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MAY 24    

Carrie Underwood is donating $1 million from her current tour to the American Red Cross to assist in disaster relief efforts in Oklahoma. The contribution comes from concert proceeds during her Blown Away tour which wrapped up Thursday night (May 23) in Abbottsford, British Columbia.

"I have watched the devastation in my home state of Oklahoma over the past several days with great sadness," Underwood said. "With the help of my fans who attended my concerts over the past year, we can offer the Red Cross a little extra help in comforting those affected by the recent tornados."

Monday's twister that hit Moore, Okla., killed 24 people, destroyed an estimated 13,000 homes and caused an estimated $2 billion in damage.

Underwood established a charitable fund when the tour began in 2012. In November, she donated profits from a concert in Atlantic City, N.J., to relief efforts after Hurricane Sandy struck New Jersey. Funds from the latest donation will be used to pay for disaster relief initiatives in Oklahoma and other states.

 

WARNER MUSIC NASHVILLE artist BLAKE SHELTON will host "HEALING IN THE HEARTLAND," a tornado benefit concert on WEDNESDAY, MAY 29th at CHESAPEAKE ENERGY ARENA in OKLAHOMA CITY.The event will be televised on NBC-TV. Performing artists will be announced later TODAY (5/24).

MAY  23

 

 

 

Toby Keith is among the artists affected by Monday's deadly Tornado in Moore, Oklahoma. He was raised in the area and still has friends and family there.
In a statement, Toby said, "This storm has devastated the community that I grew up in. I rode my bike through those neighborhoods.  I have family and friends in Moore. My heart and prayers go to those that have lost so much. But Moore is strong and we will persevere. God be with you all."
Later, in a phone interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper, Toby revealed that his sister's house "was hit" and he himself had just left town earlier in the day to fly to Nashville for a recording session.
"There's been so many tornadoes coming through there, but nothing, I don't ever remember one hitting an elementary school right square on the button like this one did. That's devastating."
Toby has such a strong connection to Moore that the city's water tower bears his name.

Reba McEntire is among the country stars who were raised in Oklahoma. Here are her thoughts on yesterday's deadly tornado in Moore, Oklahoma:
"What’s happening in Oklahoma is worldwide news. Last night, we were in Cape Town, South Africa watching CNN’s coverage of the devastation in Moore, Oklahoma, and the surrounding areas. My heart, my prayers and my thoughts are going out strong to my fellow Okies who are hurting today. Because when one Okie hurts, we all hurt. 
After many texts, E-mails and phone calls, I found out that my family is safe. My niece, Garett Smith, told me that the first run of tornadoes were three miles away from her home near Castle, Oklahoma, and they could hear the them from their storm cellar. So many have lost their lives in this tornado. That so many children have been taken, all we can do is comfort their families and friends, and pray to God for a speedy healing for everyone. Okies are strong people.  
God stay with them.

Darius Rucker delivers True Believers, his third country album, today (Tuesday).
Darius says he felt defiant while making the record.
"It seems like every time I'm making a record, I guess I'm trying to prove to myself or even just the world that this is where I'm supposed to be. Making this record was just, let's show them. I think my whole career in country will be that way. It will be me trying to prove all the naysayers wrong."
Darius picks up his True Believers tour Friday in Little Rock with Rodney Atkins and Jana Kramer opening. MAY 20Carrie Underwood's parents sound like they are about as modest as she is generous. I mean, she is Carrie Underwood, so she's making a pretty nice living and has been trying to do nice things for her mom and dad. But they won't have it. They still live in the same house where she was raised, even though she has tried to buy them a new one. And when she tried to buy her dad a generator for Christmas, he wouldn't allow it. "My parents are really great people who want nothing to do with any of this," she told Marie Claire magazine. "This" being the wealth that comes from being one of the biggest deals in country music. "I'm the black sheep of the family. The black-crystal sheep. Swarovski," she joked. She even said that when she was in talent shows before the big talent show -- American Idol -- her mom sewed all her outfits. "She would get material from Walmart. It was a little Coal Miner's Daughter up in there," Underwood recalled

 

Trace Adkins is the newest Celebrity Apprentice. In the final competition he beat out Penn Jillette to win $250,000 for his charity, The American Red Cross. Trace knew from the beginning who his toughest competitor would be.

