CA's Artist News (6-25)

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June 25, 2010 » Thank You Notes: Twenty country artists, government and corporate officials, Tennessee Titans, Hollywood stars and surprise guests helped raise money for flood relief at Tuesday's (6/22) four-and-a-half hour Nashville Rising benefit, but the show was just as much a celebration of the city. "God, I love this town," Faith Hill told the crowd during the event she organized with husband Tim McGraw. "I'm not just saying this because we're onstage tonight and you're here. Everyone falls in love with this city ... so thank you, Nashville, for making it a home for all of us." Surprise guest and McGraw's The Blind Side co-star Sandra Bullock also showed her appreciation for Music City by showing up with a guitar to jokingly pluck the first few notes of Deep Purple's "Smoke On The Water" before introducing Hill. Watch here.   Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton with Trace Adkins, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Montgomery Gentry, Taylor Swift, Luke Bryan, Martina McBride, LeAnn Rimes, ZZ Top, Julie Roberts, Jason Aldean, Miranda Lambert, Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, Toby Keith, Hill and McGraw performed short sets. Entertainment news anchor Nancy O'Dell, Hill and McGraw also emceed a series of big check presentations from the Nashville Predators Foundation ($130,000), Jackson National Life ($250,000), ACM Lifting Lives ($100,000), Krupa-Forbes Foundation ($100,000+), BMI ($50,000+) and Sharpie ($250,000+). Total fundraising figures are still being calculated. » Nashville Rising Quotebook: Here are a few of the more interesting quotes from Tuesday's event: "I know everyone's a little emotional. I want to remind you all this is country music and there's no reason you all shouldn't raise hell in here tonight." –Blake Shelton before bringing out Trace Adkins for "Hillbilly Bone" "In four or five days after the rain stopped, all the wet drywall, all the destroyed carpet [was] out in front of homes ready to be picked up by public works. The city government didn't do that. The state government didn't do it. The federal government didn't do it. The citizens of Nashville did it." –Mayor Karl Dean "'It's like five speed dates in a row. You have a goodhearted woman with a crowbar and a hammer and you have everything to talk about. This is the greatest thing that has ever happened to shy guys in this town.'" –Amy Grant, quoting son Matt regarding flood cleanup. "I wish I could be there with you but I can't get away from CBS, who are bastards." –Craig Ferguson via video. "When Tim and Faith asked me to come here tonight and do something I said, 'Sure, I'll do a couple funny bits. I'll have a wardrobe malfunction ... something interesting to contribute.'" –Sandra Bullock "That water never did get high enough to dampen our spirits." –Dolly Parton via video. » This One's For The Girls: Miranda Lambert's new video "Only Prettier" is sitting, well, pretty with cameos by girlfriends Laura Bell Bundy, Kellie Pickler and Lady Antebellum's Hillary Scott. "It's my own anthem," Lambert says of the song, "and I want girls to have their fists in the air singing ... it kind of fools you because it's got this really country, laid-back intro. But then it's balls-to-the-wall the rest of the way. It's so much fun!" Lambert and the gang filmed on location in Joelton, TN outside of Nashville, with the country stars posing as members of rival cliques the "socials" and "greasers" at a high school sock hop. » Jolly Good Show: British fans are getting their first taste of Brad Paisley as he premieres his H20 Tour in the UK this week. "Country music, I think, is the music of America's everyday life," Paisley told BBC1-TV's BBC Breakfast hosts Charlie Stayt and Sian Williams. "It's full of details [of] what it's like growing up and living in these times, [so] some things translate very well over here. And then other things are some of the stuff we might leave out of the set list in this area ... I have a song called 'Mud On The Tires' which is about going four-wheeling out in a muddy area of a bog or something. Do you do that here?" Paisley will be back stateside to perform Aquapalooza 2010 on Austin's Lake Travis July 10. Follow the link for the footage. » K-Squared: There's one less country blonde on the market with Kellie Pickler's engagement to songwriter Kyle Jacobs. Best known for co-writing Garth Brooks' "More Than A Memory" and Tim McGraw's "Still," Jacobs proposed last week during the couple's Florida vacation. "Yes, it's true," Pickler tweeted Wednesday (6/23). "I can't wait to say 'I do!'" She added, "Kyle took away all my fear of marriage and has shown me the way love is supposed to be." Wedding plans are still in the early stages as Pickler embarks on Rascal Flatts' Nothing Like This tour this weekend. Details and dates here. » In Case You Missed It: If the show must go on, you can count on Dierks Bentley. A power outage on the set of Tuesday's Jimmy Kimmel Live taping had the host grabbing his laptop and shooting the entire broadcast on a webcam. Seriously. Luckily, Bentley and band were up to an unplugged performance. "We are experiencing technical difficulties here in the studio, but luckily this is one of the rare occasions [when] we have a band talented enough to play without electric instruments," Kimmel said. Watch here. » Six-Toed Studio Cat: Lucky Old Son Kenny Chesney delivers his first new studio album in three years Sept. 28. "I knew I wanted the record to be something more, something that took what I do in my special projects and weaved it into what I do for the mainstream," he says of Hemingway's Whiskey, which is named for the Guy Clark-penned title