Latest / Country Weekly / 2.21.25
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'll be 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 from
- 0:29the North Madison Neighbor magazine, the February issue, with a
- 0:34look at local concerts coming up. February twenty seventh. It's
- 0:38a Thursday night at seven o'clock at rupp Aerina. Guess
- 0:41what it's Blake Shelton. Country music superstar and Proud Ambassador
- 0:45Blake Shelton is set to hit the road this year
- 0:48with his Friends and Heroes Tour twenty twenty five. The
- 0:52tour features performances by genre heroes Craig Morgan, Deanna Carter,
- 0:56and Trace Adkins, plus very special guest Emily Ann Robert.
- 1:00The Friends and Heroes Tour is one of my favorite
- 1:03tours because as a fan, I can't think of a
- 1:05cooler concert to see, said Shelton. I get spoiled every
- 1:09night seeing those icons come out and do four or
- 1:12five of the biggest hits of their storied careers, and
- 1:15then I get to introduce a new talent like emly Anne.
- 1:18I can't wait. The Friends and Heroes tour announcement comes
- 1:21fresh off the boot heels of Shelton's recently announced live
- 1:24in Las Vegas residency at the Coliseum at Caesar's Palace.
- 1:29The next night, the twenty eighth, at the Renfro Valley
- 1:32Entertainment Center in the New Barn, Sawyer Brown comes to town.
- 1:36Sawyer Brown has produced twenty three albums with more than
- 1:39fifty chart singles and loads of CMA, ACM and CMT
- 1:43awards on the shelf. To pull a line from one
- 1:46of the band's enduring hits, this is the life and
- 1:48times of a traveling band. Sawyer Brown is a traveling band, indeed,
- 1:53always on the move on the road, on stage and
- 1:55in their career. When asked about what keeps him motivated
- 1:59on the road, lead singer Mark Miller says, it's playing
- 2:02the next show, being grateful for where you've been, and
- 2:04to be excited about where you're going. Sawyer Brown is
- 2:07Mark Miller, keyboardist, Gregg Hoby Hubbard, lead guitar Shane Hill
- 2:12and drummer Joe Smith, Mark and his bandmates have been
- 2:15singing hits like Step That Step Shaken, Betty's Been Bad,
- 2:19The Race Is On, and the band's second number one
- 2:21hit Some Girls Do with unmatched energy and excitement since
- 2:25they first stepped foot on stage in the early eighties,
- 2:29then on March first, in the same location, New Barn
- 2:32of the Renfro Valley, eight o'clock that night, the Outlaws.
- 2:36Now there are obviously more Southern Rock For the Outlaws,
- 2:39It's always been about the music. For more than forty years,
- 2:41the Southern rock legends celebrated triumphs and endured tragedies to
- 2:45remain one of the most influential and best loved bands
- 2:48of the genre. Today, the Outlaws have returned with new music,
- 2:52new focus, and an uncompromising view mission. It's about a
- 2:56band of brothers bound together by history, harmony, and the road.
- 3:00It's about a group that respects its legacy while refusing
- 3:02to be defined by its past. But most of all,
- 3:05it's about pride. It's about Pride was also the title
- 3:08of the band's acclaimed twenty twelve album, universally hailed as
- 3:12their victorious comeback. Because the Outlaws had been out of
- 3:16the public eye for so long, it was almost like
- 3:18starting over, explains founding singer, songwriter and guitarist Henry Paul.
