Latest / Country Weekly / 1.9.26
Transcript
- 0:04Speaker 1: Well, it's time once again to catch up with Country Weekly,
- 0:07where we check out news and gossip from the world
- 0:10of country music. I'm your host, Ken Dawkins, and I'll
- 0:14be reading from various sources found online now. As a reminder,
- 0:18RADIOI is a reading service intended for people who are
- 0:21blind or have other disabilities that make it difficult to
- 0:24read printed material. We begin with the first article from
- 0:28Kentucky's own The Lane Report, the December edition, which just
- 0:31derived in my box the Authentic Notes column from Matt Wickstrom.
- 0:37Closing the year on a high note. Kentucky's music scene
- 0:41continues to thrive with a wave of new releases that
- 0:43spans genres and generations, from Luke Bell's haunting posthumous reflections
- 0:48to fresh singles by Corey Brannan, Abbey Hamilton, Candy Jenkins
- 0:53and Moore. Artists across the Commonwealth are exploring home heartache
- 0:57and hard won growth. Also brings standout tracks from rising
- 1:02talents like Low Gap, Only Sixty and Joshua Stone That's
- 1:06Joshua Sloane, along with new work from Kentucky mainstays Ben Solee,
- 1:10Benjamin Todd and Anne Wilson. A couple of features Luke
- 1:14Bell's Orangutang on his posthumously released album The King Is Back.
- 1:18Luke Bell uses the song Orangutang to describe how his
- 1:21mental health struggles often made him feel out of place,
- 1:25like a monkey lost far from where it belongs. And
- 1:28Corey Brannon's Stepping Outside. This features Tyler Childers. Memphis based
- 1:33singer Cory Brannan enlists Tyler on the Stepping Outside, his
- 1:37first new music since the twenty twenty three single gatlen Burgh.
- 1:43Other notes. Lexington's Railbird Festival If You Haven't Heard, released
- 1:46a full artists list coming to the Red Mile June
- 1:49sixth and seventh of this year, featuring the Lumineers, Tyler Childers,
- 1:53Act top Ella Langley, Stephen Wilson Junior, Margot Price and
- 1:57Nicholas Jamerson and The Morning Jays a month others. The
- 2:01Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame in Owensborough has announced the
- 2:04reprisal of its John Hartford Days celebration, which we'll return
- 2:08with music from the Tim O'Brien Band, Robbie Falkes and
- 2:11the Wildmans on January thirty first. As we creak closer
- 2:16to the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame's next induction ceremony
- 2:20in October. More names are being announced for its newest class.
- 2:24Following first Honorey reveal Kicking It on the Creek organizer
- 2:28Byron Roberts. The organization has since announced the editions of
- 2:31You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive author Darryl Scott, and Nashville
- 2:35studio ace Velma William Smith. Kentucky is all over the
- 2:40sixty eighth Annual Grammy Awards set for February first in
- 2:43Los Angeles, and for once in recent memory, it's not
- 2:46Chris Stapleton leading the way. Although the Lexington born singer
- 2:50was nominated for three awards, Best Country Solo Performance, Best
- 2:54Country Duo Group Performance, and Best Country Song, he was
- 2:57surpassed by Eastern Kentucky's Tyler Chill and his four nominations
- 3:01Best Country Solo Performance, Best Country Duo Group Performance, Best
- 3:05Country Song, and Best Contemporary Country Album. Also receiving recognition
- 3:10was Ashland fiddler Jason Carter, whose collaborative album with Michael
- 3:14Cleveland will be a contender for Best Bluegrass Album. Now
- 3:19we move on over to countrynou dot com with the
- 3:21first article posted January sixth Riley Green's sultry news single
- 3:26Change My Mind signals another big moment at country radio.
- 3:30Riley Green, of course, is no stranger to being a
- 3:32little direct in his songs. His chart topping single Worst
- 3:35Way cut straight to the point about a red hot
- 3:38physical relationship, and his new single Change My Mind dives
- 3:42headfirst into the push and pull of trying to walk
- 3:44away from someone who can still draw you right back in.
