Latest / Country Weekly / 3.13.26
Transcript
- 0:05Speaker 1: Now it's time to catch up with Country Weekly, where
- 0:08we check out news and gossip from the world of
- 0:11country music. I'm your host Ken Dawkins as always, and
- 0:15I will be reading from various sources found online. As
- 0:18a reminder, Radio I is a reading service intended for
- 0:21people who are blind or have other disabilities that make
- 0:24it difficult to read printed material. We'll begin with the
- 0:27first article, dated the ninth of March from countrynow dot com.
- 0:32Thomas Rhtt surprises fans with a Soundtrack to Life Tour announcement.
- 0:38Thomas Rhtt surprised fans early Monday morning with the announcement
- 0:41of his upcoming The Soundtrack to Life Tour, a brand
- 0:44new headlining trick set to take over stages across the
- 0:47country this summer, including Kentucky. The highly anticipated run will
- 0:52visit more than twenty cities, kicking off July ninth in
- 0:55Nashville before making stops in major markets along the way,
- 1:00currently scheduled to wrap up in October in Omaha. Known
- 1:04for his high energy performances, of course and hit filled
- 1:07set lists, Redd is expected to deliver his show packed
- 1:10with fan favorite songs alongside newer material, promising an unforgettable
- 1:14night for concert goers in every city. Joining him on
- 1:18the road will be a lineup of rising stars. Ernest Cassius, Culpepper,
- 1:23Zach John King, Vincent Mason, and Connor Smith will rotate
- 1:27through support slots throughout the summer, while Emily Anne Roberts
- 1:30is set to open each night of the tour. I've
- 1:33always believed a great song could take you right back
- 1:35to a moment, your first love, the last day of school,
- 1:38that summer you never wanted to end. And that's what
- 1:40I hope the fans take away from our shows this summer,
- 1:43Thomas rhtt shared in a statement. And for me, there
- 1:46couldn't be a better way to kick off our tour
- 1:48than at home in Nashville. I can't wait to hit
- 1:51the road with this crew of insanely talented artists and
- 1:53make some memories. Pre Sales for the tour began this week.
- 1:58In addition to standard tickets, range of VIP packages and
- 2:01experiences will be available. The tour dates that matter to us,
- 2:06or the date I should say, is in Louisville on
- 2:08September tenth, at the KFC Center. Next Dusty Black steps
- 2:14out of the office and on to the stage Dusty
- 2:18Black is living proof that it's never too late to
- 2:21chase your dreams. After years of working as CEO of
- 2:24Black Time, moving a major personal laws shifted the course
- 2:28of his life and set him on a path to
- 2:30pursue country music alongside his business endeavors. Now, with his
- 2:34brand new self titled EP, Dusty is ready to show
- 2:38the world what he's capable of. The Texas born, Memphis
- 2:42raised country singer hails from a family with deep musical roots.
- 2:46His granddad, Floyd Black Junior, played banjo and guitar in
- 2:49Johnny Cash's band. Although Floyd passed away when Dusty was young,
- 2:53his passion for music still resonates through him as he
- 2:56follows in his footsteps. Black also inherited his love for
- 2:59the U genre from his late father, Alan Black, who
- 3:02introduced him to the magic of traditional country storytelling. My
- 3:07father would drive from Memphis to Fort Smith, Arkansas, and
- 3:09it was about a six hour drive every other weekend,
- 3:12and he would just sit literally Blair nineties Countries music
- 3:16the whole way for six hours, and we'd both sing
- 3:18it to the top of our lungs, And those were
- 3:20some of the best memories I have with him. Black
- 3:22told Country Now. Black says he also witnessed his dad
- 3:25work endlessly and tirelessly to provide for his family, which
- 3:29in turn inspired him to want to do the same
- 3:31for his two daughters. He first found success in California,
- 3:34working as founder and CEO of Black Time Moving Company,
- 3:38but after his father's passing, he decided life was too
- 3:41short to not do what you love. He stepped away
- 3:44from the business about five years ago, allowing him to
- 3:47pour his focus into a new passion, and then returned
- 3:50to his role a year ago. Along the way, at
- 3:52thirty seven, he began pursuing his childhood dream of becoming
- 3:55a country singer songwriter, something his dad always believed he
- 3:58could do. My friends, who were artists and songwriters in
- 4:02the industry, I think they saw the same thing that
- 4:04my dad did. They knew that I wanted to do it.