- 3:23But because of the band's history, we dig deeper, write better,
- 3:26performed stronger. Everything we do is to reinforce the notion
- 3:29that the Outlaws still matter and the Southern rock will
- 3:32always matter. It's a message we're proud to bring into
- 3:35the twenty first century. Now we hop over into the
- 3:39passing lane to get to countrynow dot Com with the
- 3:43first article dated the sixteenth of February five. Unforgettable Moments
- 3:47from Cody johnson second sold out night in Nashville. Ashley
- 3:53McBride was spot on when she predicted this is going
- 3:56to be the one we talk about during our opening
- 3:59set for cod d Johnson's second of two back to
- 4:01back headlining shows in Nashville. Between the star studded lineup
- 4:06of surprise guests, out of this world performances, and emotional
- 4:10moments with the sold out crowd, the night was nothing
- 4:13short of unforgettable. On Saturday, Johnson brought the Texas Spirit
- 4:18to Music City as part of his Leather Deluxe tour,
- 4:21marking the second of two sold out shows in Nashville,
- 4:24where he performed for a combined audience of over thirty
- 4:27thousand fans across both nights. It's safe to say he
- 4:31far exceeded expectations of his fans with the epic conclusion
- 4:34of his two nights stand in Nashville. The show kicked
- 4:37off as usual, with the country star bringing his electric
- 4:39energy to the stage with a routy delivery of That's Texas,
- 4:42setting a tone for all the pure passion and award
- 4:45winning storytelling set to be on display throughout the evening.
- 4:50It's nearly impossible to compare Johnson's performance level to any
- 4:53other artist, and he proved this over the course of
- 4:55the ninety minute show. Fans from all over made their
- 4:58way to Bridgestone Arena to variance his concert and showed
- 5:01their support by cheering so loud it's likely they could
- 5:04be heard down the street to Nashville's Lower Broadway scene.
- 5:08The crowd sang along to the entire twenty song set list,
- 5:11stacked with fan favorites including My and My Kind, Human Dirt,
- 5:15Cheap the Painter Until You Can't to name a few.
- 5:19There are so many reasons why the show will go
- 5:20down as one of Nashville's most talked about nights. But
- 5:23if Country Now had to narrow it down, these are
- 5:26the top five moments that stood out. First of all,
- 5:30Uniting with Ian Munsick for Long Live Cowgirls. About seven
- 5:33songs into the show, Cody Johnson welcomed his first surprise
- 5:37guest of the night, his former tour mate Ian Munsick.
- 5:40He signaled his fiddle player that it was his time
- 5:42to shine, prompting the musician to strum his string instrument
- 5:46while Johnson plucked the acoustic guitar and delivered the opening
- 5:49lyrics to Long Live Cowgirls. Originally released in twenty twenty two,
- 5:54The song, co penned by Munsick with Abby Guderez and
- 5:57phil O'Donnell, aims to celebrate the Western way of life,
- 6:01a culture both Johnson and Munsick proudly embodied. Once the
- 6:04chorus hit, the screams of excitement intensified as the crowd
- 6:07saw Munsick making his way onto the stage to help
- 6:10finish out the tune. They took turns lending their vocals
- 6:13to the heartwarming song, before wrapping up with a collective
- 6:17coyote cry. Number two singing I'm going to Love You
- 6:20with Carrie Underwood. Cody Johnson's latest contribution to country radio
- 6:25is I'm going to Love You to stunning duet with
- 6:28eight time Grammy winner Carrie Underwood. With the tune heating
- 6:31up airwaves and appearing on the deluxe edition of his
- 6:34Leather album, it was only fitting for Johnson to include
- 6:37it in his set list. So when the singer songwriter
- 6:40stepped onto the platform with a single spotlight illuminating him
- 6:44and the delicate hum of the piano filling the arena,
- 6:47a round of hopeful screams thundered throughout the audience. Seconds later,
- 6:52fans' dreams became a reality as Underwood made her grand
- 6:55entrance beside Johnson in her cheetah print denim skirt, lack
- 6:59stiletto boots, and a bedazzled Kojo T shirt. He flashed
- 7:04a knowing smile to the crowd before flawlessly intertwining his
- 7:06voice with the American idol Alum's silky tone and singing
- 7:10their hearts out to the narrative that centers around a
- 7:12couple's promise to stand by each other through life's highs
- 7:15and lows together. The artists created a powerhouse moment that
- 7:19sent chills through the arena and left fans buzzing well
- 7:22beyond the final note, I don't know how we're going
- 7:25to follow that, Johnson admitted as Underwood made her exit.
