After Tuesday night’s All for the Hall benefit concert, stars took to Twitter to welcome Keith Urban on becoming the next member of the Grand Ole Opry family.
@BradPaisley Welcome home to the Opry, Keith. You’re rooming with Little Jimmy for the first month.
@MartinaMcBride I leave twitter for a few hours and what happens? @KeithUrban gets invited to join the Opry and @merlehaggard is on twitter! What a night!
@CarrieUnderwood Congratulations @KeithUrban on being asked to join the Grand Ole Opry! So glad you’re going to be part of the family! It’s about time!
@oakridgeboys We officially would like to welcome @KeithUrban to the @opry … Honored to have been with him last night…
We would also like to congratulate Keith on becoming the next member of the Grand Ole Opry. It’s long over due.
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On Monday, April 2nd, ACM PRESENTS: Lionel Richie and Friends – In Concert was taped at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The special concert event of country music collaborations with the legendary Lionel Richie will air Friday, April 13, 2012 on the CBS Television Network (9:00-11:00 PM ET/PT).
The special features duets from Richie’s latest album Tuskegee, out now, along with solo performances. Some of Richie’s greatest hits were performed by today’s hottest artists including Jason Aldean (“Say You Say Me”), Luke Bryan (“Running with the Night”), Sara Evans and Marc Anthony (“Endless Love”), Martina McBride (“Still”), The Band Perry (“Penny Lover”) and Lady Antebellum (“Truly”). Duets with Richie included: “My Love” with Kenny Chesney, “Sail On” with Tim McGraw, “Hello” with Jennifer Nettles, “Lady” with Kenny Rogers, “Stuck On You” with Darius Rucker, “Brick House” with Big & Rich and “Dancin’ On The Ceiling” with Rascal Flatts. Nicole Richie joined her dad at the piano for a very special moment in the show.
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Martina McBride and Train frontman Pat Monahan will perform “Marry Me” tonight during a special ACM wedding during the ACM Awards. In honor of the event, she’s shared her wedding photo with People.com.
Martina and John will celebrate their 24th wedding anniversary in May, but the memories are still fresh as yesterday.
“There are so many,” she says. “Going to breakfast with my mom and sister. Walking down the aisle with my dad. The kiss. Walking back down the aisle as the new Mrs. McBride! It was magical day.”
Got some country music gossip and don’t wanna be a tattle tale? Email me, Tawny Tucker, Tawny@countrymusictattletale.com Don’t miss a country music beat! Sign up to receive free email updates or subscribe to CMTT via RSS today!
One in six Americans struggle with hunger; that is nearly 49 million people. With an alarming statistic such as that, Big Machine Label Group, General Mills and Feeding America have developed an amazing partnership to help feed local families. Outnumber Hunger is a national initiative that will help fight hunger in local communities. On March 30, 2012, at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, many Big Machine artists came together to share their passion for this cause and unveil this initiative.
Scott Borchetta, President and CEO of Big Machine, expressed his sincere care and passion for this cause, stating that the statistics regarding how many Americans are hungry is simply “not acceptable.” When he was asked to be a part of this project he immediately responded, “How can we not help?” Lucky for Scott, the artists on his label have an equally big concern regarding this issue. Rascal Flatts, Martina McBride, The Band Perry, Eli Young Band, Justin Moore, Edens Edge and Thomas Rhett all showed up to show their support and dedication to the new partnership.
CMTT caught up with some of the participating artists to get their thoughts on Outnumber Hunger. The Band Perry recently toured a food bank in Nashville where they got a chance to talk to some of the volunteers and said, “It widened our eyes to the problem at hand.” They also said, “We are very excited to be part of a label that gives back.” Edens Edge also visited a food bank in St. Louis where they were able to deliver a lot of food. They tell CMTT, “It feels really good to be able to easily do something that can benefit a lot of people in your area.”
Newcomer Thomas Rhett expressed “It’s very cool to be part of a label that cares about that stuff’,” and that, “It’s amazing that one cereal box can donate a meal to a family that doesn’t have one.” Thomas shared his belief that all artists should give back to the community because they are so blessed to get to do what they do.