 

Taylor Swift snagged the most Billboard Music Awards -- taking eight in all including Top Artist, Top Billboard 200 Artist, Top Country Artist and Top Billboard 200 Album for Red.

American Idol finalist Kree Harrison will make her Grand Ole Opry debut on June 4th. She says, “I'm speechless. It has been my lifelong dream to perform at the Grand Ole Opry. I am so honored to be invited!”

Also performing that night will be Kellie Pickler, Rascal Flatts, Keith Urban and Lennon and Maisy from ABC’s Nashville.

MAY 17   

ACM Presents: Tim McGraw's Superstar Summer Night airs Sunday on CBS.

The show, which benefits the ACM's Lifting Lives charity, features performances by John Fogerty, Taylor Swift, Ne-Yo, Pitbull, Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Brantley Gilbert, Faith Hill, Keith Urban, Florida Georgia Line with Nelly, Lady Antebellum and The Band Perry.

Tim says it was important to do the show -- which he filmed last month in Las Vegas after the ACM Awards -- because he saw first-hand the power of Lifting Lives while on tour last year.

Tim McGraw says ACM Lifting Lives helped him to provide mortgage free homes to military member while on tour last year.

"When I was approached about it, it seemed like a great combination of the things I had done on tour last year. And Lifting Lives and the ACMs was a part of that. So to bring that together in a show and to bring a lot of friends together, it just seemed like the cool thing and the right thing to do."

"I'm just a huge fan of Tim's. One of the reasons I got into country music was guys like McGraw and the class that came out in '89 and the 90's. I just love his music. We've become friends over the years. and played some shows together. I really want to be part of this special."

 

Tim McGraw came to the rescue of a woman who collapsed during his show in Atlanta last weekend.

The woman, who's been identified only as Paula, says that when she came to, Tim was in front of her with a glass of water. He even kissed her forehead. Paula says she passed out because of the heat generated by the close quarters in the pit in front of the stage

 

The date has been set for the live TV presentation of The Sound of Music starring Carrie Underwood as Maria Von Trapp. The three-hour event will air on NBC on December 5th -- kicking off the holiday season.

Carrie says she's thrilled to introduce the classic show to a new generation of fans.

"I'm just excited to be part of one of the greatest musicals of all-time. I'm excited because it seems so challenging. It really sounds hard. I mean it really sounds hard."

No word yet on who will play the dashing Captain Von Trapp The date has been set for the live TV presentation of The Sound of Music starring Carrie Underwood as Maria Von Trapp. The three-hour event will air on NBC on December 5th -- kicking off the holiday season.

Carrie says she's thrilled to introduce the classic show to a new generation of fans.

"I'm just excited to be part of one of the greatest musicals of all-time. I'm excited because it seems so challenging. It really sounds hard. I mean it really sounds hard."

No word yet on who will play the dashing Captain Von Trapp.

 

Taylor Swift is up for 11 awards at Sunday's Billboard Music Awards -- including the the coveted Top Artist trophy. She's also up for the fan-voted Milestone Award.

Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan are both up for three awards, while Hunter Hayes and Carrie Underwood are finalists in two categories each. Other country finalists include Lionel Richie, Eric Church and Florida Georgia Line.

Taylor, The Band Perry and Kacey Musgraves have been tapped for performance slots, and Shania Twain, Jennifer Nettles, Florida Georgia Line and Nashville cast member Hayden Panetierre will be presenters.

The Billboard Music Awards air live from Las Vegas on Sunday

 

Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles has announced that she will step away from the duo this fall and release her first solo country album. The award-winning songwriter and entertainer has recruited famed producer Rick Rubin to oversee the recording.

In December 2012, Jennifer and her husband, Justin Miller, welcomed their first child, Magnus Hamilton Miller, who recently made his debut on Jennifer's website. Baby Magnus' arrival seems to have had a big impact on Jennifer's decision to pursue this next artistic endeavor.

“I have had a huge milestone in my life reminding me of the beauty of my roots," Nettles shared with Country Weekly. “This album is a celebration of those roots and I am so excited to share it.”

