Diamond Rio’s Jimmy Olander and Gene Johnson both celebrated firsts on Saturday while participating in the St. Jude’s Country Music Marathon and Half Marathon. Olander completed his first full marathon (26.2 miles) and Johnson completed his first half marathon (13.1 miles). Team Rio 2012 had over 100 adult runners and 60 Team Rio Kids participants from several local schools.

Last year Olander, Team Rio’s Celebrity Running Captain, accomplished his goal of finishing the half marathon in less than two hours, but this year the high temperatures in Music City slowed him down.

“I finished about 30 minutes later than I had anticipated,” explains Olander. “The heat zapped me this year and my hamstrings said, ‘no sir!’ around mile 14. That and my Chatty Cathy nature probably added another half an hour to my finish time. I am probably the biggest gossip runner you’ll encounter. So to run the full I got a brand new set of ear phones that interfaces with my iPhone to pick up calls with friends and family during the race. They were awful! Mostly I couldn’t hear my callers and our conversations boiled down to me yelling into the phones, ‘What? Speak up I can’t hear you?’ I picked a call and after three attempts to get the caller to speak up I heard him yell back at me, ‘I said this is Ryan from Verizon Wireless. Is your wife there? I need to speak to her about some overages!’ Before I knew it I had cussed him out. ‘I’m running a Marathon here! But hey, Dude, we need to get this straightened out. Try her at home or on her cell.’ Then he wished me luck and I went back to cramping. I mean running. Well, cramping and running, cramping and walking, cramping and talking…yada, yada….”

Olander tweeted on race day: “It was a full day… 3:40 am coffee, 7am Country Music Marathon, 12:30pm ice bath, 4:00pm coach baseball, 7:30 and 10:00 pm Grand Ole Opry performances.”

Diamond Rio’s, Gene Johnson proudly finished his first half. He trained to participate in the last few CMM’s but injuries always kept him from running.

“Last year around marathon time I decided I was going to [run] in 2012. I trained to walk it before, but never to run. I hadn’t jogged in 20 years. Take 20 years off from jogging and it’s not like it was when I was younger! I spent most of my time race day trying not to get caught up in the excitement. I didn’t want to change my pace from training. I heard some great bands out there, but I don’t know if heat stroke set in because I couldn’t remember where any of them were.”

New this year, Team Rio added a spinning component to the fitness and fundraising efforts at the official Team Rio cheer station, FIT in the Gulch. Situated at the mile two marker, spinners participated by spinning 13.1 miles, while DJ Silver spun his own musical mashups to help pump up not only the spinners, but the passing marathon runners.

“Ebie and I came up with this idea last year while cheering on the runners and wishing there was a way for us non-runners to be active while supporting Team Rio,” shares Bryan Berndt, the owner of FIT in the Gulch. “We had an amazing time and we’re looking forward to an even bigger spin-off next year!”

Passing runners showed their appreciation for the spinners with waves, thumbs up, and dancing to the music as they ran.

It’s not too late to support the team. If you would like to make a pledge on behalf of Team Rio please visit www.teamrio.kintera.org

CMTT wants you to be a Tattle Tale! We want to hear what you have to say about country music and your favorite artists. Email Jessica 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!

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!

@DiamondRioBand Congrats to @KeithUrban on his invitation to become the next member of the Grand Ole Opry. Well deserved! http://pic.twitter.com/AhXyRSHP

@DierksBentley congrats @keithurban. can’t think of a better member for the @opry! see you out there dude!

@CraigMorganMusic Congrats to my friend @KeithUrban on his invitation to be a member of the @opry

@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.

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!

A lot of country music fans will not immediately recognize the name Matthew West.  It’s unfortunate because he has penned songs for some of our favorite country music artists;  Rascal Flatts, Billy Ray Cyrus, Diamond Rio, Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant, Jo Dee Messina, Steel Magnolia and a host of others.

As an artist Matthew’s success has grown mostly in the Christian music sector but this talented artist has had the pleasure of playing in front of great country music fans on the stage at the Grand Ole Opry.

Good Friday was the perfect day to see Matthew at the Casting Crowns “Come to the Well” tour as it passed through Chattanooga, TN.    The charming  and witty songwriter took to the stage with a presence that told the audience he was there to share his story and the stories of his songs with a set that would speak to and warm coldest of hearts.  The songs carry stories of pain and suffering with an outcome that is bigger than any of us can explain.

