Month: August 2021

Chase Rice launches a new partnership with global hat retailer Lids this week, beginning with his first hat design, featuring his very own Head Down Eyes Up brand. 

That phrase has been one of Chase's personal mottos over the years, and it's gotten him through some tough times, like an ankle injury that once sidelined him during what he hoped would be his breakout season as a football player.

“I started writing HDEU on my hats as a reminder to myself; as a motivation to not give in to any of the pressures around me,” the singer explains. “After a while I started seeing that fans at my shows were writing it on their own hats, so I went to Lids and got 30 custom hats made to put out at the merch stand. We sold them all.”

From there, he says, the inspiration for the partnership came naturally. 

“I never set out to launch a clothing brand, but in that moment I realized just how universal this message is — everyone faces different challenges in life and no matter what those obstacles are, we can all use the reminder to keep your head down, eyes up…keep going,” Chase notes.

The first hat design, which retails on Lids for $29.99, is an adjustable black snap-back with the letters “HDEU” written in camo print. 

In music news, it's been an exciting couple of weeks for Chase, too: He and Florida Georgia Line are enjoying their second consecutive week at the top of the country charts with their duet, “Drinkin' Beer. Talkin' God. Amen.”

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Who will be the next group of musical legends to join the Country Music Hall of Fame? Fans can find out soon. An inductee announcement will take place next week, hosted by Reba McEntire.

The Country Music Association will livestream the event on their YouTube page at 10 a.m. CT on August 16. Reba, who's making the announcement, has been a member of the Hall of Fame since 2011; she was inducted via the “Modern Era Artist” category.

Each year, the Country Music Hall of Fame selects a new class of members across three different categories: “Modern Era Artist,” “Veteran Era Artist” and “Songwriter.” Last year, the three incoming acts were Dean Dillon (as a Songwriter), Marty Stuart (as a Modern Era Artist) and Hank Williams, Jr. (as a Veteran Era Artist.) 

After the new class is announced, they'll be inducted into the Hall of Fame in a formal Medallion Ceremony. 

Reba's no stranger to that event, either: In addition to receiving a medallion of her own when she became a Hall of Famer in 2011, she returned to the ceremony in 2019 to help induct her longtime friends and frequent collaborators, Brooks & Dunn, who were that year's Modern Era inductees. 

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Chris Stapleton lends his powerful voice to a heavy metal classic on “Nothing Else Matters,” the country star's submission to an upcoming Metallica tribute album.

The project — which also features cover songs from country performers like Jon Pardi, Darius Rucker and Mickey Guyton — is called The Metallica Blacklist, and celebrates the 30th anniversary of the release of the band's career-defining, Grammy-winning self-titled project, also called The Black Album. 

It arrives in full on September 10, but fans can hear Chris' rendition of “Nothing Else Matters” now. If you pre-order Blacklist you’ll automatically receive the song, along with a cover of “Nothing Else Matters” from singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers, as well as an alternate mix of the song from Metallica themselves. 

Proceeds from all the songs on Blacklist benefit Metallica's All Within My Hands Foundation, with each participating artist also selecting a charity that their song will support. In Chris' case, that's Outlaw State of Kind, a charitable fund he and his wife Morgane established in 2016.

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Carrie Underwood is continuing to pick up accolades for her spring 2021 faith-based album, My Savior. 

The project is nominated in two categories at the Gospel Music Association's upcoming Dove Awards ceremony. My Savior is in the running for Best Bluegrass/Country/Roots Album of the Year. Carrie's duet with gospel mainstay CeCe Winans, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” also scored a nod in the Inspirational Recorded Song of the Year category. 

When she released My Savior, Carrie explained that the track list — a variety of traditional hymns — was her way of connecting with the essentials of faith-based music and introducing classic songs to a new generation. 

“Hymns and gospel music have shaped me as an artist because those were the first things I sang. I think that was just a great foundation for me now as an artist,” she pointed out.

My Savior has since gone on to achieve considerable success in the country realm, too. It debuted at number-one on the Billboard Country Chart, becoming Carrie's ninth consecutive release to do so. 

My Savior also topped the Billboard Christian Albums chart and hit top five on the all-genre Billboard 200. 

The 2021 GMA Dove Awards will take place on October 19.

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As the frontman of one of the 90s biggest rock bands, Hootie & the Blowfish, singer Darius Rucker has had to deal with his fair share of the backlash that comes along with being hugely popular. 

“That's a problem you have when things get so big, when you get something that's selling a million records a week, people have to hate it. Or they're not cool,” the singer explains in a new episode of People's PEOPLE in the 90s podcast. 

For example, Darius once saw a bumper sticker that read “F*** Hootie” while driving down the highway — but the singer says he took it in stride. 

“I laughed my a** off,” he recalls. “I was driving my brand-new truck to my brand-new house and was playing in front of 20,000 people that weekend.”

A bumper sticker with a mean message directed his way was the least of his worries. “I'm good!” he added. 

Since those early days, Darius has racked up lots more experience in making career decisions based on what he wants to do, and ignoring naysayers in the process. 

His move from Hootie & the Blowfish frontman to solo country act surprised many, but he got the last laugh. As a country artist, he's scored nine chart-topping hits, including his most recent number-one, “Beers and Sunshine.”

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If he were still alive, the Country Hall of Famer, known as “Mr. Grand Ole Opry,” would be turning 94 today. Known for Nudie suits, a blond pompadour and a self-titled variety show that featured a young Dolly Parton, this performer charted over 80 singles during his career. Can you name him? ANSWER: Porter Wagoner.

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