This weekend, Jennifer will be in Las Vegas to present at the Billboard Music Awards May 19.

 

MAY  16  

Lady Antebellum's Dave Haywood became the third and final member of the group to get married a little over a year ago.  In that time, he's learned a lot about how to communicate with his wife, Kelli.

Dave tells ABC News Radio, "You really have to commit an incredible amount of time to working on the relationship.  You know, obviously when you're dating you're kind of coming and going a lot, but being in it for the long haul is the priority."

Of course, Dave is on the road constantly performing concerts around the world.  He admits that distance could make it easy to just walk away and not discuss the finer details of his marriage.  Lucky for Kelli, Dave's just not that kind of guy.

He says, "Even the smallest things you have to talk about, even for a long period of time, we'll have a conversation about the smallest thing in the world."

Look for Dave to perform "Goodbye Town" with his Lady Antebellum band mates on the ACM Presents: Tim McGraw's Superstar Summer Night special, Sunday night  CBS.

 

Justin Moore's name may not be the first one that comes to mind when you're listing country's best male vocalists, but listen again to his #1 "Small Town U.S.A." or his latest single, "Point at You."  You'll find he's got one of the widest ranges of any guy on country radio today.

So, how does Justin keep his voice in tip-top shape?

"Probably drink less now," Justin says with a laugh.  "That might help."

In all seriousness, Justin feels practice really has made perfect with his singing voice over the last few years.

He says, "I think, just like anything else, the more you do something, I think you should be getting better at it.  If you’re not, you’re probably in the wrong business."

That singing experience has changed Justin's voice too.  It's a little raspier and deeper than it used to be, and those new qualities are showing up on his third studio album, due out later this year.

"There’s a couple places where, to me, it sounds drastically different," Justin explains.  "To fans, I don’t know if it will.

Justin will be showing off his vocal chops this weekend at a pair of shows in Georgia with Darius Rucker

 

Though Taylor Swift has become one of the biggest pop stars in the world, she's still a country girl at heart. In a new interview with Billboard previewing this Sunday's Billboard Music Awards, Taylor pointed to Florida Georgia Line's monster hit "Cruise" as one of the songs that made the biggest impact in any format this year.

Taylor says of the song, "It’s the catchiest thing I’ve heard in years, and I love the Nelly version too. They’re out on tour with us right now, so I get to hear it all the time."

Taylor also singled out the death of country icon George Jones as the biggest loss so far this year in music.

"His influence on country music and his legacy will last forever. On top of all of that, he was a very sweet man and I'm so sorry we've lost him," Taylor says. "George Jones never stopped wanting to be onstage. He played live shows until the day he died, and that passion for performing is something I look up to."

Look for Taylor to perform on the Billboard Music Awards this Sunday night Shania Twain, Jennifer Nettles, Florida Georgia Line and Nashville's Hayden Panettiere have signed on to present trophies at this Sunday's Billboard Music Awards.  The show airs live from Las Vegas, and Taylor Swift, The Band Perry and Kacey Musgraves are among the stars set to perform.

Celine Dion, Kid Rock and Cee Lo Green have also been confirmed to present trophies on the broadcast.  Prince, Christina Aguilera, Taylor Swift's tour mate Ed Sheeran and American Idol judge Nicki Minaj are set to perform too.

The Billboard Music Awards air live Sunday night from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas

 

Normally, on The Voice, the all-star advisors disappear after the battle rounds, but this year they're coming back for an encore.

TVLine.com reports that Sheryl Crow, Lady Antebellum's Hillary Scott and Pharrell Williams will return to help the top 10 contestants prepare for the next round of competition.  Team Shakira's mentor, Joel Madden of Good Charlotte, had a scheduling conflict, so Cee Lo Green will return to the show and step in.  You'll see the footage on Monday night's episode.

Cee Lo is reportedly in talks to take his big red chair back for next season; Christina Aguilera is reportedly already in place to come back for the fifth season as well.

 

Pistol Annies' new album, Annie Up, sold 82,000 copies for a #2 debut on Billboard's Country Albums chart behind Lady Antebellum's Golden.

Tim McGraw appears on NBC's Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Thursday night.

