Latest / Country Weekly / 4.11.25
Transcript
- 0:05Speaker 1: Howdy, time now to catch up with Country Weekly, where
- 0:09we check out news and gossip from the world of
- 0:12country music. I'm your host, Ken Dawkins, and I will
- 0:15be reading from various sources found online. As a reminder,
- 0:19RADIOI is a reading service intended for people who are
- 0:22blind or have other disabilities that make it difficult to
- 0:25read printed material. We'll begin with the first article, dated
- 0:29April seventh, from Hollercountry dot com. First up, Kenny Chesney
- 0:35pens sweet tribute to Megan Moroney after emotional Georgia shows.
- 0:41In a contemporary country world that often feels increasingly dogged
- 0:45by petty rivalries and deeply entrenched battle lines, Kenny Chesney
- 0:50and Meghan Maroney's friendship is a reminder of the warmth
- 0:53and camaraderie that the genre can instill. Last week, when
- 0:57the news broke that Kenny Chesney would be inducted into
- 0:59the Country Music Hall of Fame this year, alongside Tony
- 1:03Brown and June Carter Cash, Megan Maroney took to Instagram
- 1:06to celebrate his achievement, gushing deserved. Now in the wake
- 1:10of Megan Maroney headlining two blockbuster shows at the aikins
- 1:14Ford Arena in her home state of Georgia, just at
- 1:17stone's throw from her alma mater, the University of Georgia.
- 1:21Kenny Chesney has endearingly returned the compliment after Maroney reflected
- 1:25on how much the weekend's performances meant to her via Instagram,
- 1:29Jesney heartwarmingly responded in the comments, so proud of you.
- 1:34In the initial post, the Tennessee Orange singer songwriter movingly mused,
- 1:39just when I thought it couldn't get any better, Huntsville
- 1:41and Athens Times two showed up. Thank you for another
- 1:44incredible weekend of the AIO tour. It's been hard to
- 1:48process that five years ago I was still a student
- 1:51at UGA, having no idea that you all support would
- 1:54one day lead to this. So grateful for every single
- 1:57one of you. God's good. In the middle of her
- 2:01mi IOK run of shows with the indifferent crooner continuing
- 2:04to cement herself as a future CMA and ACM Entertainer
- 2:08of the Year winner, Kenny Chesney and Megan Maroney spent
- 2:11much of twenty twenty four out on the road together
- 2:14as part of Chesney's Son Goes Down to Her with
- 2:16the duo performing the beach country legend's iconic nineties hit
- 2:20She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy on a number of occasions.
- 2:24During their momentous closing triple header at Foxborough Gillette Stadium
- 2:27in Massachusetts, Meghan Maroney emerged driving a green tractor and
- 2:31donning Kesney Chesney's trademark tank top, jeans and cowboy hat.
- 2:35The hilarious moment then became even sweeter, with Jesney then
- 2:39surprising Marony by asking her to perform her current country
- 2:42radio single Miokay in the front of the packed out crowd.
- 2:47With Chesney gearing up to kick off his highly anticipated
- 2:50Las Vegas residency at the Sphere next month, everybody's holding
- 2:54out hope Maroney might be a special guest one night.
- 2:57Kenny Chesney's been teasing that he has some unexpected duets
- 3:00up his sleeve for the ground baking, groundbreaking run of shows,
- 3:03and given his close friendship with Megan Maroney, were sure
- 3:06the Georgia Prodigy must be at the top of the
- 3:08list of ideal duet partners. If we're lucky, we might
- 3:11even get a full blown collaboration soon next I didn't
- 3:16come here to get beer cans thrown on me. Braxton
- 3:19Keith stops Schmid show in Texas and to stop in Gilmer,
- 3:24Texas on his headlining tour honky Tonk country star Braxton.
