Month: January 2022

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Go Country 105

Dierks Bentley looks ahead to his next album, and debuts “the return of the stache”

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Fans of both Dierks Bentley's music and his facial hair have good reason to be excited in 2022. The singer teased his upcoming tenth studio album on social media this week, and also showed off a new look he's been sporting.

“The #stache is back! Thoughts??!” Dierks wrote on socials, alongside a picture of himself in the studio rocking a beanie, long hair and a mustache.

But that's not all the singer's sporting: He's also holding a copy of author Jake Brown's book, Nashville Songwriter: The Inside Stories Behind Country Music's Greatest Hits.

With a keyboard, speakers, notepad and laptop behind him, Dierks has creative energy on the brain. “Using the unexpected time off to dig deep into this album I've been working on for over a year now,” the singer continues. “Can't wait to get it out in 2022.”

Dierks has been dropping new singles for a while now. Among them are “Gone,” which became his 20th number-one single last summer, plus his Hardy and Breland collab, “Beers on Me.” At the end of 2021, Dierks shared another new song with his fan club as a Christmas gift, called “Tell Em Right Now.”

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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Go Country 105

Luke Combs gave Ashley McBryde a custom bar cart as an end-of-tour gift, and her reaction was priceless

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Kindred musical spirits and frequent tour mates Luke Combs and Ashley McBryde wrapped up the What You See Is What You Get tour together in 2021, and as a “thank you” to his opening act, Luke gave Ashley something special.

“Luke Combs built and gifted me a bar cart, and here is my reaction to seeing it,” Ashley wrote on TikTok, along with expletive-ridden video footage of her response the first time she saw her present.

“Oh s***. Oh s***!” the “Girl Going Nowhere” star exclaimed as she walked into the room and saw the cart and Luke standing beside it. As the reality set in, Ashley dissolved into laughter before going up to give her tour boss a hug.

Luke then gave her a tour of the cart, which features a lighted sign of her name and logo. Of course, the country superstar thought of everything, and set the bar cart up with all the fixings: It's got cutting boards, a remote to control the light and a fridge stocked with what appears to be Truly Hard Seltzer.

“You're the best,” Ashley replies at the end of the video, as Luke counters, “No, you're the best.”

For his part, Luke recently reflected on the massive tour, which took two years plus and plenty of ups and downs to complete. He ended by saying that he was putting the “finishing touches” on his third studio album.

@ashleymcbrydemusic

@lukecombs gave me an end of tour gift. And my reaction was fully on brand. Thank you Luke!! ##bar ##crafty ##ohshit ##LukeCombs ##AshleyMcBryde

? original sound – Ashley McBryde

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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Go Country 105

Garth Brooks is headed to San Diego for the only West Coast stop on his Stadium Tour

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Garth Brooks is plotting his course to San Diego, California for a just-announced 2022 Stadium Tour show. It'll be the only time the Stadium Tour hits the West Coast.

The show is set for March 5 at Petco Park, a ballpark that boasts a stadium capacity of over 42,000 and is home to MLB team the San Diego Padres. It'll be Garth's first time playing the venue, and the first time he's performed in San Diego for nearly seven years.

Despite the venue's massive size, fans will have to act quickly in order to snap up their tickets to the show. Garth has been raking in impressive sales numbers for other stops on his Stadium Tour: In late November and early December, fans purchased a total 570,000 tickets across three different cities.

Of the 2022 dates announced on the Stadium Tour, only one — a March 26 stop in Orlando — isn't quite sold out yet, though over 65,000 fans have already snagged their seats, according to Garth’s website. He's got sold-out shows booked in Las Vegas and Baton Rouge, plus a sold-out, five-night stand in Dublin, Ireland's Croke Park.

As ever for the Stadium Tour, seating will be in-the-round style. Tickets for the San Diego show go on sale on Friday, January 14.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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Go Country 105

Kane Brown's wife shares how she told him they were expecting baby number two

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Kane Brown and his wife, Katelyn, gave fans a big surprise on New Year's Eve when they revealed the news that they'd welcomed their second daughter, Kodi Jane. The news was especially shocking because the couple decided to keep Katelyn's pregnancy private for the whole nine months, so no one even knew they were expecting.

