Hey Reba, Dolly Parton Says “We Certainly Should Sing Something Together”

Hey Reba, Dolly Parton Says “We Certainly Should Sing Something Together”

Posted on July 5, 2018

Queens of country music Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire are two of the most decorated female country artist of all time, winning a combined 10 Grammy Awards, 16 CMA Awards and 19 ACM Awards.

It’s only natural that we want to see the Country Music Hall of Fame members collaborate, à la George Strait and Alan Jackson’s 2000 duet, “Murder on Music Row.”

While Dolly and Reba shared the small screen together in 2005 when Dolly guest starred on Reba’s self-titled sitcom on the WB, their collaborations have been few and far between, which is remarkable considering the longevity of both of their careers.

Hopefully, that may change in the future.

In a sit-down interview with Elaina Smith, co-host of Nash Nights Live and host of Women Want to Talk About Women podcast, Dolly revealed that she could envision herself singing a duet with Reba.

“Yes!” said Dolly to Elaina. “Reba and I have often talked about working together or doing a TV show together. We certainly—through the years—should have done something together, [a TV show] or just to do a movie or something, but we certainly should sing something together.”

OK, Reba, the ball is in your court. Let’s make this happen.

photo by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com

Watch Lauren Alaina Perform Her No. 1 Song, “Road Less Traveled,” Backed by All-Female Drumline & National Symphony Orchestra

Watch Lauren Alaina Perform Her No. 1 Song, “Road Less Traveled,” Backed by All-Female Drumline & National Symphony Orchestra

Posted on July 5, 2018

Lauren Alaina celebrated Independence Day in Washington, D.C., by performing her No. 1 hit, “Road Less Traveled,” as part of the PBS television special, A Capitol Fourth.

Backed by the National Symphony Orchestra and an all-female drumline on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, Lauren belted out her anthemic tune, which she co-penned with Jesse Frasure and Meghan Trainor. “Road Less Traveled” became Lauren’s first No. 1 single in 2017.

In addition to Lauren’s performance, a number of artists took the stage during the 38th annual broadcast of A Capitol Fourth, including Jimmy Buffett, The Beach Boys, Luke Combs, CeCe Winans, Pentatonix and more.

Watch Lauren’s performance of “Road Less Traveled” below.

photo by Jason Simanek

Country Stars Share Their Fourth of July Sentiments on Social Media, Including Reba, Dolly, Zac Brown, Jake Owen & More

Country Stars Share Their Fourth of July Sentiments on Social Media, Including Reba, Dolly, Zac Brown, Jake Owen & More

Posted on July 4, 2018

As we celebrate the Fourth of July with family and friends, 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.

Many country stars shared their Fourth of July sentiments on social media today, including Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, Zac Brown, Jake Owen, Vince Gill and many more.

photo by Curtis Hilbun, AFF-USA.com

Eric Church’s Brother, Brandon Church, Has Died

Eric Church’s Brother, Brandon Church, Has Died

Posted on July 3, 2018

Our thoughts and prayers are going out to Eric Church and his family as they mourn the loss of Eric’s brother, Brandon Church, who passed on June 29.

The announcement was made via Eric’s fan club page: “It is with great sadness to confirm that Eric’s brother, Brandon, passed away on Friday evening. In lieu of flowers we are encouraging everyone to donate to a Scholarship Memorial Fund created on Brandon’s behalf. You can leave a message that will go via email directly to [parents] Ken and Rita.”

The website for the Scholarship Memorial Fund notes that Brandon was a “beloved son, brother, father and friend.”

The Memorial Fund has already raised more than $15,000.

photo by Jason Simanek

Circle of Influence: Robert Earl Keen

Circle of Influence: Robert Earl Keen

Posted on July 3, 2018

Country music maverick Robert Earl Keen is a Lone Star State legend whose circle of influence roams far and wide, from the friendly confines of Texas to parts unknown.

