Tennessee Vols talented junior offensive lineman Trey Smith held his NFL Draft decision press conference Thursday afternoon.
Smith announced he is returning to the University of Tennessee for his senior season after playing his junior season with a medical plan that allowed him to have success and stay healthy.
After his press conference, Smith met with reporters in a group session to talk more about his decision. You can watch it, in it’s entirety, below.
Tennessee Vols talented junior offensive lineman Trey Smith held his NFL Draft decision press conference Thursday afternoon.
Smith announced he is returning to the University of Tennessee for his senior season after playing his junior season with a medical plan that allowed him to have success and stay healthy.
Smith, Vols head coach Jeremy Pruitt and head team physician Chris Klenck spoke at the Thursday press conference. You can watch it, in it’s entirety, below.
Blake Shelton’s new duet with Gwen Stefani, “Nobody But You,” will serve as his new single, following recent Top 20 hit, “Hell Right.”
Penned by Ross Copperman, Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne and Tommy Lee James, “Nobody But You” is one of four new tracks on Blake’s recently released album, Fully Loaded: God’s Country.
The new tune will impact country radio on Jan. 21.
“I was at The Voice compound and Shane McAnally is on Songland, so they were there doing some cross-promotion,” says Blake. “Shane came to my trailer and said, ‘Man, I got a song for you.’ I knew he had Gwen’s number from a write, so I told him to send it to her as I was being called to set. I actually got the song twice because my producer Scott Hendricks emailed it to me right after. Then one day I was driving with Gwen and I said, ‘Hey, let’s listen to that song from Shane, because Scott sent it to me too—it must be pretty incredible.’ When I heard it, I was just floored. I realized how important that song was for me and where I am in my life right now. I just think it’s magical. I literally think it’s important of a song as I’ve ever recorded.”
Blake and Gwen will take the stage together for the 62nd Grammy Awards on Jan. 26.
photo by O\’Connor,AFF-USA.com
Jennifer Nettles turned a lot of heads when she walked the red carpet at the CMA Awards in November.
The Grammy-winning artist made a fashion statement that endeavored to highlight country radio’s gender disparity by wearing a white Christian Siriano pantsuit with a red cape that was inscribed by artist Alice Mizrachi with the words “Play our f*@#in records please and thank you.”
Jennifer’s ensemble gained a lot of traction on social media and from a number of national media outlets, including USA Today.
On Jan. 9, Jennifer penned an essay for Glamour.com that explains how her red-carpet outfit came together and why #EqualPlay should matter to everyone—not just musicians.
Here’s a brief excerpt from Jennifer’s essay:
“For women in country music, what happens is that even out of that 16% who are being played, the average female is 29 years old. For men, the average mean age in that group is 42. That says a lot about what we value socially—the pressures that are put on women in terms of ageism and beauty. It also tells me that women aren’t offered the same support to be able to continue their careers.”
Read Jennifer’s entire essay here.
photo by Curtis Hilbun, AFF-USA.com
We ain’t lion.
After Zac Brown Band caps The Owl Tour in April, the troupe will hit the road this summer for the Roar With the Lions Tour.
The new trek will kick off on May 24 in Gilford, N.H., with additional shows in Toronto, New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Denver and more. Gregory Alan Isakov will serve as the opener for most dates.
“Our summer tour is inspired by the folklore surrounding the figure of the lion,” says Zac. “I am a Leo, and all of the guys in the band are lions. They exemplify strength, courage, intelligence, and loyalty, and work in tandem to defend their territory and one another. The crowd is our pride—rooted in togetherness and fiercely loyal. They always show up for each other, no matter what, just like our fans always show up for us. We can’t wait to hear you roar with us!”
Tickets will go on sale to general public on Jan. 17 at 10 a.m. local time.
Roar With the Lions Tour
* Denotes special guest Gregory Alan Isakov
** Denotes special guest St. Paul and the Broken Bones
+ Denotes festival stops
++ Denotes special stop
photo by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com
Luke Combs is preventing Luke Combs from breaking Luke Combs’ all-time Billboard chart record. Yes, that’s a mouthful, but here’s the deal.
In late October 2019, Luke’s 2017 debut album, This One’s for You, reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart for the 50th week, tying him with Shania Twain’s Come On Over for the all-time record of most weeks at No. 1.
Since November, a number of A-list artists have dropped new albums that debuted at No. 1, including Old Dominion (Nov. 9), Miranda Lambert (Nov. 16), Jason Aldean (Dec. 7), Blake Shelton (Dec. 28) and Luke Combs (Nov. 23), who released his sophomore album, What You See Is What You Get.
Luke’s new album has already spent five weeks at No. 1, including this week.