The Band Perry will perform with American Idol finalist Janelle Arthur and Keith Urban will perform his new single, "Little Bit of Everything," on the two-hour season finale of American Idol Thursday night on Fox.

 

The Band Perry's latest album, Pioneer, includes a foray into the folky territory of country music on the opening track "Better Dig Two" before veering into more pop/rock sounds on the second song, the group's current single, "DONE."  The new album also includes some vocal harmonies inspired by the rock group Queen.  The Band Perry's lead singer Kimberly Perry tells ABC News Radio they couldn't get away with this kind of musical diversity in any genre besides country music.

"It's a great time to be in country music," Kimberly says.  "I feel like it is the American format.  It's a home to so many different styles.  You've got your rock country, you've got folk country, you've got pop country."

She adds that if Tom Petty or Bruce Springsteen were new artists today, they would find a home on country radio, which Kimberly calls "the last rock and roll frontier."

The Band Perry is no stranger to the pop charts though.  They scored a crossover hit a few years back with "If I Die Young," and the Perry siblings hope to experience more of that pop success soon.

Kimberly says, "I do know there are some plans for what we call the spillover from country radio, who of course brings all of our music to life.  So, keep your ears peeled for some pop crossover The Band Perry have a few headlining shows lined up for this weekend.  Go to TheBandPerry.com for a full list of tour dates.

 

Hunter Hayes played every instrument and sang every lead and backing vocal on his self-titled debut album.  Now that he's proven he can pull off that feat, Hunter invited a few special guests into the studio for the (Encore) deluxe edition of his debut album. The re-release features eight new songs, including his latest single, "I Want Crazy."

Speaking of the recording process for those new songs, Hunter says, "I went in with musicians that I really wanted to work with that I'd seen on other records, and I've got a couple of guests like Jason Mraz came in and Ashley Monroe came in and sang some tracks and all.  I'm just finally getting to do some collaborations."

Fans can now pre-order (Encore) at iTunes or at HunterHayes.com.  The project comes out June 18, and Hunter will preview the album for fans at a listening event at aVenue in Nashville on June 6.  A ticket to that event is included in one of the pre-order packages available at Hunter's website while they last.

 

 

The Grand Ole Opry will salute members of the U.S. military with a special performance and red carpet parade on Tuesday, May 21.  The event marks the 40th anniversary of the return of American troops from Vietnam, and Vietnam Veterans from Tennessee and Tennessee National Guard soldiers will enter the Grand Ole Opry House on a special red carpet before the performance that night.

Craig Morgan, Easton Corbin, Lee Greenwood and Diamond Rio are among the stars scheduled to perform on the Opry for this special show.

Go to Opry.com for tickets and more information.

 

 

A obsessed fan was arrested near Taylor Swift's Rhode Island beach home.

A 22-year-old man from Chicago was cuffed early this morning (Wednesday) after he admitted to swimming up to the beach in front of her house in hopes of meeting her.

He claims he began his swim from a mile away, but turned back when he saw T's security staff. Police arrested him when they spotted him in the water. He's still in custody.

 

Lady Antebellum's Golden is the nation's number-one album, according to the latest SoundScan figures. It sold 167,000 copies in its first week out, besting the Great Gatsby soundtrack by some 30,000.

But Charles Kelley says they didn't really have a plan when they were working on the album.

Charles Kelley of Lady Anbellum talks about the direction of their latest album, Golden.

"We just try to pick the best songs. A lot of time it just comes down to that. That dictates everything. The songs kind of guide you in the right direction."

Pistol Annies' Annie Up debuts at number-two on the country chart and number-four overall. Last week's number-one, Kenny Chesney's Life on a Rock, falls to number-three. Blake Shelton's Based on a True Story is at number-four, and rounding out the Top 5 is the latest soundtrack from the TV show Nashville.

 

 

Trace Adkins never set out to record an album celebrating love -- it just fell together naturally.

He says when he was making his new album, Love Will, he found a few songs that he couldn't resist recording that just so happened to be love songs.

Trace Adkins talks about making an album of love songs "After I recorded them I realized that along with the other songs that I had cut that I had eleven love songs. And I thought wow, I'll just release a record with nothing but love songs on it. I've never done that before. I'll save that other stuff I cut, which was good, but didn't seem to fit. So I'll save that stuff for something else."

