CMT Blog: Can You Duet

After scoring a Top 5 single with "Keep On Lovin' You," Steel Magnolia have returned with a new single and music video, "Just by Being You (Halo and Wings)," which had its world premiere Friday (July 2) on CMT's Top 20 Countdown. The duo -- Meghan Linsey and Joshua Scott Jones -- won the second season of CMT's Can You Duet and benefited after "Keep On Lovin' You" was featured in the Valentine's Day soundtrack next to songs by Taylor Swift, Willie Nelson, Maroon 5, Joss Stone and others. Steel Magnolia's new single is about a couple wanting to get away from everything, and that's exactly what happened when it came time to film the music video. Directed by Kristin Barlowe, the visuals were shot in a secluded forest in Lebanon. No, not that Lebanon. We're talking about Lebanon, Tenn., located just a few miles outside Nashville.

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.

If you like classic country pickin' and good country eatin', then you won't want to miss this special Second annual Bib & Buckle event that Joey & Rory are hosting on June 5 in Pottsville, Tenn. The married couple turned country music duo who got their start on CMT's Can You Duet, will perform with other musical guests starting at 3 p.m. Then after the singing comes the cooking, courtesy of Rory's little sister, Marcy. (Together, Marcy and Joey run Marcy Jo's Mealhouse.) If I lived closer, I'd go just to hear Joey & Rory do "Tonight Cowboy, You're Mine" and "Cheater, Cheater" and maybe to hear new songs from an album that's coming this summer. Well, for all that and the biscuits and gravy and Southern fried chicken and mashed taters and hushpuppies and 'nanner pudding. Tickets are $25 if you're over 12 and $15 if you're under.

When I see two barstools on stage and no big band setup, I know I'm going to love the performance before the singers and musicians even start. And that's exactly what happened on Thursday night's (Feb. 11) Lopez Tonight. Steel Magnolia was there to promote the new Valentine's Day movie along with stars Jennifer Garner and Hector Elizondo. George Lopez introduced the act by saying, "Steel Magnolia is next, so keep your asses on the couch." Then CMT's Can You Duet winning duo -- and now ACM nominees -- performed their current single "Keep On Lovin' You," which is no relation to the REO Speedwagon song of a similar name that I wrote about yesterday. The duo -- Joshua Scott Jones and Meghan Linsey -- did the song acoustically with just Jones' guitar and their pure, raspy vocals. No posse of guys on drums and keyboards backing them. Just the audience keeping the beat with their hand claps. The song is on the soundtrack for the movie, along with a couple songs from Taylor Swift, one from Willie Nelson, one from Jewel and 13 other tracks.

What is rookie duo Steel Magnolia doing right? Apparently, everything. Sure, they have a Big Machine behind them and a big win from last season's Can You Duet on CMT. But still, if their schedule is any indication of what's to come, they are all good. Like tomorrow night (Feb. 11), you can catch their performance of their Top 20 hit, "Keep On Lovin' You," on Lopez Tonight. I talked to S-Mag (Meghan Linsey and Joshua Scott Jones) about what the taping was like because I'd heard they were treated like rock stars and that they each had their own trailer backstage at the Warner Bros. lot. They told me that even hearing Lopez announce them (as ACM nominees for top new vocal duo) was cool. Jones told me that because it was an acoustic show, the audience pitched in and helped them out by clapping along to the song. From there they rushed off to the Valentine's Day movie premiere in Hollywood because their single is on the film's soundtrack.

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I think Jewel's world premiere video of "Stay Here Forever" may just be the first country music video featuring McDreamy, McSteamy, Ashton Kutcher and Queen Latifah. That's because Jewel's new single is featured in the upcoming film, Valentine's Day, featuring all of these big-name actors and many others. The video depicts the singer-songwriter as a floral designer, daydreaming of escaping with her love -- perhaps to Italy to visit the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Meanwhile, as she continues to romanticize, scenes from the motion picture are fittingly sprinkled throughout. Her lighthearted new single seems a perfect fit for the movie's soundtrack, which also features Taylor Swift, Willie Nelson and the second-season winners of Can You Duet, Steel Magnolia.

I met Joshua Scott Jones the summer of 2003. I was an aspiring journalist interning for the local television station in Charleston, Ill., and he was a hopeful musician and singer-songwriter. I saw him in passing several times in college, but we soon lost touch over the years. Unbeknownst to the other, in 2006, we both left that small town and headed south to Nashville. Josh moved here to perform country music. I moved here to write about it. Three years later, our paths would cross again.

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Can the freshly crowned winner of CMT's Can You Duet really perform immediately after being named winners? I mean, won't they be too overwhelmed to sing? I guess we'll find out Saturday (Aug. 8), right after the show's big season finale. It's down to two twosomes: JB Rocket and Steel Magnolia. And the winning duo will head straight over to Nashville's Wildhorse Saloon right after the announcement. The only problem is, if you want to see the winners perform live, you really should get in line early at the Wildhorse. Hopefully, you'll be through the doors in time to watch the broadcast when it begins at 9 p.m. ET/PT. And you'll have a spot up front for listening to all that good country music.

You might plan to have a box of tissues ready when you watch Caitlin & Will's latest video, "Address in the Stars," because the emotions that these two deliver are genuine, heartfelt and poignant. The song is about losing a loved one and wanting so badly to talk to them except there's "no address in the stars." Caitlin plays her role well in this video. So well in fact, that I felt like I needed to offer my condolences. Her tears, facial expressions and body language are so believable that you think she just underwent a loss. The black-and-white picture and the forest filled with paper lanterns add to the bleak, melancholy setting. I was impressed with these Can You Duet winners' ability to create a dramatic piece without making it cheesy and cliché.

Editor's note: Scott Borchetta is a judge on the second season of CMT's Can You Duet, which premieres Saturday (June 20) at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CMT.

The opportunity to do the show really wasn't about being a judge. We're always looking for new ways to break artists, and I felt that there was a huge opportunity. That if we were the label, that we'd have an opportunity to assist in the A&R, in the creative, and we've treated this just like we sign anybody else. I've had my VP of A&R, my VP of creative services, with me at every meeting, every screening, every show. There was no desire for me to be a judge. There was a desire to work with the platform and see if we could break an act out of it.

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