I have had the opportunity to attend many concerts throughout the years.  I almost always come away with a greater appreciation of the artists’ music and a deeper understanding of their songs through the stories told.  I walked away from this show with a whole new level of understanding.  It was one of the most moving and engaging show I’ve seen to date.

If you have read anything about Matthew West’s, The Story Of Your Life, you know Matthew locked himself in a cabin for months, pouring over thousands of fan submitted stories about their lives and through that, found inspiration for the 10 songs on his album.   It is a special album with songs that I believe country music fans will be able to connect with.

Earlier this year Matthew once again opened an invite for people to submit their stores for his new album slated to debut in the fall of this year. After receiving over 10,000 personal stories from all over the globe for his The Story of Your Life, the acclaimed singer/songwriter who has been forever impacted by the outpouring of stories, felt as though there was even more for others to say during this season of his music.   He will begin recording the new album in the spring of this year with a plan to unveil the set of new songs in September.

“Even after [The Story of Your Life] was released and I was no longer officially collecting stories, the stories did not stop pouring in,” explains West. “On average, over a hundred stories have been sent to my website every week during these last two years. I could sense this season of telling the stories of peoples’ lives wasn’t quite finished yet. I’m beyond excited to take this journey with you with this new season of stories and songs.”

You can find out more about Matthew West and his music at:   www.matthewwest.com You can still catch him on the road with the Casting Crowns “Come to the Well” tour through May 2012.

You can see the rest of our pictures from the show on our Flickr page here.

CMTT wants you to be a Tattle Tale! We want to hear what you have to say about country music and your favorite artists. Email Jessica 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!

Last night, Keith Urban, Vince Gill, and Friends rocked Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena for the Third Annual ‘We’re All for the Hall’ concert benefiting the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Fans of all ages gathered to get a musical taste of various duos and groups during the “Come Together” themed evening. Although, there were a few solo surprise exceptions.

Unlike year’s passed, Keith Urban didn’t do a mini set of his solo show to kick-off the evening. Instead, Keith sang a couple of songs before inviting Vince Gill on stage with him to perform a few of his songs. This set the tone for the evening which included a two-song set from Little Big Town, Thompson Square, The Pistol Annies, The Band Perry, Alabama, The Oak Ridge Boy, Lady Antebellum, Rascall Flatts, and Diamond Rio.

It’s pretty impressive to see so many legends and so many new folks on one stage. I’m sure many fans, myself included, were seeing someone for the very first time. I never thought I would see Alabama perform together since they retired before I had the chance. And, it’s amazing to hear an arena full of people sing songs that are nearly two decades old; especially when some of the folks in attendance weren’t that old.

Two legendary solo artists graced the stage last night, and the fact they were solo didn’t matter at all. The legendary Don Williams rocked the sold-out crowd to the famed “Tulsa Time” and Merel Haggard sang three or four hits while people sat jaw agape at the very fact they were seeing this legend perform before their very eyes.

Probably the most memorable part of the night was when Vince Gill, Rascal Flatts, Diamond Rio, and The Oak Ridge Boys invited Keith Urban to join The Grand Ole Opry via duffel Bag. Keith almost appeared shocked while he tried to gain his composure before speaking. The arena went nuts, to say the least. This is a moment Keith’s fans have waited for almost as long as he has. I’ve spent many Opry performances holding my breath only to be left disappointed and light headed. Last night, everyone screamed and cheered.

At the end of the night, the entire crowd returned to the stage to perform a very unorganized version of “I Saw Here Standing There.” To be honest, I’m not sure anyone sang anything other than the first verse and the chorus. But hey, all of those folks on stage at one time having the time of their lives…I’ll take it.

You can see all of our pictures on our Flickr.

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!

Keith Urban was invited to join the Grand Ole Opry this evening by Opry member Vince Gill along with fellow members Rascal Flatts, Diamond Rio and Oak Ridge Boys during Urban’s “All For The Hall” benefit at Bridgestone Arena.

New Zealand-born and Australian-raised Urban will be the first artist from outside North America to become an Opry member. He will formally be inducted into the Opry on Sat., April 21 live on the premiere of “NOTEWORTHY at the Opry” on GAC at 8 p.m. Central. The 16-episode series will feature musical performances and personal stories from the top acts in country music plus interviews with other celebrities about the artists and music featured in each episode.

