For the second year in a row, teenage trio Temecula Road—comprised of Dawson Anderson, 18, and sisters Maddie Salute, 17, and Emma Salute, 18—is closing out the year with a nifty little mash-up of 2017’s most popular country songs.
We counted 17 of this year’s top songs in the mash-up, including:
“Road Less Traveled” – Lauren Alaina
“You Look Good” – Lady Antebellum
“Small Town Boy” – Dustin Lynch
“God, Your Mama, And Me” – Florida Georgia Line feat. Backstreet Boys
Blake Shelton is closing out 2017 the way he started it—with a No. 1 tune.
Blake’s “I’ll Name the Dogs” ascended to the top of both the Mediabase and Billboard Country Airplay charts this week, marking his 25th career No. 1 single. The traditional-sounding tune, which was penned by Matt Dragstrem, Ben Hayslip and Josh Thompson, is the lead single from Blake’s 11th studio album, Texoma Shore.
“What a great way to end 2017 with ‘I’ll Name the Dogs’ at No. 1,” said Blake. “As I look back over another incredible year, I know that the success has been because of the love and support from my fans. This song and several others on Texoma Shore are a little more throwback, traditional country. They take me back to a time when I was growing up in Oklahoma, when things were a little less complicated. Thank you to my fans for embracing my music both new and old—and for all you do for my family and me. Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you and your family.”
Scotty McCreery announced he will release his third studio album, Seasons Change, on March 16.
The 11-song offering will be Scotty’s first album since 2013’s See You Tonight.
“In the last five years, I have grown from a teenager to a man, moved out on my own, lost my grandfather, proposed to the love of my life and learned more about myself than I could have imagined,” says Scotty. “This all shows up in the 11 songs on Seasons Change, and I cannot wait to share this music with my fans after such a long time between releases.”
The 24-year-old, who recently proposed to girlfriend Gabi Dugal, co-wrote every track on the new album, which also features songwriters Frank Rogers, Monty Criswell, Jessi Alexander, David Lee Murphy and more. The album’s lead single, “Five More Minutes,” is currently No. 19 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart.
“For the first time, I wrote all the songs on my album,” Scotty says. “It’s kind of my journal of the last few years—the ups and the downs. Whenever I think things are not going well, I’ve learned to just wait it out because the seasons change. If you want to know who I am and where I’m at right now, listen to this album. I feel like I’m having a conversation with everyone that listens. It’s that personal.”
Autographed copies of Seasons Change that will be bundled with exclusive merchandise options will be available for pre-order on Dec. 20.
Thomas Rhett’s current single, “Marry Me,” is motoring its way up the charts. Currently, it is No. 6 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart as it looks to follow in the footsteps of his previous No. 1 single, “Unforgettable.”
However, unlike “Unforgettable,” TR’s new ditty is non-autobiographical. TR says the twisting tune, which he co-penned with Jesse Frasure, Ashley Gorley and Shane McAnally, is his “what if” song.
“‘Marry Me’ is one of my favorite tracks on the record,” says Thomas Rhett. “It’s my big ‘what if’ song. I wrote it from the perspective of if I had never told my wife how I felt about her all those years ago. I probably would have been sitting at her wedding watching her marry someone else. Heartbreaking thought—and thankfully I did tell her how I felt—but it makes for a great song concept that so many people can relate to.”
To bring his “heartbreaking thought” to life on the TV screen, TR enlisted the help of director TK McKamy, who shot the video for the twisting tale in Nashville and Birmingham, Ala.
“If I had never told Lauren how I felt about her, I probably would have been at her wedding watching her marry someone else,” Thomas Rhett said. “So, I wanted to capture that feeling of heartbreak in this video – and this really hits me in the gut.”
Following in the footsteps of Martina McBride, Jennifer Nettles and Kelsea Ballerini, Sara Evans will serve as the headliner for the 4th annual CMT Next Women of Country Tour.
The 15-date tour kicks off on Feb. 12 in New York City and caps on April 7 in Mobile, Ala.
RaeLynn and Kalie Shorr will serve as openers.
“I absolutely love that CMT champions female artists with the Next Women of Country Tour and am so honored to be headlining it in 2018,” said Sara. “I can’t wait to hit the road with RaeLynn and Kalie. They are both incredible singers, songwriters, and overall artists and we’re going to have a blast.”
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Junior Meme Jackson hit a career-high five three-pointers, and seniors Mercedes Russell and Jaime Nared each posted their fifth double-doubles of the season, propelling No. 7/7 Tennessee to a 90-61 win over Long Beach State (2-8) at Walter Pavilion on Sunday afternoon.
With the win, the Lady Vols improved to 11-0 for the first time since 2005-06. That season, UT won its first 18 contests before suffering a loss.
Russell finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds to log her 35th career double-double, tying her with Mary Ostrowski for fourth on UT’s all-time list. Nared, meanwhile, contributed 11 points and 11 rebounds. On the strength of a 5-for-9 day beyond the arc, Jackson tossed in 15 points, tying freshman Anastasia Hayes as UT’s high scorer. Freshman Evina Westbrook chipped in 14 to give Tennessee five players in double digits. She also added seven assists.
