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| This is an industry-only version of an email that Country stations in dozens of top markets deliver
to their loyal listener databases. |
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| June 27, 2014
» Buyin' Fee Crests:  Keith Urban will return to American Idol for its 14th season, along with fellow incumbent judges Jennifer Lopez and Harry Connick, Jr. and host Ryan Seacrest. "Jennifer, Keith, Harry and Ryan are the very best in the business at what they do, and I’m absolutely ecstatic that they are returning to American Idol for another season," says 21st Century Fox SEVP David Hill. "Each brings unique qualities and expertise to the team, but they all share the same passion for helping undiscovered singers achieve the American dream." Auditions continue through September, and the show returns to FOX-TV in 2015. More here. |
» Catfish Hunter:  Hunter Hayes will perform at the celebration for the 75th anniversary of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum Aug. 2 in Cooperstown, NY. Hayes will perform three songs with the Boston Pops and joins a lineup that includes Paul Simon (shortstop) and Yolanda Adams (right field). "Baseball's best are referred to as five-tool players, because they can run, throw, catch, hit and hit for power," says Hall President Jeff Idelson. "Hunter plays 30 instruments, writes, sings and is wildly popular." But can he hit the curve? More here. |
» On The Chart Again:  Congratulations to Willie Nelson, whose Band Of Brothers debuted at the top of the country albums chart and at No. 5 on the all-genre chart. His last No. 1 country album was The Promiseland in 1986, and this marks his highest debut and position on the all-genre chart since Always On My Mind peaked at No. 2 in 1982. |
» Big Time:  Trace Adkins was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame Saturday (6/21) while he was in Baton Rouge for a performance. Originally from Sarepta, LA, Adkins was joined onstage by LMHoF President/Exec. Dir. Mike Shepherd, who presented him with an award and an official statement signed by Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. More photos here. |
» Save The Music:  Saving a piece of Nashville's music heritage is falling not to a country artist, but a rocker. The city's historic RCA building, which hosts the equally historic Studio A, is set to be sold, and singer/songwriter Ben Folds put out a plea for saving the space yesterday (6/24). Posted to Facebook and already shared more than 2,700 times, Folds' essay shares the history of a studio that was the vision of country luminaries Chet Atkins and Owen Bradley and home to hits by hundreds of artists over almost 50 years, including Ronnie Milsap, Willie Nelson and Vince Gill, as well as Folds himself with his band Ben Folds Five. "Historic RCA Studio A is too much a part of why such incredible business opportunities exist in 2014 in Nashville to simply disappear," writes Folds, who has been a tenant of the RCA building for 12 years. His appeal to potential buyers: "Take a moment to stand in silence between the grand walls of RCA Studio A and feel the history and the echoes of the Nashville that changed the world." Read all of his letter here. |
» This Ole House:  Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, original home of the Grand Ole Opry and known world wide as country music's "Mother Church," is getting an addition at a cost of $14 million. Improvements (see artist's rendering) will include an event space, daytime tour attraction focusing on the auditorium's history, a café, new box office, additional restroom facilities and expanded retail area. The historic auditorium will remain unchanged. "We strongly believe that we are at the very front end of a meteoric rise in both national and international tourism thanks largely to the ever-increasing popularity of country music and the Nashville television show," says exec Colin Reed. "We are making this investment now so that the Ryman Auditorium is better equipped to accommodate the current and future demand we are seeing from both a tourism and concert attendance perspective." The project will break ground late this summer with an opening planned for June 2015. More here. |
» In Search Of:  Wild Shot Mezcal and local I Love This Bar And Grill restaurants are teaming up for ticket scavenger hunts ahead of Toby Keith shows in the Washington, D.C. area June 28 and Chicago July 13. The D.C. hunt is on Friday (6/27) in the Woodbridge, VA area; clues will be posted here that morning. Chicago's contest centers around the restaurant's Rosemont location; clues here. Winners must be 21 years of age. Details here. |
» New York City?  Country music will get the theater treatment this summer when the New York Musical Theater Festival presents Somewhere With You. The country-rock musical features the music of songwriter JT Harding, including Kenny Chesney's "Somewhere With You," Jake Owen's "Alone With You" and Uncle Kracker's "Smile." It's billed as a "gritty, coming-of-age love story centered around a new generation of Southerners growing up in the early 2000s, confronted by the methamphetamine epidemic, the war in Iraq and other post-9/11 challenges in the rural South." It runs July 8-13 at the Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theater in New York. Get tickets here. |
» Life Note:  Our thoughts are with Joey Feek of Joey + Rory, who is recovering from surgery for cervical cancer. The diagnosis came last month during a routine visit with her doctor, according to a blog post by husband Rory; read it here. Her prognosis is good and she's resting at home. The couple welcomed their first child together in February (CAT 2/18). |
Birthdays
Saturday (6/28): Kellie Pickler
The late Keith Whitley (7/1) On TV
Friday (6/27): Brad Paisley, Jimmy Kimmel Live (repeat)(ABC). Upcoming Album Releases
July 1 Colt Ford Thanks For Listening
Jul. 15 Cowboy Jack Clement For Once And For All
Jul. 22 Sammy Kershaw Do You Know Me? A Tribute To George Jones
Aug. 19 Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute To Mötley Crüe
Aug. 26 Brad Paisley Moonshine In The Trunk |
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