Month: November 2022

Jeff Cook, the legendary country guitarist known for being a founding member of hitmaking group Alabama, has died.

According to a statement from his publicist, Cook died on Tuesday, November 7, at his beach home in Destin, Florida. He was 73 years old and had been living with Parkinson's disease for a decade, a diagnosis that caused him to retire from touring in 2018.

Together with his Alabama bandmates Randy Owen and Teddy Gentry, Cook played on some of the group's biggest and most enduring hit songs, such as “Dixieland Delight,” “Tennessee River,” “Love in the First Degree” and “Mountain Music.”

Cook is survived by several family members, including his wife of 27 years, Lisa. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that anyone wishing to commemorate Cook's life do so with a donation to The Jeff and Lisa Cook Foundation, which works to house orphaned children worldwide.

Arrangements for a memorial service will be announced at a later date.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Craig Morgan will appear on The Kelly Clarkson Show on November 11 — Veterans Day — to discuss his new memoir and share stories from his military service.

Speaking of The Kelly Clarkson Show, Kelly took on Cody Johnson's megahit “Til You Can't” in the latest installment of the Kellyoke segment on her talk show.

David Nail shares his mental health journey in the latest installment of The Check-In, a video series from ACM Lifting Lives.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

When it comes to their CMA Awards prep styles, Jason Aldean says he and his wife, Brittany, are very different.

“Brit always does [get dressed up], for sure. I don't really feel like I get dressed up that much. It's more just, like, shining up what I would normally wear onstage a little bit,” he tells ABC Audio ahead of Wednesday night's CMAs.

In that regard, the couple's 3-year-old daughter, Navy, just might be starting to take after her mom. Jason says that Navy and her 4-year-old brother, Memphis, are still a little too young to care about awards shows and other big televised industry events. But they're not too far away from figuring out that what their dad does for a living is pretty different from a regular job.

“I'm sure it's coming at some point. Especially my youngest daughter, Navy. She seems like a little bit of a diva,” Jason relates. “So she'll be the one wanting to come to these things, getting dressed up in her own dress and all that stuff, here in the near future. I can kind of see that happening.”

But no matter what they're wearing to the ceremony, the Aldeans all have one big goal in mind: celebrating the end of the year with a big party, along with Jason's fellow country superstars.

“This really is the last thing of the year for most of us. I mean, it's kind of the conclusion of the year, the CMA Awards,” he notes. “So it's time to cut loose after the show's over.” (AUDIO IS ABC 1-ON-1)

The 2022 CMA Awards air Wednesday night on ABC.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Cole Swindell has never won a CMA Award, even though he's been at the top of the country music game for so long some fans may find that hard to believe. 

“Oh yeah. It's possible. I can tell you,” Cole tells ABC Audio with a chuckle.

The singer stresses that trophies and accolades aren't the goal — what's important, after all, is putting out music that resonates with your fans. But that doesn't mean it's not nice to get some industry recognition every once in a while, “especially for the people behind the scenes that you can share it with,” Cole adds.

But Cole might pick up his first couple of CMA trophies on Wednesday night: He's nominated in the Music Video of the Year and Music Event of the Year categories, both for his hit duet with Lainey Wilson, “Never Say Never.”

“You know, I've only been nominated as a solo artist, but this year, to be nominated with a friend and somebody I've believed in for a while — Lainey Wilson, who is the most-nominated [artist at the show] — I just think it's gonna be special … to watch her shine,” Cole continues.

“I hope she wins everything she's nominated for. I know I'm a small part of that, but she's so deserving,” he adds.

The 2022 CMA Awards air Wednesday night live from Nashville on ABC.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Lainey Wilson is pulling quadruple duty at the 2022 CMAs. She will perform, present and be a part of an Alan Jackson tribute — oh, and not only is she a nominee, but she's the most-nominated artist of the whole show this year.

It’s been a week of pinch-me moments, especially when she met AJ himself ahead of singing in his honor.

“His storytelling is like none other, and it's an honor to be able to honor him. I mean, he's a legend,” Lainey says. “…And I got to meet him and be around him for a few minutes the other night. And it was like, I'm sitting here talking to Alan Jackson! What is life?!'”

But the moment that Lainey is looking forward to the most at the 2022 CMAs doesn't have anything to do with winning trophies or stepping onstage for glitzy performances: She can’t wait to walk the red carpet with her dad.