- 4:07I just didn't really know where to begin, and felt
- 4:09that my prime had passed because I started this thing
- 4:12a little later in life than they did. But you
- 4:14know what, it's never too late to chase those childhood
- 4:17dreams that we have, he stated confidently. So about six
- 4:21years ago, Dusty Black started to build a music career
- 4:23independent alongside a corps, a group of people in the
- 4:26industry who saw his potential and chose to invest in
- 4:29him as an artist. He signed with qh MG Stone
- 4:32Country Records about a year and a half ago, and
- 4:35then Deckatt dedicated his days to listening to hundreds of
- 4:37outside songs to find the best ones to cut for
- 4:41his first project under the label. Black went in with
- 4:44the best song wins mentality, and luckily he had a
- 4:47lot of friends that doubled his talented songwriters in town
- 4:50who could write stories that he related to on a
- 4:52deeply personal level. This resulted in him compiling six outside
- 4:57cuts that introduced his signature sound off ring a delicate
- 5:00blend of soulful contemporary country, with everything from gritty rural
- 5:04rock anthems to heartfelt songs about love, heartbreak, and family.
- 5:09These songs are the first songs that we really felt
- 5:11passionate about and that I related with and that hit home.
- 5:15There's songs that definitely tell a story, and I think
- 5:17it's one of the most. That's the one most that
- 5:20can relate to, and I think that's important in country music.
- 5:24Dusty Black opens with Don't That Sound Like Her? A
- 5:26true heartbreak country song about a girl who steals hearts
- 5:29and then leaves them broken. He describes her as being
- 5:33an unforgettable figure in his life, someone who he thought
- 5:36was his best friend, the one who he'd be with
- 5:38forever until she decided to end it all. The sweet
- 5:42romance of the tracks opening verses evolves into a full
- 5:44blown fit of pain as Black reveals the hell she
- 5:47spent or she put him through. Black admits his personal
- 5:51experiences with heartbreak closely lined with his story, and based
- 5:54off the positive reaction it's gotten from fans, it's clear
- 5:57it's hit close to home for his listeners too. The
- 6:00project continues within that case Goodbye Drives Me Crazy and
- 6:04dust off Me, before closing out with I Don't want
- 6:08to be Right and Prideful Ode to Rednecks in the
- 6:11Country Way of Life. In the middle also lies the
- 6:14incredibly powerful tribute about a father's relationship with his son
- 6:17called Curveball. The country singer explains he had this title
- 6:22sitting in his notes for about ten years before Jordan Walker,
- 6:25Chris Dubois, and Lynn Hutton finally brought it to life.
- 6:29It turned out to be his dad's favorite song he'd
- 6:31heard before he died. Black recalls playing baseball growing up
- 6:35with his dad acting as his coach both in the
- 6:37game and in life. When he was alive, we used
- 6:40to set on my back porch with guys like Jordan
- 6:42Walker and Mitchell Tenpenny and Dylan Snyder and Morgan Wallen
- 6:46and Tyler Phillips and all these We were all really
- 6:48good friends and we would set on my back porch
- 6:50and my dad just soaked it all in. Black explained,
- 6:53and to put his favorite song out, Curveball, meant a
- 6:56lot to me. By putting out these songs and sharing
- 6:59his journey, dust Black hopes to encourage listeners with a
- 7:02message that no matter where you are in life, you
- 7:04can always change directions and start new. Aside from the
- 7:07millions of streams he's racked up or the opportunities to
- 7:10open for artists like Rascal Flats, Stony LaRue, and Lauren Elena,
- 7:14nothing will be more successful in his eyes than inspiring
- 7:18his daughters at twelve and fourteen to pursue their own dreams.
