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Carly Pearce announces dates for her upcoming ‘The 29 Tour’

Post author By Staff
Post date September 24, 2021
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Carly Pearce has announced the cities and dates for her 2021 tour in support of her latest album ’29: Written in Stone.’ The 8-date tour, dubbed “The 29 Tour,” is set to kick off on November 4 in Des Moines, Iowa and conclude on December 3 in Bloomington, Illinois. Pearce will also make stops in Minneapolis, Chicago, New York City, Richmond, Virginia, Washington, DC, and Nashville.

Andrew Jannakos will serve as her support act at the upcoming concert performances. Tickets go on sale this Friday – for more info check out CarlyPearce.com

Editorial credit: Kathy Hutchins / Shutterstock.com

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Listen to Charlie Puth’s collaboration with Elton John on the new single ‘After All’

Post author By Staff
Post date September 24, 2021
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Elton John and Charlie Puth have released a new song, “After All,” off Elton’s upcoming album of collaborations, ‘The Lockdown Sessions,’ due out October 22nd. ‘The Lockdown Sessions’ also features collaborations with Dua Lipa, Eddie Vedder, Miley Cyrus, Lil Nas X, Gorillaz, Stevie Wonder, Stevie Nicks, Young Thug, and Nicki Minaj.

John says in a statement: “With ‘After All’ Charlie and I were in the studio, just the two of us. He’s got a little home set up with his keyboards, synths, and Pro Tools. I played electric piano and actually wrote the song all the way through and then Charlie wrote the lyrics pretty quickly. He’s incredibly quick, Charlie. We just had an amazing chemistry in the studio.”

Puth added, “As a songwriter, I have admired and looked up to Elton John my entire life. It is truly incredible how the melodies and chords seem to come to him instantly whenever he sits down at the piano. I got to witness that firsthand when we wrote this song together. He is world-class and the true definition of a musical genius. Being a part of his musical journey is a dream come true.”

Take a listen to “After All” – here. John and Puth are both set to perform at the upcoming Global Citizen Live event in Paris, which will air on September 25th. They’ll also go live together on TikTok on September 26th at 2 p.m. ET/7 p.m. in the U.K to discuss “After All” and The Lockdown Sessions.

Editorial credit: Ron Adar / Shutterstock.com

Pop Daypop

The Weeknd hit with copyright lawsuit over ‘Call Out My Name’

Post author By Staff
Post date September 24, 2021
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The Weeknd, along with collaborators Nicolas Jaar and Frank Dukes, are being sued by Suniel Fox and Henry Strange, who make up the group Epikker. The lawsuit accuses the Weeknd, Jaar and Dukes of plagiarizing their 2015 song “Vibeking” for his 2018 single, “Call Out My Name.”

The suit alleges, “Both works are in a minor key. Both works are in a 6/8 meter that is less common in popular music. Both works are played at a similar tempo. And both works use features of electronica, ambience, pop, hip-hop, rock, and R&B to achieve a particular atmospheric and melancholic sound.” Fox and Strange allege they were in correspondence with the Weeknd’s DJ and engineer PNDA, who told them that he wasn’t going to credit them on the song. The two artists seek all profits that “Call Out My Name” has amassed, along with legal fees, and want the Weeknd blocked from performing the song until the case is settled. Universal Music Group and other entities that back the Weeknd were also named in the suit.

“Call Out My Name” peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and amassed over 700 million YouTube views and 836 million Spotify streams. Fox and Strange’s “Vibeking” is currently unavailable on any streaming services.

Editorial credit: Christian Bertrand / Shutterstock.com

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Darius Rucker's biggest accomplishment might be changing country music

Post author By abookbinder
Post date September 23, 2021
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When Darius Rucker first announced that he was focusing on a career in country music, after years spent fronting Hootie & the Blowfish, it wasn’t an easy transition. The South Carolina native admits that it was hard getting radio to play his music at first, only because of the color of his skin.

“When I came to Nashville 14 years ago, I was going into the radio stations and being told that they didn’t think it was going to work because I was African American,” he tells The Tennessean. “That was tough. But I was glad to get the truth, and it was what it was.”

Now, with numerous chart-topping singles to his credit, and several Black artists joining him on the charts, including Kane Brown, Jimmie Allen and Mickey Guyton, Darius is optimistic about the future of country music.

“Country music has this stigma of rebel flags and racism, and that’s changing,” Darius says. “I think it’s changing drastically. And I’m just glad. I hope I’m remembered as one of the people that tried to fight that, and one of the reasons that changed.”

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Jennifer Nettles to return to Broadway as lead in 'Waitress'

Post author By abookbinder
Post date September 23, 2021
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Jennifer Nettles is returning to Broadway! The singer-songwriter, who previously played Roxie in the musical Chicago, will show off her acting skills in the lead role of Jenna in Waitress. The role is currently being played by pop star and Waitress creator Sara Bareilles, with Jennifer set to begin her run on October 19, and starring in the musical through November 24.

