Author: abookbinder

Dylan Scott was done with his morning workout and sweating it out in the sauna when he found out about his ACM nomination for New Male Artist of the Year.

This marks the first time Dylan has received an ACM nomination.

“Just finished a workout, in the sauna minding my own dang business in my underwear, and I just got nominated for a freakin’ ACM award! Like, I’m freaking out right now! What?!” Dylan exclaimed in a video on Instagram.

“I’ve been in this town for freakin’ 13 years and I just got nominated for an ACM award, and I’m absolutely beside myself,” he adds.

Dylan’s current single, “Can’t Have Mine (Find You A Girl),” is approaching the top 30 on the country charts. The track is off his latest album, Livin’ My Best Life, which dropped in August 2022 and includes the hit “New Truck.”

The 58th Academy of Country Music Awards, hosted by Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks, streams live on Amazon Prime Video May 11 at 8 p.m. ET.

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HARDY leads the nominations for the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards with seven, with his “wait in the truck” partner Lainey Wilson following close behind with six. Kane Brown, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert and Cole Swindell all check in with a very respectable five nods each as well. 

Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks team up to host the live Amazon Prime Video show Thursday, May 11, live from the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas.

Here’s the complete rundown of this year’s contenders:

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
Jason Aldean
Kane Brown
Luke Combs
Miranda Lambert
Chris Stapleton
Carrie Underwood
Morgan Wallen

FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Ashley McBryde
Carly Pearce
Lainey Wilson

MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Kane Brown
Luke Combs
Jordan Davis
Chris Stapleton
Morgan Wallen

DUO OF THE YEAR
Brooks & Dunn
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Maddie & Tae
The War and Treaty

GROUP OF THE YEAR
Lady A
Little Big Town
Midland
Old Dominion
Zac Brown Band

NEW FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Priscilla Block
Megan Moroney
Caitlyn Smith
Morgan Wade
Hailey Whitters

NEW MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Zach Bryan
Jackson Dean
ERNEST
Dylan Scott
Nate Smith
Bailey Zimmerman

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville — Ashley McBryde
Bell Bottom Country — Lainey Wilson
Growin’ Up — Luke Combs
Mr. Saturday Night — Jon Pardi
Palomino — Miranda Lambert

SINGLE OF THE YEAR
“Heart Like a Truck” — Lainey Wilson
“Never Wanted to Be That Girl” — Carly Pearce & Ashley McBryde
“She Had Me at Heads Carolina” — Cole Swindell
“Thank God” — Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown
“‘Til You Can’t” — Cody Johnson

SONG OF THE YEAR
“Sand in My Boots” — Morgan Wallen
“She Had Me at Heads Carolina” — Cole Swindell
“‘Til You Can’t” — Cody Johnson
“wait in the truck” — HARDY featuring Lainey Wilson
“You Should Probably Leave” — Chris Stapleton

VISUAL MEDIA OF THE YEAR
“HEARTFIRST” — Kelsea Ballerini
“She Had Me at Heads Carolina” — Cole Swindell
“Thank God” — Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown
“‘Til You Can’t” — Cody Johnson
“wait in the truck” — HARDY featuring Lainey Wilson
“What He Didn’t Do” — Carly Pearce

SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR
Nicolle Galyon
Ashley Gorley
Chase McGill
Josh Osborne
Hunter Phelps

ARTIST-SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR
Luke Combs
ERNEST
HARDY
Miranda Lambert
Morgan Wallen

MUSIC EVENT OF THE YEAR
“At the End of a Bar” — Chris Young with Mitchell Tenpenny
“She Had Me at Heads Carolina” [Remix] — Cole Swindell & Jo Dee Messina
“Thank God” — Kane Brown with Katelyn Brown
“Thinking ‘Bout You” — Dustin Lynch featuring MacKenzie Porter
“wait in the truck” — HARDY featuring Lainey Wilson

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As Dierks Bentley‘s “Gold” ascends the country charts, he’s looking back on his life and sharing how, in a lot of ways, he’s still the same guy, “for better or worse.”