- 3:48With lines like girl, the second you lose that dress,
- 3:51that's the second I second yes, and wreck my plans
- 3:54like you wreck my bed, Green delivers one of his
- 3:57most unfiltered tracks, yet once again proving he's not afraid
- 4:00to push the boundaries when the song calls for it.
- 4:03According to Green, the confidence to go there comes from experience,
- 4:07specifically the overwhelming fan response to Worst Way, which helped
- 4:11him learn exactly where that lyrical line is. The lyrics
- 4:15that don't make it into the songs are where we
- 4:17went too far. So we usually go there and then
- 4:19we backtrack to a place where we think maybe somebody
- 4:22won't be offended. But you know, to a certain extent,
- 4:25Worst Way is a pretty direct song, and it's done
- 4:27really well for me, so I guess we don't shy
- 4:29away from it too much, he shared. Change my Mind
- 4:32was written by Green alongside Eric Dylan and Randy Montana,
- 4:36and officially hit country radio on January fifth as the
- 4:39latest single from his album Don't Mind If I Do.
- 4:42The track was the most added song at country radio
- 4:45this week and mark Riley's biggest first week add date
- 4:48of his career, with ninety seven stations on board. With
- 4:52one hundred and sixty one million global streams and counting,
- 4:54Change my Mind is showing promise.
- 4:56Speaker 2: To be Green's next massive hit.
- 4:57Speaker 1: It's always kind of crazy when you have songs like
- 5:00where Worst Way just blew up and became this huge song,
- 5:03and then don't Mind If I Do did the same
- 5:04thing Changed my Mind as one that really did too.
- 5:08Green recently shared with Country Now.
- 5:10Speaker 2: So I'm excited.
- 5:11Speaker 1: About a song that's already had a life of its own,
- 5:13getting your chance to be heard by people on country
- 5:15radio who may haven't heard it yet or haven't heard
- 5:18of me. The ACM and CMA award winning artist's latest
- 5:22single follows closely on the heels of his sixth number
- 5:26one hit, Don't Mind If I Do featuring Ella Langley,
- 5:29which recently topped the Billboard Country Airplay Chart, Media Based
- 5:32Country Chart, and Canada Country Radio. The milestone also marked
- 5:37his second consecutive self penned number one, following Worst Way,
- 5:41making him the first country artist since Taylor Swift to
- 5:44achieve back to back solo written number ones on the
- 5:47Billboard Country Airplay Chart. Roddy Green will soon hit the
- 5:50road on his headlining Cowboy as It gets to Her,
- 5:53bringing his live show to fans across the country.
- 5:57Speaker 2: Next.
- 5:58Speaker 1: Ashley McBride tears up teasing her next era of music.
- 6:03Ashley McBride is clearly gearing up for a powerful new
- 6:06chapter of music that already has her feeling all the emotions.
- 6:10Her latest Instagram post features a black and white photo
- 6:13of the songstress sitting in the studio and sipping on
- 6:15something warm. The caption hinted at the fact that something
- 6:19very special is on the way. She wrote, it's bruin
- 6:22can't wait to pour you a big freaking cupook right here,
- 6:26right now. Nearly a week prior, McBride had also posted
- 6:29a raw, unfiltered video film from her car, capturing her
- 6:33immediate reaction after listening back to demos from her next project.
- 6:37The clip was originally recorded just for her team, but
- 6:40she later decided it was a moment worth sharing with
- 6:42fans as it offered a glimpse into genuine emotion that
- 6:45the new songs evoked from her. Her voice shook and
- 6:49tears welled in her eyes as she reflected on their
- 6:51unreleased tracks, explaining that even the unfinished demos caught her
- 6:54off guard. Despite having written the songs herself. She admitted
- 6:59she was surprised by how deeply they moved her when
- 7:01hearing them back. While reflecting on the project, McBride referenced
- 7:05the album in its entirety, but intentionally bleeped the title,
- 7:08choosing to keep that detail a secret for now. She did, however,
- 7:12call attention to one standout track, hand Me Downs, noting
- 7:15that its emotional impact was undeniable even before it has
- 7:18been finalized in production. I just listened to unreleased title
- 7:22for the first time, she says. It's a rough mix,
- 7:24it's not even mixed. And I had just listened to
- 7:27hand Me Downs, and I wrote the damn thing, McBride reflected.