No. 2 on the chart this week? Luke’s This One’s for You. In essence, Luke prevented himself from breaking his tie with Shania this week.
Yes, this is all in good fun.
Sidebar: Burl Ives’ 1964 album, Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (reissued as a CD in 1995), reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart during the week ending Jan. 4.
photo by Curtis Hilbun, AFF-USA.com
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee junior forward Rennia Davis has been named to the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 25. The list was announced Wednesday night on ESPNU.
The 6-foot-2 native of Jacksonville, Fla., has advanced from the preseason list to the midseason cut after an impressive first 14 games of the 2019-20 campaign. This marks her first appearance on the midseason list for the Wooden Award, which is given to the most outstanding player in women’s college basketball.
Davis is averaging a career-best 17.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per contest to lead the Lady Vols, ranking among SEC leaders in both categories. In conference action, she has averaged 23.0 points and 9.0 rebounds, ranking second among all league players in scoring and fourth in rebounding.
The UT standout is shooting 47 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free throw line in all games and leads the team in three-pointers with 18 buckets from long range. She is third on the team in assists (34) and steals (11). In SEC play, she is hitting field goals at a 53-percent clip.
Davis, who has led a young Tennessee squad to an 11-3 record thus far, has scored in double figures in 12 straight games and in 13 of 14 contests this season. Including last year, she has hit 10 or more points in 26 of her past 27 starts. She has registered three 20-point games so far in 2019-20, moving into a tie for 15th on UT’s career list with 10 games of scoring 20 or more.
She also has tallied seven double-double efforts thus far and would move into the top 10 all-time for Lady Vol juniors with just two more. She currently ranks 11th in career double-doubles with 25 during her third year on Rocky Top and is third among active SEC players in that category.
Earlier this season, Davis reached the 1,000-point scoring plateau, becoming the 46th Lady Vol to reach that milestone. She has since climbed to No. 37 on the list with 1,103 points through the Kentucky game.
Davis and her teammates will be in Oxford, Miss., Thursday night, where they will face Ole Miss at 7 p.m. CT (8 ET) in a contest streamed on SECN+.
2020 John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 25
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina (6-5, Fr., F)
Chennedy Carter, Texas A&M (5-7, Jr., G)
Kaila Charles, Maryland (6-1, Sr., G.)
Lauren Cox, Baylor (6-4, Sr., F)
Elissa Cunane, NC State (6-5, So., C)
Crystal Dangerfield, UConn (5-5, Sr., G)
Rennia Davis, Tennessee (6-2, Jr., G/F)
Chelsea Dungee, Arkansas (5-11, Jr., G)
Dana Evans, Louisville (5-6, Jr., G)
Kiah Gillespie, Florida State (6-2, Jr., F)
Tyasha Harris, South Carolina (5-10, Sr., G)
Ruthy Hebard, Oregon (6-4, Sr., F)
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky (6-2, So., G)
Sabrina Ionescu, Oregon (5-11, Sr., G)
Juicy Landrum, Baylor (5-8, Sr., G)
Aari McDonald, Arizona (5-6, Jr., G)
Beatrice Mompremier, Miami (6-4, Sr., F)
Olivia Nelson-Ododa, UConn (6-5, So., F)
Michaela Onyenwere, UCLA (6-0, Jr., F)
Ali Patberg, Indiana (5-11, Jr., G)
Mikayla Pivec, Oregon State (5-10, Sr. G)
Satou Sabally, Oregon (6-4, Jr., F)
Destiny Slocum, Oregon State (5-7, Jr., G)
Megan Walker, UConn (6-1, Jr. F)
Christyn Williams, UConn (5-11, So., G)
UT Athletics
Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time tournament kicked off on Jan. 7 with contestants Ken Jennings, James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter vying for the GOAT title.
One of the games featured an “American Idols” category, with the clues given by Idol judges Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and host Ryan Seacrest. While the clues had nothing to do with American Idol, they were framed to have relevance for the special guest.
Here is the $800 clue given by Luke: “I’ve been inspired by this idol since I was 4 years old singing ‘See See Rider,’ the first song he performed on his Aloha From Hawaii TV special.”
Amazingly, Ken Jennings responded incorrectly with “Who is Don Ho?” before James Holzhauer responded correctly with “Who is Elvis [Presley]?”
In addition, Katy Perry’s $200 clue had a country-centric connection: “I will always love this country star, and in 2016 I got to present her with the Tex Ritter Film Award for her Coat of Many Colors TV movie.”