- 3:28Keith stopped mid concert to call out those in the
- 3:31crowd throwing beer cans toward the stage. I didn't come
- 3:34here to get beer cans thrown at me. All right,
- 3:37this isn't a damn Gavin Adcock concert, the neo traditional
- 3:40country singer said a short, if impassioned speech followed on
- 3:44from the moment. Keith has been steadily gaining popularity, with
- 3:48his viral twenty twenty four hit Cozy, having over thirty
- 3:51five million streams on Spotify alone as he embarks on
- 3:55his cross country tour. He's not letting it slide when
- 3:58things start getting out of hand. On the other side
- 4:01of the country live show spectrum, Gavin Adcock has a
- 4:04bit of a reputation for having a wild side and
- 4:07an equally wild fan base. It might not be that
- 4:10Keith was calling out his fellow country singer, but rather
- 4:13just pointing out that at his shows, the music comes first.
- 4:16We're going to have a good show. I just want
- 4:18to get myself clear. We're coming here to listen to
- 4:21country music, he explained, before telling his band to hit
- 4:23it boys and launching back into the interrupted song. Poasting
- 4:27a clip of the incident on his own social media,
- 4:30Keith explained his thoughts further, I love live music and
- 4:34when given the opportunity to speak up about unruliness in
- 4:37the concert community, I will protect my audience, band crew, equipment,
- 4:41and most importantly, the integrity of live performance experiences. Adcock
- 4:46wasn't quite so appreciative of the comments, leaving a comment
- 4:48on Country Central's Instagram account saying maybe he should learn
- 4:52how to handle his fans without bringing someone else into it.
- 4:55Welcome to the big leagues, kid, then we might have
- 4:58a developing country rivalry on our hands. Next, Ella Langley
- 5:03performs minor surgery on Riley Green during their Damn Country
- 5:07Music tour. Hot off their Spellbinding show in Toronto. Riley
- 5:12Green and Ella Langley have shared a video of the
- 5:14two artists on their tour bus. And it's not for
- 5:17the squeamish. What are you going to do? Riley Green
- 5:20exclaims in half mock, half genuine fear as he puts
- 5:23his trust in Ella Langley, his wounded hand placed on
- 5:26the impromptu surgery table, complete with kitchen roll and manicure scissors.
- 5:31I'm going to cut that off, Langley quips, delicately, delicately,
- 5:35holding Green's palm and aiming the scissors at his injury.
- 5:38As Langley carefully removes the excess skin from his blister,
- 5:42Green recounts the story as to how it all happened. Well,
- 5:45a kid was trying to cross the street and I
- 5:47saw a car coming, so I went and grabbed him.
- 5:50The kid was holding a baby, so I couldn't push
- 5:52the kid out of the way, so I had to
- 5:53grab the kid. I caught the baby with this hand,
- 5:56but I fell and I wanted to cradle, so I
- 5:59skinned this hand and on the curb. But I saved
- 6:01their lives. And the baby was holding a box of kittens,
- 6:05so a all made it too well. However, Langley's laugh
- 6:08and disbelieving headshake, coupled with Green's sports injury in the
- 6:12caption led everybody to believe a slightly different conclusion. Although
- 6:16Riley Green saving Babies and Kittens is undoubtedly a viral
- 6:19music video waiting to happen, Green and Langley's relationship has
- 6:23been under scrutiny for months as the pair navigate the
- 6:25will they won't they media speculation, with conjecture building around
- 6:29their on stage relationships. Since the start of this tour,
- 6:32fans have been debating whether the pair still have a chemistry,
- 6:35but this video sits at all straight. Green and Langley
- 6:38are just fine. They're fun, they're friendly, and they're still
- 6:40looking out for each other. Riley Green has been teasing
- 6:43unreleased tracks via social media lately, and also paid tribute
- 6:47to country music icon Travis Tritt, so we're keeping our
- 6:50fingers crossed. New music is on the way. Green's Damned
- 6:54Country Music tour with Ella Langley continues through the summer
- 6:57before he heads out on his European run. In Moving On,
- 7:02we move over to countrynow dot com, with the first
- 7:05article published on April seventh. Cole Swindale announces twenty twenty
- 7:10five Happy Hour Sad Tour, which includes Lexington. Cole Swindale
- 7:16is set to hit the road this fall for his
- 7:18twenty twenty five headlining Happy Hour Sad Tour. Announced today,
- 7:22The highly anticipated trek will launch on September fourth and
- 7:25Toledo and continue through October twenty sixth, with stops across Georgia, Colorado, Washington, Florida,
- 7:32Kentucky and Moore. The four time ACM Award winner, will
- 7:35be joined by special guests Priscilla Block, Logan Crosby, and
- 7:39Grayland James. While reflecting on the upcoming run, Swindell expressed
- 7:44nothing but pure excitement to the chance to connect with
- 7:46his loyal listeners again very soon. I cannot wait to
- 7:50get out on the road this year for the Happy
- 7:51Hour Sad Tour, said Swindell. Getting to write songs and
- 7:54make music for a living is a dream come true,
- 7:57and there are so many folks that make that happen.