- 7:30Me and Jesse, Joe Dylan and Laura knew what was
- 7:32in that song, and then I listened to it and
- 7:34I kept staring at the dash, like, why would you
- 7:36do that to me? I've been here for every note,
- 7:39every syllable, every breath of this record, and I'm listening
- 7:42to the mixes and it's like I've never heard this record.
- 7:44It's like I've never heard this artist. Based on that reaction,
- 7:48it's safe to say that fans have a lot to
- 7:49look forward to from McBride in the new year. But
- 7:52before she's ready to share this new album in music
- 7:55in twenty twenty six, she took a moment to look
- 7:57back on everything she's achieved in the past year. Another
- 8:01Instagram post finds her pulling highlights from the year out
- 8:04of her hat and opening up about them. It's time
- 8:07to do that thing when we make a video and
- 8:08we'll recap the year. But it have been so many
- 8:11wonderful things in twenty twenty five, I don't even really
- 8:13know how to recap it. You could pretty much pull
- 8:15any of them out of the hat and one would
- 8:17be as good as the next.
- 8:18Speaker 2: She began.
- 8:19Speaker 1: Before doing just that, the first thing she recognized was
- 8:23all the fantastic performances and festivals.
- 8:25Speaker 2: Appearances that she delivered this.
- 8:26Speaker 1: Year, including Stagecoach and CMA Fest twenty twenty five. That
- 8:32was fantastic. I love festivals, McBride declared. Something else the
- 8:36ain'ty enough cowboy songs singer crossed off her bucket list
- 8:40was receiving an honorary doctorate in music from the college
- 8:42she previously attended, Arkansas State University. That was a pretty
- 8:47cool moment, she admitted. And my mom got to be there,
- 8:50and my pop and my father Bill got to be
- 8:52there for that too. Later in the year, she traveled
- 8:55to London to play the first ever broadcast of the
- 8:57Grand Old Opry from Royal Albert Hall, which is something
- 9:01she says she still can't wrap my brain around. While
- 9:04in the UK, she also threw a very successful Tribe party.
- 9:08McBride also touched on hosting her first Pajama Jam fan
- 9:11club party at the historic Station Inn and opening her
- 9:14non Alcoholic Forward venue on the fifth floor of Eric
- 9:16Church's Chiefs Bar on Broadway. This space honors her sobriety
- 9:21and serves as a home for others to do the
- 9:23same for their own journeys. I never thought I'd be
- 9:26able to stop drinking, and I certainly never thought I
- 9:28would have a bar. Not only is it a bar,
- 9:30it's an na forward bar, she pointed out, and you
- 9:33guys are embracing it and you're making it such a
- 9:36huge success and huge thank you to the songwriters and
- 9:39entertainers that are coming to play inside Redemption because you're
- 9:42building your crowd and you're building Redemption's crowd and reputation.
- 9:46Speaker 2: Thank you.
- 9:48Speaker 1: On top of it all. McBride also delivered songs like Rattlesnake,
- 9:51Preacher and a cover of Toby Keith's A Little Less
- 9:53Talk and a Lot More Action. Fans will have to
- 9:56stay tuned for more details regarding her next project, which
- 10:00will follow twenty twenty three's Devil I Know album. She
- 10:04concluded her video by teasing this year is going to
- 10:06be wild next. The New Faces of Country Music Show
- 10:11expands to six artists for CRS twenty twenty six. Kelsey Hart,
- 10:17Ella Langley, Chase Matthew, John Morgan, Meghan Patrick, and Josh
- 10:21Ross have officially been named the twenty twenty six New
- 10:25Faces of Country Music. The announcement came Monday from the
- 10:28Country Radio Broadcasters or CRB, who revealed the full lineup
- 10:33for the highly anticipated New Faces of Country Music Show
- 10:36at the twenty twenty six Country Radio Seminar or CRS.
