Month: April 2022

Walker Hayes is graduating to bigger venues with his fall 2022 Glad You're Here Tour, a trek that will take him to 15 arenas across the country. Featuring opening act Parmalee, the fun kicks off September 29 in Pennsylvania.

“I can't believe that we are playing arenas,” Walker told Billboard. “It's mind-blowing how our team is growing, how the crowds are growing, and how the music continues to connect with my audience. I'm just so grateful.”

The tour follows his Fancy Like Tour, which took place this spring. The name of that tour — and the catalyst for Walker's mainstream success — comes from his massively popular song, “Fancy Like,” which spawned Walker's first number-one hit and many more accomplishments.

Meanwhile, the Glad You're Here Tour takes its name from a lyric in Walker's song, “Craig.” He also has a new book out called Glad You're Here, which he co-wrote with the titular Craig Allen Cooper. The song is about the friendship Walker found WITH Craig at one of the lowest points in his life, and includes the story of a time when Craig gifted Walker's family a car during a tough period, when money was tight.

Tickets to the Glad You're Here Tour go on sale beginning April 29 at 10 a.m., but there's a pre-sale starting April 26.

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Jason Aldean drops his Georgia collection today, and with it comes his tender new ballad, “Your Mama.”

“The one that brought you in the world / You'll always be her baby / The one that makes it all okay when everything goes crazy,” Jason sings in the chorus of the song, which is a father's ode to his wife — as told to their child. It's a stand-out emotional moment on the track list, but the singer admits recording “Your Mama” fell outside his comfort zone.

In fact, it's “so outta left field for me, something I would typically never in a million years cut,” Jason tells Billboard, adding, “I really just wanted to record it for my son.” That's four-year-old Memphis, whom Jason shares with his wife, Brittany.

“It's probably the most personal thing I've ever done on a record,” Jason explains. “I've had this song for a few years and kept going back and forth on whether to record it. But with a double album, it was the perfect time to put it out there.”

Georgia is the second half of Jason's double album. The first half, Macon, arrived last November.

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Brett Eldredge is chronicling the ups and downs of the human experience in his forthcoming fifth studio album, Songs About You. The project will be out this summer, but Brett's previewing it today by sharing the cover art, as well as the title track.

“Songs About You” is Brett's new single, and it's a mid-tempo, musical journey through heartache. In its lyrics, Brett rattles off all the songs that remind him of a love he lost, including hits by Bruce Springsteen, Van Morrison and Bonnie Raitt.

“There are songs that just transport you back in time to a moment with someone you love,” the singer reflects. “Even though you've not been with the person for a long time, these songs take ahold of you.”

The new track joins “Holy Water” and “Want That Back,” two songs Brett has already shared off his next album. Though they're all very different, Brett says the 12 tracks on Songs About You have a common theme.

“I wanted the album to be songs that connect us all in the human experience,” he muses. “These are emotions that are reflective of each of us. There are songs of solitude, joy and heartbreak, and I like that tension.”

Songs About You comes out June 19, but it's available for pre-order now.

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Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber's hit duet, “10,000 Hours,” became the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit this week.

The complaint, levied by Manufacturing Concepts, Melomega music and Sound Gems, accuses the artists of stealing the “core portion” of “10,000 Hours” from a song called “The First Time Baby Is a Holiday.”

“First Time” first came out over four decades ago, but the lawsuit states that it was re-released in 2014. Meanwhile, “10,000 Hours” came out in late 2019.

“Defendants' theft is impudently bold,” reads the lawsuit. “One need only listen to First Time' and the infringing 10,000 Hours' to discern the unmistakable similarities between the songs.” The suit also names Dan + Shay's record label, Warner Music Group, as a defendant in the case.

The claim against “10,000 Hours” is reportedly corroborated by musicologist Dr. Alexander Stewart, a University of Vermont professor and a frequent expert witness in music copyright cases.

The plaintiffs are asking for credit on the track, as well as payment for damages and legal fees, plus an injunction to prevent further distribution of Dan + Shay and Justin's song.

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Jason Aldean completes an album long in the making this week with the release of Georgia, the second half of his 10th studio album.

The first half of the double project, Macon, came out in November. Though it's now been several months since he put out the first half of his project, Jason says all the music for the two-part album was actually recorded at the same time.

“We finished the double album and really didn't know what the plan was for it at the time,” the star tells ABC Audio. “We didn't know if we were gonna put it out all at once, or how we were gonna do it. And we decided to break it up.”

As for the process of selecting singles, his approach is a little bit unconventional there, too.

“It's different, for sure,” Jason acknowledges. “We're kind of bouncing back and forth between records. The first single came off the Macon side. Second single's Georgia. And now for the third one, I don't really know where that's gonna come from yet.”

He might not decide for sure what's next until he gets feedback from a live audience. Jason's Rock n' Roll Cowboy Tour starts this summer, so he'll get plenty of opportunity to bring the songs from his double album to the stage.

“For me, a lot of times, it's trying some of these songs out live, seeing the reactions it gets, things like that,” Jason explains. “We go back out in July, so we'll have a chance to start playing some of the new stuff.”

?Georgia? was released Friday, April 22.

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