The Eli Young Band was also on hand and shared some of their thoughts with CMTT, “It’s great to be a very small part of an organization that wants to stop that (hunger) and turn it around.” They feel the issue is not currently receiving the attention it should. Family man Justin Moore also had strong feelings on the matter. “I wish we took more time to do this kind of stuff. I feel it’s kind of our duty as artists.” He also discussed the importance of helping your fellow Americans here at home. “There’s a lot of people on our home turf that need help.”
Martina McBride and Rascal Flatts are also very proud to be a part of a label that gives. Martina admits that as a mother of three and a wife, sitting around the dinner table is an important part of their family routine. “It’s our time to stop to focus on each other and put a healthy meal on the table. It’s heartbreaking to me to know there are so many families out there that don’t have food to put on the table.”
Rascal Flatts expressed, “When we got the opportunity to be involved with General Mills and Feeding America we jumped at the chance.” They explained the Outnumber Hunger program and emphasized how easy it is for everyone to get involved and give back.
Also present at the event was Vicki Escarra, President and CEO of Feeding America, and Mary Jane Melendez, Associate Director of Community Action for General Mills. Partnered alongside Big Machine Label Group, they believe they can reach their goal of getting 15 million meals to families. It’s simple and easy to participate and here’s how…
Purchase specially marked General Mills products, enter the code from the back of the package at www.outnumberhunger.com, enter your zip code and then you have secured five meals on behalf of a local food bank. In addition, you can follow Outnumber Hunger on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ to find out about other special ways to help. There is also an added bonus. After you enter the code, you can get a free song download from selected Big Machine Label Group artists.
Country artists are known for their giving back, but it never gets old to see the artist we love taking a stand and supporting a cause. As Gary from Rascal Flatts says, “God’s given us an amazing platform.”
The evening came to a close with some special performances and Scott Borchetta stating, “It takes a Big Machine to outnumber hunger.”
Performances included:
Justin Moore: “If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away”
Thomas Rhett: “Something To Do With My Hands”
Edens Edge: “Amen”
Eli Young Band: “Even If It Breaks Your Heart”
The Academy of Country Music announced today that Martina McBride, along with Train frontman Pat Monahan, is scheduled to perform her new single “Marry Me” on the 47th Annual Academy of Music Awards S. To celebrate the message of the song, McBride and Monahan will perform the duet during a very special moment in the show when a couple will get married live onstage. The show, which honors country music’s top talent as well as the industry’s hottest emerging artists, is produced for television by dick clark productions and will be broadcast LIVE from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Sunday, April 1, 2012 at 8:00 PM live ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network.
For the first time in ACM Awards history –and perhaps any awards history– a live wedding ceremony will take place onstage during McBride and Monahan’s duet of “Marry Me,” McBride’s current single from her latest album Eleven. The song was coined by Grammy Award-winning artist Monahan and originally released in 2010 as the third single from Train’s chart-topping fifth studio album Save Me, San Francisco.
McBride personally selected the lucky recipients of the onstage nuptials. Couple Christina Davidson and Frank Tucci thought they would never find love again. In July of 2009, Frank lost his wife, Danielle to thyroid cancer and in that same year, Christina lost her husband, Paul, in a tragic drowning accident. As a way to deal with the grief of losing her husband and raising her two sons Stephen and Paul on her own, Christina started a support group for young widows and widowers in Washington Township, N.J. where she met Frank. Slowly their friendship blossomed into love as they bonded over their shared views about the challenges of single parenthood and the struggles to keep the memories of their spouses alive. Their wedding will mark a new chapter in their lives, an intimate moment which they will graciously share onstage. The bride will be wearing an Oleg Cassini gown as she recites her vows. Fans can also follow Christina and Frank along their journey to the chapel at www.ACMwedding.com.
McBride and Monahan join previously announced performers Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Sara Evans, Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Chris Young, The Band Perry, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town and Rascal Flatts.
Country Girl wants you to be a Tattle Tale! We want to hear what you have to say about country music and your favorite artists. Email me at countrygirl@countrymusictattletale.com. Don’t miss a country music beat! Sign up to receive free email updates or subscribe to CMTT via RSS today!
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