- 7:21I think at the end of the day that we
- 7:23have to spend time with the people that we love
- 7:25and invest in those things and believe in ourselves. My
- 7:28dad always he believed that I could do anything in
- 7:30this world. I pass that down to my girls. This
- 7:34project is just a small taste of what Dusty Black
- 7:37has in story teased he is already halfway through his
- 7:39next album with thirteen or fourteen songs finished, and is
- 7:43feeling eager to continue his momentum and build his catalog
- 7:46even more. As excited as I am about all of
- 7:49these songs in this project, I'm even more excited about
- 7:52what we have coming for you guys next. Faster Horses
- 7:57Festivals scrapped again, a sign of shifts in country music festivals.
- 8:03Faster Horses Festival will not return in twenty twenty six,
- 8:07marking the second straight year the popular country music event
- 8:10has been canceled. The festival, which typically draws thousands of
- 8:14fans for a weekend of country music and camping, was
- 8:17also absent from the calendar last year, leaving many wondering
- 8:19about its future. In a statement shared on the festival's
- 8:23official social media accounts, organizers announced the festival will take
- 8:27a hiatus in twenty twenty six and did not indicate
- 8:30whether it will return in the future. Faster Horses Music
- 8:35Festival will not return in twenty twenty six. The statement reads, well,
- 8:39the festival will not take place this year. We are
- 8:41proud of the memories created and the impact that has
- 8:44had on live music and the state of Michigan. We
- 8:47remain grateful to the fans, artists, partners in the Michigan
- 8:50International Speedway community who have supported Faster Horses over the years.
- 8:54The reason for the prolonged hiatus is unknown. Faster Horses
- 8:59has hosted dozens of country superstars, of course, over the years,
- 9:02including Hearty Jelly Roll, Laney Wilson, Luke Bryan, Zach Brownban,
- 9:06Shania Twain, and many others. This continued pause also reflects
- 9:10a larger shift happening across country music festival scenes. In
- 9:14recent years, several festivals have either taken breaks, scaled back,
- 9:18or shut down entirely as promoters navigate rising production costs,
- 9:22changing touring schedules, and evolving fan demand. As a result,
- 9:26it's becoming a growing trend within the country music industry.
- 9:30Was recently revealed that the long running Watershed Festival would
- 9:33be taking hiatus this year. The festival, which took place
- 9:36at the Picturesque the Gorge Amphitheater in George, Washington, shared
- 9:40the unfortunate news with fans on social media, writing, after
- 9:44thirteen incredible years of country music and community at the Gorge,
- 9:49we wanted to be the first to let you know
- 9:50that Watershed will be taking a hiatus in twenty twenty six.
- 9:54Any future plans will be announced Accordingly, Several country music
- 9:58festivals of face setbacks in recent US leaving fans disappointed.
- 10:02The newly launched Iron Hills Country Music Festival, for example,
- 10:06was canceled before it even took place in twenty twenty five,
- 10:09citing rising costs and lower than expected ticket sales. Similarly,
- 10:13the Field and Stream Music Fest, originally scheduled for twenty
- 10:16four and twenty five, was ultimately scrapped, with organizers issuing
- 10:20refunds to ticket holders and pointing to circumstances beyond our
- 10:24control as the reason for the cancelations. These events now
- 10:28join Country Jam Colorado, which announced the pause for twenty
- 10:31twenty six in order to reevaluate and plan for the future.
- 10:36Not all festivals are facing uncertainty, however, Country Thunder recently
- 10:40unveiled plans for its first ever beachfront festival, while events
- 10:43such as Barefoot Country Music Festival, Stagecoach and Tortuga Music
- 10:47Festival have already revealed star studied lineups for twenty twenty six.
- 10:52Whether these pauses reflect an oversaturated festival market or other
- 10:56challenges remains unclear. Either way, the cancelations and delays mark
- 11:00a disappointing loss for country music fans hoping to see
- 11:03their favorite artists live. Moving along. Cole Goodwin shows off
- 11:08his humor and traditional country roots with playful new track Howdy.