- 7:28He then added, I thought it was pretty cool. The
- 7:31third great moment from the concert, Till you Can't spawns
- 7:34tearful moment Till You Can't emerged in twenty twenty one
- 7:38and quickly became life changing track for Johnson. Each time
- 7:42he sings it, no matter of the setting, he manages
- 7:44to exude the same power and raw motions as the
- 7:47day it was recorded. The overwhelming feeling of gratitude Johnson
- 7:51feels for his fans as a result of this song's
- 7:53success came alive in full force on Saturday, when he
- 7:56stepped up to the mic and sang the tune's hook
- 7:58without a single instrumentccompanying his gritty vocals. A few notes
- 8:03in his voice audibly cracked from the wave of emotions
- 8:05that washed over him, causing him to step back and
- 8:08take it all in. He signaled to his band to
- 8:11keep playing while he attempted to compose himself and dry
- 8:14the tears. Filling his eyes literally said it takes a
- 8:17lot to get me to cry, and you all did
- 8:19it tonight, Johnson admitted. The artist encouraged the audience to
- 8:23sing at the top of their lungs and celebration of
- 8:25the song that will always be a massive part of
- 8:27his musical journey, as was his first number one on
- 8:30the Country Billboard charts. He finished out the performance with
- 8:34that same passion in his heart, and his fans happily
- 8:37fulfilled his request by returning the show into a massive
- 8:40sing along. The fourth thing or highlight from the concert
- 8:44from Cody Johnson's concert in Nashville Luke Combe's surprise encore appearance.
- 8:49Before wrapping up the night, Johnson had one more trick
- 8:52up his sleeves. Now the question is do you want more?
- 8:55He asked, earning a resounding yes from the crowd. The
- 8:59Dirt Chief singer seated to tease his next and final
- 9:02song by asking a team member to remove the cups
- 9:05from the stage, as he noted, we aren't gonna need
- 9:08this for the next song either, because it's about beer.
- 9:12To fans surprise, Lukecomb's emerged to join Johnson for a
- 9:15high energy rendition of beer never Broke My Heart. The
- 9:19pair of country music stars don't have an official duet
- 9:21recorded together. However, Johnson found a way to incorporate him
- 9:25into the show by swapping out one of his own
- 9:27originals for Combs's smash Hit as his grand finale. The
- 9:31second the well known opening of the track played. The
- 9:34crowd knew what was about to happen, so Johnson tapped
- 9:37his boot, delivered the first verse, and then belted out
- 9:40the remainder of the song with his unexpected guest. In
- 9:43true Lucomb's fashion, he challenged Johnson to a shotgunning challenge,
- 9:47which he won by a landslide, and gave his fellow
- 9:50artist one final hug before waving farewell to the arena.
- 9:55The last highlight or point from the show, a no
- 9:58frills approach Among all the supper rises and emotional moments
- 10:01that took place, by far, the most important thing to
- 10:03emphasize about a Cody Johnson's show is the fact that
- 10:06he doesn't need flashy production or eye catching elements to
- 10:09leave a lasting impact on his fans. There are no
- 10:13over the top spectacles like the fire shooting out of
- 10:15the stage or massive screens with moving graphics. Instead, Johnson
- 10:20leans solely on his entertaining skills, allowing him to place
- 10:23the focus on the music and celebrate the journey that
- 10:26led him to this point. With every performance, he reminds
- 10:29fans why they fell in love with country music and
- 10:32proves that a great show isn't measured by the level
- 10:34of production, but by the raw passion and authenticity of
- 10:38the artists. Stripping the production elements down also allows him
- 10:42the space to share the stories behind his songs and
- 10:45celebrate the sense of unity that makes concerts so special.
- 10:49Cody Johnson's Leather Deluxe Tour launched three weeks ago and
- 10:52has already delivered seven sold out shows. The trek is
- 10:55set to run through August fifteenth, with special guests varying
- 10:59by In other news from countrynow dot com, Rascal Flats
- 11:05kicks off twenty fifth anniversary tour with emotional, hit filled reunion.