Near the end of tonight’s show, Gill called Rascal Flatts back out on stage to bring a gift for Urban. As Urban opened a large black duffel bag revealing the Opry’s signature microphone stand, Gill said, “We would like to invite Keith Urban to be the next member of the Grand Ole Opry!” Urban covered his face in surprise as he began, “I don’t know what to say – but first, YES! Thank you very much to everybody at the Grand Ole Opry who made this possible. I’m shocked. How beautiful for this to happen tonight of all nights.”

“I will always remember the first time I played the Opry,” Urban continued, “seeing this stand and standing in the circle was an extraordinarily surreal moment. So this right here is just a whole other stratosphere! Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

“We are extremely excited that another of today’s most popular country music superstars will be joining our Opry family,” said Opry Vice President and General Manager Pete Fisher. “Keith has become a master at forging a unique musical path and building an incredibly successful career. He generates amazing enthusiasm from fans every time he plays the Opry, and he continuously demonstrates the deep regard he has both for the Opry and the entire country music community.”

CMTT wants you to be a Tattle Tale! We want to hear what you have to say about country music and your favorite artists. Email Jessica 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!

Photo By: Chris Hollo

Keith Urban and Vince Gill, this year joined by an all-star lineup of some of country music’s most loved groups, will return to Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Tuesday, April 10, for a concert to benefit the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum. Reserved seating tickets, which are priced at a family friendly $25 and $35 (does not include Ticketmaster surcharge), will go on sale January 27 at 10:00 a.m. A limited number of VIP ticket packages will also go on sale on January 27th at Ticketmaster.com. (Complete ticket purchase information is below.)

The show—which will feature performances from an all-star line-up including Urban, Country Music Hall of Fame members Vince Gill and Alabama, Alison Krauss & Union Station, The Band Perry, Blue Sky Riders, Diamond Rio, Exile, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, The Oak Ridge Boys, Pistol Annies, Rascal Flatts and Thompson Square—again promises to be a one-of-a-kind, once-in-a-lifetime evening of music, friendship and camaraderie.

“My goal for the concert, is really the same as the halls’,” said Urban. “To help country fans connect the dots – to find out where their music came from, how it’s evolved (and is still evolving) and to hear the artists that have influenced their favorite artists. Country music is like a big beautiful strange family tree and nowhere is that more honored than at the Country Music Hall Of Fame and Museum.”

All for the Hall is the museum’s first-ever non-bricks-and-mortar fundraising initiative. The campaign addresses the not-for-profit educational institution’s need for long-term financial security and provides a safety net for its work. Through ongoing exhibit schedules, scholarly publications and hundreds of school and family programs annually, the museum teaches its audiences about the enduring beauty and cultural importance of country music. Museum Board President Gill created and has led the institution’s All for the Hall fundraising initiative since 2005.

“The first two We’re All for the Hall concerts have been landmarks for this institution,” said Museum Director Kyle Young. “They have been the most successful fundraisers in the museum’s history, together raising roughly $1 million. And they have not only set a new standard for fundraising and event coordination, but also brought together an entire community and helped us to see what can be done by individuals when there is a collective passion for a cause.”

Tickets ($25 and $35, plus Ticketmaster surcharge) go on sale January 27 at 10:00 a.m. Tickets are available at Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster locations, the Bridgestone Arena box office or by phone at (800) 745-3000. Phone, internet and outlet orders are subject to a convenience fee.

Got some country music gossip and don’t wanna be a tattle tale? Email me, Tawny Tucker, Tawny@countrymusictattletale.com

Grand Ole Opry Member Craig Morgan is offering viewers a behind the scenes look at the annual Opry Duck Hunt in the first episode of season two of “Craig Morgan: All Access Outdoors,” which debuts on June 25, 2011 on Outdoor Channel.

“Craig Morgan: All Access Outdoors” throws open the doors on the country superstar’s life – both on stage and in the field.For the first time in its 40-year history, Craig Morgan will reveal a behind the scenes look at what happens at the annual Opry Duck Hunt in Mississippi. Opry members Blake Shelton, Diamond Rio’s Marty Roe, Montgomery Gentry’s Troy Gentry; Opry Legends Jim Ed Brown and Little Jimmy Dickens; plus the show’s host, Craig Morgan, all make an appearance in the first episode.

Viewers can catch Craig every Saturday morning at 11:00 a.m. (EST) on Outdoor Channel. Check local listings or log on to www.OutdoorChannel.com to find out how to get the network in your area.