track. "When I heard the song, I knew it was the perfect title for the record," he continues. "It's a song that talks about living life to its fullest, being a man about your responsibilities and not compromising ... which – as someone who's read all his books – is everything Hemingway's novels revolved around." » Quickly Engulfed: All 35,000 free tickets to CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends: Live From The Gulf Coast were snatched up within 10 minutes of their 10am CT availability Wednesday (6/23). The expected concertgoers will provide a much-needed economic boost to the Gulf Shores, AL area, where the oil spill has affected local tourism. CMT will air the special, featuring Buffett, Zac Brown, Kenny Chesney and others, live and commercial-free July 1 at 8pm ET. » Belly Of The Beast: The inner workings of Sugarland's Incredible Machine tour will be showcased in the duo's new online series Week In Review. The first installment features bits of Sugarland's Sioux Falls, SD concert. Watch here. » It's My Party: It was a Music City 18th birthday bash for "Not That Far Away" singer and iCarly actress Jennette McCurdy. Bellevue Middle School flood victims, along with Vince Gill and Amy Grant's daughter Corinna, Martina McBride's daughter Emma, Jamie O'Neal's daughter Aliyah and Phil Vassar's daughters Haley and Presley, enjoyed a night of fun, food and games Monday (6/21). Lady Antebellum, Keith Urban, Darius Rucker, Dierks Bentley and the iCarly cast also wished McCurdy a happy birthday via video messages as the crowd enjoyed a live DJ, video games, all-you-can-eat smoothie and ice cream stations and an oversized No. 18-shaped cake. The cherry on top of the evening had to be the goody bags filled with Ugly Doll swag, Pop Star and iCarly mags, candy and gift cards. » Jury Duty: You could win a free trip to San Francisco and the first-ever copy of "Lover, Lover" singer Jerrod Niemann's debut album Judge Jerrod & The Hung Jury. A lucky contest winner will receive two round trip tickets to San Francisco, two-night hotel stay, Niemann concert tickets and meet-and-greet passes. The grand prize package also include a commemorative "First On Earth" CD plaque presentation at the July 31 show. Learn more and enter here. The album hits stores July 13. » Life Notes: The country music community is wishing a speedy recovery to Brooks & Dunn's Ronnie Dunn, who has been put on vocal rest for three weeks. "Following my doctor's order, shutting up, getting well and comin' back ASAP!" Dunn texted this week. Last Rodeo tour dates have been rescheduled with the exception of the canceled Milwaukee and Ft. Loramie, OH shows. The duo's final concert together at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena is now Sept. 2. Complete schedule here. Well-wishes are also going out to Kevin Sharp ("Nobody Knows"), who had to be airlifted to a Denver hospital for surgery after breaking his leg at a Riverton, WY hotel. Sharp was to play at a local Relay For Life, and is now on the mend. » Hit List Rascal Flatts will raise awareness for youth suicide prevention as spokesmen for The Jason Foundation. Public service announcements for the Foundation's B1 Project will air during their Nothing Like This Tour. Learn more here. Coal Miner's Daughter, Loretta Lynn's autobiography, will be reissued in September, with actress Sissy Spacek narrating audio versions. Spacek won an Oscar for portraying Lynn in the film adaption of the story. A multi-artist Lynn tribute album will be released later this year. The Larry King Live telethon Disaster In The Gulf: How You Can Help featuring Trace Adkins, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw and other celebrities raised $1.8 million for Gulf Coast aid. The two-hour CNN special benefitted the United Way, The National Wildlife Federation and The Nature Conservancy. Recap here. Gloriana embarked on their first headlining tour, Long Hot Summer Tour 2010, Thursday (6/24) in Grand Junction, CO. The group polled fans to determine the title of the 40-date festival and fair tour. Complete schedule here. Larry Gatlin has landed his own weekly op-ed column on FoxNews.com's Fox Forum. Gatlin's debut article titled "Faith, Hope and Charity, That's What Our Country Needs" was posted Thursday (6/24). Read it here. Birthdays Gretchen Wilson (6/26) Lorrie Morgan (6/27) Kellie Pickler (6/28) On TV Friday (6/25): Reba, Rachael Ray (re-air) (syndicated). Saturday (6/26): Various Artists, 2010 CMT Music Awards (re-air). Sunday (6/27): Various Artists, George Strait - ACM Artist Of The Decade (GAC). Upcoming Albums Trailer Choir Tailgate (7/6) Jerrod Niemann Judge Jerrod & The Hung Jury (7/13) » All Hands On Dierks: Dierks Bentley and Hands On Nashville (HON) volunteers pose for Al Roker's "Lend A Hand" road trip during Thursday's (6/24) Today show broadcast. Roker and Bentley were simulcasting big gives ($828,000 worth of goods) in Nashville and Memphis, respectively. Bentley closed the segment with "Love Grows Wild." Watch here. » Shakin' The Studio: "Rockin' The Beer Gut" singers Trailer Choir hang in the studio with their producers Toby Keith and Mark Wright. TC's debut album Tailgate featuring single "Shakin' That Tailgate" hits stores July 6. Pictured (l-r) are Wright, TC's Crystal, Keith, TC's Butter and Big Vinny. » Watchin' You: Rodney Atkins' son Elijah shakes hands with Tennessee Titans head coach Jeff Fisher during a pre-game reception for the 10th Annual Comcast Jeff Fisher & Friends Charity Softball Game. The event benefitted several Music City charities and has raised more than $500,000 to date. Pictured (l-r) are Rodney's wife Tammy Atkins, Rodney, Elijah and Fisher. © 2010 LH Publications, LLC

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