- 11:10After several years away from the road, Rascal Flats officially
- 11:13reunited on Thursday for their Life as a Highway tour,
- 11:17marking their first tour since twenty nineteen and celebrating twenty
- 11:21five years as a band. The show was a testament
- 11:25to their musical legacy, deep connection with fans and the
- 11:28undeniable magic they create together on stage. Following high energy
- 11:33opening sets from Chris Lane and Laura and Elena, the
- 11:35arena buzzed with anticipation as lights dimmed in thinlazzies, The
- 11:39Boys Are Back in Town blasted through the arena. Moments later,
- 11:44one by one, the trio stepped onto the stage, receiving
- 11:46a roaring welcome from the sold out crowd at Ford
- 11:49Center in Evansville, Indiana. Kicking off their long awaited reunion,
- 11:54Rascal Flats launched into Hears to You, a song written
- 11:56as a tribute to the fans who supported them from
- 11:59the very beginning. Emotions ran high as cheers and applause
- 12:03filled the venue, and some fans were even brought to
- 12:05tears at the sight of the band together again. With
- 12:08a nod to the girls in the front row singing
- 12:11and the boys with the wheels that bring them, the
- 12:13group kept the energy high, even throwing in the chorus
- 12:16of the Boys are Back in Town to celebrate their
- 12:18comeback without skipping a beat, The band Weren't Right into
- 12:22Yours if You Want It and the beloved fast Cars
- 12:24and Freedom. As the massive singalong continued amongst the packed
- 12:28out crowd twenty five years of Rascal Flats. I cannot
- 12:32believe it, Jaye Demarkers shared during the show, A lot
- 12:35has changed in twenty five years. How many of you
- 12:37all came to see us when you were a kid yourself,
- 12:39but now you're bringing kids with you and you can
- 12:42drive and all that stuff. You know what I'm talking about.
- 12:45I mean, if you wanted to listen to our music
- 12:47when we first came out, you had to have a
- 12:48cassette player or a CD player. Some of you all
- 12:52don't even know what that is anymore, he added with
- 12:54a laugh. De Marcus went on to thank the fans
- 12:56for their unwavering loyalty and admitted that the band is
- 12:59truly feeing feeling the love. So much has changed in
- 13:03twenty five years, but I'll tell you one thing that
- 13:04has not changed is the Rascal Flats family are still
- 13:07the best fans on the face of the entire planet.
- 13:10You've loved us and stood by us even when we
- 13:12weren't on the road for the last five years, and
- 13:14the love we feel here tonight is absolutely astounding. They
- 13:18reminded listeners to persevere with two thousand and six stand
- 13:22transported them back to simpler times with Maybury and delivered
- 13:25a poignant message of hope with my wish. It's moments
- 13:29like these, watching thousands of fans sing every word that
- 13:32make you realize these songs are more than just music.
- 13:35They're the soundtracks to people's lives, playing a role in graduations, weddings,
- 13:39and countless other life milestones. Seeing that connection firsthand is
- 13:44truly something special. After bringing up the temple with a
- 13:47rousing rendition of banjo, Gary Levoxen, Jay DeMarcus left the
- 13:51stage for a brief moment to allow Joe Don Rooney
- 13:54a moment in the spotlight. It feels pretty good, doesn't it,
- 13:57Rooney marveled when taking in the crowd. Been a little
- 14:00bit for all of us, but it's been a little
- 14:01bit for myself as well. And may my what five
- 14:04years has been. After thanking fans from the bottom of
- 14:08my heart for showing up, Ronie took a moment to
- 14:10address his twenty twenty one accident, which led him to
- 14:12become sober and lean into his faith. Some of you
- 14:16might have heard, but some of you might not know.
- 14:18But on September ninth, twenty twenty one, I hit a
- 14:20tree and Luckily, I'm still alive. I'm really grateful that
- 14:24nobody else was involved and I didn't hurt myself too badly,
- 14:27he said, solemnly, Praise God. I was able to get
- 14:30help I needed, and I needed it for a long time.
