks with people. I’ve never had somebody’s name underneath the title of my song and I couldn’t be happier that she’s on there.”    John said he considers Taylor a friend, noting, “I think she’s a really remarkable person and it’ll be nice to have her name on the record for the rest of my life.”

John went on to say that he thinks it’s “totally sweet” that “Taylor Swift is the last person to know she’s Taylor Swift.”  He elaborates, “It’s almost like Taylor Swift is like a character in a movie about a small town girl who has her dreams come true and what any small town girl would do when their dreams come true is to freak out.  I still like it that she freaks out, but pretty soon she’s gonna have to stop because it’s sort of like, ‘You’re that good. You’re that good. You might have to go to therapy and have someone else tell you you’re that good.’” He adds, “It’s great to have someone who’s hugely talented and still is able to receive the pleasure in all moments.”

The album is currently sitting at #1 in the “Rock” category at Amazon.com and #5 overall.

Lee Ann Womack photo courtesy of MCA Nashville. Photo credit Danny Clinch.

The King of Country Music George Strait has added award-wining and platinum recording artist Lee Ann Womack to his previously announced arena tour with Entertainment Superstar Reba McEntire.  The tour kicks off in early 2010 and continues through late Spring.

“’Does Ft Worth Ever Cross Your Mind’? ‘Whoever’s In New England’? ‘The Fireman’? ‘Little Rock’? ‘Wrapped’? ‘The Last To Know’? We’re talking classic country from the source,” praises Womack. “I can’t imagine a better tour to be on than George Strait and Reba McEntire — and now I’m not imagining!”

Womack added jokingly, “I’m trying to figure out what to wear…cause you can’t out-starch George and you sure can’t out-spangle Reba!”

2010 TOUR DATES

Kenny Chesney photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

“It wouldn’t be summer without you!”

So Kenny Chesney yells at the end of his 69-second trailer for Kenny Chesney: Summer In 3D, which appeared Wednesday on Moviefone, AOL Music and AOL’s country section, The Boot.

Kenny will nonetheless spend much of summer without his fans next year as he plans to spend the hottest part of the year without mounting a tour for the first time in eight years or more. With the exception of a comparatively small number of dates, Summer In 3D will have to do for the fans.

The array of images in the trailer are vintage live Kenny, who built his concert film out of five 2009 stadium performances. Laced over snippets from “Beer In Mexico” and — rather appropriately — “Summertime,” the footage finds him vaulting across the stage, slapping hands with band members and revelling in the outstretched arms from the crowd.

“It’s amazing to me how intense this footage is,” Kenny says. “It’s me in a way I’ve never seen myself, and I can’t wait to share it with my fans. I put all of myself into my shows, a lot of heart and sweat and stuff most people might not think is all that important, but I do — and always have. This film captures every little detail in a way that makes it even more important than I thought it was when we were working on it.”

Selling a million tickets a year for eight years in a row, Kenny’s sizeable productions — including a horn section in the band and a chair in 2009 that lifted him directly over the top of concert-goers on the stadium floor — helped him secure three Entertainer of the Year honors from the Country Music Association.

The trailer is not in 3D, and it’s barely a snapshot of what the film should entail, but it’s a pretty good teaser.

“I am completely thrilled that there’s something we’re able to give people a taste of the film with,” Kenny notes. “April is a long way away, and I know I don’t want to wait that long to let people get a peek at what we’re doing.”

Or, in this case, not doing to any large degree in 2010.

Miranda Lambert photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

“Life,” according to the teaching of Buddha, “is suffering.”

“Life,” wrote The Road Less Traveled author M. Scott Peck, “is difficult.”

The characters in Miranda Lambert’s best-known songs — “Kerosene,” “Gunpowder & Lead” and the current “White Liar” — know suffering and difficulty well. Domestic violence, dishonesty and cheating are all some of the least savory characteristics of human beings, but they are human traits and behaviors nonetheless. Miranda understands, and it’s part of the reason she sings the kinds of songs she does.