- 10:41The showcase has long been a launching pad for rising
- 10:43country artists, giving them the opportunity to perform in front
- 10:46of industry professionals and country radio programmers from across the country.
- 10:51This year's lineup is especially exciting as it features six
- 10:54artists instead of a traditional five. Heart Langley, Matthew Morgan, Patrick,
- 10:58and Ross will take this age during the showcase, which
- 11:01has traditionally closed out CRS for more than five decades,
- 11:05offering fans and industry insiders alike a first look at
- 11:08the next wave of country stars. The New Faces of
- 11:12Country Music Show celebrates artists who have made significant strides
- 11:15at country radio during the qualification period leading into CRS
- 11:19twenty twenty six. Each of this year's six honorees has
- 11:23demonstrated momentum with charting singles, growing fan bases, and stand
- 11:27out performances that have caught the attention of programmers and
- 11:31fans alike. For many artists, the showcase has taken their
- 11:34careers to the next level. The New Faces of Country
- 11:38Music Show has helped launch the careers of countless country stars,
- 11:42including Toby Keith, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban,
- 11:46Martina McBride, Sugarland, Megan Maroney, Jelly Roll, Laney Wilson, and
- 11:51of course many others. The New Faces of Country Music Show,
- 11:54presented in partnership with the Academy of Country Music and
- 11:57Saint Jude Children's Research Hospital, will take place during CRS
- 12:01twenty twenty six March eighteenth through the twentieth at the
- 12:05Omni Nashville Hotel. CRS twenty twenty six will also include
- 12:09a digital music summit covering social media, streaming, radio, and more,
- 12:13along with general sessions on sales, influencing and other key
- 12:16industry topics. Rising stars Chase Matthew and co Wetzel will
- 12:20be featured in the Cycle of His Song panel, discussing
- 12:23their hits Darlin and High Road, respectively. Attendees can register
- 12:28for CRS twenty twenty six at Country Radioseminar dot com
- 12:32of course, at six hundred and ninety eight dollars per person.
- 12:35Tickets for the New Faces of Country Music Show are
- 12:37priced at one hundred and ten dollars and sold separately
- 12:40in limited quantities. Now we step on the gas and
- 12:44move over to saving country music with news and always
- 12:47some commentary, with the first article dated January fifth, Stergil
- 12:52Simpson recorded new music in Dan Auerbach's studio, according to
- 12:57a post on the official Johnny Bluesky's instagram out reporting
- 13:00from the Tennesseean that Stergill Simpson and Dan Auerback of
- 13:04the Black Keys had collaborated or were planning to collaborate
- 13:07on new music in twenty twenty six as fake news. Instead,
- 13:11Simpson simply recorded in our Back's new studio in Nashville
- 13:14recently and the music is likely to come out at
- 13:17some point this year. In an article published by the
- 13:20Tennessee And on December thirtieth, the Nashville Newspaper stated in
- 13:24a profile on Dan Hourback and in twenty twenty six,
- 13:27hour Backs got work on the Horizon with Stgel Simpson.
- 13:31Speaker 2: But the Johnny.
- 13:32Speaker 1: Blueskys post states, although it probably wouldn't suck, Dan Auerback
- 13:35and Johnny b the DC's have not worked together, but
- 13:38the band did hijack pop cherry stuff out of this
- 13:42new studio months back. Of course, john Johnny Bluesky's is
- 13:46the current stage name for Stergel Simpson. The Instagram post
- 13:50also included a picture of Johnny blue Sky's in the studio,
- 13:54so for context and transparency. Transparency The Saving Country Music
- 13:58included the original article, which is from the Tennessee and
- 14:02it looks like Sturgil Simpson or Johnny Bluesky's as he
- 14:05Goes By these Days will likely have new music in
- 14:07twenty twenty six, and according to the singer and the
- 14:10guitarist for The Black Keys, Dan Auerback, don't be surprised
- 14:13if he's involved in some capacity. Our Back is up
- 14:16for Producer of the Year at the upcoming Grammy Awards
- 14:19on February first. Along with his Black Keys work, he's
- 14:22a prolific producer, working with Early James, Robert Finley, Jeremy Albino,
- 14:27and Moore over the last year or so.