- 11:14Rising country artist and Country Now artist to Watch, Cole
- 11:17Goodwin delivers a charming and somewhat humorous story with his
- 11:21just release new track Howdy. The song captures the moment
- 11:24a guy spots a woman who seems completely out of
- 11:26his league and works up the nerve to approach her
- 11:29with a bold and slightly cheesy pick up line. Blending
- 11:33humor with traditional country storytelling and a good old play
- 11:36on words, Goodwin turns a simple baron encounter into a
- 11:39light hearted love story about taking a chance and seeing
- 11:43where the night might lead. Howdy you come here often? Mind?
- 11:47If I sit down? How do you slip through the
- 11:49back door of heaven? Does the Good Lord know you
- 11:51got out? Honey? You're out of my league, but we'd
- 11:54make a good team far as I'm concerned. Howdy, how
- 11:57do I make the whole town wonder? How do you
- 11:59wind up with her? He sings on the chorus. Throughout
- 12:03the song, Goodwin uses a clever play on words, turning
- 12:05howdy into howd He in the chorus, trying to the
- 12:08pick up line to back to the idea of people
- 12:11wondering how he ended up with a girl like her?
- 12:14Written by Justin Dukes, David Loose, Carson Peters, and Ethan Phillips,
- 12:18the song serves as the latest release from Goodwin, following
- 12:21twenty twenty five tracks like Girlfriend's Got a Boyfriend, Dust
- 12:24on the Dance Floor and more. This is actually the
- 12:28first song I've recorded that I was not a writer
- 12:30on four of my good buddies in Nashville. Justin Dukes,
- 12:33Ethan Phillips, Dave and Loose, and Carson Peters wrote this
- 12:36song and sent it to me, and I immediately fell
- 12:38in love with it. Goodwin shares, the song is so
- 12:41clever and lighthearted. It's my favorite song in the show
- 12:43to play every night. I love it, the band loves it,
- 12:46and most important, the fans seem to love it. Much
- 12:49like his previous releases. Howdy showcases Goodwin's charm and humor
- 12:53along with his love for traditional country music. The track
- 12:57has the potential become the Georgia Natives breakout hit at
- 13:00country radio. He's been performing Howdy for a while on
- 13:03tour with Vincent Mason this spring, and the song is
- 13:06quickly becoming a fan favorite during his live shows. It's
- 13:09also likely to translate well on country radio, especially as
- 13:13the summer months approach, and just in time for Goodwin
- 13:15to hit the road with Dirk Spentley on the upcoming
- 13:18Off the Map tour. Fans can catch Cold Goodwin performing
- 13:22at Country Now Live in Nashville March seventeenth, alongside Dustin Lynch,
- 13:26Kaylee Green, Kenny Whitmeyer, Jacob Hackworth, and Graham Saint Clair.
- 13:30Proceeds from the show will benefit Saint Jude and tickets
- 13:33are available for twenty five dollars and there's a complete
- 13:37list of his upcoming dates on the official website for Goodwin.