Trace competes against magician Penn Gilette for the title of Celebrity Apprentice Sunday night on NBC

MAY 15  

Brad Paisley made a dying man's wish come true by using a guitar the man gave him on a song from his latest record, Wheelhouse.

Brad met Lee Feldman in a meet-and-greet line last October, where Feldman gave Brad his prized custom-made guitar and said that he was dying of pancreatic cancer.

Brad Paisley talks about the guitar given to him by a man dying of pancreatic cancer. [courtesy of Country Now TV] "He said, 'If you're going to play it, I want you to have it. If you ain't going to play it, give it to somebody else.' I don't want it collecting dust. He gave it to me months ago and towards the end if the record I brought it into the studio and set it in there and I went, 'I know the song for that.'"

The song Brad chose for the guitar is "Officially Alive" -- the last track on the album. Lee Feldman died a month after giving him the guitar.

 

Candice Glover and Kree Harrison go head-to-head on Wednesday’s American Idol. The last two singers standing will perform three songs each -- producer Simon Fuller’s Choice, a Reprisal Performance and their Coronation Single. Carly Rae Jepsen drops by to perform “Take a Picture,” which was a collaboration between Jepsen and Idol fans.

 

    Thursday’s live results show at The Nokia in Los Angeles has a lineup of performers that includes alum Adam Lambert, ex-judge Jennifer Lopez, The Band Perry, Frankie Valli and Korean pop star Psy. Judges Keith Urban and Mariah Carey are pre-taping performances.

 

SONG LIST SPOILERS

 

Reprise:

 

 

 

George admits he was intrigued with the song from the start.  He says, "First time I heard it I thought, 'Hmm, that’s a great song.  A little different for me, you know, a little risqué kinda.'  I’m thinking, 'I don’t know if I can pull this off or not.'"

 

George talked it over with Brian Wright from his record label, who told him to just go for it in the studio.  Strait was pleased with the results.

 

"I just love it," George says.  "I mean, it's a little different, the melody’s a little different, and great lyrics."

 

He adds with a big laugh, "It’s kinda about parking, you know, which I’ve done a few times back in the early days."

 

"Give It All We Got Tonight" is the lead single from George Strait's new album, Love Is Everything, due out Tuesday, May 14.

Kellie Pickler's mirror-ball trophy will have a special place of honor in her house. She told Good Morning America Wednesday that the  trophy will probably end up in her Grandpa Ken's room since he was instrumental in convincing her to be on the show."This is his favorite show. I think he was more excited about me doing Dancing with the Stars then when I made it on Idol. He told that if I didn't do it he told me that I wouldn't be his favorite grandchild anymore. And I'm his only grandchild in general. He has to like me. He's stuck with me."Granpa Ken was in the audience cheering Kellie on almost every week.

 

American Idol may soon be bringing back some of its most popular alumni -- on the judging panel.According to New York magazine, producers are floating a plan to stock the show with audience faves, and both Kelly Clarkson and Jennifer Hudson have already had preliminary talks about taking a shot at judging. A source says that Adam Lambert and Clay Aiken are both under consideration as well

 

Tim McGraw is giving his fans a taste of his live shows with his McGraw Overdrive series.He'll post on his website a live track recorded on his Two Lanes of Freedom tour. Additional live songs will be delivered June 7th, June 21st, July 12th and July 26th. Tim says, "The sound and energy from a live show gives an entirely new perspective to any song. I'm always looking for ways to give the fans something extra. If you're at the show, it's a cool memory to add to your playlist. And if you couldn't get a ticket to the show that night, you can still hear some of what happened and maybe feel like you were there. It's a first for me to release live tracks this way, and that's exciting.""Southern Girl" is the first track to be released in the series.

 

Blake Shelton and NBC are assembling a benefit for tornado victims.

Last night he told CNN, "We are actually putting together a fundraiser right now with NBC. We'll have more details within the next 24 hours, but definitely something with NBC that is going to happen real fast, and hopefully raise a lot of money."

Blake says the twister hit close to home -- literally. His sister lived very close to the destruction but recently moved. "My nieces and nephews would have gone to that school [Plaza Towers Elementary].