Lyle Lovett
In the late 1970s, neighbors Robert Earl and Lyle Lovett became friends in College Station at The University of Texas A&M, where they co-penned “The Front Porch Song,” which was included on both of their debut albums. Robert Earl and Lyle collaborated again to duet on “T for Texas” on REK’s 2015 bluegrass album, Happy Prisoner. Lyle and Robert will join forces for a string of tour dates beginning in October.

Cream
Although Robert Earl grew up in Houston during the Beatlemania frenzy of the 1960s, his favorite band was the British rock outfit Cream. When he was 12 years old, he snuck into a Cream concert and managed to get backstage before being kicked out.

photo by AFF-USA.com

Willie Nelson
When Robert Earl was 18 years old, his car was destroyed by fire at Willie Nelson’s second annual Fourth of July Picnic in 1974. Twenty-one years later, The Highway Men—Willie, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson—recorded Robert Earl’s “The Road Goes on Forever,” which became the title track to their third and final album.

photo courtesy of JT Public Relations

Dean Dillon
Robert Earl and friend Dean Dillon, who has co-written more than 50 songs for George Strait, co-penned “West Texas Town,” which appeared on George’s 2008 album, Troubadour.

Cody Canada
In 2008, more than 20 artists—including Reckless Kelly, Randy Rogers, Wade Bowen, Chris Knight and Cody Canada of Cross Canadian Ragweed/The Departed—gathered at MusicFest in Steamboat, Colo., to celebrate Robert Earl’s vast musical catalog by recording Undone: A MusicFest Tribute to Robert Earl Keen. Cody, who cites Robert Earl as a seminal musical influence, sang REK’s “Shades of Gray” during the live recording.

Margo Timmins
Margo Timmins, lead singer of Cowboy Junkies, lent her vocals to “Then Came Lo Mein,” a song featured on Robert Earl’s 1997 major-label debut, Picnic. Incidentally, a picture of Robert Earl’s burning car from Willie Nelson’s Fourth of July Picnic is featured on the cover of the album.

Lloyd Maines
Lloyd Maines, an accomplished producer, guitarist, and pedal steel icon, has produced four REK albums: No. 2 Live Dinner, The Rose Hotel, Ready for Confetti and Happy Prisoner. On the latter, Lloyd recruited his daughter, Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks, to duet with Robert Earl on “Wayfaring Stranger.”

Watch Luke Bryan Lead a Singalong of “Kick the Dust Up” for Kids at Levine Children’s Hospital

Watch Luke Bryan Lead a Singalong of “Kick the Dust Up” for Kids at Levine Children’s Hospital

Posted on July 2, 2018

Before Luke Bryan performed at the PNC Music Pavilion in Charlotte, N.C., on June 30, he stopped by Seacrest Studios in the Levine Children’s Hospital to lead a singalong of his hit song, “Kick the Dust Up.”

Seacrest Studios, which is an in-house multimedia broadcast center made possible by the Ryan Seacrest Foundation, gives patients at the hospital the ability to explore the creative realms of radio, television and new media.

Levine Chilren’s Hospital shared a clip of Luke’s performance on its Facebook page and thanked Luke for taking the time to visit and perform for the kids.

Luke will be back on the road on July 6 to perform at Boston’s Fenway Park as part of his What Makes You Country Tour.

Check out the clip below of Luke’s performance at Levine Children’s Hospital.

photo by Jason Simanek

Rolling Stone’s List of “The 100 Greatest Songs of the Century—So Far” Only Includes Two Country Songs

Rolling Stone’s List of “The 100 Greatest Songs of the Century—So Far” Only Includes Two Country Songs

Posted on July 2, 2018

Rolling Stone reached out to a bevy of artists, producers, critics and industry experts to compile a list of the “100 Greatest Songs of the Century—So Far.”

Of the 100 songs included from the last 18 years, only two country songs made the cut: Miranda Lambert’s “The House That Built Me” (#75) and Eric Church’s “Springsteen” (#68).