- 8:00I hope the fans that spend their hard earned money
- 8:02to come out and support us know how much we
- 8:04appreciate it and how much we love seeing them out
- 8:06there having fun. Produced by Pepper Entertainment, with the Florida
- 8:10tour dates produced by AEG Live. The Happy Hour Sad
- 8:14Tour is going to be a special trek for Swindell
- 8:17as it will celebrate his fifth studio album for Warner
- 8:20Music Nashville, Spanish Moss. The name of the tour stems
- 8:23from an unreleased title on the upcoming project. Upon its
- 8:27June twenty seventh arrival, fans will get their hands on
- 8:30the entire collection, which includes Swindell's current top five and
- 8:33rising single Forever to Me, which he co wrote with
- 8:37future tour mate Graylan James and Rocky Block. He also
- 8:40recently released the title track Spanish Moss to digital service providers,
- 8:45following songs like Kill a Prayer and One Day. It's
- 8:48always a new level of excitement to be touring with
- 8:50a new album out, so I expect this fall to
- 8:53be one to remember. I'm pumped up to have Priscilla,
- 8:56Logan and Graylan out there with us, three artists I
- 8:58really believe in get the crowd fired up for a
- 9:01great night. He added. Members of Swindell's down Home crew
- 9:05can access pre sale tickets for the Happy Hour Sad
- 9:07Tour during the presale. It starts or started this past Tuesday.
- 9:12The run includes Lexington, as I mentioned, September eighteenth at
- 9:16Rupp Arena with Priscilla Block and Logan Crosby. Next, Hailey
- 9:21Witters drops new track high on a Heartbreak announces Corn
- 9:25Queen album. Hailey Witters is gearing up to release her
- 9:29highly anticipated album Corn Queen on June sixth via Pegasus Records.
- 9:33Big Loud Records Songs and Daughters to celebrate. She's also
- 9:37unveiled High on a Heartbreak, a dreamy, new and interesting
- 9:41track that sets the stage for the sixteen song album.
- 9:45This release finds the Iowa born, Nashville based singer songwriter
- 9:48leaning into the wistful haze of heartbreak, capturing the bittersweet
- 9:52yet intoxicating feeling of allowing herself to feel all the
- 9:55pain instead of running from it. She paints a vivid
- 9:58picture of the moment where she finally decides to give in,
- 10:01sipping from the bottle and surrendering to the rush of
- 10:04missing someone. Witterer sings, I've been bottling it up, but
- 10:07now the bottom of the bottles got me up on
- 10:09this neon moon. I gotta miss you kind of rush,
- 10:12Gonna let your memory roll over me, just like your
- 10:15hands used to do. I know you think I'm low,
- 10:17but baby, I'm high. High on Heartbreak Tonight On a
- 10:20Heartbreak Tonight. The song came to life in an accompanying
- 10:24music video filmed in East Nashville's famed Pink Palace, the
- 10:29house of Adora. Witter's dances around the glamorous setting amid
- 10:33the haunting yet cathartic melody, showcasing a new sense of
- 10:36freedom from the past and a desire to move on
- 10:38to greener pastures. Reflecting on the story behind High on
- 10:43a Heartbreak, Witter shares, I wrote this song with David Garcia,
- 10:46Hillary Lindsay and Jesse Joe Dillon. I wanted to write
- 10:49the antithesis of a heartbreak song, one about a heartbreak,
- 10:53feeling good versus feeling bad, almost like a guilty pleasure.
