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Go Country 105

Nashville notes: Maren Morris on 'ACL', Jerry Lee Lewis' funeral arrangements & more

Maren Morris‘ performance on Austin City Limits streams Monday at 9 p.m. ET. 

Shania Twain, Steve Wariner, Hillary Lindsey, Gary Nicholson, David Malloy and the late Chips Moman were inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Sunday night. Carrie Underwood,Keith Urban, Garth Brooks and Vince Gill performed in honor of the inductees. 

Jerry Lee Lewis‘ public memorial services will take place this weekend in Hernando, Mississippi, and the town where he was born, Ferriday, Louisiana. Fans will be able to livestream the services on Lewis’ Facebook page

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Go Country 105

“So grateful”: Carly Pearce reflects on her induction into Kentucky Music Hall of Fame

Carly Pearce is expressing gratitude for her induction into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. 

The day after completing her two-night, sold-out debut run at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Carly traveled back to her home state for her induction ceremony into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. 

The singer shared a series of photos from the event, including posing by her exhibit, which displays the dress she wore to the 2019 CMA Awards, a vinyl copy of her 29: Written in Stone album, the poster for her induction into the Grand Ole Opry and more memorabilia. 

Fellow Kentucky native Ricky Skaggs was on hand to induct her. 

“Kentucky will forever be home & the place that I found my love of music,” Carly says, calling the week of shows at the Ryman and her induction ceremony magical. “So grateful.” 

Carly is set to perform at the CMA Awards when they air live from Nashville on November 9 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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Go Country 105

Carrie Underwood to perform at 'American Music Awards'

Carrie Underwood is taking the stage at the American Music Awards. 

The country superstar will perform “Crazy Angels” off her new album, Denim & Rhinestones, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and inside the top 10 on the all-genre Billboard 200.

The album is nominated for Favorite Album – Country; Carrie is the most-winning artist in this category. She is also up for Favorite Female Country Artist.

Carrie is among the first round of performers alongside Pink, Imagine Dragons and Yola. Yola will perform her song “Break the Bough,” which has been designated the Song of the Soul, a moment in the show that highlights an artist who uses the power of music and lyrics to bring social change.  

Among the other country nominees are Luke Combs, Cody Johnson, Maren Morris, Miranda Lambert and more.

The AMAs will be hosted by Wayne Brady. It will air live from the Microsoft Theater in LA on November 20 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. 

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Go Country 105

Trick or treat: Country stars celebrate Halloween

Thomas Rhett, Maren Morris and Carly Pearce are among the country artists getting into the Halloween spirit. 

Dressed as Captain Hook from Peter Pan, Thomas took to Instagram Stories to whip up a concoction with his tequila, Dos Primos. Known as the “Spooky Tom,” the cocktail is made of an ounce and a half of Dos Primos with grenadine, orange juice and a dash of activated charcoal to make it “real Halloween-y,” topped off with an eyeball. 

Carly shared a throwback Halloween photo of herself dressed as a cat in an all-black outfit with cheetah-print ears and glittery gloves. “I'm a cat, duh!” she captions the photo

Maren and crew, including Jennifer Nettlesdressed up as the cast of the HBO series The Righteous Gemstones, with Maren leading the choir in a performance of a season 2 song. Jennifer reprises her role as Aimee Lee Gemstone, who she portrayed on the show. 

Meanwhile, Luke Combs‘ wife, Nicole, dressed up as a ghoul and had some fun posing in a corn maze.

Rather than donning a costume, Miranda Lambert took to Instagram to show off pictures of fans who are dressing as her for Halloween, including one young fan who recreated the cover of her Palomino album and another who found a replica of the blue jumpsuit she wore at the 2021 CMA Awards. 

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Go Country 105

Hardy and Caleigh Ryan wed in Nashville ceremony

Hardy and Caleigh Ryan are officially husband and wife. 

The couple wed at Diamond Creek Farms in Nashville on October 29, People reports. 

Among Hardy’s friends in attendance were Morgan Wallen, Dierks Bentley, Jameson Rodgers and Mitchell Tenpenny

“I could have invited a lot more people, but we wanted people there that know us and love us,” Hardy says. 

The singer wore a suit and bow tie, while his bride wore a custom wedding dress she helped design with company Naama & Anat.