- 14:33As fans applauded his honesty, he continued, I'm telling you
- 14:37right now, if anybody, any of you all, if you
- 14:39know somebody, speak up, talk, connect with somebody, because I
- 14:41promise you somebody loves you way more than your going through.
- 14:46He then delivered a heartfelt solo rendition of I'm Moving
- 14:49On from Rascal Flat's debut album. The Hits continued throughout
- 14:53the evening, with the second half of the show featuring
- 14:56some of the best known songs of band's catalog, including
- 14:58These Days Less the Broken Road, and What Hurts the Most.
- 15:04Keeping the energy up through the very last note, Rascal
- 15:06Flats closed out the show with Summer Nights and Life
- 15:08as a Highway, featuring special guests Laura Molena and Chris Lane.
- 15:13It was all round unforgettable night. Fans might have expected
- 15:16a few hiccups or awkward first show moments, but there
- 15:19was none of that. Honestly, it was as they had
- 15:21never left. Gerry Levaux's vocals were as powerful as ever,
- 15:25and their songs still sound fresh and as relevant as
- 15:28ever after twenty five years together. This tour is more
- 15:31than just a return to the stage. It's a well
- 15:34earned celebration of a band whose music has left a
- 15:36lasting mark on so many lives, and that was more
- 15:39than evident at Thursday Night in Evansville. Next, Vincent Mason
- 15:45delivers feel good heartbreak anthem with Wish You Well. Vincent
- 15:50Mason has dropped a brand new single on Valentine's Day, but,
- 15:54being the heartbreak hit maker that he is, the rising
- 15:57star isn't celebrating the holiday with a love song. Instead,
- 16:00he's delivering a tune that goes out to anyone who's
- 16:03embracing heartbreak instead of romance this year. Penned by a
- 16:07stacked line up of songwriters including Jeff Warburton, Jesse, Joe Dillon,
- 16:12Blake Pendergrass, and Chris Laquurt, Wish You Well places Mason
- 16:16on a bar stool, drowning his sorrows in whiskey while
- 16:19simultaneously wishing his ex happiness in her future. The internal
- 16:23battle between missing what he had and longing for the
- 16:25desire to move on curses through his voice. I wish
- 16:30you would call, I wish you'd miss me. I wish
- 16:32you and me were more than a memory. Wish you
- 16:35were here, wish you were mine, wish you were second chance,
- 16:37lonely to night. Thing is my heart hit rock bottom
- 16:40shelf when we didn't last, like a last call. Bell.
- 16:43Can't bring myself too much else but sit on this barstool,
- 16:46sippin' that Wish You Well. The Innerscope U m G.
- 16:49Nashville Music soup songwriter and artist sings in the chorus.
- 16:54The song's hips wang upbeat melody catches listener's attention, but
- 16:57it's his gritty vocals radiating through the tongue and cheek
- 17:00storyline that makes them stick around until the end. Wish
- 17:04You Well is easily expected to shine as a fan
- 17:06favorite within Mason's upcoming run of live shows. This might
- 17:10be the most feel good, heartbreak drinking song that I know,
- 17:13he points out. Mason's new single comes hot on the
- 17:17heels of his gut wrenching new break up ballad Waiting
- 17:19on You to Wear Off. Both tunes join his breakfast
- 17:22I'm Sorry, his breakout song Hell Is a Dance Floor,
- 17:26which continues to heat up streaming, along with other releases
- 17:28including Heart Like This, Train of Thought, Speak of the Devil,
- 17:32and his debut ep Can't Just Be Me. Today also
- 17:36marks one week since the launch of his debut headlining
- 17:39Hell Is a Dance Floor tour. The track, which sold
- 17:42out during pre sales, was recently extended to include a
- 17:44second leg in order to accommodate even more of his
- 17:47growing fan base. He will be joined by special guests
- 17:51Zach John King and Clayton Mullen. After being on the
- 17:54road as an opener for the last year, it feels
- 17:56great to play for a crowd that shows up to
- 17:58hear the songs that we've been putting together for the
- 18:00last couple of years, Mason shares, We're always trying to
- 18:03put on the best show for the people spending their
- 18:05money and showing up. Additionally, Vincent Mason will continue his
- 18:10momentum into the summer and beyond with a slew of
- 18:12opening dates with Riley Green, Luke Bryan, Megan Maroney, and
- 18:16Parker McCollum. Fans can catch Vicent Mason performing at Country
- 18:20Now Live in Nashville alongside Priscilla Block Lily Rose, Adam
- 18:24Billiac and Demps. Now we move over to saving country
- 18:29music for news and commentary. First article dated February eighteenth.
