Country Music Tattle Tale

Justin Moore Chats Carl Edwards, Common Roots With Nascar

TawnyTucker — Sun, 27 May 2012 12:30:10 +0000

An estimated 400,000 fans will be flocking to the streets of Charlotte, NC this weekend for the 18th annual Food Lion Speed Street Festival surrounding the NASCAR Coca-Cola 600. Country’s rising superstar, Justin Moore, will be headlining the Coca-Cola Stage amidst the festivities that draw racing’s biggest stars and dedicated fans from all over the country. Moore took time to speak with NASCAR.com’s Joe Menzer to chat about the upcoming event and his past ties to the sport. An avid racing fan, Moore called upon the talents of Carl Edwards to star in his music video for the smash single “Bait A Hook.”

In this fan favorite video, Moore stepped away from the lead role to allow the racing giant the spotlight to shine.

“He did a great job,” says Moore of Edwards. “I felt kind of bad because normally when I shoot a video it’s a 12-hour day for me. It didn’t take me but three or four hours to do my part, and then he was there for about 12 hours. It appeared like I was letting him do all the work, so I felt kind of bad about that. But it went great…and I think he enjoyed it as well.”

The co-stars, both mutual fans, also had the opportunity to bond during the shoot.

“We got to know each other a whole lot better that day [when the video was shot],” continues Moore. “He’s got two small kids, and I’ve got two small kids. We don’t live but 180 miles from each other. We had a lot more in common than we realized, and we became buddies through that deal.”

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.

Moore is currently on tour in support of his critically acclaimed album Outlaws Like Me and hit single “Til My Last Day.” Visit www.moorejustinmusic.com for complete dates.

Check out Justin Moore and NASCAR’s finest this weekend at the Food Lion Speed Street Festival in Charlotte, NC. Moore will be headlining the Coca-Cola stage across from the Nascar Hall of Fame on Friday, May 25th at 9:30pm. For more information, visit: http://www.600festival.com/flss.aspx

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!

Kip Moore’s “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck” Hits No. 1

TawnyTucker — Sun, 27 May 2012 00:30:03 +0000

Kip Moore is celebrating his first No. 1 single with “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck,” which sits atop the Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart and the Mediabase/ Country Aircheck chart.

On Tuesday, Moore will perform his No. 1 hit on Fox News Channel’s Fox & Friends.

“Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck” was certified gold for reaching sales of 500,000 before the April 24 release of his debut album, Up All Night. The song’s video has received more than 7 million views online.

“I was in Rome, Georgia, and my manager called me and told me,” says Moore of how he learned of his first No. 1 hit. “I was speechless. I still can’t wrap my head around this whole thing. I have dreamed about it for a long time, so it’s going to take awhile to understand what is happening. But I definitely had a moment where I told my producer, Brett James, that I felt like Rocky Balboa in Rocky II when he holds the belt up. Instead of saying, ‘Yo, Adrian,’ I said, ‘Yo, Brett, we did it!’”

Moore wrote or co-wrote every song on his debut album.

“It means everything to me as a writer,” he says of the No. 1 hit. “It’s validation that all of the years that you kept telling yourself to stick to your guns and stick to what you know, that you are on the right path and doing the right thing and doing what you are supposed to do. People called me crazy at first because we wrote four verses before we get to the chorus, but I stuck to my guns and said, ‘This is how I am supposed to write this song.’ For this to go number one and the American public to fall in love with this song, that is validation for how I like to write, and that is with no boundaries.

“It is impossible to thank all of the people who are responsible for this because it is definitely not all me,” he says. “I want to thank all of the people at the label, and also everybody who has played a role in my career, from the people who book my travel to the journalists who wrote about the song. I’m so thankful to country radio for changing my life. There are so many people that had a part in this. It isn’t just my number one; it is so many people’s number one, those people who never stopped believing in me as an artist.”

Says Royce Risser, senior vice president of national promotion for UMG Nashville, “I really can’t describe the feeling we all have about this number one. The sheer number of radio stations calling to inquire as to how the number-one battle was shaping up was a great indicator that country radio really wanted this to happen for him. Kip’s work ethic, music and passion for radio all came together to propel this song into one of the biggest hits of the year. We are so proud of him and are certain this is the first of many number ones. Congrats Kip!”

