CMT Blog: Sugarland

There are some very crucial things I left out of my People Country blog earlier this week. And I'd be remiss not to go back and give you the details I discovered upon further review of the magazine. So even if you don't run out and buy it, you'll feel like you did. For one, I learned that Lady Antebellum's Hillary Scott listens to Justin Bieber's music to get pumped before shows. And if Sugarland's Kristian Bush has learned anything from touring with Brooks & Dunn, it's to never phone it in and always make the show the best you can. And how prankster Brad Paisley let live crickets loose on Taylor Swift's bus. And that Eric Church brings real wine glasses with him on tour so he doesn't have to drink wine out of paper or plastic cups. And how Jason Aldean never sings his own songs at his karaoke parties because, as he says, "That would just be weird."

There are a lot of reasons I read People Country but it's rarely for the cover stories, I'll tell you that much. The most recent issue has Kenny Chesney on the cover with a Kenny Kicks Back story, which is kind of redundant considering his recent chat with Oprah. But buried inside the magazine is the stuff I really like, such as pictures of Sugarland leaving the studio where they just recorded their version of "We Are the World" to benefit Haiti. And a Q&A with Reba McEntire, where she says the first album she ever bought was Carole King's Tapestry and her first celeb crush was on Joe Namath. And some motherly advice from the stars' moms. (When Lady Antebellum's Charles Kelley wanted to try Nashville, his mom told him, "You don't want to look back and say you didn't give it a shot.").

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The first-round nominees for the 2010 CMT Music Awards were announced this morning (April 5) and Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum and Sugarland lead the pack with four nominations. Meanwhile, Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and Zac Brown Band came away with three nominations each. Looking at the full list of nominees, no one seems like a clear favorite this time around. Aldean has paid his dues but so far has come up empty and Lady A has had an incredible year with "I Run to You," "Need You Now" and "American Honey." This may be Brooks & Dunn's last appearance on the ballot and Swift still enjoys an army of computer-savvy fans, so it's going to be a close race in every category. First-round fan voting is now underway, which narrows each category to four finalists. On May 11, the finalists in each category will be announced. During this second round, fans vote for the winners in every category except for video of the year. Voting for that top honor begins when the 2010 CMT Music Awards show hits your TV on June 9 at 8 p.m. ET. Log in and cast your vote.

It was almost exactly one year ago that I got up at 5 a.m. to go watch Kenny Chesney tape an episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show. And it was so worth it. It was the episode where Winfrey called country "the REAL soul music" and featured performances by Chesney, Sugarland, Darius Rucker and Carrie Underwood. And now she's bringing Chesney back for an episode that will air on April 9. I think it's just to talk about his upcoming film, Kenny Chesney: Summer in 3-D, but you know Oprah. She'll find a way to talk about everything else, too. Last time they discussed what it's like living out on the road and Chesney admitted that he hoped he wasn't still doing sound checks 20 years from now. "I was just a kid who wanted a song on the radio. Who thought I'd be playing Oprah on my birthday," he'd said. "God can dream bigger dreams than you can dream for yourself" was Winfrey's response. It was a fabulous interview, and now I just wonder how the two of them will top it.

It sounds like Jake Owen has the perfect spring and summer planned. A little Jason Aldean, a little Miranda Lambert and a whole lot of Sugarland.

It must be kind of a new trend for artists to move around from tour to tour. I think that's a good move on his part. And here's why: Opening acts have the unenviable task of getting the crowd ready for the headliner, often playing for fans who haven't even taken their seats yet. But if you're a glass-is-half-full kind of guy like I think Owen is, that starting set is your chance to impress the audience and get them to take notice. At Aldean's show this weekend, he can show off his country-rock chops to that set of fans. Then at Lambert's show in April, he'll shine for all of her fans. And so on for the Sugarland shows in May. Then in the summer, Owen will be doing his own shows on the fair and festival circuit. This new way of looking at touring must certainly keep things interesting, so you don't get stuck in a rut opening for the same artist night after night.