- 18:35Vince Gill celebrates fifty years of making music with a
- 18:38summer tour. We're probably not making a big enough deal
- 18:43over Vince Gill. The guy's only one of the best singers,
- 18:46one of the best guitar players in the business, let
- 18:48alone now touring member of the Eagles. Over the last
- 18:51few years, Gil's also been the big name willing to
- 18:54lend his voice to the songs of artists both big
- 18:56and small. Everyone wants to sing with Vince Gill, and
- 18:59he more than happy to oblige. This summer will mark
- 19:03fifty years that the sixty seven year old Vince Gill
- 19:05has been performing music professionally, and he's celebrating by going
- 19:09on an extensive tour that will culminate in a four
- 19:12night residency at the Riemann Auditorium and will include a
- 19:15stop in Kentucky. He'll also be playing numerous other prestigious
- 19:19spots on the tours, such as the Fox Theater in
- 19:21Atlanta and New York's Beacon Theater. I left home fifty
- 19:25years ago to try and become an accomplished musician and
- 19:28perform in front of whoever would show up All these
- 19:31years later. It feels as special today as it ever did,
- 19:34Vince Gill says, making it extra specialist the all star
- 19:38eight piece band he's assembled behind him for the tour
- 19:41that includes the legendary Jim Moose Brown on keys, harmony
- 19:44singer and solo artist Wendy Moten, along with Eddie Dunlap
- 19:48on steel guitar, Tom Buckovac, Jeff White and Jeff Hedges
- 19:51on guitar, John Jarvis on additional keys, Jimmy Lee Sloan's
- 19:55on bass, and Billy Thomas on drums. Vince Gill found
- 20:00out of a bluegrass band out of high school called
- 20:02Mountain Smoke, before moving to Kentucky and playing in a
- 20:05band called Bluegrass Alliance and eventually Boone Creek with Ricky Skaggs.
- 20:10In nineteen seventy six, Skill moved to Los Angeles and
- 20:13performed in Byron Berlin's band Sun Dance. He later joined
- 20:17Pure Prairie League in nineteen seventy eight. I didn't know
- 20:19that before launching his solo country career. All tickets for
- 20:23the upcoming tour. Go on sale February twenty first, and
- 20:27he will be in Louisville and that's on July twenty
- 20:32sixth at the Kentucky Center. Next George Strait Chris Stapleton
- 20:37plot limited run of twenty twenty five stadium shows. You
- 20:42won't hear King George straight on the radio, and you'll
- 20:45barely hear songs from Chris Stapleton these days. But both
- 20:48these country stalwarts can sell out shows at the stadium
- 20:51level as we know, and will do so once again
- 20:54in twenty twenty five. Stapleton already has a slate full
- 20:57of appearances lined up on his All American road Show tour,
- 21:01but he will add five more dates to the complement
- 21:03or two compliment George Strait for some of King George's
- 21:06only live appearances in the coming year. I keep trying
- 21:09to slow down a bit, but you keep calling me back.