- 10:57This song feels like something you'd put on to get
- 10:59ready for a fun night out on the town after
- 11:01a breakup. It feels like owning the heartbreak rather than
- 11:04feeling sorry for yourself. High on a Heartbreak follows Monday's
- 11:08release of High on the Hog, as well as other
- 11:10previously released tracks from the LP, including Prodigal Daughter featuring
- 11:15Molly Tuttle in caseerroles. Each of these songs offer a
- 11:18glimpse into the theme of reflection that runs throughout the
- 11:21forthcoming collection. Listeners can expect to hear the I'm in
- 11:25Love singer paying homage to her Midwestern heritage and the
- 11:28highs and lows of small town living. The lyrics are
- 11:31sharp and full of tongue in cheek wordplay while the
- 11:34tones dance around Witter's signature country sound with a modern flare.
- 11:38She once again stepped into the studio in Nashville with
- 11:40longtime collaborator now husband Jake Gear to record this project
- 11:45that features collaborations with Charles Wesley Godwin, Molly Tuttle, and
- 11:49The Wilder Blue. The collection is named after the term
- 11:52that fans have coined for her, corn Queen, as a
- 11:55tribute to her Iowa roots. Witters has come to realize
- 11:58how much pride she has for that little title, as
- 12:00it is a true reflection of her real life. Fans
- 12:03started calling me the corn Queen because I'm from i
- 12:06Witters explains, at first it seemed kind of silly, but
- 12:09the more I thought about it, the more I love
- 12:10the duality of it. Corn is this simple, humble crop,
- 12:13and queen implies royalty passed down through blood. I come
- 12:17from a long line of blue collar farmers and construction workers.
- 12:20I've been out here for over a decade, brushing my
- 12:22teeth and truck stop bathrooms, sleeping on hotel floors, driving
- 12:27myself from gig to gig. It's not glamorous, but I'm
- 12:30proud of It. I like the idea of a queen
- 12:32with a little grit and elbow grease. The track list
- 12:36for Corn Queen includes High on the Hog, Prodigal Daughter,
- 12:39a Shotgun, Wedding Baby, Hell of a Heart, High on
- 12:41a Heartbreak, It'll Do Hearsay, anything like Me, I Don't
- 12:45Want You, the Nail, Casseroles, Wagon, Wholesome, White, Limousine, Corn Queen,
- 12:52and Dance More. Just a few weeks before the unveiling
- 12:55of Corn Queen, Haley Witters is set to hit the
- 12:57stage at the first ever Sand in My Boots Festival
- 13:00that'll be on May sixteenth in Gulf Shor's, Alabama. She
- 13:03will also perform at the Under the Big Sky Music
- 13:06Festival running July eighteenth through the twentieth in Whitefish, Montana.
- 13:11Moving Along, Ernest makes big career move with the launch
- 13:15of his own label, Daville Records. Ernest has announced the
- 13:19launch of his own label, Daville Records, in a joint
- 13:22venture with Big Loud Records. The country hit maker has
- 13:25been making waves in Nashville since signing with The Big
- 13:27Loud in nineteen or in twenty nineteen. Within these five years,
- 13:32he's racked up an impressive list of chart topping songwriting
- 13:34credits and developed the sounds deeply rooted in the traditions
- 13:38of music City. When looking to take the next step
- 13:41in his career, it only made sense to further dive
- 13:43into the business side with his own personal imprint. The
- 13:47new business venture named after Ernest Beloved nineteen seventy five,
- 13:50Coupe de Ville, is all about helping budding artists develop
- 13:54lasting careers while honing in on their personal songwriting craft
- 13:57in a collaborative and creative environment. We're going to build
- 14:01this thing wide and on concrete, says Ernest. Artist Development.
- 14:05Write the songs and do it the old school way.
- 14:07Make the video, see the vision, help the vision come
- 14:10to life. We have been in business with Ernest for
- 14:13almost a decade. What started with arn as a young,
- 14:16prolific songwriter artist in Big Loud's publishing hallways has evolved
- 14:20into so much more over the years. Big Loud CEO
- 14:23partner Seth England shares our partnerships and Earnst Cadillac Music
- 14:27have gone so well and has desired to create the
- 14:30Ville Records alongside of it. Made sense. Ernest himself grew
- 14:34in an independent and cultural environment much like the one
- 14:37he desires to create. He and I have talked about
- 14:40this day for years and all of the unique ways
- 14:42we could help break the next wave of prolific artists.