But in the days since Kodi was born, The superstar pair have made up for lost time, sharing gorgeous maternity snapshots and an array of selfies from throughout Katelyn's pregnancy.

This week, the singer's wife shared a particularly special memory from their journey toward welcoming their second child: The day that she told Kane she was pregnant.

In a video she posted to social media, Katelyn displays her positive pregnancy test, then keeps the camera rolling as she wakes Kane up to surprise him. While Kane's initially groggy as he's waking up, he reacts with a wide grin once he realizes what's happening.

The couple are already parents to a two-year-old daughter, Kingsley Rose. In music news, Kane is watching his current single, “One Mississippi,” rise up the country charts.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by KB ? (@katelynbrown)

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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Go Country 105

Keith Urban is assembling his 2022 set list, and he's calling fans for their advice

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Keith Urban's planning a big year on the road in 2022, with his The Speed of Now World Tour set to kick off in June.

But before the fun starts, he's got to put together his set list. The singer needs advice on what songs to include in his show, so he called the experts: His fans. In a video shared to his social media, Keith surprises fans with phone calls, asking them which of his songs they'd most like to hear on tour this year.

Their responses range from classics like “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” to deep cuts like “Black Leather Jacket,” off the deluxe edition of Keith's 2013 Fuse album.

The Speed of Now World Tour begins in Tampa, Florida this summer, and it'll last through November. Ingrid Andress will join as an opening act for the first string of dates. Before that tour kicks off, Keith's also got plans for three May dates on his Keith Urban Live — Las Vegas residency.

For dates and details on how to catch Keith on the road this year, visit his website.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Keith Urban (@keithurban)

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Categories
News Daypop

CDC updates Covid-19 isolation recommendations, provides guidance on testing

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On Tuesday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidance on the recommended Covid-19 isolation period, stating that if people have access to a Covid-19 test, the best approach is to use a rapid test toward the end of their five-day isolation period. The agency has faced pressure over the past week from outside medical experts to include a testing component in its new shortened isolation period.

The updated recommendations do not advise a test for isolated people, but they offer guidance on how those people should respond to a test result if they choose to take one. If the test is positive, isolated people are advised to continue their isolation until 10 days after their symptoms started. If the test is negative, isolated people can end their isolation but are advised to wear a mask around other people until day 10.The recommendations advise people who are isolating to avoid places where they can’t wear a mask, such as restaurants and gyms, and to avoid eating around others until day 10. People who are isolating are now urged to wait to travel until at least 10 days after the start of symptoms. Those who must travel on days six to 10 should wear a mask for their entire trip.

The updated guidance advising people to stay isolated until day 10 if they have a positive rapid test after five days in isolation appears to contradict Walensky’s claim to CNN last week that “we wouldn’t change our guidance based on the result of the rapid test.” Walensky repeatedly defended the CDC’s decision not to include recommending a rapid test in earlier guidance, telling CNN last week, “We opted not to have the rapid test for isolation because we actually don’t know how our rapid tests perform and how well they predict whether you’re transmissible during the end of disease.”

Editorial credit: Rob Hainer / Shutterstock.com

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News Daypop

Virginia snow and ice storm leaves motorists stranded 24 hours on I-95

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The Virginia state police said that the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) road crews have continued to clear abandoned vehicles on Interstate 95 after rain, snow and ice stranded drivers along a 40-mile stretch.  In a briefing Tuesday, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam confirmed that that there have been no reports of fatalities or injuries, saying that the perfect storm created an “incredibly unusual event” that resulted in the major backup.  Northam said that road crews from VDOT and emergency responders have been working around the clock to tow disabled vehicles and get traffic moving again.

Said Northam: “First we had rain, which meant that VDOT couldn’t adequately pretreat the roads. Then we had slushy snow that fell a lot faster than our snowplows could move it, and then as the night fell, the temperatures dropped below freezing. All of those together created the perfect storm for what happened on I-95 last night.”   