Obviously, a list like this is totally subjective, but take into consideration this nugget: in 2014, Rolling Stone compiled a list of the “100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time.” How many of those songs were from the year 2000 and beyond? I’m glad you asked.

  • #100—Brad Paisley: “Welcome to the Future” (2009)
  • #97—Gretchen Wilson: “Redneck Woman” (2004)
  • #84—Neko Case: “People Got a Lotta Nerve” (2009)
  • #81—Gary Allan: “Songs About Rain” (2003)
  • #76—Jamey Johnson: “In Color” (2008)
  • #70—Lee Ann Womack: “I Hope You Dance” (2000)
  • #57—Eric Church: “Springsteen” (2011)
  • #56—Carrie Underwood: “Before He Cheats” (2006)
  • #54—Brad Paisley: “Alcohol” (2005)
  • #39—Kacey Musgraves: “Follow Your Arrow” (2013)
  • #24—Taylor Swift: “Mean” (2010)

Interestingly enough, Miranda’s “The House That Built Me” (2009) didn’t make the cut for one of the “100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time” in 2014, but it did make the cut for the “100 Greatest Songs of the Century—So Far” in 2018.

Also excluded from the 2018 list are four songs that ranked ahead of Eric’s “Springsteen” on the 2014 list, including Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats,” Brad Paisley’s “Alcohol,” Kacey Musgraves’ “Follow Your Arrow” and Taylor Swift’s “Mean.”

What does it all mean? Nothing, really. It’s just a list. It’s also four years later, with an evolving group of voters.

If you’re interested, here’s the Top 10 of the “100 Greatest Songs of the Century—So Far.”

  • #10—The Strokes: “Last Night”
  • #9—Lorde: “Royals”
  • #8—Adele: “Rolling in the Deep”
  • #7—Kanye West: “Runaway”
  • #6—Yeah Yeah Yeah: “Maps”
  • #5—Jay-Z: “99 Problems”
  • #4—OutKast: “Hey Ya!”
  • #3—The White Stripes: “Seven Nation Army”
  • #2—M.I.A.: “Paper Planes”
  • #1—Beyonce & Jay-Z: “Crazy in Love”

photo by JPA/AFF-USA.com

Jimmy’s blog: DePalmer `honored’ at surprise 85th birthday party

Jimmy’s blog: DePalmer `honored’ at surprise 85th birthday party

Posted on July 2, 2018

By Jimmy Hyams

They came from California and Colorado, from Chicago  and Cincinnati, from Dallas and Denver, from Raleigh and Nashville and Atlanta and Hilton Head to honor a man that had a huge impact on their lives.

Mike DePalmer celebrated his 85th birthday Saturday, but he didn’t celebrate alone.

More than 100 poured into Cherokee Country Club to show their respect and admiration for the 14-year former Tennessee men’s tennis coach who resurrected a program with his recruiting, resourcefulness and resolve.

Attending the surprise party were his wife, two sons, his daughter, his in-laws, his grandkids, his friends, his pupils, and tennis pros. They shared stories that were humorous and heart warming, revealing and risqué.

What you learned was that DePalmer could teach a forehand and teach with a firm hand.

He took in wayward players who got into trouble at Tennessee.

He taught juniors without charging.

He conducted clinics for countless youngsters from Portland to Asheville.

And he did so with a vast vocabulary.

Jack Fertig, a former Tennessee men’s assistant basketball coach who played tennis with DePalmer in the 1980s, said DePalmer spoke two languages: English and Profanity.

DePalmer could get his point across with a sarcastic remark, like when he told Vol Eric Vogues, who fell behind during a match at No. 6 singles: “I’ve never lost to a guy named Miles.’’

DePalmer reached out to Vogues, a Chattanoogan who was about 5-foot-6, 140 pounds with no backhand but a good record. DePalmer invited Vogues to walk on at Tennessee, where he cracked the lineup.