- 14:46Kudos to Rys, Cody, and Chandler for buying into this
- 14:48vision and supporting this unique rollout style with their upcoming
- 14:52to Ville project. Ernest shared the big news with a
- 14:55cinematic video posted across social media that explores why he
- 14:59decided to embark on this journey, introduces the first set
- 15:02of artists, and prepares listeners for the release of an
- 15:04inaugural to Ville Records EP. I kind of had an
- 15:08idea in my head that I wanted to have a
- 15:10label one day, and then the pieces started falling and
- 15:12were getting started, he can be heard declaring in the narration.
- 15:16Once I had that Coupe Deville, I kind of just
- 15:18wanted everything to exist in that world. I'm able to
- 15:21create something nobody else is making. It's just up to
- 15:24us not to mess it up. Taking fans inside the studio,
- 15:27the clip goes on to list the first signings in
- 15:29the new label's roster, Chandler Walters, Rice Rutherford, and Cody Loden,
- 15:34hailing from Marietta, Georgia. Walker's develops his craft as a
- 15:37steel guitar player while touring with acts like post Malone
- 15:41and Earnest. In addition to his instrumental skills, he's earned
- 15:44success as a multi platinum all genre number one songwriter
- 15:48with Post Malones five times platinum. I had some help
- 15:51featuring Morgan Wallen Loaden, former firefighter paramedic turned singer songwriter
- 15:57who found inspiration and the honest storytelling of count legends
- 16:00like Keith Whitley and Don Williams, along with the raw
- 16:04edge of rock icons like Bob Seger. Over the past
- 16:07few years, he's been carving out his own path with
- 16:09a one of a kind journey rooted in passion. The
- 16:13third member of the roster is son of Nashville Songwriters
- 16:15Hall of Fame member Rivers Rutherford. Rice Rutherford, a Nashville
- 16:20native with a standout baritone voice. The emerging act was
- 16:23just starting to make waves with his first songs when
- 16:26Ernest stepped in and pushed him to chase a career
- 16:28as an artist. With these three budding acts, along with
- 16:31a few superstar guests like Miranda Lambert, Snoop Dogg, and
- 16:34Jake Worthington and others. Ernest set out to create the
- 16:37first projects pre released on Deville Records, Cadillac Sessions. The
- 16:43mixtape style record will feature two new originals and one cover,
- 16:47all of which celebrate sounds of nineties country music and
- 16:50Western swing interlaced with a modern twist. Together, we sat
- 16:54down and created a collaborative album to show the world
- 16:56what we're going to do. You're going to get a
- 16:59chance to see their personalities. I'm going to pull it
- 17:02out of them if it's the last thing I do,
- 17:03added the Grammy nominated performer. Fans will finally get to
- 17:07experience the magic behind this collaboration when it drops on
- 17:11May ninth. Now we waddle on over to saving country
- 17:15music with their usual news and some commentary. First article
- 17:19date at April eighth, Turnpike Troubadours reveal details of new album,
- 17:24The Price of Admission. The Turnpike Troubadours have always been
- 17:28a band graced by a fervent and frankly gossipy fans
- 17:31base that take any kernel of information about the band
- 17:34and make it go megaviral before breakfast ahead of their
- 17:38return from a hiatus in twenty twenty one and Before
- 17:41the release of their twenty twenty three album A Cat
- 17:43in the Rain, leaks and rumors abounded, which probably did
- 17:46more to promote the band than any big money promotional
- 17:49push or press coverage. Smartly sensing this truth, the band
- 17:53has been using a succession of purposeful leaks and easter
- 17:56eggs to promote their new album, The Price of Admission.