 

Reigning CMA Vocal Group of the Year Little Big Town will host the summer’s hottest television music event when the ABC Television Network airs “CMA Music Festival: Country's Night to Rock" on Monday, Aug. 12 Filmed during CMA Music Festival Thursday through Sunday, June 6-9, the special features many of today's most exciting Country Music stars as they hit the stage during the four-day party and celebration of America’s music. The annual event is unlike any other, with autograph signings in the new Fan Fair X, live music on 11 stages, more than 450 artists and celebrities, and a guest list of 71,000 avid singing-and-dancing-till-dawn fans.

Artists performing as part of the sold-out Nightly Concerts at LP Field during 2013 CMA Music Festival include Gary Allan, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Kelly Clarkson, Florida Georgia Line, Hunter Hayes, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Kip Moore, Jake Owen, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton, Taylor Swift, The Band Perry, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, and Zac Brown Band. Several legacy acts are performing, too, including Lee Greenwood, Tracy Lawrence, The Oak Ridge Boys, and Randy Travis. Brett Eldredge; Gloriana; Lorrie Morgan and Pam Tillis; and The Oak Ridge Boys are scheduled to perform the national anthem.

Fans can stay in the loop by visiting CMAfest.com, the official website of CMA Music Festival, where they can sign up for the CMA Exclusive e-news. Fans can also connect with CMA at Facebook.com/CMA, Twitter.com/CountryMusic, Pinterest.com/CMAworld, and Instagram.com/CMA_Country_Music_Association.

 

 

 

    Candice Glover - “I Am Beautiful”

    Kree Harrison - “All Cried Out

 

Before this year's Celebrity Apprentice All-Stars even began filming, Trace Adkins laid it on the line for his cast mates who were, well, acting like celebrities.

He told them, "OK, lets just get this out of the way right now. If any of our careers were going great, none of us would be here. So I don't want to any of this diva prima donna bull from any of you all." Trace added that if he had a hit last year, he wouldn't be there at all.

Trace is in the top two going into Sunday night's finale.

Trace Adkins sets his cast mates straight right from the beginning of the show.

"Somebody was in there griping about something and I said, 'OK, lets just get this out of the way right now. If any of our careers were going great, none of us would be here. So I don't want to any of this diva prima donna bull from any of you all. I ain't gonna put up with it. If I had a hit last year, I wouldn't be here.

 

Christina Aguilera is returning to The Voice, Us Magazine confirms.

 

Fox has announced that 24, starring Keifer Sutherland as agent Jack Bauer, will be returning to the network in 2014, mostly likely in May.  But whereas the show previously played out over 24 episodes, with each episode documenting a single hour in a single day in Bauer's life, the new model 24 has been recast as a 12-episode "event series."

 

 

 

Kip Moore is an inked man!

With two number-one hits under his belt, Kip treated himself with a visit to a tattoo artist in Nashville to get his first piece on his right bicep. The ink is “Psalm 40” -- a Bible verse that motivated Kip to stay in Tennessee at a time when he'd almost given up on music and moved back home to Georgia.

Kip Moore dishes on his first piece of ink “It’s ‘Psalm 40.’ It’s verse one and two. I read it nonstop when I first moved to Nashville when I was thinking about moving back to Georgia. I was in a dark place when I first moved to town and I was battling a lot of my own demons. That’s the verse that kept me in the game. So, I told myself if I ever had a number-one song I was going to get the verse on my arm.”

Kip is working on his sophomore album. The new collection will be produced by his longtime collaborator, hit-maker Brett James.

Kip joins Toby Keith's Hammer Down Tour on June 14th in Cincinnati.

 

Keith Urban is staying on American Idol -- he'll be taking Randy Jackson's chair next season. Keith made the announcement today (Tuesday) on Ellen DeGeneres.

Keith Urban talks about replacing Randy Jackson on Idol next season.

Keith:"I'm here to announce today that I'm going to replace Randy, which is fantastic. Bittersweet, really."

Ellen: "You've gotta start practicing."

 

Hunter Hayes, Taylor Swift, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan and Pistol Annies are confirmed to perform on the 2013 CMT Music Awards Wednesday, June 5.  More performers will be announced soon.