- 14:29Speaker 2: He says that being able to.
- 14:31Speaker 1: Support himself through the Black Keys allows him to work
- 14:33with artists that don't necessarily represent a financial boon to him.
- 14:38It allows me to work on stuff I personally love,
- 14:40and it can be an artist who has no followers
- 14:42or an old established artist, our Back said to the Tennessee,
- 14:46and I think what we do here is very boutique
- 14:48and very grassroots in a way. But one artist, one
- 14:52artist that he says he's working with and would definitely
- 14:54be a big deal. Later in the interview, it casually
- 14:57slips out and in twenty twenty six got work on
- 15:00the Horizon with Stergil Simpson. This information has been clarified
- 15:05by Simpson, who said he simply recorded new music in
- 15:08Aurbach's new studio. Anyway, we don't know what that work
- 15:12is just yet, but we do know that. Back in September,
- 15:15when Simpson was performing at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheater
- 15:18in Colorado, he said, in a rather colorful burst of language,
- 15:22I'll tell you just so you guys know, we're already
- 15:24gearing up. You ain't ready, but we're going to give
- 15:27it to you.
- 15:27Speaker 2: Anyway.
- 15:27Speaker 1: We just wrapped up a nice little new record.
- 15:29Speaker 2: It's in the can.
- 15:31Speaker 1: Johnny Blueskuys or Stergill Simpson also recently started or restarted
- 15:35an Instagram account, with the last post reiterating there is
- 15:39no STU only JBS. Is the Dan Auerbach collaboration part
- 15:44of the same Johnny Bluesky's album Sturgil referenced at Red Rocks.
- 15:48Will it be a new studio session for twenty twenty six?
- 15:51Will our back be acting in the capacity as producer
- 15:54or just a player. We'll have to see stay tuned next.
- 16:00Saving Country Music has a new policy on AI music
- 16:03for twenty twenty six would the existential threat that music
- 16:08derived from artificial intelligence poses to human creators and the
- 16:11integrity of the music industry, and the threat it poses
- 16:14to the integrity of media coverage of music, specifically Saving
- 16:17Country Music. While SCM is enacting a new policy that
- 16:21will affect all music coverage and all music submitted to
- 16:25the website for coverage and review. Beginning this year, all
- 16:29music submissions to Saving Country Music via artists, publicists, labels,
- 16:33or any other means of distribution must disclose whether the
- 16:36music was composed either in part or in full by
- 16:39artificial intelligence, or if it is clean of AI use. Similarly,
- 16:44this information will then be disclosed to the public as
- 16:47part of any music coverage. Furthermore, any music that is
- 16:50disclosed or found to have been composed by AI, either
- 16:54through the majority of the lyricism fifty percent or more,
- 16:57or via any one percent or more AI derived music
- 17:01meaning audible sounds, this music will be disqualified from receiving review,
- 17:05coverage or other editorial opportunities. In Saving Country Music. For
- 17:10the record, this does not exclude AI music from being
- 17:13covered at Saving Country Music in total. As part of
- 17:16the outlet's ongoing coverage of this rapidly growing phenomenon, SEM
- 17:20will continue to disclose and investigate how AI is affecting
- 17:23the music marketplace and the human creators within it. SEM
- 17:28also strongly encourages all other media outlets to adopt similar
- 17:31policies to help ensure public trust in music media and
- 17:35to help protect human creators. Though music media and the
- 17:39media in general continue to see a decline in agency,
- 17:42cultural relevancy and public standing, media outlets can and should
- 17:46pay a critical role in helping the public navigate this
- 17:48new paradigm and the threat on music's integrity posed by
- 17:52AI's wide proliferation. Irrespective of any media outlets specific opinions
- 17:57on AI coverage, they should draft in anaction similar AI
- 18:01policy statements and disclose them publicly to help ensure the
- 18:04integrity of the music marketplace and clear guidelines for music
- 18:08industry professionals to follow, says Saving Country Music. Even with
- 18:12Saving Country Music's policy, it is possibility, if not an inevitability,
- 18:17that at some point in the future, music composed by
- 18:20AI will be covered by Saving Country Music without prior
- 18:23knowledge of AI's involvement in these instances. This music coverage
- 18:28will not be taken down, but will be updated.