Tim McGraw has invited Moore to join him on Monday to perform a special Memorial Day concert of remembrance and gratitude for servicemembers at New York City’s Beacon Theatre during Fleet Week in partnership with Chase and the United Service Organizations (USOs.) The show will be streamed live via YouTube and to military bases around the world on The Pentagon Channel.

During 2012 CMA Music Festival in Nashville, Moore will perform with his band on Saturday, June 9th, on the Chevrolet Riverfront Stage during CMA’s free concerts at Riverfront Park. That evening, he will perform an acoustic set at LP Field during the CMA Music Festival’s Nightly Concerts.

Keith Urban & Nicole Kidman Get Red Carpet Cozy in Cannes

TawnyTucker — Sat, 26 May 2012 22:30:35 +0000

This week Keith Urban showed his support for wife Nicole Kidman at the Cannes Film Festival in France. The couple went to the screening of Nicole’s latest film The Paperboy which also stars Zac Efron, Matthew McConaughey, and John Cusak. Keith and Nicole were their usual affectionate selves on the red carpet.

[Photo Source]

CMA Fest & HGTV Kick-Up Your Star Experience

TawnyTucker — Sat, 26 May 2012 20:30:38 +0000

When the 2012 CMA Music Festival kicks off its four-day event on Thursday, June 7, in Nashville, Tenn., HGTV joins in the excitement of the ultimate Country Music fan experience by opening the doors to its star-studded venue, The Lodge. Along with GAC, DIY Network and Travel Channel, The Lodge offers fans a unique interactive experience, live musical performances and autograph signings with popular Country Music stars and lifestyle television personalities.

“The CMA Music Festival audience is as passionate about Country Music as HGTV’s audience is about their homes, making The Lodge an excellent way to engage our fans,” said Denise Conroy-Galley, HGTV’s senior vice president, marketing and creative services. “This event provides our viewers with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to connect with both our talent and some of today’s popular country artists.”

CMA Music Festival attendees and fans will have the opportunity to attend various autograph signings and acoustic performances from a host of Country artists and HGTV and DIY Network stars at The Lodge in Fan Alley. Fans can enter for the chance to attend by visiting GACTV.com/CMAFest and looking for the banner advertisement for the official sweeps entry page and rules beginning at approximately 5 p.m. ET on May 23rd. Entries must be received by noon ET on May 30th, 2012. The giveaway is open to legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia, 18 years of age or older. Fans will also have an opportunity to win access to these signings and performances at the event and details about these opportunities will be posted on the GAC Facebook or Twitter page during CMA Music Festival week. No purchase necessary to enter or win.

Fans unable to visit The Lodge can keep tabs on all of the festivities through several interactive elements at GACTV.com/CMAFest. They can also follow event activities on Twitter at #TheLodge and on HGTV’s Facebook page with a special CMA Music Festival tab, which will feature daily posts of behind-the-scenes content, a rolling Twitter feed, time-lapsed videos that chronicle each White Room Challenge design from start-to-finish, and trivia questions about HGTV, DIY Network, GAC and Travel Channel.

Schedule of Events at The Lodge by HGTV (All times CT.):
Thursday, June 7:
11:00 AM Lauren Alaina & Rodney Atkins (signing)
1:00 PM Thompson Square & Jake Owen (signing)
2:00 PM: The Vanilla Ice Project’s Vanilla Ice (signing)
3:00 PM: Josh Thompson (performance and signing)
4:00 PM: HGTV Design Star’s “Sparkle” Josh Johnson (signing)
5:00 PM: Dierks Bentley (performance and signing)
7:30-9:30 PM: Gary Allan (private, invite-only event)
Friday, June 8:
9:00 AM: Going Yard’s Chris Lambton (signing)
11:00 AM: Little Big Town (signing)
1:00 PM: Easton Corbin (signing)
3:00 PM: Kellie Pickler (signing)
4:00 PM: Room Crashers’ Todd Davis (signing)
5:00 PM: Casey James (performance and signing)
Saturday, June 9:
9:00 AM: Property Brothers’ Drew and Jonathan Scott (signing)
11:00 AM: Bucky Covington (performance and signing)
1:00 PM: Love & Theft (performance and signing)
3:00 PM: Kip Moore (performance and signing)
4:00 PM: Secrets from a Stylists’ Emily Henderson (signing)
5:00 PM: Kix Brooks (performance)
Sunday, June 10:
11:00 AM: Sarah Darling (performance and signing)
12:00 noon: Katie Armiger (performance)
1:00 PM: Scotty McCreery (signing)
2:00 PM: The Antonio Treatment’s Antonio Ballatore (signing)
3:00 PM: Luke Bryan (signing)

Connect with CMA online at CMAFest.com, Facebook.com/CMA and Twitter.com/CountryMusic.