- 17:59Ahead of its April eleventh release, a billboard was erected
- 18:03outside of Stillwater, where they'll be participating in the massive
- 18:06Boys of Oklahoma gathering this weekend, and after photos of
- 18:10the billboard went out wild on the Internet last week,
- 18:13they also purposely leaked the song be Here via touch Tunes,
- 18:17similar to what happened ahead of the previous album. On Tuesday,
- 18:21the band officially revealed the details of A Price of
- 18:23Admission via posts on social media and texts to fans.
- 18:28Just like their twenty twenty four album, A Cat and
- 18:30the Rain, the eleven song set will be produced by
- 18:32Shooter Jennings, though this one was recorded at Shooter's Snake
- 18:36Mountain studio at Sunset Sound in Los Angeles, as opposed
- 18:40to Muscle Shoals. Like most t T albums, the majority
- 18:44of songs are written by Evan Felker. He finds co
- 18:47writers in Old Crow, Medicine Shows, Catch Secor, Former Turnpike, Troubadour,
- 18:52Tulsa Music God John Fulbright, as well as Dave Simonette
- 18:56Trampled by Turtles. Felker also co writes a song with
- 18:59Turned Like fiddle player Kyle Nicks, and Nix also contributes
- 19:03his own song to close out the album. The pairing
- 19:06of bassist R. C. Edwards and songwriter Lance Rourke also
- 19:09contributed a track, just like they did on the last album.
- 19:12Expect an album with some slower songwriter based tracks in
- 19:15the first half. The album turns much more loud and
- 19:18rowdy in the second half. The price of admission is
- 19:21now available for pre SA, but physical copies will not
- 19:24be available upon release, probably due to the rush time
- 19:27schedule to get the album out before the Boys of Oklahoma.
- 19:30That's a Gathering in Stillwater. The track list on the
- 19:34Red River searching for a Light, for giving You be
- 19:37here Heaven, passing through the Devil plies his trade a
- 19:41lie upon No, That's a lie agreed upon Ruby Ann
- 19:44what was advertised? Leaving Town and Nothing You Can Do
- 19:50Next on Luke Comb's playing the Newport Folk Festival. When
- 19:55recently naming the Newport Folk Festival the seventh best festival
- 19:59and all of country roots music, one of the top
- 20:02selling points was how performing at the festival is a
- 20:04white Whale moment for many artists. For the unaware, white
- 20:08whale refers to Herman Melville's Moby Dick and the primary
- 20:12character's obsession at achieving something just out of reach. The
- 20:16reason Newport Folk Festival is so prestigious is the history
- 20:19of the festival comes with now in its sixty sixth year.
- 20:22It's where Bob Dylan went electric. It's where Johnny Cash
- 20:25introduced Chris Christofferson to the world. It's where Joni Mitchell
- 20:29made her triumphant return. It's where a few years ago
- 20:32you could see Tyler Childers join the Turnpike Troubadours to
- 20:35sing John Prine's Paradise. Moments like these seem to happen
- 20:39every year at Newport. Where does someone like Luke Combs
- 20:42fit into all of this, Well, we're about to find
- 20:44out after he was recently announced as one of the
- 20:47performers at the twenty twenty five Newport Folk line up
- 20:50in late July and Rhode Island. This has definitely drawn
- 20:53curiosity for many of the Newport folk faithful and for
- 20:56some downright ire that someone of Luke's ilk would be
- 20:59included in beloved line up. But folk fans shouldn't be angry,
- 21:03and here's why. Yes, Luke Colmbed is one of the
- 21:06largest names in popular country music and in all of
- 21:09music for that matter. It's really only Morgan Wallen who
- 21:12puts up more consistent consumption numbers in country, with honorable
- 21:16mentions to Jelly Roll, Zack Bryan and Surging Zach Topp.
- 21:20But from the very beginning, Colms has always proven to
- 21:22go deeper than the surface with his music, even if
- 21:25that's not what you'll hear from him on the radio. First.