- 18:30Speaker 2: With this information as soon as as is confirmed.
- 18:33Speaker 1: The policy does not exclude music written by human creators
- 18:36who might use AI based tools as standings for dictionaries,
- 18:40the sources encyclopedias to drive or verify historical, geographical, current
- 18:46event information, or even to help rhyme a line or
- 18:49two averse. However, the majority of written words comprising the
- 18:53composition must be authored by a human creator and accompanied
- 18:57by no AI generated sounds. No different than disclosing explicit
- 19:02lyrics to songs sent to radio or streaming services, It
- 19:05is the assertion of saving country music that all labels, publicists,
- 19:09and artists should start disclosing when music utilized AI technology
- 19:13in part or in full, or when music is clean
- 19:16of such content. Similarly, it is the assertion of saving
- 19:20country music that streaming service should mark tracks utilizing AI,
- 19:24or should mark tracks that are certified free of AI.
- 19:28Charting entities such as Billboard should enact similar policies and
- 19:31segregate AI created music from human created music on charts,
- 19:35at least until the full effects of AI on the
- 19:37music marketplace are understood and to these such as the
- 19:41RIAA and the National Academy of Recording, Arts and Sciences
- 19:45should implement tools and resources to help with the labeling
- 19:48of music and the protection of human creators. Due to
- 19:52the fresca of fresh nature of this policy, a sixty
- 19:55day grace period will be recognized when publicists, labels and
- 19:58artists will be education and requested to adhere to this
- 20:02policy before it will be enacted in full beginning March first.
- 20:06During and after this grace period, specific queries will be
- 20:09made to artists and their representatives if necessary to confirm
- 20:13the use of AI and the music or not. This
- 20:16new AI policy will be added to Saving Country Music's
- 20:19general submission guidelines. Artificial intelligence music is here, and there's
- 20:24no stopping the proliferation of the music, the adoption of
- 20:27it by the public, and the disruptions this phenomenon will
- 20:30cause to human creators. AI music and its creators should
- 20:33also have some agency to share this music in ways
- 20:36that are responsible and do not adversely affect human creators directly. However,
- 20:42we all can take reasonable, responsible and pragmatic steps to
- 20:46ensure the population of AI music into the music marketplace
- 20:50does not cause such catastrophic upheaval, it undermines and implodes
- 20:54the already fragile and inequitable ecosystem for recorded music. Now
- 20:59we wonder around the corner to the boot dot com.
- 21:02With the first article published on January sixth, Garth Brooks
- 21:06hints he's planning a tour new music for twenty twenty six.
- 21:11What's Garth Brooks got up his sleeve this year? The
- 21:13country singer tease a busy year ahead on his Instagram stories,
- 21:17including a pretty strong hint that he might be planning
- 21:19to hit the road in twenty twenty six. The singer
- 21:23shared a graphic decorator with fireworks in the year twenty
- 21:25twenty six, New Year, New Music, New Tour, Brooks wrote
- 21:29over the image. Over on his website, Brooks shared a
- 21:32few more details about what he's planning on a site
- 21:36Brooks promises that it's all on the table this year.
- 21:38He also said that releasing new music was a given.
- 21:41I'm an artist, I have to make music, and I'm
- 21:44an entertainer, so I have to take music to the people.