Keith Urban’s- ‘The Story So Far’ Goes No. 1 in Oz

TawnyTucker — Sat, 26 May 2012 18:30:26 +0000

Keith Urban has debuted at #1 on the ARIA Album Chart with his new album ‘The Story So Far’. The album, which features 19 of the most popular songs from ‘Get Closer’, ‘Defying Gravity’, ‘Love Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing’, ‘Be Here’ and ‘Golden Road’ also includes the previously unreleased song ‘For You’, from the Act Of Valor soundtrack, as well as eight songs not previously released as part of a hits collection. The definitive ‘hits’ collection, ‘The Story So Far’, includes fourteen of Urban’s U.S. #1s.

The #1 mainstream Album Chart position is a first for Urban, who has celebrated three previous #1’s on the Country Album Chart and has had a #1 DVD with the platinum selling ‘Love Pain & The Whole Crazy World Tour’. Urban also recently had another US #1 with the song ‘You Gonna Fly’, which was his third consecutive US #1 from the ‘Get Closer’ album following the chart toppers ‘Without You’ and ‘Long Hot Summer’.

Urban said of the #1 position, “Just got the news that our album is #1 here in Australia!!! I’m totally blown away Australia. Thank you all SO much for the love and support…Can’t wait to launch the tour.”

All of the albums from which the songs on ‘The Story So Far’ have been taken, are popular releases in Australia with each of them achieving ARIA sales recognition – ‘Be Here’ is triple platinum (210,000 copies), ‘Golden Road’ along with the Top 5 albums ‘Defying Gravity’ and ‘Love Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing’ are platinum (70,000 copies), while ‘Get Closer’ is just shy of platinum sales accreditation. Urban has sold nearly a million albums in Australia and more than 15 million albums globally.

Currently appearing as a coach on the incredibly successful TV show ‘The Voice’, Urban has also been enjoying success at the top of the TV ratings where Australian audiences have had the chance to not only witness his high energy guitar playing and hear him sing with the other coaches, but have had the opportunity to see him sing along to nearly every song performed on the show!

Track listing for ‘The Story So Far’:

Kiss A Girl – from the platinum selling album ‘Defying Gravity’
Long Hot Summer – from the gold selling album ‘Get Closer’
Somebody Like You (Radio remix) – from the triple platinum selling album ‘Golden Road’
Making Memories Of Us (Radio single edit) –from the triple platinum selling album ‘Be Here’
Days Go By – from the triple platinum selling album ‘Be Here’
Put You In A Song – from the gold selling album ‘Get Closer’
Without You – from the gold selling album ‘Get Closer’
You Look Good In My Shirt – from the triple platinum selling album ‘Golden Road’
Stupid Boy – from the platinum selling album ‘Love Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing’
Once In A Lifetime (Radio edit) – from the platinum selling album ‘Love Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing’
Sweet Thing – from the platinum selling album ‘Defying Gravity’
You’ll Think Of Me (Single edit) – from the triple platinum selling album ‘Golden Road’
I Told You So (Single edit) – from the platinum selling album ‘Love Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing’
Only You Can Love Me This Way – from the platinum selling album ‘Defying Gravity’
You’re My Better Half (Single Edit) – from the triple platinum selling album ‘Be Here’
Tonight I Wanna Cry – from the triple platinum selling album ‘Be Here’
For You – from the Act of Valour soundtrack
Raining On Sunday (Single edit) – from the platinum selling album ‘Golden Road’
Better Life – from the triple platinum selling album ‘Be Here’

The CMA Foundation Donates $50,000 to Benefit Summer Music Education Camps

TawnyTucker — Sat, 26 May 2012 16:30:12 +0000

The CMA Foundation is donating $50,000 to benefit summer music education programs for 170 low-income students at the W.O. Smith Nashville Community Music School. The donation is part of CMA’s Keep the Music Playing initiative, which supports music education on behalf of the hundreds of artists who perform during CMA Music Festival for free.