- 21:28Colms has always been a strong champion of independent country
- 21:31and roots artists, directly using his platform to promote important
- 21:35performers from Billy Strings early on to Amanda Shires and
- 21:39Leon Bridges, and collaborations to important songwriters like Brent Cobb,
- 21:43Rob Snyder, Channing Wilson, Eric Dillon and others. Colms has
- 21:48been a huge supporter of the Wilder Blue who Colms
- 21:51first read about here on Saving Country music and then
- 21:54performed Seven Bridges Road with them and took them out
- 21:56on tour, similar to what he's done for Flatland Cavalry
- 22:00and other non radio country bands. Combs concurred with saving
- 22:04country music when it came to naming Ships in the
- 22:06Harbor by Tommy Prine That's john Son the song of
- 22:09the Year back in twenty twenty two. Luke Combs has
- 22:12dialed into what is happening in the country and roots
- 22:14real Then, of course, there was Luke's championing of Tracy
- 22:18Chapman's Fast Car, making it the song of the Summer
- 22:21in twenty twenty three, introducing it to an entirely new generation,
- 22:25earning Chapman CMA Awards, and culminating in a performance of
- 22:28the song with Chapman herself on the twenty twenty four
- 22:31Grammy Awards. Some are surmising that Luke Comb's being added
- 22:35to the Newport line up is to facilitate Tracy Chapman
- 22:38showing up to have a similar moment. The reclusive Chapman
- 22:42has been in the press a lot lately. Folks should
- 22:44probably not get ahead of themselves with that theory, But
- 22:47collaboration has been at the heart of Luke's last album,
- 22:50Fathers and Sons, with his most heartfelt and the greatest
- 22:53album yet on Q It was also his worst performing commercially,
- 22:57and the label has released no singles from it, even
- 23:00though the Man Sees Me in It I'm sorry The
- 23:02Man he Sees in Me hit number thirteen on the
- 23:05Hot Country Songs chart. In twenty twenty two, Saving Country
- 23:09Music claimed Luke Colmbs was the leader mainstream country needs.
- 23:13He is the healthy alternative to the Morgan Wallens of
- 23:15the world. Does he fit with a Newport folk festival vibe? Well,
- 23:19not exactly, but let's see what he has in story.
- 23:21He's earned that privilege and should have the right to
- 23:24knock off a bucket list moment in his career, no
- 23:26different than any other performer. The fact that Combs even
- 23:29wants to play Newport is for a massive pay cut
- 23:32is one of the primary reasons it should be allowed
- 23:34to and the Newport Peanut Gallery should give him a
- 23:37chance through booking. Luke Combs is Newport giving away a
- 23:41chance to an up and comer who could better benefit
- 23:43for it. Yeah, it is, and this is the one
- 23:45fair criticism, But it's Luke's presence at the fest that
- 23:48could elevate all the other performers from the increased interest,
- 23:52just like he's done throughout his career. Saving Country Music
- 23:55says it's also imperative that Luke Combs cater his performance
- 23:58to the venue and audience, which frankly mainstream folks rarely
- 24:02do when they get booked by independent festivals. Know your place.
- 24:05If you come out and simply play the hits, it's
- 24:07not going to be what the audience wants. But you
- 24:10also have to be yourself, which Combs can do and
- 24:12still endear himself to that audience. But none of us
- 24:15feels like advice Luke Colmes needs to hear from us.
- 24:18If you only know Luke Colmbs through the big radio hits,
- 24:21you might look sideways at his inclusion in the Newport
- 24:23Folk Festival lineup. But those in country music who've been
- 24:26paying attention to his career from the beginning don't need
- 24:29a history lesson. Luke Holmes has at least earned a
- 24:32Newport Folk birth if he wants it, and with his
- 24:34history of collaboration and the history of collaboration at Newport
- 24:37Folk festivals, it could result in music magic next. Alan
- 24:43Jackson has too much of a good time gets concerts
- 24:46shut down. When it comes to the rules of country music,
- 24:50Alan Jackson never broke one in his illustrious Hall of
- 24:53Fame career, except maybe water skiing and jeans. As a
- 24:57staunch neo traditionalist, Alan Jackson is always been true to
- 25:00his country roots. When it came to the rules of
- 25:03life and the music business. Wow, that's another story. Alan
- 25:06Jackson never had patience for silly pedantry. That's why he
- 25:09told his drummer to play without sticks in nineteen ninety
- 25:12four when the ACM Awards forced him to perform to
- 25:15a backing track, and why he stopped short playing pop
- 25:18atop to perform choices by George Jones at the nineteen
- 25:22ninety nine CMA Awards when they kicked Jones off the show.
