CMT Blog: 2010 May

The Eagles are doing a little touring with Dixie Chicks and Keith Urban this summer, so Access Hollywood sat down with Natalie Maines and Glenn Frey for their take on getting the bands back together. Maines loves getting invited on someone else's tour. "Let them do all the work," she says with a laugh. But Frey does most of the talking, saying, "It's not hard being a Dixie Chick now." I think what he means is that they nail every show they do, so taking a four-year break is nothing and that all they have to do is fine-tune things to get it tight. But what I love is when Frey says, "If I knew then what I know now, the Eagles would've never broke up in 1980." His hindsight is that a hiatus would've been a better idea. As for getting back onstage now, he adds that it really becomes more than just a reunion with the band, it becomes a reunion with you and your fans.

At a Taylor Swift show in Ottawa, Ontario, last week, teenager Nicole Lavoie suffered a medical emergency and had to be taken out of the concert. But before the ambulance arrived, Swift's mom, Andrea, came into a medical room at the venue to see if she was all right. When Nicole got to the emergency room, her cell phone was ringing, and it was Taylor Swift herself calling. In a letter to the Ottawa Citizen, Nicole's mother, Harriet, said, "This special singer took the time to check on my daughter's condition and talk to Nicole for several minutes about her country music to one of her biggest fans." Add this to the list of reasons why Swift has become such a good role model.

Credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images

Maybe he put a little extra thought into it because it was a good cause. Or maybe Darius Rucker's shows are just always this good. But between the classic country covers, his old songs from his Hootie & the Blowfish days, his new country songs, an even newer not-released-yet song ("In a Big Way"), and the cover songs he did that I've never heard anyone do so far (Jamey Johnson's "In Color" and Toby Keith's "God Love Her"), I felt like by the end of his set, Rucker had done every kind of country there was at the Shake the Lake Music Festival on Thursday (May 27) in Chicago.

Read more...

I love music downloads, but I especially love free music downloads. If you're a Rodney Atkins fan -- or a country fan, in general -- how can you resist a free download of "Get Together"? It's a brand new song that's never been on any of Atkins' albums. Aside from the new music, the Knoxville, Tenn., native has a busy tour schedule this summer, including a June 5 appearance at the BamaJam Music & Arts Festival in Enterprise, Ala. And on June 11, he'll be performing in Nashville on the CMA Music Festival's Riverfront Park stage during a day of music that also features Gretchen Wilson, the Eli Young Band, Jack Ingram, Craig Morgan, Patty Loveless, Sawyer Brown, Bucky Covington and The Band Perry. His tour is sponsored by VELVEETA Shells & Cheese, and at some of the stops, a "side shack" will provide a variety of family entertainment and the chance to win a VIP pass that allows winners the virtual reality experience of performing with Atkins on an interactive video screen and other prizes. In the meantime, download the song and let us know what you think of it.

If Blake Shelton loves this many shows on CMT alone, imagine how much television this man must watch. He admitted to having six favorite shows on CMT in his most recent Take 6 Tuesday (May 25) video blog on his website. But actually, there was a tie for the number six slot between Gator 911 and Nanny 911. He thinks they should combine the two into one show. And he really does love Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?, but only the Kellie Pickler episode. And My Big Redneck Wedding, Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders and Can You Duet? But his No. 1 show on CMT is the upcoming CMT Music Awards. "Not only am I up for an award, but so is Laura Bell Bundy," he says of his Twitter-banter pal.

I don't know where you go once you've outgrown Las Vegas. But according to the Las Vegas Sun, the city's leaders think it may be time for the Academy of Country Music Awards show to move out of town. Even the ACM Executive Director Bob Romeo admitted, "It's a crazy thing to say we've outgrown Las Vegas, and when we moved there six years ago I wouldn't believe I would have ever said that. But the truth is, we have a dilemma in that we don't have enough seats to satisfy our needs." The venue that the show was in this year only seats 11,000, whereas a place like Cowboys Stadium in Texas can hold 56,000-60,000. Surely there must be some venues in between in other cities that they are considering. But there are the artists to consider, too. "They love coming to Las Vegas. Kix Brooks can meet Keith Urban at Craftsteak (at MGM Grand), then hit the craps tables. Spouses can go shopping, you can see a show and have great dining, all in very close proximity. We listen to our artists, too, because without them there is no show," he added.

Photo credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

Earlier this week, one of my new friends and I were talking about the music we liked in high school, and one of our mutual favorites was Mary Chapin Carpenter. My friend grew up in Georgia and said she wore out her cassette of Come On Come On back in the mid-‘90s. I was telling her that seeing the video for "Down at the Twist and Shout" on a PBS station in rural Nebraska led me to country music, a move to Nashville, and ultimately this career. Then we decided we were weird teenagers, because at that time our peers were far more intrigued by grunge, rap or pop radio than earnest singer-songwriters. My musical tastes have since broadened, but probably haven't changed all that much at the core. As I was going through my CD collection at home, in my ongoing effort to go digital, I couldn't help but get nostalgic over these particular titles:

Read more...

For the last 21 years, the National Memorial Day Concert has been held to remember the heroes who gave their lives for our country. We all know someone who has served and unfortunately many can speak of a loved one who did not return. Truly, this day is only a drop of water in the ocean of thanks that they deserve, yet it is an important reminder. Of course, Memorial Day itself goes back to just after the Civil War, but the founders of this modern ceremony must have known that a free concert would provide an opportunity for all of America to gather at once. This Sunday (May 30), it will be headlined by Brad Paisley and Lionel Richie and broadcast live on PBS at 8 p.m. ET.

Read more...

She's narrowed it down to three. But apparently Julianne Hough is just like every other woman out there who needs to gather tons of opinions about which outfit is the cutest one to wear to the CMT Music Awards. So just go through the flipbook, and pick your favorite. Will it be the sunny yellow embellished strapless micro-mini? The luminescent one-shoulder dress? Or the classic LBD, dolled up with sequins, ruffles and sky-high silver pumps? Then watch for her on the red carpet on June 9 before the awards are broadcast on CMT. Last year, she rocked a very fun and frilly pink dress with champagne heels, and the year before that there was the silvery blue Roberto Cavalli ruffled party dress that was a little too summery for Nashville's chilly air that night. But this year, the choice is all yours.

Photo credit: Jason Merritt

Somehow, between 1998 when he lost his job as a frontman for Lonestar and this week, when he debuted this video for "Country Done Come to Town," John Rich apparently became Hugh Hefner. But instead of throwing a lavish party out by the grotto at the Playboy Mansion, he's having it around the rooftop pool of his own Mt. Richmore estate in Nashville. Gretchen Wilson is there bartending, George Jones is there mowing the grass and the cream-corn-and-bikinis wrestling match is underway. Of all the genius songs Rich has written for himself and others, I'm not sure this is one of my favorites. But that could be because the video seems to send the message that in order for country to come to town, you need Gucci shoes, Ted Nugent and about 80,000 cc's of fake boobs.