Month: March 2022

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Go Country 105

Luke Combs pulled from CMT Awards performance due to a positive COVID-19 test

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Luke Combs was scheduled this week to record a performance to air during next month's CMT Music Awards, but those plans have been scrapped due to a positive COVID-19 test.

The Tennessean reports the news, explaining that Luke originally planned to record a performance for the show with Kane Brown at an undisclosed location on Thursday. Old Dominion has stepped up to fill Luke's performance slot.

“Unfortunately, Luke Combs won't be with us tomorrow,” a spokesperson for CMT said on Wednesday. “He is quarantined with COVID. He's bummed to miss seeing everyone!”

As of Thursday morning, Luke himself hasn't issued a statement about his absence from the show or updated fans on how he's feeling. It's also unclear whether or not his wife, Nicole, is quarantining with him. She had COVID-19 back in December 2020, and on her Instagram stories, described her recovery process as “brutal,” saying, “I've had all the symptoms, except for a fever. It beat me up.”

Nicole is currently pregnant with the couple's first child, a boy. She's due this spring.

The 2022 CMT Music Awards will air on CBS on April 11. Luke is nominated in the categories of Male Video of the Year and Video of the Year, both for his music video for “Forever After All.”

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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News Daypop

U.S. State Department formally states that Russia has committed war crimes in Ukraine

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In a press statement, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that the U.S. government “assesses that members of Russia’s armed forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine.”  Blinken said since launching “his unprovoked and unjust war of choice” Russian President Vladimir Putin has unleashed unrelenting violence that has caused death and destruction across Ukraine.

Blinken said in the statement: “Last week, I echoed President Biden’s statement, based on the countless accounts and images of destruction and suffering we have all seen, that war crimes had been committed by Putin’s forces in Ukraine. I noted then that the deliberate targeting of civilians is a war crime. I emphasized that Department of State and other U.S. government experts were documenting and assessing potential war crimes in Ukraine.”  Blinken said the U.S. government will continue to track reports of war crimes and will share information with allies and partners, as well as with international organizations and institutions “as appropriate.”

The statement said as with any alleged crime, a court of law with jurisdiction over the crime is ultimately responsible for determining guilt in specific cases. The state department said examples of Russian war crimes in Ukraine include attacks on hospitals, schools, ambulances, critical civilian infrastructure “and other atrocities.”

Editorial credit: Alexandros Michailidis / Shutterstock.com

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News Daypop

Madeleine Albright, first female secretary of state, dies at age 84

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Madeleine Albright, the first woman to serve as the U.S. secretary of state, died Wednesday at age 84. Her family confirmed in a statement that Albright died of cancer, adding that she was surrounded by family and friends at the time of her passing.  The statement read: “We have lost a loving mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend,” as well as a “tireless champion of democracy and human rights.”

Former President Bill Clinton named Albright the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations shortly after he was inaugurated in 1993, and nominated her as the secretary of state three years later. She was confirmed in 1997 by a vote of 99-0. At the time, she was the highest-ranking woman in the history of the U.S. government. Albright served in the post for four years.

On Wednesday, Clinton remembered Albright as “an extraordinary human being” adding “because she knew firsthand that America’s policy decisions had the power to make a difference in people’s lives around the world, she saw her jobs as both an obligation and an opportunity. And she made the most of them in advancing peace, security and shared prosperity.”  The former president said he last spoke to Albright two weeks ago, sharing:  “She never lost her great sense of humor or her determination to go out with her boots on, supporting Ukraine in its fight to preserve freedom and democracy.” 

After leaving public office, Albright went on to teach at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and became a prolific author, writing seven New York Times bestsellers. In 2012, former President Barack Obama awarded Albright the Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor.

Albright is survived by three daughters and six grandchildren, as well as a brother and a sister.

Editorial credit: mark reinstein / Shutterstock.com

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Go Country 105

Born out of a pandemic + new motherhood, Maren Morris' 'Humble Quest' is a “therapeutic,” joyful “miracle”

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Maren Morris has been sitting on a batch of finished mixes for the past eight months, and the world will finally get to hear them on Friday: That’s when her new album, Humble Quest, comes out.

“It feels surreal,” Maren tells ABC Audio. “It’s just going to be such a relief to put it out, because it was made during such an uncertain time. And that was a miracle in itself, being able to stay creative-minded during such a time, when we couldn’t tour.”

The singer says making the record started out as “therapeutic” and a “much-needed distraction” during the COVID-19 pandemic, but it blossomed into something she could never have expected. “It just ended up being such a happy record,” she marvels.

While there’s no song on the project that she isn’t excited to release, Maren says she’s got a couple that she’s particularly impatient to share with fans.

One, “Nervous,” already came out ahead of the full-length album. The singer loves it because it shows a different side of her musical tastes, she explains. “It’s very rock, and, like, alternative…’90s, to me,” Maren notes.

“And then ‘Good Friends’ is another [track] that I think is such a fun song about friendship,” she details. “So [I’m excited for people to hear] all of them.”

Ahead of the release day, Maren also shared Humble Quest‘s lead single, “Circles Around This Town.” The song is currently inside the top 20 at country radio.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Categories
Country Daypop

Dierks Bentley adds new summer dates on his ‘Beers On Me’ Tour

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Dierks Bentley has added a summer leg to his “Beers On Me” tour. Bentley will visit over 31 cities, launching his trek June 3 in Wilmington, North Carolina with special guests Ashley McBryde and Travis Denning.