This moment is a long time coming, as Lainey's dad spent multiple months in the hospital and underwent numerous surgeries during a life-threatening series of health challenges this summer. He ultimately had to have an eye removed in order to save his life, but he's on the mend now — and ready to head to Nashville to support his country star daughter.

“He is headed here right now from Louisiana and he is gonna walk the carpet with me. It's going to be a win in itself right there,” she says. “He's going to be looking like a pirate cowboy. He's going to wear his eyepatch. Yeah, he's excited.”

The 2022 CMA Awards — and pre-show red-carpet coverage — will air on Wednesday night on ABC. The show broadcasts live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Tim and Adam broadcasted from Nashville for the CMA Awards 2022. 

Click on a name to listen to the interview.

Jason Aldean

Luke Combs

Lainey Wilson

Cole Swindell

Breland

Carly Pearce

Lee Brice

Mitchell Tenpenny

Morgan Evans

Sam Hunt

Nate Smith

Dan + Shay are in a bid to win their third Vocal Duo of the Year trophy this week at the 2022 CMA Awards, but they're excited to come to the show as fans, too.

“To get a front row seat to see it is amazing, man. It'll never get old,” the duo's Dan Smyers tells ABC Audio, adding that he's particularly excited to see the newer artists take the stage.

“The New Artist category is so stacked. It's insane. I mean, I have no clue who's gonna win,” he says. (Hardy, Lainey Wilson, Parker McCollum, Walker Hayes and Cody Johnson are the contenders this year.)

But one person who doesn't always feel comfortable at these awards shows is Shay Mooney's wife, Hannah, and it's because she's often been heavily pregnant for them. Shay and Hannah are parents to two boys, with a third due in February — so once again, Hannah is very pregnant during CMAs week.

“I feel bad for her. I think it's, every time awards shows come around, she's usually pregnant,” Shay says with a chuckle. “This is, like, the third time.”

The 2022 CMA Awards are set to air Wednesday on ABC. The show will broadcast live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Country up-and-comer Breland has had a big year, and he's got the CMA Awards nomination to prove it. He stands to win his first CMA trophy in 2022: “Beers on Me,” his collaboration with Dierks Bentley and Hardy, is in the running for Musical Event of the Year.

But this isn't Breland's first rodeo. After scoring nominations — but not wins — at the CMT Music Awards earlier this year, he knows the importance of going into the awards show with perspective.

“Yeah, it would be great,” he tells ABC Audio, speaking about the possibility of walking away from the 2022 CMAs with some hardware.

“But also, you know, I was nominated for a few awards at the CMTs, and it didn't quite pan out that night,” he points out. “And so I also have a newfound appreciation for just being present in the moment.”

After all, just being in the mix during Country Music's Biggest Night is a win unto itself. “The victory here is in the opportunity and the experience,” Breland adds.

The 2022 CMA Awards will air live from Nashville on ABC on Wednesday night. Luke Bryan is co-hosting the show with Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Luke Combs won his very first Entertainer of the Year trophy at the CMA Awards in 2021, and as he heads into the 2022 ceremony this week, he'll have the chance to defend his title. He's one of the contenders again this year.

But Luke tells ABC Audio that he's still wrapping his head around last year's win. “It's still surreal, honestly,” he admits.

The Entertainer award is the CMA's highest honor, and winning it is never a sure bet — even for a bonafide superstar like Luke. “That might be the only time you ever win it and you never do it again, you know what I mean? So it's pretty wild,” he reflects.

But that doesn't mean that he's not going to try. On Wednesday night, he's going head to head against Miranda Lambert, Morgan Wallen, Carrie Underwood and Chris Stapleton in the category.

“Oh, for sure. No doubt about that, man,” Luke says, when asked if he's hoping to extend his Entertainer reign for another year. “But again, it's one of those things — there's nobody nominated that doesn't have a good argument to win it.”

Luke's got a lot of reverence for the category, and for his competition, he continues. “There's never anybody, in my opinion, who's nominated for Entertainer that if they won, you could go, I don't think that guy should've won it' or [I don't think that] girl should've won it.' Everybody has a case,” he points out.

The 2022 CMA Awards air live from Nashville Wednesday night on ABC.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.