To date, CMA and The CMA Foundation have provided more than $6.1 million to support this important initiative, purchasing more than 4,000 instruments for 80 Metro Nashville Public Schools and providing the tools and incentives to help keep students engaged in school. The figure also includes a $1 million endowment gift to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s “Words & Music” program, which assists language arts and music teachers with classroom instruction in the basics of songwriting.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for us to bridge the school year by making music education available for these low-income children during the summer,” said Kitty Moon Emery, Chair of The CMA Foundation Board of Directors. “Supporting music education is an investment in the future of our city. Statistics demonstrate that students involved in arts programs have higher graduation rates and the benefits of music education translate to their other core curriculum.”

“W.O. Smith Music School is grateful to the Country Music Association and The CMA Foundation for their support of our summer music camps.” said Jonah Rabinowitz, Executive Director of the W.O. Smith School. “The CMA is making an incredible difference in the lives of our low-income students. This investment in children’s futures will bear fruit in our community for generations to come.”

The CMA Keep the Music Playing Camps at the W.O. Smith Music School offer an enrichment activity in a positive musical and social environment that many students could not otherwise afford. Four sessions for summer campers are offered including CMA Resident Camp; CMA Camp BackBeat; and two, week-long day camps for children ages 8 to 11.

In total, 170 children receive expert music training in a fun and rewarding atmosphere for an average cost of $300 per child.

“The camps are a natural extension of our school year program and demand a strong commitment from students toward their musical education and development of native and learned skills,” said Rabinowitz. “For many campers, more advancement in musical competency will be achieved during the concentrated week of learning than in the entire previous school year when attention and time is divided and at a premium.”

Founded in 1984, the W.O. Smith School was created for the purpose of making quality music instruction available to talented, interested, deserving children from low income families at the nominal fee of 50 cents a lesson. Instruction is provided by a 220-member volunteer faculty of area musicians from many elements of the Nashville music scene including studio musicians, symphony players, college professors, public school teachers, church musicians, private teachers, and university students, who each donate up to four hours a week teaching their students.

The school serves more than 700 students, ages 6 to 18, representing academic schools from across Metro Davidson County and Middle Tennessee. Students must qualify for the reduced or free lunch program in Metro schools to take part. The school offers introductory classes for pre-instrumentalists, individual and group lessons in all band and orchestra instruments, piano, guitar and voice. The school, which is a nonprofit educational institution, also provides computer assisted instruction in music fundamentals and theory, classes in composition, music technology, and recording. For information about the school, call (615) 255-8355 or visit www.wosmith.org.

CMA created The CMA Foundation (a nonprofit 501c3) in 2011. The Foundation exists to provide financial support to worthwhile causes that are important to CMA and the Country Music community. The group places special emphasis on serving the needs of CMA’s core constituents and nonprofit organizations with initiatives that preserve the legacy of the format, support music education, and respond to other needs identified by CMA.

Phil Vassar’s “Don’t Miss Your Life” Video to Premier Monday!

TawnyTucker — Sat, 26 May 2012 12:30:55 +0000

Phil Vassar has scored his latest Top 35 hit with the emotion-stirring “Don’t Miss Your Life” single, and Great American Country (GAC) is set to premiere the music video on Monday, May 28th just after 11:00 am, 5:00 pm and 11:30 pm (all times eastern).

Director Steve Condon spent several days on the road with Phil and his band shooting performance and behind-the-scenes footage for the clip, which was edited into a storyline with local actors.

CMT Pure, CMT.com, The Country Network (TCN) and other online outlets will all begin airing the clip next week as well.

The “Don’t Miss Your Life” single has seen weekly double-digit increases in sales and significant increases in radio airplay across the country. Phil’s fans are currently on Twitter declaring how they are celebrating this Memorial Day weekend a la “Don’t Miss Your Life” using the hashtag #DMYL.

Phil wrote the song on a flight to perform a date recently, and a chance conversation with a seasoned traveler provided the inspiration for the song.

“This guy I was sitting next to saw me working on my phone and iPad and commented about me being busy. He went on to say how much he had traveled during his career and how much he missed at home. I started looking at pictures of my kids on my phone and realized I wasn’t in any of them! That’s where this song came from.”

For updates on the new music, touring and other news visit www.PhilVassar.com.