Kane’s fans came through on their end with more than 1.2 million views, so Kane kept his word and released the new tune on July 12.
“Like a Rodeo” is a standalone track, as it isn’t featured on Kane’s 2018 album, Experiment, but his upcoming single, “Homesick,” which is on the album, will be released to country radio on Aug. 5.
Chris Young has found success in the past by collaborating with other artists, including No. 1 hits, “Think of You,” featuring Cassadee Pope, and “Sober Saturday Night,” featuring Vince Gill.
Chris has gone back to the well once more by teaming with Lauren Alaina on “Town Ain’t Big Enough,” which will be featured on his upcoming eighth studio album.
The breakup anthem, which was penned by Chris, Cary Barlowe, Corey Crowder and Shay Mooney (who also contributes background vocals on the track), features the soaring chorus: “This town ain’t big enough, Your friends and mine run into each other all the time, Seems like there ain’t no place to run, This town ain’t big enough for both of us.”
Chris’ current single, “Raised on Country,” is No. 7 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart this week.
Almost a year after releasing his previous single, Kenny Chesney returned to country radio on July 12 with a new single, “Tip of My Tongue.”
Co-penned by Kenny, Ross Copperman and Ed Sheeran, “Tip of My Tongue” is the first taste of Kenny’s upcoming 18th studio album, which will be released via Blue Chair/Warner Music Nashville.
“It’s funny how a figure of speech can lead you to all kinds of places,” says Kenny. “You start talking, and words fall out, and anything can happen. When you go in and write on any given day, the chemistry is what it is. When the idea fell out, we all just laughed and went, ‘Well, what can we do with that?’ I’ve written so much with Ross [Copperman], that’s always easy. He brought Ed [Sheeran] in, and he is such a great writer . . . The way creativity works in creative people is so different, but it’s always exciting. As a co-write with a new writer, it’s one of the most fun sessions I’ve done in a long time. I get why people love working with him.”
No released date has been announced for the new album, which will be helmed by longtime producer Buddy Cannon.
Laurel Wright, 23, and Wesley Lunsford, 32, of The Young Fables have been creating modern country music rooted in tradition since forming their duo in 2015. Backed by Laurel’s sterling lead vocals, Wesley’s virtuosic guitar chops—and a penchant for collaborative songwriting—The Young Fables have built a grassroots following in the country/Americana genre, bolstered by national radio exposure from their regular appearances on The Ty Bentli Show.
The duo was firing on all cylinders in 2017 as they began shooting a documentary that endeavored to capture a song, “Daddy’s Girl,” from the first writing session to its studio recording and live performance. However, as Laurel and Wesley were gearing up to release their sophomore album, Old Songs, tragedy struck in January 2018 when Laurel’s younger sister, Lindy, 19, died in a car accident. Eight months later, after the duo recorded an appearance on the premiere episode of USA’s Real Country, tragedy struck again when Laurel’s father, Ron, died unexpectedly from a heart attack. Within a period of eight months, Laurel’s family was cut in half.
What was supposed to be an experiment in capturing the life of a song, the new documentary, TheFable of a Song, turned out to be a chronicle of the last moments that Laurel had with her family. In a year that could have easily broken the duo, Laurel and Wesley were able to lean on each other for support in the face of depression. The new documentary combs through 100 hours of footage of performances and priceless interviews with her family as Laurel garnered the strength to start performing “Daddy’s Girl” again.
“The Fable of a Song was already important to me before any of the tragedies took place,” says Laurel. “Now, after all that’s happened, it’s even more significant to me. The film has a compelling story behind it and seems to be fueling an opportunity to impact a large audience. That’s powerful because if my story can inspire just one person, then that is good enough for me. Songwriting is a special kind of art—it’s intimate and it’s personal. The story behind a song has the ability to change a person forever, it sure has for me.”
“The Fable of a Song is a project born from fate,” adds Wesley. “How one random song written on one mundane day can become a mouthpiece in the lives of the writers and the people that surround them is a testament to the human experience.”
The Fable of a Song, which is expected to be released this winter, was helmed by award-winning director Andy Strohl and producer Patryk Larney. The original score was composed by Kevin Hastings. Stay up to date regarding the film’s release.