Chris Woodruff, UT men’s tennis coach and the only Vol to win an NCAA singles title, thanked DePalmer for the early morning workouts when Woodruff was in middle school.

Ben Testerman, the most decorated junior tennis player in Knoxville history, said DePalmer was like a father figure. As a junior, Testerman and his dad argued about where Testerman would attend college. Instead, Testerman turned pro and regretted it.

But before he did, Testerman traveled with DePalmer to the prestigious junior tournament in Kalamazoo, Mich. Sharing a room and thinking DePalmer was asleep, Testerman decided to sneak out.

When Testerman’s foot hit the floor, DePalmer asked: “Where you going?’’

Back to bed, obviously.

Howard Blum, former owner of Cedar Bluff Racquet Club, said once you made friends with DePalmer, you were always his friend.

Two of DePalmer’s grandkids were at the party. Caitlyn Williams, a top-rated junior whose career was curtailed by injury, is now teaching at Cedar Bluff Racquet Club.

Rhyne Williams, a UT All-American who turned pro after his sophomore year, was plagued by back injuries and after multiple surgeries has retired. He is a part-time teacher in Tampa when he’s not catching 150-pound tarpon or 250-pound bull sharks.

Several speakers said DePalmer didn’t get nearly enough credit for being on the front end of the DePalmer-Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Fla., which has produced hundreds of pros since the 1970s.  DePalmer left the academy to become UT’s coach in 1980.

In 14 years, DePalmer won two SEC titles, had two top three national finishes and guided the Vols to a No. 1 ranking and 34-0 record in 1990 before losing to UCLA in the finals. Two players in the 1990 lineup – John Gibson and Tim Jessup – attended the birthday bash.

DePalmer collected the most wins by a UT tennis coach (299-119) and produced 21 All-Americans. He was the 1990 national coach of the year.

In 1991, the USTA named the DePalmers the No. 1 tennis family in America.

Mike DePalmer is in the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame, the ITA Hall of Fame, the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame, and the Tennessee Vols tennis Hall of Fame.

In 1986, when I was working at the Knoxville News-Sentinel, the sports editor decided to assign a sportswriter to each UT “Olympic’’ sport.

No one wanted tennis because DePalmer had the reputation of being a rough, gruff complainer who couldn’t be pleased.

Since I played tennis and had a love for the game, I took the beat.

It turned out to be one of the best professional decisions of my life. I covered a great program with great athletes and a great coach. I traveled to Indian Wells, Calif., to cover the NCAA finals. I watched Woodruff win his NCAA singles title in Athens, Ga.

I’ve cherished my relationship and friendship with Coach D and his tennis family and the UT tennis players and the tennis community. I’m not sure things would have been the same had I not accepted the challenge of covering that ornery Italian.

I count myself among the fortunate who celebrated with Mike DePalmer his 85th.

And I can’t wait for No. 90.

Sponsored by Big Kahuna Wings: The wings that changed it all

Dan + Shay Double Up With No. 1 Self-Titled Album & No. 1 Single, “Tequila”

Dan + Shay Double Up With No. 1 Self-Titled Album & No. 1 Single, “Tequila”

Posted on July 2, 2018

Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney of duo Dan + Shay doubled up with dual No. 1s this week.

The duo’s self-titled album debuted at No.1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart with more than 200,000 equivalent units sold. In addition, the album’s lead single, “Tequila,” topped both the Billboard Country Airplay chart and the Mediabase chart.

“We felt this was the perfect project to make a self-titled record,” said Shay. “This album represents who we are and where we’re going. We’re so proud of every song and can’t wait to see where it takes us. It takes an army to have a successful release. I’m so thankful to our team for letting us make the album we wanted, and I’m thankful to my partner in crime, Dan Smyers, for making the record we needed. The biggest thank you goes to our fans—we couldn’t make music with no one to listen to it. We love you all and we hope you love this record as much as we do.”