“You feel like you’ve moved on so much and grown so much now, being [a] husband and having three kids and just musically and life and, you know, trying to practice more presence and mindfulness and all this stuff,” Dierks says. 

That’s why when his frequent collaborator Luke Dick shared the song “Same Ol’ Me” with him, he didn’t really resonate with it. “I’m not the same old man, I’m this whole new guy!” he recalls of his initial reaction.

Eventually, as the pair started penning the song with Jon Randall, Dierks realized that he, indeed, is still “in a lot of ways, the same kid” he’s always been.

“I’m still driving around the same tour bus from 2003, a lot of the same band guys, I’m playing The Station Inn on [the] first Tuesday of the month, I got the same guitar. I got some new dogs, but there’s still, there’s always a dog with me,” he notes.

“It’s kind of weird. It’s kind of sad. It’s like you feel like you’ve evolved so much and at the end of the day, like, for better or worse, still the same guy. I mean, that’s kind of pathetic,” Dierks adds in jest.

Dierks’ “Gold” is in the top two and rising on the country charts. The track and “Same Ol’ Me” are featured on his latest album, Gravel & Gold, which arrived in February.

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Kip Moore‘s fan-favorite album, Wild Ones, is arriving on vinyl April 22. The record, which dropped in 2015, will only be available in 1,000 copies. Check Kip’s Twitter for more information and sign up to be notified of where to pick up the LP.

A new Kenny Rogers album, Life Is Like A Song, will be released on June 2. The 10-song collection was curated by Kenny’s widow, Wanda Rogers, and includes a duet with Dolly Parton on “Tell Me That You Love Me.” Preorder the record now.

Jackson Dean, Megan Moroney, Kameron Marlowe, Corey Kent, Ernest, Ian Munsick, Ashley Cooke and Chapel Hart are part of The Opry NextStage, Class of 2023. The program spotlights rising stars on the Opry stage and across Opry Entertainment Group platforms.

Midland will perform at Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre on October 14, with Luke Grimes and Stephen Wilson Jr. as opening acts. Tickets go on sale on Friday, April 14, at 12 p.m. MT. Visit Midland’s Twitter and website for more details.

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Priscilla Block has teamed up with global fashion retailer SHEIN to launch a new line of personally curated apparel. 

Available now, the collection includes graphic print tops, denim shorts, fringe trim bikinis and more vibrant summer-ready threads. 

Of the new partnership, Priscilla shares, “Working with SHEIN has been such a fun and exciting experience for me. I've been a fan of the brand for some time now, so it's really cool to curate my first-ever fashion collection with SHEIN. I wanted to choose pieces that anyone could wear, no matter their shape or size.”

“We've taken the classic country styles I love the most and added my own sassy-glam twist to create a real country-meets-city chick vibe,” she adds. “I know it'll have everyone who wears it feeling like a star, whether you're partying on a boat with friends or wanting to be best dressed this festival season!”

On the music front, Priscilla and Justin Moore are climbing up the country charts with their single, “You, Me, and Whiskey.” Her debut album, Welcome to the Block Party, received the deluxe treatment in February.

Check out photos of Priscilla in her new collection on Instagram and shop the look on SHEIN’s online store.

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Niko Moon has teamed up with Zac Brown for his upcoming new song, “HEAVEN HAS A BAR.”

Niko announced the collaboration in a video on Twitter this week.

The clip opens with Niko saying, “Hey, what’s goin’ on y’all? I’m Niko Moon and my new song ‘HEAVEN HAS A BAR’ featuring…” before Zac Brown pops up from behind him. The two burst into laughter, before telling fans that the song drops on April 21.

Niko’s latest songs are “FOR LILY” and “I CAN’T WAIT TO LOVE YOU” featuring his wife, Anna Moon. Both tracks dropped in September 2022. The singer’s debut album, GOOD TIME, arrived in 2021.