Watch an exclusive premiere of the documentary’s new trailer below.
Luke Combs is extending his headlining Beer Never Broke My Heart Tour with five new dates this fall and winter. New dates on the tour include stops in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Antonio, Louisville and Nashville.
Special guests throughout the tour include Morgan Wallen, The Cadillac Three, Flatland Calvary and Jameson Rodgers. For the new dates, ticket pre-sale begins on July 16 at 10 a.m. local time, with general on-sale beginning on July 19 at 10 a.m. local time.
Luke will be inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on July 16.
Beer Never Broke My Heart Tour (new dates in bold)
*with Cody Johnson and Ray Fulcher
†with The Cadillac Three and Jameson Rodgers
‡with Morgan Wallen and Jameson Rodgers
§with Flatland Calvary and Jameson Rodgers
Dolly Parton will return to TV screens this winter in a new Hallmark movie, Christmas at Dollywood.
The upcoming flick, which stars Danica McKellar (The Wonder Years), will begin filming in Tennessee in August, according to Entertainment Tonight. Dolly will make a special appearance in the film, which is slated to be released in December as part of Hallmark’s 10th Countdown to Christmas campaign.
The movie stars Danica as Rachel, a single mom and Broadway producer who returns to her hometown roots—after suffering financial difficulty—to co-helm a production at Dollywood with its entertainment director, Luke. It’s likely the duo will clash before discovering love.
“As the pair meets in the middle to please the boss, little do Rachel and Luke realize love lurks in all the unexpected places because this isn’t the Great White Way. Or Hollywood. This is Dollywood!” reads the official logline.
After releasing his six-song EP, Patient, in October 2018, Levi Hummon, 28, roared into 2019 with a spot on Hunter Hayes’ Closer to You Tour and a new single, “Night Lights,” which was featured on Spotify’s Hot Country Playlist.
Now, the Nashville native—and son of heavyweight songwriter Marcus Hummon (“Cowboy Take Me Away,” “Bless the Broken Road”)—is keeping his creative juices flowing with the release of a new single, “Drop of Us,” which he co-penned with Eric Arjes and Jimmy Robbins.
“I knew the second we started playing ‘Drop of Us’ live that it was a special song,” says Levi to NCD. “You could feel the energy change in the room and watch fans singalong by the third chorus. I can’t wait for this song to be out in the world—and take it on the road this summer and fall.”
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Senior linebacker Daniel Bituli, redshirt junior quarterback Jarrett Guarantano and redshirt senior outside linebacker Darrell Taylor will join Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt as the Vols’ representatives at SEC Media Days this Tuesday in Birmingham, Ala.
Tennessee will make the media rounds in the afternoon at the Wynfrey Hotel. ESPN and the SEC Network will have live coverage of the four-day event, which begins on Monday, while Tennessee football’s official social media accounts (@Vol_Football on twitter and instagram) will provide updates during Tennessee’s media session.
Tennessee’s trio of players will be making their first appearance at SEC Media Days. However, they are all well-known to Vol fans and the SEC as returning starters.
Bituli led Tennessee in tackles (79) for the second straight season from his inside linebacker position in 2018. A native of the Congo, he also totaled 6.5 tackles for loss last fall. For his career, he has notched 178 total stops, 9.5 TFLs and one interception over 33 games. Bituli had 23 tackles in the 2017 season-opener – the most tackles by a Power 5 player in a single-game that season.
Guarantano started all 12 games at quarterback in 2018, passing for 1,907 yards and 12 touchdowns with just three interceptions. The Lodi, N.J., native broke the school record for consecutive passes without an interception (166). He was named SEC Player of the Week and National Player of the Week by several organizations following his 328-yard, two-touchdown performance in UT’s 30-24 upset at No. 21 Auburn. Guarantano was recently called an “under-the-radar” player for 2019 by ESPN after he was one of the nation’s top signal-callers in the face of a pass rush in 2018. He completed 57 percent of his passes at nine yards per attempt when under pressure according to ESPN.