- 13:42We stop by saving Country Music Now for one article
- 13:45dated back on March fifth, in case you didn't hear,
- 13:48because it affects a local radio station in Lexington, among
- 13:51others in Kentucky, Big Country Radio station owner Cumulus files
- 13:55for bankruptcy again. Cumulus Media, the owner of some sixty
- 14:01five country music radio stations in the United States, is
- 14:04filed for Chapter eleven bankruptcy yet again, a company first
- 14:08filed for bankruptcy back in twenty seventeen. The company owns
- 14:12in total, three hundred and ninety four radio stations in
- 14:15eighty four separate markets. The announcement on Thursday, March fifth
- 14:19by the company claims the move will help the company
- 14:21reposition their debt for future growth, But with the continued
- 14:25decline of radio, it's another troubling sign for the format,
- 14:28especially in the current consolidated and nationalized approach of companies
- 14:32like Cumulus that take the local and live aspect out
- 14:35of the format. The Atlanta based company filed for bankruptcy
- 14:39protection in Texas to eliminate five hundred and ninety two
- 14:42million dollars of the company six hundred ninety seven million
- 14:45in debt. In the last Cumulus financial report, they cited
- 14:49five hundred and fifty three point six million in net
- 14:51revenue for the nine previous months that ended on September thirtieth,
- 14:55twenty twenty five, with a net loss of sixty five
- 14:58point six million over that time. The company cited increasing
- 15:02competition from digital audio and streaming platforms, changes in advertising markets,
- 15:07and continued declines in its radio audiences as the culprit
- 15:11for their debt woes. Cumulus employees about three thousand people,
- 15:15but insists the bankruptcy will cause no disruption to our operations,
- 15:19that our people and our strategies, according to CEO Mary Berner,
- 15:23but perhaps it should disrupt their strategies, says saving country music,
- 15:28laying off local talent, and nationalizing playlist has made radio
- 15:31unappealing to many consumers, along with the ability of consumers
- 15:35now to find the music they want to listen to
- 15:37via alternatives to radio, as the format continues to attempt
- 15:41to dictate taste as opposed opposed to serving the public
- 15:44what it wants to hear. It's a long way from
- 15:47my days in radio back in the eighties, anyway. In
- 15:50twenty eighteen, the then VP of Cumulus Country, Charlie Cook,
- 15:54listed off his favorite artists as Bob Seeger, Steely Dan,
- 15:57and Tears for Fears. He said of Sturgial Sins Gibson,
- 16:00who was a year removed from winning the Grammy for
- 16:02Best Country Album, I Know I'm supposed to listen to him.
- 16:05He's a huge act, sells out six shows at the
- 16:07Ryman in a blink. But I'm a bit hit oriented
- 16:10listener and I need to sing along with hooks. I
- 16:13do not believe he is about that. Cook left the
- 16:15company in twenty twenty four. If the Cumulus bankruptcy goes through,
- 16:19it will completely eliminate the company's equity shares and make
- 16:22Cumulus solely the property of its lenders. Cumulus is not
- 16:26the only major radio station owner who has filed bankruptcy.
- 16:29Of course, the biggest radio company, iHeartMedia, declared bankruptcy in
- 16:33twenty eighteen. Odyssey file for bankruptcy back in January of
- 16:37twenty twenty four. Now we scoot on over to Countrycentral
- 16:42dot com with the first article dated March ninth. Sam
- 16:46Barber announce his new album Broken View. Sam Barber announced
- 16:51that his sophomore album, Broken View, is set for release
- 16:54on Friday, April third. The news arrives during a busy
- 16:57stretch for the Missouri native, who has been steadily build
- 17:00building anticipation with a pair of recent singles. Barbara released
- 17:03Borrowed Time last Friday, following the earlier duet Fear in
- 17:07God with fellow singer songwriter Avery Anna two weeks prior.
- 17:11Both tracks offer an early glimpse at the sound and
- 17:14themes expected to shape Broken View. Barbara is quickly emerged
- 17:18as one of the more prominent young voices in the
- 17:20country and Americana space, gaining traction quickly with a wailing
- 17:24baritone and a stripped down folk and heartland rock sound
- 17:27on the back of one unbuzzy single after another. The
- 17:31album announcement also comes as Barbara continues his American Route Tour,
- 17:35a run of more than twenty performances across theaters, amphitheaters,
- 17:39and festivals throughout the United States. The tour began in
- 17:43January and includes stops across the South, Midwest, and East Coast,
- 17:46with upcoming shows scheduled across the country before wrapping up
- 17:49in early June. With Broken View arriving April third new
- 17:53music already rolling out, Barbara appears poised to carry that
- 17:56momentum into the next leg of his rapidly growing career,
- 18:00and his final tour date will be on June sixth
- 18:03in Lexington. Next, Carly Pearce and Riley Green reveal new
- 18:09single If I Don't Leave, I'm Going to Stay. After
- 18:13much anticipation, Carly Pearce and Riley Green have announced a
- 18:16new duet, if I Don't Leave I'm Going to Stay,
- 18:19Set for release this week. The song marks the pair's
- 18:22first official collaboration and follows several days of social media
- 18:26teasers hinting at the project. Short preview clips from an
- 18:29upcoming music video show Pierce and Green in intimate scenes,
- 18:33including shots of the two lounging together and sharing affectionate moments,
- 18:37suggesting a romantic storyline tied to the track. Fans have
- 18:41been anticipating his studio collaboration since Pierce previously joined Green
- 18:45on stage to perform his hit Don't Mind If I Do,
- 18:48appairing the true attention from the duo's on stage chemistry.