Jackson started the game with a hot hand, going 4-of-5 from behind the arc to help propel Tennessee to a 27-16 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Vols connected on six of 11 three-point attempts in the period, with Westbrook and freshman Rennia Davis adding to the long-range bonanza. Davis also had six rebounds in the opening 10 minutes and finished with 10 for the game.
UT continued to build on its lead in the second quarter, starting the period with a 12-3 run and leading by as many as 23 points before finishing the half with a 49-32 lead. Tennessee shot a sizzling 57 percent from the three-point line in the first half, knocking down eight of 14 attempted treys. They also controlled the boards, holding a 33-15 advantage at the intermission, with 12 of those caroms coming on the offensive glass.
Jackson set the tone for the third stanza, opening the quarter by knocking down her fifth three of the afternoon. While Tennessee cooled from the three-point line after that, the Lady Vols stiffened their defense, forcing six Long Beach State turnovers. They limited the 49ers to only 12 points during the period on 33.3 percent shooting.
With the game well in hand, Head Coach Holly Warlick was able to get her reserves some extended minutes. Hayes had seven of her 15 points in the final 10 minutes. Kortney Dunbar, meanwhile, drained a pair of threes, helping bring Tennessee’s final long-range tally to 12-of-29 on the day.
Up Next: Tennessee will travel to Northern California, where it will face No. 18/17 Stanford Thursday in a 6 p.m. PT (9 ET) contest at Maples Pavilion. In a game slated to be carried by the Pac-12 Networks, the Lady Vols will try to end a five-game road losing skid in the series vs. the Cardinal.
Cleaning The Glass: Tennessee out-rebounded Long Beach, 62-30, winning the battle of the boards for the 11th time this season. The Lady Vols pulled down a season-best 23 offensive boards and notched their second-highest rebounding margin of the season behind 33 vs. Troy to improve their season average to +14.5.
High Scoring Lady Vols: The Lady Vols now have scored 90 or more points on four occasions this season, including three of their last four games. They increased their season offensive output to 88.8 per contest and boosted their average scoring margin to +27.7.
Easy Buckets: Tennessee likes to push tempo, and the Lady Vols were able to get easy buckets in the transition game while eliminating that threat from Long Beach State. A look at the stat sheet showed that UT enjoyed a one-sided 18-0 advantage in fast break points on Sunday.
Visitors On Hand: Tennessee had a nice representation of orange-clad fans on hand at Walter Pyramid on Sunday. At least three former Lady Vols were present, including Chamique Holdsclaw, Loree Moore and Jordan Reynolds.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — After a hard-fought battle, the 20th-ranked Tennessee men’s basketball team came up short against No. 7 North Carolina, 78-73, before a sold-out crowd of 21,678 at Thompson-Boling Arena Sunday.
The Volunteers led for 37:10 of the contest, but a late 11-3 scoring run pushed the defending national champion Tar Heels to the win.
After a turnover with 1:25 left, Schofield hustled to force a crucial turnover on the inbounds play by UNC. Tennessee took possession, and Williams got the ball near the free-throw line and drove to the paint for a basket with 1:09 left to give UT a 70-67 lead.
North Carolina responded by getting to the foul line, converting both free throws and then forcing a UT turnover on the ensuing inbounds attempt. Kenny Williams dropped a massive 3-pointer for the Tar Heels with 32.7 seconds left to give UNC a 72-70 advantage.
The Vols struggled to find a basket in the second half, shooting just 30 percent (11-36) from the floor. Jordan Bowden hit a three to with six seconds remaining to make it a one-possession game, but North Carolina drained a pair of free throws in the final moments to put the game away.
Both teams shot the lights out to begin the game. At the under-12 media timeout (10:16), North Carolina was shooting 60 percent (9-15) from the field, while Tennessee shot 56 percent (9-16) to make it a 22-21 game in favor of UT. Out of the break, the Volunteers used a 12-4 run behind a trio of baskets by Williams to extend their lead.
The Vols had active hands on defense in the opening half, nabbing six steals and forcing 12 turnovers that led to 15 points. Tennessee went into halftime with a 38-32 lead.
Daniel paced UT in the first 20 minutes, coming off the bench to post 11 points on 3-of-4 shooting in 11 minutes of action. Bone also scored in the double-digits, entering the break with 10 points.
Sharing the Ball: Tennessee has had 10 or more assists in each game this season, and they recorded 11 tonight.
Crashing the Boards: The 18 offensive rebounds by the Vols are the most allowed by UNC this season.
Great Defense: The Vols forced 16 North Carolina turnovers and scored 19 points off those miscues.
Hot First Half: Tennessee has scored 30 or more points in the first half of all games this season and scored 38 in the first half today.
Up Next: Tennessee will stay home to welcome Furman to Thompson-Boling Arena Wednesday, Dec. 20, at 9 p.m. ET (SEC Network).
Seasons Change Track Listing & Songwriters