Taylor’s eight sacks in 2018 are the most of any returning player in the SEC. The Waverly, Va., native added 11.0 tackles for loss and 36 total stops as an outside linebacker. Taylor was one of only two Power 5 players to notch two three-sack games in 2018. He had a three-sack game at No. 2 Georgia, adding a pair of forced fumbles against the Bulldogs. Additionally, Taylor notched four sacks in the 24-7 upset win over No. 11 Kentucky, becoming just the third Vol with four sacks in a game all-time. He was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week and won several national defensive awards following his performance against the Wildcats.
The Tennessee Volunteer football team kicks off year two of the Jeremy Pruitt era at 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 31 when Georgia State comes to Neyland Stadium. For more information on tickets for the 2019 season, including the Vol Pass, visit AllVols.com.
With that kind of earning power, don’t let your parents talk you out of pursuing your country music dreams—or any kind of music for that matter. Taylor Swift topped the list with $185 million, while Kanye West (#3, $150 million), Ed Sheeran (#5, $110 million) and The Eagles (#8, $100 million) rounded out the Top 10.
Luke, the top earner in the country genre, raked in the majority of his income via his headlining What Makes You Country Tour—which routinely grossed seven figures nighty—as well as his role as a judge on American Idol and his endorsement deal with Chevy.
ZBB netted most of its $38.5 million from its touring schedule, grossing roughly $1 million per stop.
Over the course of his 16-year career, Dierks Bentley has accumulated enough hardware to fill more than a few trophy cases, including 18 No. 1 singles, eight No. 1 albums, two platinum albums, four platinum singles, five gold albums, nine gold singles, three CMA Awards, five ACM Awards and more.
The 43-year-old Arizona native is showing no signs of slowing down, either. Dierks’ current single, “Living,” cracked the Top 20 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart this week as it continues its ascent. Dierks has also accrued a cache of meaningful gifts from fans—and his three kids are always giving daddy presents that “bring him joy.”
As the awards, accolades and gifts continue to funnel in, Dierks told Kix Brooks of American Country Countdown that he had to figure out a way to tidy up his house that was “bursting at the seams.”
photo by Curtis Hilbun, AFF-USA.com
“You know who I’ve become a big fan of—I hate to even admit this because a lot of guys out there are probably gonna give me some grief—but there’s this Japanese [organizing consultant and author] Marie Kondo,” says Dierks. “She’s all about [getting rid] of clutter and tidying up. I’ve gathered so much stuff. Every night, I get slipped . . . like this bracelet I’m wearing right now in honor of the Granite Mountain Hot Shots. I get coins from military guys. I get paintings that a nine-year-old painted of my dog that passed away. I gather so much stuff, you know? And, it all comes back into my house. It’s like a ship that is just bursting at the seams.”
One of Marie Kondo’s popular tenets is to throw out or donate items that don’t “spark joy.” It’s a tenet that Dierks has adopted.
“So you’ve gotta go through things, and just figure out what’s bringing you joy, what’s sparking joy, and what’s not,” says Dierks. “For me, you know, seeing a gold record with my name on it, it doesn’t spark the same joy as it did for me as when I first got one, and I’d rather see, honestly, like a drawing that my five-year-old made. That has more value to me right now. It has nothing to do with not being grateful. It’s just recognizing what brings you joy, and it’s just the little interactions with people. This bracelet that someone gave me, a fan gave me, that means more to me than a plaque would mean to me.”
![Giddy-Up: Kane Brown Releases New Song, “Like a Rodeo” [Listen]](https://cdn.socast.io/6616/sites/602/2019/07/12101535/Kane-Brown-TA.jpg#aqua_resizer_image_not_local)
![Chris Young & Lauren Alaina Team Up for Breakup Anthem, “Town Ain’t Big Enough” [Listen]](https://cdn.socast.io/6616/sites/602/2019/07/12091739/Lauren-Alaina-Chris-Young.jpg#aqua_resizer_image_not_local)
![Kenny Chesney Releases Savory New Single, “Tip of My Tongue” [Listen]](https://cdn.socast.io/6616/sites/602/2019/07/12065332/Kenny-Chesney-AFF.jpg#aqua_resizer_image_not_local)
![Levi Hummon Drops Energetic New Single, “Drop Of Us” [Exclusive Premiere: Listen]](https://cdn.socast.io/6616/sites/602/2019/07/11104118/Levi-Hummon-CH.jpg#aqua_resizer_image_not_local)