- 21:46He explained. That makes it seem like the country superstar
- 21:50might be planning a full headlining tour, perhaps to promote
- 21:53the new music he releases this year. But it's all
- 21:56about timing my bride's touring through the first half of
- 21:59the year, Brooks went on to say. Then we'll see
- 22:01what may be waiting for us in the second half.
- 22:04Brook's wife, Tricia Yearwood, has dates on the calendar for
- 22:07her acoustic The Mirror tour through April twelfth. That means
- 22:11that technically Brooks could be announcing a tour date starting
- 22:14any time in the late spring or early summer, but
- 22:17he's probably eyeing a little later in the year. That's
- 22:20because Brooks already has two dates on the books for
- 22:22June sixteenth and seventeenth, both at Summerfest and Milwaukee. He
- 22:27also has a headlining show planned for London's Hyde Park
- 22:29on June twenty seventh, with support performances from Ashley McBride
- 22:34and Zach Brown Band. Next, Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman's
- 22:40divorce has been finalized. In what we Know Now, Keith
- 22:43Urban and Nick Coleman are officially over. The pair's divorce
- 22:47has officially been finalized just a few months after the
- 22:49couples separated. While a specific date for the separation has
- 22:52not been confirmed. US Weekly shared the news on September
- 22:56twenty ninth. Urban and Kidman were married for nineteen years
- 22:59and share two daughters, Sunday Rose, seventeen in Faith, Margaret
- 23:02Who's fifteen. It was Kidman who officially filed the paperwork
- 23:06back on September thirtieth, citing irreconcilable differences. The television and
- 23:11film star also submitted a marital dissolution agreement, which was
- 23:15signed by both parties. Nothing has really changed as far
- 23:18as terms go. In the divorce document, US Weekly has
- 23:23confirmed Kidman will serve as the primary residential parent of
- 23:26their daughters. They will spend the majority of their time
- 23:28with their mother three hundred and six days of the year.
- 23:31Sunday in Faith will see their father on various days
- 23:34and alternating weekends, totaling fifty nine days out of the year.
- 23:39Both Urban and Kidman remain committed to coparing their children,
- 23:42and no monthly child support will be paid on either end.
- 23:46The reason behind Urban and Kidman's split may never be revealed. However,
- 23:49friends close to the couple say the divorce was inevitable.
- 23:53A source told People at the time that the pair
- 23:55had been living separately since the summer. This was not
- 23:58the case of them just drifting apart. The source revealed
- 24:01Herban is expected to continue his music career in Nashville.
- 24:04Shortly after news of the divorce broke, he was back
- 24:07on the road fulfilling his High and Alive tour dates.
- 24:10One source says that the country singer has been working
- 24:13to find balance amid the change. He has reportedly lost
- 24:16ten pounds since the split and his missing time with
- 24:19his children. Next, Tyler Hubbard says one text and a
- 24:23Kenny Chesney song ended Florida Georgia Line. Florida Georgia Line
- 24:28ruled country radio for nearly a decade, becoming one of
- 24:31the genre's biggest crossover acts with hits like Cruise and
- 24:35This Is How We Roll. But in twenty twenty two,
- 24:37the duo made up of Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelly
- 24:40shocked fans in the music industry by announcing an indefinite hiatus. Now,
- 24:45after years of rumors, Hubbard is revealing what really led
- 24:47to the end of Florida Georgia Line and why it
- 24:50wasn't through the dramatic falling out many assumed. In a
- 24:54recent episode of Human School podcast, Hubbard opened up about
- 24:57the turning point in his professional relationship with Kelly. During
- 25:01the pandemic, Hubbard said his personal life was under major strain.
- 25:05His wife had just given birth to their third child,
- 25:08and he was recovering from an ankle injury, and the
- 25:10emotional weight of the world shutting hut down was heavy.
- 25:13That's when he got a surprising text from Kelly a
- 25:15new song he'd written. Hubbert thought it sounded like something
- 25:18Kenny Chesney might cut and encouraged him to pitch it.