Multiple tractor trailers, blocking the highway led to miles of backups with people stuck in their cars for many hours. Northam said that the region was not prepared for the weather that swept through the region:  “We were prepared for the storm that was predicted — a few inches of snow, but instead, Mother Nature sent more than a foot of snow to the Fredericksburg area.”  Northam said that the state has not called upon the National Guard for assistance because it takes time to deploy them and that their road crews. The VDOT anticipated that I-95 would be cleared of vehicles ahead of Wednesday’s rush hour.

Editorial credit Miro Vrlik Photography / Shutterstock.com

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Go Country 105

Lainey Wilson says having her music featured on 'Yellowstone' is a “blessing”

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Lainey Wilson and ?Yellowstone? creator Taylor Sheridan are part of a mutual admiration society, so much so that Taylor has used Lainey’s music on the hit TV show multiple times, which Lainey calls a “blessing.”

It all started when Taylor discovered Lainey’s music when her self-titled EP was released in 2018 and he incorporated one of the tracks into the Paramount series. Soon after, Taylor invited the country star to Las Vegas, where he was hosting a horse-reining competition, and the two hit it off. 

“I went out there and met him and we really bonded over horses, because I grew up riding too, and developed this friendship,” she explains. “He has been a huge champion. I’m a fan of his…he’s a fan of mine, and it’s introduced my music to a crowd of people that might not listen to radio or might not know how to download music. It’s been such a blessing.” 

After her song “Small Town, Girl” was featured in the season-three finale in 2020, Lainey surprised fans on the season-four finale that aired Sunday night when she was featured performing a trio of songs: “Workin’ Overtime,” “Rolling Stone” and her #1 hit “Things a Man Oughta Know.”  

“You dream about your music being played on the radio and people singing it back to you, but you don’t ever think about your songs making it into one of the coolest, most bada** shows that’s out there right now,” Lainey professes. “It has been so cool.” 

“Things a Man Oughta Know” became the Louisiana native’s first #1 song in 2021. Meanwhile, her duet with Cole Swindell “Never Say Never” is currently climbing the charts, inching toward the top 20 on the Billboard Country Airplay tally. 

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Categories
Country Daypop

Dustin Lynch & MacKenzie Porter’s “Thinking ‘Bout You” remains at No. 1 for 5th week

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Dustin Lynch and MacKenzie Porter have kicked-off 2022 with their duet “Thinking ‘Bout You” spending a 5th week at No. 1 on the Billboard country airplay chart.  Upon learning he and MacKenzie had the #1 song for five weeks in a row, Dustin said on Instagram: “HUGE! What a way to kick off 2022!”  Dustin also teased fans with “more news coming soon.”

Thinking ‘Bout You, which was written by Lynch along with Will Weatherly, Andy Albert, and Hunter Phelps, was released in March of 2021. It first went number during the second week of December and has held its spot at the top of the charts. “Thinking ‘Bout You” is Lynch’s eighth number one and Porter’s first US country radio number one.

However, fans who listen Dustin’s 2020 album, Tullahoma will hear a different version of the track. The album version of “Thinking ‘Bout You” features Lauren Alaina (which you can listen to here).  Meanwhile, check out the official video for Dustin and MacKenzie’s version of “Thinking ‘Bout You” – here.

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com

Categories
Country Daypop

Grammy Awards will ‘likely’ be postponed due to surge of COVID-19

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For the second year in a row, it appears the Grammy Awards will be postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

It appears the Grammy Awards will be postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic for the second year in a row.  Citing unnamed sources “with direct knowledge” of the situation, Billboard reported that the annual event will be pushed back as the Omicron variant of the virus continues spreading across America.

As of press time, no official announcement regarding the postponement of the 2022 Grammy Awards had been made. The Twitter account of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences still lists the original date, Jan. 31, for this year’s event.

Last year’s Grammy Awards was originally scheduled for Jan. 31, 2021, but was pushed back to March 14. The event was stripped back and moved from Staples Center (now called Crypto.com Arena) to the nearby Los Angeles Convention Center.  The Daily Show’s Trevor Noah is set to host the 2022 Grammys, reprising his role from last year.

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