The Grand Ole Opry will tally its 4,924th consecutive Saturday night broadcast on May 16 with a showcase featuring Opry members Keith Urban and Kelsea Ballerini, as well as Morgan Evans.
The show will air at 7 p.m. CT on 650 AM WSM and be broadcast live on Circle Television, as well as streamed on Circle’s Facebook and YouTube.
On May 2, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood took the stage for the 4,922nd consecutive Saturday night Opry show, while Blake Shelton, Trace Adkins, Dustin Lynch and Gwen Stefani performed for the 4,923rd show on May 9.
For the past nine weeks during the current COVID-19 pandemic, the Grand Ole Opry has aired without an audience present. The Opry has aired every Saturday for more than 90 years. Opry fans are invited to contribute to the Opry’s #UNBROKEN charitable campaign, which raises money for the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund to benefit artists and musicians struggling through the pandemic.
Miranda Lambert dedicated her Tonight Show performance of “Bluebird” on May 8 to COVID-19 first responders and essential workers.
“I want to send this one especially out to the first responders and healthcare workers and grocery people that are keeping us safe and fed,” said Miranda before her at-home video performance. “We’re praying for y’all and we’re so thankful for you and you’re all heroes. Hopefully we’re almost through this thing.”
“Bluebird, which Miranda co-wrote with Luke Dick and Natalie Hemby, is featured on her seventh studio, Wildcard, which was released in November 2019. The single is currently No. 16 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart after 20 weeks.
ESPN basketball national recruiting director Paul Biancardi visited with Heather Harrington and me on Sports 180 recently.
He touched on a lot of different topics about Tennessee recruiting and basketball.
Below are just some of the quick quotes followed by the full interview with much more you should listen to.
On Rick Barnes’ recruiting:
“Rick Barnes made a major statement when he arrived on campus and he put together that initial class with Grant Williams.”
On what impresses him about Barnes:
“What Coach Barnes does a great job of is identifying the talent and then developing that talent. From the success he’s had at Tennessee, now he’s able to recruit even better talent but the same type of person that he values as a worker. He’s done a marvelous job of bringing Tennessee back to life in the SEC. He’s done that through recruiting and player development.”
On 2020 Class true freshman Jaden Springer:
“He’s a really good on-the-ball defender. We know how much Coach Barnes values playing defense and playing hard. I see him as a battle tested player that comes in right away and he gives Tennessee a big contribution right out of the gate.”
On 2020 Class true freshman Keon Johnson:
“An explosive athlete. This guy elevates in tight spaces very well. Great finisher. Can really defend.”
On 2020 Class true freshman Corey Walker:
“Another Top 100 player. More of a hybrid forward that can play inside and out at 6’7 plus.”
On Yves Pons as a draft prospect:
“He has physical measurables that the NBA loves, that they’re looking for. The high level athleticism. He’s got huge hands. Got a great wingspan. He’s plus 4 or 5 inches over his height. He elevates so well around the rim. He’s a power defender, shot blocker, but he’s also a multi-dimensional defender. He could probably cover 1s., 2s and some 3s (in the NBA.)”
On where Pons projects in the NBA Draft:
“Right now, you’re looking at, ballpark, a mid-second round pick. If somebody likes him a lot and wants to invest into his offense, they would take him earlier in the second round. Those who just can’t get past his lack of offensive ability for the NBA right now, would take him later in the second round.”
On if Pons returns to Tennessee:
“He’s always gotten better, so there’s no reason to think that by coming back to Tennessee that he can’t get better on the offensive end, expand his offensive game and play to his strengths. That’s why the NBA likes him and then he can impriove his draft status. If he comes back to Tennessee, and does what I just mentioned, it’s a win-win. Tennessee becomes one of the best teams in the country with the recruiting class and him coming back, and he can elevate his draft stock.”
On 5-star 2021 Tennessee target PG Kennedy Chandler from Memphis:
“I think they’re in really good shape with Kennedy Chandler. I just spoke to Kennedy Chandler, actually, this week. He really likes Rick Barnes.”
On 5-star 2021 Tennessee target C Moussa Cisse from Memphis:
“That’s going to be a tougher one. I think him being closer to Memphis, I think Memphis is probably the leader with him.”
On 5-star 2021 Tennessee target PF Paolo Banchero from Seattle:
“He’s really tight with Kennedy Chandler. They have some schools together on their list and Tennessee’s one of them, Memphis and Kentucky also. They would like to play together, if possible. That would have to be Kennedy Chandler committing to Tennessee, I believe, and bringing Banchero with him.”
On 5-star 2021 Tennessee target C Charles Bediako from Ontario, Canada:
“Yeah, they’ve (UT) had great success with guys from up in Canada, so I think they’re in really good shape with him. 6’10 shot blocker.”
MLB.com and MLB Network’s Richard Justice was a guest with Heather Harrington and me on Sports 180 recently.
He discussed a variety of subjects with us.
Below are just some quick quotes followed by the full interview with much more that you should listen to.
On selecting VFL Todd Helton as the best month of May MLB hitter performance he’s ever seen:
“He hit .512 in May 2000. First batting title. You say, ‘Oh, Coors Field.’ That’s right. He hit .548 at Coors Field (in May.) He hit 4-something (.407) on the road. It was when a lot would look at Todd Helton and say, ‘This guy’s not a good player. He’s a great player. He makes the game look easy.”
On how MLB will handle the DH with realignment proposals and an imbalance of AL and NL teams within the new divisions:
“I’m pretty sure we’re going to have a universal DH. My feeling is, for the first time ever in my life, there’s such a cultural line in the sand in both leagues. ‘We want it. They don’t want it.’ I think we’re headed towards having a universal DH in 2021. I could be wrong with that, but this is the first step.”