Caleigh also incorporated personal elements into the ceremony, including her husband’s baby bonnet, her grandmother’s lucky penny and an aquamarine ring that belonged to her great aunt. Hardy added a personal touch by wearing his great uncle’s gold cufflinks. 

To keep the ceremony concise, the couple decided to exchange vows privately. 

“We just want to have a big party for everybody. I’m trying to avoid having a complete meltdown in front of everyone, and I don’t think I could get through vows at the altar, and she’s the same,” Hardy explained before the ceremony. “The vows will be for us. It doesn’t have to be for everybody else.”

The reception featured a pair of beer burros, which are miniature donkeys that walk around with saddlebags of beer, along with a cover band that only performs ’90s country songs. The couple shared their first dance to Journey‘s “Faithfully.” 

After the ceremony, the couple and their guests headed to Broadway in downtown Nashville to celebrate at Luke Bryan‘s bar, 32 Bridge. 

Hardy and Caleigh met in April 2018 and got engaged in August 2021.

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Go Country 105

Luke Bryan donating concert proceeds to Hurricane Ian relief, explains Gov. DeSantis' concert appearance

Luke Bryan is lending a helping hand to those affected by Hurricane Ian.

During his stop in Jacksonville, Florida for his Raised Up Right Tour on Friday, he announced his plans to donate proceeds from his upcoming Estero, Florida concert to the Florida Disaster Fund.

The “One Margarita” singer, who had to reschedule three tour dates due to the storm, was joined onstage by Governor Ron DeSantis for the pledge.

The Florida Disaster Fund is a “private fund established to provide financial assistance to communities as they respond to and recover from times of emergency or disaster. In partnership with public, private, and other non-governmental organizations, the Florida Disaster Fund supports response and recovery activities,” according to a press release. 

In addition to announcing the donation, Luke also presented DeSantis with a Georgia Bulldogs jersey bearing the number 19 — the number of player Brock Bowers. The Bulldogs are the rivals of the Florida Gators. 

In response to social media comments made about DeSantis’ appearance, with some people praising Luke’s donation and others disappointed he brought the controversial political figure onstage, Luke has issued a statement

“I understand Governor DeSantis is a very polarizing figure. But I grew up in a country where if a governor [asks] you if they can come and raise awareness to help victims of a natural disaster you help,” Luke says, adding that he’s “generally stayed out of politics.” “The more important piece was if I am going to come back there a few weeks after a large portion of people have been affected by a natural disaster in a state where people have been good to me this felt right.” 

Bryan will close out his Raised Up Right Tour in Tampa on November 5. 

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Go Country 105

Bees, trucks + a costume Cody Johnson's family “hates”: Country stars preview their Halloween looks

Halloween is here, and for lots of country stars, that means one thing: elaborately-designed family costumes.

Russell Dickerson admits that his costume choice is a little obscure. In fact, only the under-five group — including his son Remington — are likely to recognize what he and his wife, Kailey, are dressing up as for the holiday.

“One of his favorite shows is called Trash Truck, on Netflix. It's this little blond kid, looks exactly like Remington. Like, he's got the gap between his front teeth,” Russell details. “And his best friend is at trash truck.”

In the show, the little boy and the trash truck go on adventures along with a variety of animals who eat trash — and that's where the costumes come in. “[Kailey] is going to be the raccoon, and I'm going to be the big black bear. Nobody's gonna get it…but it's too perfect not to do it,” Russell adds.

Cody Johnson's dressing up, too, but his family is likely to be a lot less thrilled about his costume choice. “My wife and daughters dress up and everything goes crazy. I always dress up every year as a cowboy. My family hates it,” the singer admits.

Runaway June's Jennifer Wayne is likely to get some pushback on her costume choices, too — but not from the human members of her family.

“[My daughter] Lily and myself and my dog, we're all gonna be bumblebees, and my husband is going to be the beekeeper. It's hilarious. Her little bee costume is the cutest thing,” Jennifer says. “My dog hates his costume, but he's just gonna have to suck it up for the pictures.”

Runaway June has another reason to celebrate the spooky holiday: They just released their newest single, “Broken Hearts (Do Broken Things).”