- 21:12Please don't ever stop. I still love it just as
- 21:14much as I always have, says straight. Thank you for
- 21:17an amazing year last year, and I can't wait to
- 21:19see you for a few more again this year. Chris
- 21:22will be back and glad to have Little Big Town
- 21:24with us in LA. For the other cities We've added
- 21:26Parker M to the show, which will be outstanding. Can't
- 21:29wait to see you. Parker M. Of course happens to
- 21:32be Parker McCollum for the uninitiated, who also helped open
- 21:36George Strait's new Historic Texas A and M Kyle Field appearance,
- 21:40where one hundred and eleven thousand fans were in attendance,
- 21:43making it the largest single ticket to event in the
- 21:45United States history. Incidentally, that history is set to be
- 21:49broken by Zach Bryant when he takes the stage September
- 21:52twenty seventh, where fans bought more than one hundred and
- 21:55twelve thousand tickets for his show at Michigan Stadium in
- 21:58Ann Arbor. But before that happens, George Strait with Chris
- 22:02Stapleton will likely sell out five more stadiums in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Foxboro, Massachusetts,
- 22:08and Englewood, California. No shows near US. Unfortunately, next after
- 22:15playing full show, Zack Topp refunds tickets due to illness.
- 22:20There's a reason Zach top is the reigning saving Country
- 22:23music Artist of the Year, and it's not just for
- 22:26his music to achieve such an accolade. You have to
- 22:28be the full package, including displaying the type of personal
- 22:31character that we'd like to think our favorite country performers
- 22:34live up to. Last Thursday, actually the thirteenth, Zach Top
- 22:38displayed that kind of character. He was performing at the
- 22:41Dixie National Livestock Show in Rodeo at the Mississippi Coliseum
- 22:45and Jackson. Though Zach Top was clearly ill from whatever
- 22:48is currently going around, he soldiered through the performance and
- 22:52played his entire set. Attendee said they could tell he
- 22:55wasn't a hundred percent, but they were still happy to
- 22:57see him anyway and appreciated that he didn't cancel up
- 23:00on them. Nonetheless, you could understand how some might be
- 23:03disappointed as zach struggled to get out of his signature
- 23:06yodels and moans. Turns out, Zach Top was disappointed too,
- 23:10so near the end of the set, Zach addressed the
- 23:12elephant in the room. We're going to get it sorted out.
- 23:15We're going to get your money back for tonight's show,
- 23:17because this isn't what kind of show I want to
- 23:19put on. Zach Top told the crowd, thank you so
- 23:22much for coming out here and for making us feel
- 23:24like a million dollars. Then Top went on to say,
- 23:27this is all I ever wanted to do ever since
- 23:29I was a little kid, and you all are the
- 23:31reason I get to do this. So if I can't
- 23:33do it one hundred percent of my ability, it ain't
- 23:36good enough for me. So we'll get you all your
- 23:38money back. This was met from cheers of appreciation from
- 23:42the audience. It was announced this week that Zach Top
- 23:44will be opening select shows for Dirk's Bentley to go
- 23:47along with his own sold out shows in twenty twenty five.
- 23:51Zach tob also recently admitted that they understand demand for
- 23:54his tickets for early twenty twenty five shows, and they
- 23:57are planning more shows for the latter half of the year,
- 24:00including in some small arenas so everyone gets an opportunity
- 24:03to see him. It's onward and upward for Zach Top. Now.
- 24:08We lined dance over to the boot dot com with
- 24:10the first article published on February eighteenth, Keith Urban and
- 24:15Nicole Kidman suffer a break in at their La home.
- 24:19Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman were the victims of an
- 24:22apparent burglar over the weekend, According to a report from TMZ,
- 24:26citing unnamed law enforcement sources. TMZ reports that the break
- 24:30in took place at the couple's LA home. An intruder
- 24:33appeared to have smashed a glass window in order to
- 24:36enter the residence. Kidman and Urban were out of town
- 24:39at the time, but one of their employees arrived at
- 24:41the house, and the intruder fled the property when they
- 24:43heard the employee coming. It's not yet clear if anything
- 24:46was stolen from the home. It's also unclear if the
- 24:48intruder intended to rob the residents or if they had
- 24:51another motive, such as Urban and Kidman's celebrity. Neither member
- 24:55of the couple has yet issued a comment on the incident.