Said Bentley:  “A bunch of friends, ice cold beer and good country music is just about all you need for a perfect summer. Every year when we plan a tour, I think this summer is going to the best yet…and this year is no different! I’m excited to have Ashley and Travis jump on this leg of the ‘Beers On Me Tour’…now just counting the days ’til June!”

Verizon will offer an exclusive presale in the U.S for select markets through the customer loyalty program Verizon Up. Members will have first access to purchase presale tickets now through March 24. Public ticket sales will begin this Friday, March 25th at dierks.com.

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

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Country Daypop

Lauren Alaina returning to American Idol as Guest Mentor

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Lauren Alaina announced that she will be returning to American Idol as a mentor on March 28th.

Lauren shared on Instagram: “I am FLIPPING OUT to return to @americanidol as a guest mentor for #HollywoodWeek! I’ll be mentoring the country genre! Tune in to Idol tonight to see who else joins us in Hollywood and I’ll see you next week on Monday, March 28 at 8/7c on ABC. #AmericanIdol”

Lauren’s professional musical career started on American Idol‘s 10th season, where she came in second place to winner Scotty McCreery.  Lauren has since become one of the rising stars in country music, and was just inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry.

Lauren Alaina Returning To ‘American Idol’ As a Mentor for Country Genre

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com

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Pop Daypop

Harry Styles announces new album ‘Harry’s House’ to drop in May

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Harry Styles announced on social media his third album, titled “Harry’s House”, will be released on May 20.  According to a press release, the LP will contain 13 songs.

The 28-year-old Styles also shared the new album cover on social media, which features him standing on the ceiling of an upside-down living room beside a loveseat, a chair and a side table. Styles in wearing blue pants and a flowing white top with pink accents, including a collar. Styles also included a trailer for Harry’s House in the post, which shows him stepping onto the stage in an empty theater and smiling into the camera as a cutout of a house is pulled up around him.

The new project is the Style’s first new music since his second album, Fine Line, was released in December 2019.  Styles also recently wrapped up the North American leg of his Love on Tour concert series, and has been acting in multiple projects, including a cameo in Marvel’s Eternals. He has several more films in the works, including My Policeman, and Don’t Worry Darling – which is directed by girlfriend, Olivia Wilde.

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Pop Daypop

Miley Cyrus forced to cancel festival appearance in Paraguay after her plane is struck by lightening

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Miley Cyrus was forced to cancel her headlining appearance at the second day of Paraguay’s Asunciónico festival, when the plane she was flying en route to Paraguay made an emergency landing after being struck by lightning.

Cyrus posted a video clip from the plane, and wrote on Instagram. “To my fans and everyone worried after hearing about my flight to Asunción. Our plane was caught in a major unexpected storm and struck by lighting. My crew, band,  friends and family who were all traveling with me are safe after an emergency landing. We were unfortunately unable to fly into Paraguay. 💔 I LOVE YOU.”

Asunción, Paraguay’s capital city, experienced massive flooding and rainfall on Tuesday, and according to an official announcement from Asunciónico posted on social media, the severe weather conditions forced organizers to cancel the festival’s opening day, which was set to feature Foo Fighters, Doja Cat and Machine Gun Kelly among its performers.

Editorial credit: Tinseltown / Shutterstock.com

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Go Country 105

Nashville notes

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Maren Morris is planning a Q&A for Thursday, which is also the day before her new Humble Quest album comes out. You've got until 12:30 ET tomorrow to tweet your questions.

Jake Owen's got a new song, “Up There Down Here,” coming out Friday. He teased the track on Twitter today.

Vinyl Me, Please is celebrating the 60th anniversary of Willie Nelson's first LP release with a massive, limited-edition box set. Spanning across nine albums and seven LPs, it's called VMP Anthology: The Story of Willie Nelson. The package is available for pre-order now.

Jimmie Allen revisited “All Tractors Ain't Green,” a standout track off his 2018 debut album Mercury Lane, for an Amazon Original Live version. He performed the song from Watertown, Tennessee.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

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Go Country 105

Dolly Parton wants to make a musical biopic of her life one day

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She's one of the most accomplished figures in the entertainment business, but Dolly Parton's still got some items to check off her bucket list. Namely, she'd like to be a part of a Broadway production, and she'd like to helm a musical biopic about her life.

“I do intend someday to be on Broadway, and but I'm thinking now that I might do my life story as a feature,” the 76-year-old legend declared during an appearance on radio show “Mr. Nashville Speaks,” according to Variety.

“Maybe possibly even a musical feature,” the singer added. “So we're in talks about that.”

Dolly explains that a Broadway musical production seemed on the horizon a couple of years ago, but the COVID-19 pandemic pushed that idea to the back burner. Ultimately, she changed her mind about the project — for now, at least.

In the meantime, Dolly's been checking items off her career to-do list left and right. She just put out a novel, co-written with James Patterson, called Run, Rose, Run. Earlier this week, she announced that that novel is being adapted into a movie, and she'll play the starring role.

Dolly was also named one of 16 nominees to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, an honor that she attempted to graciously decline, on the grounds that she hadn't earned it. The Hall of Fame kept her on the ballot, so Dolly just might get inducted despite her wishes.

Either way, she said, the nomination had inspired her to make a rock n' roll album at some point in the future.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.