Ken Jennings responded correctly with “Who is Dolly Parton?” on his way to winning Game 1.
photo by NCD
The Country Music Association announced 16 recipients of the CMA Triple Play Award, an honor presented to songwriters who pen three No. 1 songs within a 12-month period. This year’s honorees include Kane Brown, Luke Combs, Ross Copperman, Justin Ebach, Jesse Frasure, Ashley Gorley, Michael Hardy, Shay Mooney, Jon Nite, Josh Osborne, Bobby Pinson, Matthew Ramsey, Jordan Reynolds, Thomas Rhett, Trevor Rosen and Dan Smyers.
Ashley Gorley co-penned nine No. 1 songs, which were recorded by nine different artists.
The 16 songwriters will be honored at an industry-only luncheon on Feb. 25, followed by a concert at Marathon Music Works that features Justin Ebach, Ashley Gorley, Jon Nite, Bobby Pinson and Jordan Reynolds. Tickets for the concert go on sale on Jan. 10, with $3 from each ticket benefiting the CMA Foundation.
CMA’s Triple Play Award is based on the Country Aircheck, Billboard Country Airplay and Billboard Hot Country Songs charts.
CMA Triple Play Awards recipients:
Kane Brown
“Lose It” recorded by Kane Brown
“Good As You” recorded by Kane Brown
“One Thing Right” recorded by Marshmello & Kane Brown
Luke Combs
“She Got The Best Of Me” recorded by Luke Combs
“Beautiful Crazy” recorded by Luke Combs
“Beer Never Broke My Heart” recorded by Luke Combs
Ross Copperman
“Woman, Amen” recorded by Dierks Bentley
“Get Along” recorded by Kenny Chesney
“Love Ain’t” recorded by Eli Young Band
Justin Ebach
“Singles You Up” recorded by Jordan Davis
“Good Girl” recorded by Dustin Lynch
“Here Tonight” recorded by Brett Young
Jesse Frasure
“One That Got Away” recorded by Michael Ray
“One Thing Right” recorded by Marshmello & Kane Brown
“Remember You Young” recorded by Thomas Rhett
Ashley Gorley
“What Makes You Country” recorded by Luke Bryan
“Eyes On You” recorded by Chase Rice
“Love Ain’t” recorded by Eli Young Band
“Rumor” recorded by Lee Brice
“Living” recorded by Dierks Bentley
“I Don’t Know About You” recorded by Chris Lane
“Good Vibes” recorded by Chris Janson
“Remember You Young” recorded by Thomas Rhett
“Ridin’ Roads” recorded by Dustin Lynch
Michael Hardy
“Up Down” recorded by Morgan Wallen featuring Florida Georgia Line
“Simple” recorded by Florida Georgia Line
“God’s Country” recorded by Blake Shelton
Shay Mooney
“Speechless” recorded by Dan + Shay
“All To Myself” recorded by Dan + Shay
“10,000 Hours” recorded by Dan + Shay with Justin Bieber
Jon Nite
“Break Up In The End” recorded by Cole Swindell
“Knockin’ Boots” recorded by Luke Bryan
“Living” recorded by Dierks Bentley
Josh Osborne
“Kiss Somebody” recorded by Morgan Evans
“Hotel Key” recorded by Old Dominion
“One That Got Away” recorded by Michael Ray
Bobby Pinson
“Burning Man” recorded by Dierks Bentley featuring Brothers Osborne
“Some Of It” recorded by Eric Church
“Rearview Town” recorded by Jason Aldean
Matthew Ramsey
“Hotel Key” recorded by Old Dominion
“One That Got Away” recorded by Michael Ray
“Make It Sweet” recorded by Old Dominion
Jordan Reynolds
“Speechless” recorded by Dan + Shay
“Tequila” recorded by Dan + Shay
“All To Myself” recorded by Dan + Shay
Thomas Rhett
“Sixteen” recorded by Thomas Rhett
“Look What God Gave Her” recorded by Thomas Rhett
“Remember You Young” recorded by Thomas Rhett
Trevor Rosen
“Hotel Key” recorded by Old Dominion
“One That Got Away” recorded by Michael Ray
“Make It Sweet” recorded by Old Dominion
Dan Smyers
“Speechless” recorded by Dan + Shay
“Tequila” recorded by Dan + Shay
“All To Myself” recorded by Dan + Shay
photos by AFF-USA.com
Miranda Lambert stopped by The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on Jan. 6 to perform her new song, “Tequila Does.”
Miranda co-penned the twangy, buzzworthy tune, which is featured on her seventh studio album, Wildcard, with Jon Randall and Jack Ingram, the same songwriting trio behind Miranda’s award-winning single, “Tin Man.”
“‘Tequila Does’ is country,” says Miranda. “And country music makes me happy. No matter how rock or edgy or scorned you can get, when you come back to a country song with a steel guitar, it makes my soul feel like it’s on fire.”
Watch Miranda’s performance below.
photo by Curtis Hilbun, AFF-USA.com