On Willie Mays and his game-used bats at home:
“Willie had a carousel of bats. Willie would pick up a bat and go, ‘Yeah, I homered off Drysdale on this date’ or ‘I homered in the all-star game with this bat.’ That tells you the expertise of these guys.”
On Willie Mays vs. Hank Aaron:
“The Willie Mays-Hank Aaron rivalry was real. I mean, it was real. They paid attention to what the two were doing.”
On covering Michael Jordan when he played baseball:
“I saw him say in the documentary, ‘I don’t have a gambling problem. I have a competition problem.’ Oh my god. Nothing he’s ever said could be more true. I’m in Birmingham with him, Chattanooga with him. He would play two rounds of golf in the morning, come in and start hustling card games with his teammates then take batting practice. He is a junkie in that way. Obviously, he burned a different fuel.”
Los Angeles Rams director of player engagement, VFL Jacques McClendon, spent some time with Heather Harrington and me on Sports 180 recently.
He touched on a lot of different topics.
Below are just some quick quotes followed by the full interview with much more you should listen to.
On Rams rookie LB VFL Daniel Bituli:
“Very explosive athlete. Always around the ball. Does a great job. Plays with a lot of energy. We’re definitely excited to have him.”
On Tennessee’s recent success on the field and in recruiting:
“Tennessee is not a stepover program. We’re not somebody that needs to be reignited.”
On UT HC Jeremy Pruitt:
“It’s nice to see a head coach and his staff take advantage of the resources that Tennessee has and and use that to maximize the exposure and capabilities of what we can do.”
On Vols fans vs. USC fans:
“If I went to the city of Knoxville and said ‘Fight On.’ a lot of people might not know what that is. But, I do know that I’m living in Los Angeles and I say “Rocky Top,’ everybody knows what that is. We’re still a national brand.”
On UT football’s turnaround:
“That all started when you brought Coach Phillip Fulmer back to be the AD. He understands what it takes to win there.”
On what the NFL is saying about Pruitt at Tennessee:
“Everybody knows Coach Pruitt can recruit. The scouts are always coming to tell me when they go see that roster, ‘Man, it’s starting to get back to what it used to look like.”
On VFL RB John Kelly:
“He’s still running just as hard as he did when he was in Knoxville. He’s got a great opportunity this offseason.”
On VFL TE Ethan Wolf:
“He’s an all-around tight end. Great human being. Great worker. He’s done a great job for us.”
Tim McGraw released a lyric video for his brand-new single, “I Called Mama,” on May 8.
Penned by Lance Miller, Marv Green and Jimmy Yeary, “I Called Mama” is about the special connection mothers share with their children, especially when times are tough.
The new lyric video features never-before-seen footage of Tim and his mom.
Tim’s official video for the song will includes fan-submitted videos and photos of their moms.
“Mother’s definitely deserve to be honored more than one day a year,” says Tim. “We’ve have had such an incredible response of people sharing their special mama videos, we are going to get you something really special in a few weeks.”
Watch Tim’s new lyric video for “I Called Mama” below.
Keith Urban revealed that he will release his 11th studio album, The Speed of Now: Part I, on Sept. 18.
Keith shared the news in a nifty 3-minute video that posted via YouTube.
“In October 2019, this album title came to me,” says Keith. “I liked it because I felt like life was flying by so fast. But music—for me—has always been the place where it slows down and doesn’t even exist. I would never have imagined that, in 2020, this album title would take on a whole new meaning.”
The video samples a number of new tracks from the album and reveals song titles “Gas,” “Tumbleweed,” “Polaroid,” “Change Your Mind,” “Wait” and “Superman.”
The Speed of Now: Part I will follow Keith’s 2018 album, Graffiti U, which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart.
Maren Morris dropped a new four-song EP, Maren Morris: Live From Chicago, on May 8.
The EP was recorded at the inaugural show of Maren’s Girl: The World Tour on March 9, 2019, at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago. The EP features performances of “Girl,” “A Song for Everything,” “Common” and “The Bones.”
“Feeling so nostalgic for shows lately so here’s a few tracks from opening night of Girl: The World Tour,” says Maren.
Maren Morris: Live From Chicago is available exclusively on Amazon Music, along with accompanying videos of each song.
With fun-in-the-sun tunes like “Sun Don’t Go Down on That” and “Ridin’ Roads,” it’s no secret Dustin Lynch loves the summertime.
To help usher in the unofficial start to the summer season over Memorial Day weekend (May 23–25), Dustin will team with Westwood One to host a four-hour Summer Kickoff special.
The four-hour broadcast, which is available to stations nationwide, will feature summer-themed music from Dustin and his friends, including Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, Thomas Rhett, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, Keith Urban, Kenny Chesney, Carrie Underwood and more. In addition, many of the artists will share their favorite summer memories and activities.
Westwood One’s Summer Kickoff With Dustin Lynch will also remember the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. After all, Memorial Day is an opportunity to pay tribute to all of the veterans who died serving our great nation. As we relax with family and friends over the Memorial Day weekend, let’s be sure to remember those who lost their lives protecting our freedom and thank those who serve or have served in our Armed Forces.
Stations can air Westwood One’s Summer Kickoff With Dustin Lynch between 6 a.m. and midnight on Saturday, May 23, through Monday, May 25. Check your local listings for air times.
![Tim McGraw Releases New Video for “I Called Mama” Featuring Never-Before-Seen Footage of Tim & His Mom [Watch]](https://cdn.socast.io/6616/sites/602/2020/05/08124015/Tim-McGraw-AFF.jpg#aqua_resizer_image_not_local)