 

 

 

George Strait's 40th album, Love Is Everything, is in stores and online this week, and George admits the sounds on this new project are much more polished than the tracks on his 1981 debut album, Strait Country. That album launched Strait's career with the hits "Unwound" and "If You're Thinking You Want a Stranger (There's One Coming Home)," and George says, "I think there's some great songs on there, but I think the, well, maybe it's just the technology or maybe it's just the feeling that I've gotten more comfortable in the studio nowadays."

 

George and his son Bubba had a hand in writing a few songs on Love Is Everything, but George relied on outside songs while making Strait Country. A few of them, including "Blame It on Mexico," were written by George's friend Darrell Statler, who actually accompanied George on his first trip to Nashville in 1978.

 

George says of those songs from Darrell, "You know, when 1981 came around I was able to sign with MCA and had those songs, I'm figuring I gotta put these on the record."

 

As for his current album, Love Is Everything features George's latest hit, "Give It All We Got Tonight."

 

No one on the country chart today has had more hits than George Strait, so it's hard to imagine he'd ever doubt his ability to deliver a song in the studio.  It turns out George needed an outside vote of confidence when he went in to cut his latest single, "Give It All We Got Tonight."

 

 

 

    Candice - “I (Who Have Nothing)” by Ben E. King

    Kree - “Up To The Mountain (M.K.K. Song)” by Patty Griffin

 

Simon Fuller’s Pick:

 

    Candice Glover - “Chasing Pavements” by Adele

    Kree Harrison - “Angel” by Sarah McLachlan

 

Coronation Single:

 

 

Speaking with reporters on Monday, Fox Entertainment Chairman Kevin Reilly said the new series, called 24: Live Another Day, was precipitated by the producers of the show abandoning plans to make a feature film. "I think they all agreed, 'You know what? 24 being compressed into two hours is not 24,'" Reilly told reporters.

 

 

 

The singer will be back in her coach's chair for the fifth season, while new additions, Shakira and Usher, will both likely take time off from the show. A source explains, "Shakira wants to take a season off to take care of the baby. She has an option to come back too. And Usher is doing a movie, so he couldn't do season five if they wanted him to."

Cee Lo Green is also reportedly in talks to return.

 

Luke Bryan will release a new album on August 13th. Luke made the announcement last night (Monday) on the Late Show with David Letterman. The still-unnamed record is Luke's fourth studio album. In the meantime, he continues his Dirt Road Diaries tour

 

 Kenny Chesney designed a T-shirt that will help raise money for his Spread the Love fund which helps those who have lost limbs as a result of  the Boston Marathon bombings.

Kenny says, “People like to represent.They want people to know what they believe in… and I think the people of Boston, after what happened, would take heart knowing America still has them in their thoughts."

He's also donating money made from the download of "Spread the Love" -- a song he recorded with The Wailers to the fund.

Fans can order the shirts from Kenny's online store at KennyChesney.com

 

 

Jason Aldean and actress Kristen Bell were previously announced as co-hosts of the fan-voted show.  Fans can cast their votes in multiple categories now at CMT.com  Jack Bauer will live to see another day...but his day will be slightly shorter.

 

 

 

Keith: "I'm going to miss Randy, I've got to say. He's a beautiful part of that whole institution that's Idol."

 

Carrie Underwood appears on the cover of the new issue of Marie Claire.

Carrie says she doesn't come from a family of huggers. And her two sisters are much older than she is -- which she believes helped create her independent spirit. She says, "I'm a little more selfish...a little closed. I do wish I were softer. I wish I were able to form relationships better. But hey, I mean, I'm not a sociopath."

She also tells the magazine that she always knew she'd be a star -- at least going by what she wrote for her high school yearbook. "You were supposed to say what you would be doing in 10 years, and I said, 'I will be rich, famous and married to a hot guy.' I guess I should have added a few more things."

 

 

 

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MAY 21    Blake Shelton had a tough job last night -- to be on live TV while his home state of Oklahoma was dealing with the devastation from that deadly tornado.
Blake expressed his sadness on last night's episode of The Voice. He said, "They're going through hell there right now. When w