- 18:52The new release appears to build on that connection, with
- 18:54promotional snippets presenting a cinematic and emotionally charged vibe to
- 18:59do what It arrives as Pierce prepares to launch her
- 19:01next album, Era, Her forthcoming fifth studio album, is reportedly complete,
- 19:06with the singer describing the project as rooted in classic
- 19:08country influences and Appalachian roots. The new material follows her
- 19:13twenty twenty four album Hummingbird, and has expanded twenty twenty
- 19:17five editions. She also released recent singles including church Girl
- 19:20and Dream Come True. Green meanwhile, has remained active at
- 19:24country radio, of course, and on the road. His recent
- 19:28releases include the single change My Mind, issued in January
- 19:31from the expanded version if Don't Mind If I Do,
- 19:34which also produced multiple hit collaborations. In recent years. Is
- 19:38continuing to tour behind the record, including dates on his
- 19:41twenty twenty six Cowboy As It Gets Run and festival
- 19:44appearances such as Stagecoach Now we move over to people
- 19:49dot Com Country from the social scene. Musicians Vince Gill
- 19:53and Amy Grant celebrate twenty six years of marriage. Vince
- 19:58Gill and Amy Grant are celebrating twenty twenty six years
- 20:00of marriage. A longtime couple began dating in late nineteen
- 20:03ninety nine and tied the knot in March of two thousand.
- 20:06They each have two children from previous relationships and share
- 20:09one child together. The couple shared a joint post to
- 20:12social media Tuesday celebration of the day, Happy twenty sixth
- 20:16anniversary to Amy and Vince. The Instagram carousel was captioned.
- 20:20In the first of several photos, Grant sixty five sat
- 20:23on Gil's lap, leaning her head against the I Still
- 20:26Believe in You singer's head as they smiled gently at
- 20:28the camera. Others show the music power couple sharing a
- 20:31kiss on stage at the Grand Old Opera in Nashville.
- 20:35Gil sixty eight and Grant met toward the end of
- 20:37ninety three, but at the time they were both married
- 20:39to other people. After maintaining a friendship throughout the years
- 20:43and also collaborating on music, Gil and the Lucky One
- 20:46Singer confirmed their engagement in March of two thousand and
- 20:49tied the knot about a week later in an outdoor
- 20:51ceremony just outside of Nashville. Now we move on over
- 20:56to the music universe. With the article dated March ten.