“Years and years of work went into the making of Dan + Shay, and to see such a gigantic fan response to the release has been our most fulfilling career experience to date,” added Dan. “It’s unbelievable that ‘Tequila’ has simultaneously provided us yet another milestone. We’re so thankful for the support country radio has shown us since the beginning and, still to this day, there is no better feeling than seeing one of our songs sitting at No. 1 on the chart. Luckily, with a song title like ‘Tequila,’ the celebratory drink of choice has chosen itself!”

“Tequila” is the duo’s fourth No. 1 single, following previous chart-toppers “Nothin’ Like You,” “From the Ground Up” and “How Not To.”

photo by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com

Lauren Alaina Shares Update on Stepfather’s Battle With Cancer: “He Is Fighting Harder Than I Thought Was Possible”

Lauren Alaina Shares Update on Stepfather’s Battle With Cancer: “He Is Fighting Harder Than I Thought Was Possible”

Posted on July 2, 2018

ACM New Female Vocalist of the Year Lauren Alaina revealed that her stepfather, Sam Ramker, has been battling cancer since March.

In a post on Instagram, Lauren noted that Sam “is fighting harder than I thought was possible. He is the strongest person I know. Cancer doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t care if you’re two or 80 years old. It doesn’t care if you’re a perfectly healthy 47 year old step-father, husband, and grandfather who eats healthily and runs 6 miles a day. It can happen to anyone. To the families and people who have been affected by this horrible disease or any disease, my family has felt the pain you’ve felt for the last four months. We are praying for you. We love you, and we are so thankful for all of the love coming our way.”

According to Sam’s GoFundMe page, which has raised more than $11,000, “he was diagnosed with Stage 4 melanoma on March 19. The cancer was first found on his liver on March 7, which led to more testing. He then had a MRI of the liver to confirm findings, which led to a biopsy. After discovering it was definitely melanoma, he went for a MRI of the brain on Easter Sunday. MRI of brain was normal. The next day he went for a PET scan for staging of the cancer. The PET scan showed cancer was in the liver, lungs, pelvis, sciatica, lumbar spine and thoracic spine. Due to the cancer it has caused four fractures in his pelvis and multiple fractures to the spine. He started immunotherapy on April 5, which created many side effects in the beginning. He ended up spending three weeks in the hospital. In this time, Sam lost over 30 pounds and while in the hospital he had another CT scan which they found a new tumor on his heart on the left side around the valve entering your heart. They wanted to do surgery but after talking it over with multiple doctors, it was decided it was too risky at this time to remove because that would cause treatment to be delayed for at least six weeks. They decided to go with plan B, which included Sam taking radiation. His treatments are at the Vanderbilt University in Nashville Tennessee, which is quite a distance away from their home.”

Lauren also noted that the photo in her Instagram post was selected because of how happy the ACM win made her stepfather.

I have been seeing a lot of you posting and asking about what is going on with my step-dad and how you can help. I am not one to ask for anything, but you guys have consistently been reaching out. His story and what our family has been dealing with is written on his go fund me page. The link is in my bio. He is fighting harder than I thought was possible. He is the strongest person I know. Cancer doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t care if you’re two or 80 years old. It doesn’t care if you’re a perfectly healthy 47 year old step-father, husband, and grandfather who eats healthily and runs 6 miles a day. It can happen to anyone. To the families and people who have been affected by this horrible disease or any disease, my family has felt the pain you’ve felt for the last four months. We are praying for you. We love you, and we are so thankful for all of the love coming our way. Ps: I chose this picture because of how happy that trophy made him. We found out I won New Female Vocalist of the Year at the @acmawards the same week we found out he has cancer. We made sure he and my mom were there for the award show. That trophy is my very favorite thing I’ve ever gotten. It brought so much happiness in a week of sadness. That’s how God works.

A post shared by Lauren Alaina (@laurenalaina) on

photo by Arroyo-O\’Connor/AFF-USA.com

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