“I think life is a good struggle,” she told The Worcester Telegram. “Nothing comes easy in life, and people need to work hard to make it, no matter what one’s profession is. I love what I do and hope to get to continue making records and entertaining people at my concerts. Hopefully listening to the struggles in my songs, folks can forget about theirs for the hour and a half that they come to my show.”

Lots of people are getting the chance to see Miranda. She opened for Kenny Chesney this summer on his Sun City Carnival shows, and next year, she’ll hit the road with Brad Paisley and Justin Moore on the American Saturday Night Tour.

In the meantime, she’s taking her songs about struggles — and about overcoming them — to smaller towns in a solo tour. She plays this weekend in Worcester, Mass.; Johnstown, Pa.; and Reading, Pa.

Carrie Underwood performs "Cowboy Casanova" at "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards," on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009, live from the Sommet Center in Nashville on the ABC Television Network. Photographer: John Russell / CMA

When the GACTV.com staff heard that the popular men’s magazine Maxim decided to put out a list of the “Hottest Women of Country Music,”  I reluctantly stepped forward to do some research.  It’s a tough job but somebody has to do it.  So off I went to Maxim.com to review the list, presented in the form of a photo gallery.   The list was comprised of a total of 19 women. The gallery appears to be in random order and not in any formal order or rank of  “hotness.”  No surprises for me, but I can tell you I think they left more than a couple of deserving ladies off the list…

Here’s who made the cut in the order they appeared…

• Julianne Hough
• Taylor Swift
• Jessie James
• Cheyenne Kimball (Gloriana)
• Shania Twain
• Carrie Underwood
• Hillary Scott (Lady Antebellum)
• Danielle Peck
• Sara Evans
• Jennifer Nettles (Sugarland)
• Kellie Pickler
• Miranda Lambert
• Kristy Lee Cook
• Martina McBride
• Julie Roberts
• Gretchen Wilson
• Faith Hill
• Karen Fairchild and Kimberly Schlapman (Little Big Town)

Now to be fair, the photo gallery was very tasteful, with most of the featured photos coming from formal industry events and red carpet affairs.  Sorry guys, unlike many of the other photo “collections” at Maxim.com, this one did not feature any of our leading country ladies in tiny bikinis working a car wash.

So who’s missing from the list?  I find it hard to believe that Heidi Newfield, LeAnn Rimes, Lee Ann Womack, Sarah Buxton, Whitney Duncan and Reba McEntire were not on the list.  For that matter, how in the world can you leave Dolly Parton off the list?  But that’s just me.   Everyone has a different opinion of what’s hot and what’s not.  What do you think?  Leave me a comment and let me know who you think is the “Hottest Woman in Country Music”…

If you want to view the gallery for yourself you can check it out at Maxim.com »

Bucky Covington's 2009 EP, Live From Rockingham. Photo courtesy of Lyric Street Records.

Bucky Covington can go home again — and did, for his new EP, Live From Rockingham. The American Idol star-turned country hit maker recently went back to his hometown of Rockingham, N.C. to film a concert special that will air on GAC in early 2010.  A five-song EP is in stores today, featuring Bucky’s first three hits: “A Different World,” “It’s Good To Be Us” and “I’ll Walk”; his current single, “Gotta Be Somebody”; and a song from his upcoming full-length CD called “Mexicoma.”

Bucky tells GACTV.com that even though he’s come a long way since he was a mechanic with big dreams, he’s still the same small town-guy at heart.

“I’m very proud of my hometown,” he says. “A lot of people can’t wait to get out of their hometowns, but I was completely different. I absolutely loved it. Rockingham is a big part of who I am. There’s wonderful people around there. They’d give you the shirt of their back if you needed it. I’d be crazy not to be proud of them.”

Click here to download Live From Rockingham, and here to watch Bucky’s video for “Gotta Be Somebody,” featuring an audience of Bucky’s devoted — and likely proud — Rockingham fans!