- 21:00I mentioned a few months ago that my brother in law,
- 21:04retired custom home builder Greg Sloan, has a business relationship
- 21:08with Jelly Roll to build tiny homes for vets and others,
- 21:13and he was invited by Jelly Roll to go to
- 21:15the induction ceremony the Grand Old Opry this week and
- 21:19suggested I look at this article. Multi Grammy Award winner
- 21:22Jelly Role officially joined the Grand Old Opry family this
- 21:25week and was inducted by his close friend and fellow
- 21:28Opry member Lady Wilson. Also joining in Jelly Roll's Opry
- 21:31induction celebration included his friend and mentor Opry member Craig Morgan,
- 21:36as well as friends Leanne Morgan and Ernest. Additionally, in
- 21:40a full circle moment, Sheriff Darren Hall and Davidson County
- 21:43Juvenile Correction professional Yolanda Hockett were in attendance and were
- 21:48thanked from the stage by Jelly for their belief and
- 21:50guidance since he encountered both in his time serving at
- 21:53the juvenile Center, as well as members from the Judge
- 21:56Dinkins Educational Center, who Jelly currently works with to support
- 22:00and empower under serve youth. He also thanked his family,
- 22:03including his mom, who was sitting in the front row,
- 22:06marking the first time she had seen him perform at
- 22:09the Opry. Jelly Roll wearing a cross that belonged to
- 22:12Johnny Cash that was given to him by Cash's son,
- 22:14John Carter. Cash kicked off his induction night with high
- 22:17powered performances of his hits Liar Need a Favor, I
- 22:20Am Not Okay, Hard Fought Allelujah, and Son of a Sinner,
- 22:24joined by his friend Ernest. Following an emotional video of
- 22:27his history with the Opry, friend and Grammy winner Landy
- 22:30Wilson walked to the circle with him to officially welcome
- 22:33him to the family. The mood backstage before the Opry
- 22:37was one of gratitude and joy. Jelly Roll spoke with
- 22:39Oprey host Kelly Sutton about the progression of his career
- 22:42leading up to this night. Filling Studio A were special
- 22:45people from Jelly's life, including his mother, the aforementioned Sheriff Hall,
- 22:48Miss Dinkins, and even the prosecutor who convicted him years ago.
- 22:52All were there to celebrate that the Opry induction was
- 22:55more than a formality. It was a pinnacle acknowledgment of
- 22:58Jason Deford's rehabilitation. On stage, Jelly Roll fronted a revival
- 23:02in a nearly hour long Opry set that included six
- 23:05of his biggest hits. Jelly Roll felt moved to change
- 23:08things up at the last second, encouraging his band to
- 23:10launch into the anthemic hard Fought Allelujah remarkably without having
- 23:15rehearsed at the Opry. Band caught on quickly and created
- 23:18an amazing moment. Ernest joined in for the song he
- 23:20co wrote, Son of a Sinner, and after inducting jelly Roll,
- 23:24Lanny Wilson helped him close the night with a tear
- 23:26jerking save Me. Jelly Roll was invited to become a
- 23:29member during a surprise moment of his interview on The
- 23:31Joe Rogan Experience, the top podcast in the world across
- 23:35all platforms. Rogan surprised jelly Roll with a video message
- 23:38from Opry member Craig Morgan inviting him to join the
- 23:42Opry family. The country superstar and BBR music Group BMG
- 23:46Nashville Republic courting artist made his Opry debut on November ninth,
- 23:49twenty twenty one, and has become an Opry fan favorite
- 23:53and beloved by not only the fans but many of
- 23:55its members. Over the years, jelly Roll has dedicated his
- 23:58time to playing the show newmerous times, mentoring artists many
- 24:02artists through the Opering Next Stage program, and serving as
- 24:05host of Opering Next Stage live shows in Texas. Now
- 24:10we go down the Block to Taste of Country. With
- 24:12the first article published March ninth, Kentucky Senator suggests funding
- 24:16change that could collapse Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Dolly Parton's
- 24:22Imagination Library program is facing some funding turbulence in Kentucky.
- 24:26Local chapters in the state have used Parton's popular early
- 24:29childhood reading program for a while now, and a fully
- 24:32supported statewide push was instigated in August twenty twenty four.