Presave “HEAVEN HAS A BAR” now. 

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After a successful start in Australia and New Zealand, Morgan Wallen‘s ready to bring his One Thing At A Time tour stateside beginning Friday, April 14.

The first show of his U.S. leg starts at the American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with stops in Kentucky, Texas, Georgia, Florida, California and many other states. The last show on home ground will take place at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington, on October 7. A rotating list of openers, including Parker McCollum, Riley Green, Bailey Zimmerman, Ernest and Hardy will join Morgan on various dates.

Morgan’s recent Australia and New Zealand trek saw him play to over 90,000 fans, with many highly engaged throughout his 26-song set list.

One Thing At A Time is Morgan’s third studio album. The 36-song collection, which dropped in March, includes the hit singles “Last Night,” “You Proof,” “Thought You Should Know” and the title track. Most recently, the LP earned Morgan his first chart-topper on the Australian Recording Industry Association charts. 

For a full list of tour dates and to get tickets to Morgan’s upcoming shows, visit his website.

Photos from Morgan’s Australia and New Zealand shows are available on Instagram.

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Carly Pearce returned to the Grand Ole Opry stage on April 11 for her 100th performance. 

During the special night, the Opry member treated fans to a performance of her latest number one hit, “What He Didn’t Do,” as well as duets with Ashley McBryde (“Never Wanted To Be That Girl”), The Isaacs (“Easy Going”) and Charles Kelley (“I Hope You’re Happy Now”). Fellow Kentucky native Ricky Skaggs also joined Carly to cover the classic Bill Monroe song “Blue Moon of Kentucky.”

Additionally, while backstage, Carly received two plaques: one to commemorate the RIAA certification of her latest Platinum hit, “What He Didn't Do,” and another for the RIAA-certified three-times Platinum single, “I Hope You're Happy Now.”

Carly’s performance will air on Opry Live on Circle Network Saturday, April 22, at 8 p.m. CT.

Check out photos from Carly’s milestone night on the Opry’s Instagram.

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It’s a boy for Russell Dickerson and wife Kailey. The couple announced that they are expecting a second child, a boy, through a heartwarming montage shared on social media.

The clip opens with Kailey’s positive pregnancy test result, before she taps their 2-year-old son, Remington Edward, to reveal to “daddy” the exciting news. As Remington and Kailey surprise Russell with the news halfway through his workout, a smile lights up his face. “No way!” he laughs, before embracing Kailey.

This pregnancy news arrives after Russell and Kailey shared that they experienced a miscarriage in 2022.

Watch the rest of the video to see footage of the couple’s gender reveal party and Kailey’s reaction when she finds out “it’s a boy.”

Russell’s latest single, “God Gave Me A Girl,” is rising up the country charts. The track is off his 2022 self-titled album, which featured the Jake Scott-assisted duet, “She Likes It.”

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Bailey Zimmerman‘s “Rock and A Hard Place” is number one on country radio this week. With this, Bailey now has two career chart-toppers under his belt, with the first being his debut single, “Fall In Love.”

“A massive thank you is owed to my friends at country radio [fire emoji] y'all have been in my corner since day 1 and I can't thank y'all enough for the support! You've changed this kids life forever, thank you thank you thank you,” Bailey writes on Instagram.

“An even bigger thank you to the people out there that have helped make this song what it is [fire emoji] Listening every day, calling into the stations, coming to the shows and screaming your heads off. it's truly amazing to see how big of an impact a single song can have on the world [world emoji],” he adds. “Y'all have truly truly changed alot of lives with all the support and I don't know how I could ever repay y'all.thank you so much [heart emoji]”

Additionally, “Rock and A Hard Place” holds steady at number one for a third consecutive week on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.

Both “Rock and A Hard Place” and “Fall In Love” will be featured on Bailey’s debut record, Religiously. The Album., which arrives May 12.

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