- 25:25Alan Jackson was the headliner of the two Step In
- 25:28Fest on Saturday, April fifth, in Georgetown, Texas, north of Austin.
- 25:33The appearance was also part of his last call won
- 25:35for the road tour, and according to Jackson, will probably
- 25:38be the last time he ever performs in Texas. These
- 25:42final Alan Jackson performances are like a trip down memory
- 25:45lane with an extensive video retrospective it plays before he
- 25:48takes the stage and photos and videos commemorating portions of
- 25:52his career appearing on the stage video screen during the performance.
- 25:56Though it still accompanies Jackson at center stage due to
- 25:59the symptoms of his neurological disease CMT that has put
- 26:03him on the path to retirement, he still stood most
- 26:05of the time, walking around the stage in moments and
- 26:08throwing T shirts to the fans in the audience. Jackson
- 26:11did have a portion of the show where he sat
- 26:13on the stool with his fiddler and guitarist and played
- 26:15snippets of songs while telling the stories behind them and
- 26:19when they meant to what they meant to his career,
- 26:21and he performed the songs here in the Real World
- 26:24Jason that Neon Rainbow, as well as a deeper cut
- 26:27Dallas and a newer song The Older I Get. In
- 26:29this fashion. The main stage at the three stage two
- 26:32step in as a very large area accordinged off in
- 26:35front of it, often referred to as the pit in
- 26:37the concert business. As the organizers at C three Presents
- 26:41will probably tell you this area's restricted access for safety
- 26:44and security reasons, but his performers and fans often point
- 26:48out it can create a mote for the vibe that
- 26:50is usually conveyed between the artist and their audience, especially
- 26:54when it's so wide. Well, Alan Jackson apparently wasn't fond
- 26:57of this motive the two step in, so while singing
- 27:00good Time, he started telling the crowd to jump over
- 27:03the barrier and to start dancing in the space in
- 27:05front of the stage. Don't worry, they want to rest you.
- 27:08Jackson said, it's the two step in, but you can't
- 27:11two step so with permission from Alan Jackson himself, this
- 27:14is exactly what the crowd started to do. The cameras
- 27:17broadcasting on the big screens flanking the stage showed people
- 27:20hopping the barriers and dancing as Alan sang, but of
- 27:24course security wasn't having it. Though they seemed permissive at first,
- 27:27as the space between the stage and the barriers began
- 27:29to get clogged with barrier jumpers, Security shut the show
- 27:33down and demanded everyone leave, refusing to allow any more
- 27:36music until the area was emptied. The pause probably lasted
- 27:39for around fifteen minutes and likely cut Alan Jackson's already
- 27:43shortened festival by two or three songs. When the area
- 27:46was cleared, Alan Jackson was given the mic back, but
- 27:49made sure to reiterate he wanted people in the area
- 27:51and for them to have a good time. Though the
- 27:54barriers in front of the stages at the two step
- 27:56in seemed inordinately large and do kill a vibe between
- 28:00the performer and the audience. It probably was also unsafe
- 28:03that there was no place for security and medical personnel
- 28:06to operate if there was an emergency, and in fact
- 28:09there was with Flatland cavalry set earlier in the day.
- 28:12But the folks who got to jump the barriers had
- 28:14a glorious moment in the forbidden zone dancing to Alan
- 28:17Jackson mere feet away. Alan Jackson also gets another feather
- 28:21in his cap for being a badass with a devil
- 28:23may care attitude about the rules, and ultimately nobody got
- 28:26hurt and everyone had a good story to tell. Texas
- 28:29will not forget the potential final show by Alan Jackson
- 28:32anytime soon, and Alan won't forget it either. This concludes
- 28:37the reading of Country Weekly for this week. If you
- 28:40have any comments or suggestions about our program, kindly call
- 28:43us at eight five nine four two two sixty three ninety.
- 28:47Thank you for joining me and on behalf of everyone
- 28:49here at RADIOI this is Ken Dawkins, wishing you a
- 28:52great day.