- 25:22He said, well, I did actually send it to Chesney
- 25:25and he passed on it, which I'm taking as a
- 25:27sign I set a sign for what and he said
- 25:29that I should do it. Though solo careers had been
- 25:32mentioned before, Hubbard says he didn't expect Kelly to be
- 25:35serious about it. Still, he says he supported the idea
- 25:38up to a point. I'm not willing to do Florida
- 25:41jarge a line and then have it a direct competitor
- 25:45that's my partner doing the same exact thing.
- 25:46Speaker 2: He explained.
- 25:48Speaker 1: I also told him I didn't think I deserve fifty
- 25:50percent of you if I'm willing to give a hundred. Ultimately,
- 25:53Kelly decided to pursue a solo career and Florida Georgia
- 25:57Line quietly came to an end well. Fan speckylated about
- 26:00drama behind the scenes, Hubert says it was never about
- 26:02that there's not a good guy bad guy, which everyone
- 26:06wants to do on the internet. He said he stuck
- 26:08to his convictions. I set a boundary. He does admit
- 26:12he made some missteps, including unfollowing Kelly on Instagram, and
- 26:17says the public pressure only made an already delicate situation
- 26:20more complicated. When it happens publicly, you get millions of
- 26:24people weighing in. It compounds the stress, Hubbert said. Earlier
- 26:28this year, fans got a surprise when Deep Cuts and
- 26:30Lost Tracks Volume one and EP have previously released Florida
- 26:33Georgia Line songs quietly dropped on streaming services, sparking reunion rumors.
- 26:39Hubbard hasn't commented on whether there are any new music
- 26:41plans for the duo, and the EP did not include
- 26:44any re recordings for now. Both Hubbard and Kelly are
- 26:48focused on solo careers, but it's clear their legacy and
- 26:51mutual respect still runs deep.
- 26:54Speaker 2: Now.
- 26:54Speaker 1: We'll outline an article from January fourth and pen Live
- 26:57Patriot News xtree music stars who were battling serious health
- 27:02issues as twenty twenty six begins. They say the show
- 27:06must go on, and they are a handful of country
- 27:07music stars living up to that as the new year
- 27:09gets underway, because despite having to manage some serious health issues,
- 27:14many of the following stars are still showing up for
- 27:17the stage to put on a show for their fans.
- 27:20The following is a quick look at country music stars
- 27:22who have shared their health battles with fans as the
- 27:24new year gets underway. Will only be able to fit
- 27:27in a few of these. But Paul Coffin stunned the
- 27:29country music world last year when he announced that he
- 27:32had been diagnosed with cancer, and just a few weeks later,
- 27:35he delivered another shocker. He took to social media to
- 27:38announce that he was not going to treat his cancer
- 27:40via traditional methods, but was instead opting for a holistic approach.
- 27:45Mark Chestnutt had a rough couple of months in twenty
- 27:48twenty four, and that is probably putting it lightly because
- 27:50the country music star very nearly lost his life last June.
- 27:54The sixty two year old was rushed into emergency surgery
- 27:57where he underwent quadruple bypass surgery. John Driskell Hopkins Jack
- 28:03Brown Band guitarist John Driskell Hopkins announced that he had
- 28:06been diagnosed with ALS about three years ago and he's
- 28:09still out there battling the disease. Ashley Cook's health revelation
- 28:14in twenty twenty five had her fans sending prayers and
- 28:17well wishes. The twenty eight year old made the revelation
- 28:20on TikTok video. She mentioned that she was having a
- 28:22career year and she did indeed find success, but she
- 28:25really had a rough run of health related news, which
- 28:28included her dropping the nugget about a diagnosis of her
- 28:31own and it's a genetic thing called Rugata syndrome. Well,
- 28:36this concludes the reading of Country Weekly for this week.
- 28:38If you have any comments or suggestions about our program,
- 28:42kindly call us at eight five nine four to two
- 28:44two sixty three ninety. Thank you for joining me and
- 28:47on behalf of everyone here at RADIOI. This is Ken
- 28:50Dawkins wishing you a great day.