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News Daypop

Elon Musk deletes tweet which linked article on conspiracy theory over Paul Pelosi attack

On Sunday, new Twitter owner Elon Musk tweeted and deleted a link to an article pushing an unfounded conspiracy theory about the attack on Paul Pelosi.  In the since deleted tweet responding to a tweet from Hillary Clinton, Musk wrote: “There is a tiny possibility there might be more to this story than meets the eye,” with a link to a story from the right-wing website Santa Monica Observer — a site that has pushed an anti-LGBT conspiracy theory regarding the attack.

Clinton had tweeted a link to a story in The Los Angeles Times about 42-year-old David Wayne DePape, the man suspected of beating House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, with a hammer inside the Pelosi’s San Francisco home on Friday. Clinton tweeted: “The Republican Party and its mouthpieces now regularly spread hate and deranged conspiracy theories. It is shocking, but not surprising, that violence is the result. As citizens, we must hold them accountable for their words and the actions that follow.”

DePape allegedly broke into the Pelosi’s home on Friday and was immediately apprehended by police and will be charged with attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, burglary and several additional felonies, according to authorities.  A review of suspected social media posts by DePape shows him spreading conspiracy theories about Holocaust denial, pedophiles in the government, and claims that Democratic officials run child sex rings.

Musk’s deleted tweet was sent days after the Tesla CEO officially took control of the social media platform earlier this week after purchasing it for $44 billion. The tweet raises concerns about the type of content that will be allowed on the social media site under his control.

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News Daypop

Two American college students among those killed during Halloween crowd surge in Seoul

Two American college students were identified Sunday as being among the 153 people killed in a stampede during Halloween festivities in Seoul, South Korea. Kennesaw State University student and Georgia native Steven Blesi, 20, was spending the semester studying abroad in the South Korean capital, and Anne Gieske, 20, a student in her third year at the University of Kentucky, died in the crowd surge Saturday night.

President Biden tweeted that he and first lady Jill Biden are “devastated to learn that at least two Americans are among so many who lost their lives in Seoul. Our hearts go out to their loved ones in this time of grief, and we continue to pray for the recovery of all who were injured.”

Bless and Gieske’s schools both issued statements confirming the deaths on Sunday. University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto said in a letter to the community that Gieske was a nursing student in her junior year from Northern Kentucky, who had been studying abroad in South Korea for the semester.

The crowd surge is one of South Korea’s worst disaster in years. As of Sunday evening, officials put the death toll at 153 and the number of injured people at 133, and the death count could further rise as 37 of the injured people were listed in serious conditions. More than 80% of those killed were in their 20s and 30s, and at least four were teenagers.

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Country Daypop

Luke Bryan speaks out after backlash for bringing Gov. Ron DeSantis on stage

Luke Bryan is responding backlash he received on social media after bringing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on stage during his Jacksonville concert on Friday, October 28th.  DeSantis joined Bryan on stage as the singer revealed plans to donate proceeds from his upcoming Estero, Florida concert to the Florida Disaster Fund in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. Following the show, DeSantis took to social media to thank Bryan for allowing him to share his stage, tweeting:  “Thanks for letting me crash the party last night, @lukebryan!”

Bryan took to Twitter on Sunday , Oct. 30 to issue a statement after many expressed their displeasure that Bryan associated himself with the polarizing politician, who has been outspoken about anti-LGBTQ+ policies anti-abortion, and more. Bryan said he doesn’t “typically respond to stuff when I’m getting run down on a social platform” but issued this response:  “Here’s the deal. I understand Governor Desantis is a very polarizing figure. I grew up in a country where if a governor asks you if they can come and raise awareness to help victims of a natural disaster you help. I’ve generally stayed out of politics throughout my career.  I knew people would chatter about this but for me the more important piece was: If I am going to come back there a few weeks after a large portion of people have been affected by a natural disaster in a state where people have been good to me, this felt right. Raise awareness, have a little fun between the GA and FL college fans before the game and do what I love on stage.”  Bryan then concluded his statement, saying, “this is all I am saying about this. I’ll be outdoors with my boys. Enjoy your Sunday. Love y’all #GoDawgs.”  He also included information on how to donate to the fund via text message (text disaster to 20222).

Hurricane Ian postponed three of Bryan’s Raised Up Right Tour dates. The country superstar’s rescheduled shows will now take place this week: Nov. 2 in Estero, Nov. 4 in West Palm Beach, and Nov. 5 in Tampa.

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com