- 24:36In January, a Senate committee approved joint resolution aiming to
- 24:40further increase participation, but in March, Republican Senator Michael Nemus
- 24:45filed an amendment that would keep the state general fund
- 24:48from being used for the Imagination Library. Days later, Nemus
- 24:52retracted the amendment, but he still has one big concern
- 24:55about the program's expansion. In Kentucky. Governor Andy Busheer said
- 24:59that mus proposed amendment would cause the Imagination Library to
- 25:02collapse in Kentucky. It's a pretty simple question. Do you
- 25:06want all kids in the commonwealth regularly sent to them
- 25:08to read or not? I think it's a pretty simple
- 25:11question this year, said per Wkyt. State's Democratic Party chair
- 25:16Coleman Elbridge had even harsher words for the push to
- 25:19scale back funding. This is approaching comic book levels of
- 25:22cartoon Villainry Eleridge said in a statement also per WKYT,
- 25:28why on earth would Senate Republicans defund an Imagination Library
- 25:31program started by Dolly Parton that helps inspire a love
- 25:35of reading for Kentucky kids. He continued, This is about
- 25:39our Kentucky children getting a book every month to help
- 25:41them dream big, expand their minds, and ensure they show
- 25:44up to elementary school able to read. Nemus revoked his
- 25:48proposed amendment just a couple of days after filing it,
- 25:51saying that he had planned to vote for the resolution
- 25:53after meeting with Senator Armstrong, who originally sponsored the January
- 25:57resolution but still had concerns about the books distributed not
- 26:02being made in America. I want to make a point
- 26:04that they gave me five books as examples, fine books.
- 26:07I looked at them. They're all made in China, Nemas stated.
- 26:10According to Fox fifty six, he emphasized that he's a
- 26:13big supporter of the American workforce and said he hopes
- 26:16that lawmakers will push for more of the Imagination Library
- 26:19books to be made in America. He also suggested an
- 26:22unsubstantiated concern that the books being produced abroad meant they
- 26:26could in the future be written in languages other than English.
- 26:30I hope that these books will then become made in
- 26:32America and also not start to be written in Chinese. Also,
- 26:35Nemas stated, Parton founded her Imagination Library back in nineteen
- 26:39ninety five, inspired by her father's inability to read or write.
- 26:43The program gifts a free book monthly to kids from
- 26:46birth through age five. Today, the Imagination Library is active
- 26:49in five countries and provides millions of books for kids
- 26:53each month. Next, Texas music legend Aggie Meyer's dead at
- 26:58eighty five. Oggie Myers, a Texas based musician and founding
- 27:03member of the Sir Douglas Quintet and the Texas Tornadoes,
- 27:06has died. According to a statement on his Facebook page,
- 27:09he was eighty five. The statement announcing his death explains
- 27:13that Myers died in his sleep on Sunday with his wife,
- 27:16Sarah beside him. The post also remembers him as a
- 27:19true Texas legend. Born in nineteen forty in San Antonio,
- 27:24Myers founded the Sir Douglas Quintet with fellow singer songwriter
- 27:27Doug Scham in the nineteen sixties. He and som would
- 27:31continue to be close friends and collaborators as their careers continued.
- 27:35Myers played multiple instruments, but his Vox's Continental organ became
- 27:39his signature sound during his time and was a major
- 27:42part of songs such as She's About a Mover and
- 27:45Nuevo Laredo. The group helped pioneer his style that bridged
- 27:49country rock and Tohanno tex mex inspiring a generation of
- 27:53artists that included The Mavericks. The Mavericks Jerry Dale McFadden
- 27:57reflected on that influence in an obituary for Meyers published
- 28:00in Rolling Stone. In addition to his career in his
- 28:04own projects, Myers was an acclaimed session musician who played
- 28:07with Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, and others. He also operated
- 28:10several record labels over the course of his life. In
- 28:14the nineties, he co founded the supergroup The Texas Tornadoes,
- 28:17which also included Doug sm as well as Freddie Fender
- 28:20and Flacco Jimenez. In total, Myers released twenty three solo
- 28:24albums over the course of his career. According to the
- 28:26San Antonio Current, no cause of death was immediately available,
- 28:30and according to the post announcing myers death, a public
- 28:33memorial will be planned soon. While this concludes the reading
- 28:37of Country Weekly for this week, if you have any
- 28:39comments or suggestions about our program, please call us at
- 28:43eight five nine four two two sixty three ninety. Thank
- 28:47you for joining me and on behalf of everyone here
- 28:49at Radio I. This is Ken Dawkins, wishing you a
- 28:52great day.