Owen told me he's looking forward to getting back out on the road with his friends. "It's always a blast to play my own shows, but touring with friends like Jason, Miranda, and Kristian and Jennifer makes life really fun out on the road. Each tour is different but they all have one thing in common -- they like to rock, and so do we," he said.

Yesterday (March 21) at mass, the gospel was about a woman who'd been caught in the act of adultery. And while the priest was telling us how the Pharisees were getting ready to stone her, I couldn't help thinking, "Maybe you should've thought about that when you were cheatin'." I'm not proud that country music runs through my head during mass, but it does. Jesus ultimately talked everyone out of stoning her by saying, "Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her," but it didn't stop me from thinking of a list of all the cheatin' songs I love. It's kind of like my own personal gospel according to Nashville.

"Stay," Sugarland
"Good Girls," Tim McGraw
"Should've Said No," Taylor Swift
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As far as star-studded country lineups go, this ACM Presents: Brooks & Dunn - The Last Rodeo tribute concert in Las Vegas probably tops them all. It seems like every day they add a few more artists to up the ante even more. So naturally, I want to go. What country fan wouldn't? This tribute concert has just about everyone now: Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, George Strait, Taylor Swift, Sugarland, Kenny Chesney, Rascal Flatts, Reba McEntire, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban. And I wouldn't be surprised if folks like Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Zac Brown Band, Montgomery Gentry, Alan Jackson, Toby Keith and/or Gary Allan decide to get in on the fun. The show's going to be filmed on April 19 (the day after the ACM Awards) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, then will be on CBS on May 23.

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I was at Chelsea Handler's show last night. Not the Chelsea Lately talk show, although that would be great to see someday, but her stand-up comedy show, Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang, which kicked off here in Chicago last night. It was hysterical on so many levels, but most of it was too R-rated to repeat here. If you really want to get a feel for her comedy, read her latest book, Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang. But I think why I initially starting loving Handler was because she often brings country singers on her late-night talk show. She's had Dierks Bentley, Reba McEntire, Darius Rucker, Jason Aldean and Sugarland. So after the show, I asked her if she really did like the music. And she told me, "I do. It's like hip-hop in terms of, the more you listen to it, the more you like it." She even told me that Sugarland is her favorite, saying, "I just love Jennifer Nettles."

I was already excited about the upcoming Lilith Tour when they announced those three little words: Court Yard Hounds. I'm dying to hear how the new Natalie-free Dixie Chicks will sound. The festival has since added a whole new batch of artists to this celebration of women in music. Even Martina McBride will be there now. And I'm still very thrilled to see Miranda Lambert, Sheryl Crow, Loretta Lynn and Sugarland on the bill. I know I've blogged before that country music is all I ever listen to, but in all honesty, there was a time in the mid-'80s when I was rocking my stirrup pants to the Bangles' "Manic Monday" and "Walk Like an Egyptian." Who wasn't, really? While I don't want to make myself sound like I'm a hundred years old, I spent many nights getting my groove on at many high school dances with the help of the insanely infectious hits from the Go-Go's, like "We Got the Beat" and "Vacation." For those of you who are on the verge of commenting "What do the Go-Go's have to do with country music," know this: The band's rhythm guitarist Jane Wiedlin and keyboardist Charlotte Caffey co-wrote "But for the Grace of God" with Keith Urban.

Another one bites the American Idol dust, and you'll never guess where she wants to go next: Nashville! Janell Wheeler made it to the top 24 contestants on the show, but now that she's been let go, she's free to choose where her career will take her next. And she is choosing country. But not just same-old, same-old country. Wheeler told EW.com she wants to bring something extra to country. "I want to be a dancing country music singer. I'm not going to do Britney Spears, but my vision onstage, I want to bring movement to country and really reinvent the style," she said. "Country is evolving right now, and I just really want to put my mark on it and use all my styles together and make something special for sure." Other than the Faith Hill/Carrie Underwood stomp and the Jennifer Nettles hip swing thing, I've never seen a girl country singer really dance. So consider my interest piqued.