“It is an absolute dream,” Jennifer tells People of performing in the musical. “There are so many layers to Waitress that make it so meaningful to me. It is heart-warming, heart-breaking at times, and absolutely heart-inspiring. I’m thrilled to be able to finally get to wear the apron.”

Waitress is scheduled to run through January 9, 2022 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.

Jennifer’s latest solo album, Always Like New, was released in June. The record includes covers of Broadway classics, from musicals like My Fair Lady, Hamilton, Oklahoma!, Annie and more. “She Used to Be Mine,” from Waitress, appears on the deluxe version of the record.

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Mickey Guyton named Breakout Artist of the Year at CMT Artists of the Year ceremony

Post author By abookbinder
Post date September 23, 2021
No Comments on Mickey Guyton named Breakout Artist of the Year at CMT Artists of the Year ceremony

Mickey Guyton will be honored as the Breakout Artist of the Year at the upcoming CMT Artists of the Year celebration.

“We are thrilled to honor the immensely talented Mickey Guyton as this year's Breakout Artist of the Year,'” says Leslie Fram, CMT’s senior vice president of music and talent. “After relentlessly chasing her dreams in country music for years, her perseverance, tenacity and spirit have culminated in this spectacular moment of recognition where she's finally receiving the credit she deserves.

“Congratulations Mickey!” Fram adds. “We look forward to celebrating with you, and all of our honorees on October 13th.”

Mickey is only the fourth artist to be named Breakout Artist of the Year, following in the footsteps of Chris Stapleton, Kelsea Ballerini and Ashley McBryde.

Chris and Kelsea will be honored at this year’s CMT Artists of the Year celebration, along with Gabby Barrett, Kane Brown and Luke Combs. The ceremony will air live from Nashville's Schermerhorn Symphony Center, on Wednesday, October 13, at 9:00 p.m. ET on CMT.

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Carly Pearce changed Kelsea Ballerini's “Diamondback” to make it her own

Post author By abookbinder
Post date September 23, 2021
No Comments on Carly Pearce changed Kelsea Ballerini's “Diamondback” to make it her own

Carly Pearce kicks off her 15-track 29: Written in Stone album with “Diamondback,” a feisty song that she wrote with Kelsea Ballerini, Tofer Brown and Shane McAnally. The song was actually Kelsea’s first, with Carly changing parts of it to make it fit her own story.

“I actually was never in the room with Kelsea for this one,” Carly tells Lyric magazine. “Kelsea, Tofer Brown and Shane McAnally had started the song, almost as if Kelsea was playing a character, but the only part of the song that really stayed the same was the post-chorus.”

It’s as easy to imagine Kelsea singing “Diamondback” as Carly, but Carly says the song, about love gone wrong, was more suited for her, after her split from Michael Ray, than Kelsea.

“Honestly, Kelsea just didn't feel like it was for her at that time and so Tofer and Shane sent it over to me,” Carly shares. “The three of us finished it very quickly and it was very easy for me to go there in that song … I picked it for the album opener because that was exactly what happened, it was a fairytale that went wrong.”

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Country star trivia

A well-known country singer walked off The Late, Late Show on this day in 1998, when he found out that the time he was promised to be on air was cut by two-thirds. His sudden departure left host Tom Snyder with 15 extra minutes to fill. ANSWER: Waylon Jennings.

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Keith Urban still can't cook, even after more than a year at home

Post author By abookbinder
Post date September 23, 2021
No Comments on Keith Urban still can't cook, even after more than a year at home

Keith Urban can no longer say he doesn’t have time to learn a new skill. The New Zealand-born star spent most of 2020 at home, with lots of time on his hands. Early in the lockdown, Keith and his wife, actress Nicole Kidman, determined to try to each learn something new, although Keith’s didn’t go entirely according to plan.

“I was gonna learn cooking and I said, ‘I can’t cook!'” Keith recalls to People. “I think Nic was gonna learn a language and didn’t. Yeah, we had all sorts of plans that just … no.”

While Keith might not be able to make his own dinner, his wife did improve on her goal, at least a little.

“That’s not true actually, Nic got better at her Italian,” he says.

Keith has a couple more dates for his Las Vegas residency this month. He will wrap up 2021 by performing a series of shows in Australia.

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Chris Young embraces his love of sports with a visit to ESPN+

Post author By abookbinder
Post date September 23, 2021
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Chris Young‘s first love might be country music, but he also loves sports. The Tennessee native, who’s an avid fan of both the Texas Longhorns and the Dallas Cowboys, will join Stephen A. Smith on ESPN+ on Thursday, September 23, at 5:30 PM ET, for Stephen A’s World.

This isn’t the singer’s first foray into discussing sports on ESPN. Earlier this month, Chris joined Jason Fitz and Gary Striewski for their inaugural The Kickoff show.

For Chris, it makes sense that both of his favorite teams aren’t from his home state. “When I was growing up we didn't have the [Tennessee] Titans so it was like just pick a team near you,” Chris previously told Sports Illustrated. “I was always a diehard Cowboys fan.”

Chris just celebrated a #1 hit with “Famous Friends,” a song he recorded with Kane Brown. The tune became the title track of Young’s eighth studio album, which was released in August.