- 24:58Urban and Kidman owned multi to pull homes in various
- 25:01cities all over the country, as well as property in Australia.
- 25:05Their real estate holdings include a duplex condo in the
- 25:08High End Chelsea neighborhood of New York City, and they
- 25:11previously owned a rustic Schick farmhouse outside of Nashville, which
- 25:15they sold back in twenty eighteen. The property that was
- 25:19burglarized was likely the home they owned in the Beverly
- 25:21Hills area of LA. It's not clear exactly where they
- 25:24were on the weekend of the break in, though Urban
- 25:27is keeping busy with several performance states this month before
- 25:30he launches his twenty twenty five High and Alive tour
- 25:33this May. Next, Eric Church buys land to build a
- 25:39neighborhood for hurricane victims. Just a few months after he
- 25:43committed to a rebuilding project in Hurricane Helen ravaged areas
- 25:46of North Carolina, Eric Church is making good on that promise.
- 25:51According to local news station WSOCTV channel nine, the singer's
- 25:56Chief Cares Foundation has purchased a property of land outside
- 26:00of Newland, North Carolina, which is in Avery County, a
- 26:03region that Church previously specified as a focus for his
- 26:06rebuilding efforts. The news outlet reports that plans are being
- 26:10drawn up to build forty homes on the plot, as
- 26:13well as to install water and sewer lines and build
- 26:15a road in the neighborhood. Church's foundation has also contracted
- 26:19with an engineer to work on the plans. The singer
- 26:22also hopes to build a community center and a walking
- 26:24trail on the property. Last fall, Hurricane Helene ravaged much
- 26:28of the southeast, claiming lives and displacing many from their homes.
- 26:32People in states like Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina were impacted.
- 26:36Church has concentrated his efforts on hard hit North Carolina,
- 26:40which of course is his home state. Residents in the
- 26:43area of Churches Build express their excitement for the project.
- 26:47Many of them have been living in temporary housing or
- 26:49motels since losing their homes to the storm. There are
- 26:53so many families who are deserving of this and have
- 26:55lost everything, when resident told the news channel, and there
- 26:58should be more people like Church. Church has been involved
- 27:01in recovery efforts after Hurricane a Leen in multiple ways.
- 27:05He released a song, Darkest Hour, and ear marked the
- 27:08proceeds for relief efforts. He also approved use of his
- 27:11song Carolina for a North Carolina tourism at aimed at
- 27:14revitalizing efforts. The singer also worked with Luke Combs to
- 27:18mount the Concert for Carolina, a massive benefit show that
- 27:21brought in nearly twenty five million dollars toward the cause. Finally,
- 27:26another big pop superstar just teased a country crossover. Pop
- 27:31to country crossover ramped up in a big way in
- 27:33twenty twenty four, with two out of genre artists Post
- 27:36Malone and Beyonce, of course, producing what were arguably the
- 27:39two biggest country albums of the year. That trend doesn't
- 27:43seem to be slowing down any this year. It's only
- 27:45mid February and already a couple of massive names from
- 27:48the pop genre have expressed some interest in the country format.
- 27:51The latest of those is Chapel Rone, who picked up
- 27:54a creative way to tease the release of her country
- 27:57flavored unreleased song The Giver. Roan set a preview of
- 28:01new music via Instagram stories slide, where she posted a
- 28:05number of fans could call to hear preview of the track. Whoever,
- 28:08according to Billboard, Rome debuted The Giver on Saturday Night
- 28:11Live last November. Her performance was subsequently pulled from s
- 28:15n l's channel as well as her own, perhaps to
- 28:18clear the way for her own separate rollout of the
- 28:20song's release. This concludes the reading of Country Weekly for
- 28:24this week. If you have any comments or suggestions about
- 28:27our program, kindly call us at eight five nine four
- 28:30two two sixty three ninety. Thank you for joining me
- 28:33and on behalf of every one here at Radio I.
- 28:36This is Ken Dawkins, wishing you a great day.