Did you catch Dan + Shay‘s recent appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon?
The duo performed their new holiday song “Officially Christmas.”
Check it out here…
Photo Courtesy of Dan + Shay
Chris Stapleton & H.E.R. Perform at the National Christmas Tree Lighting
Did you catch Chris Stapleton and H.E.R. spreading some holiday joy at the National Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony last week?
Their performance of “This Christmas” was just released – and it might just be what you need to put you in the Christmas mood.
Watch it here…
That’s not the only Christmas song Stapleton is on this season – Chris is also on Kelly Clarkson‘s new album, When Christmas Comes Around singing “Glow”
Listen to it here…
Photo Courtesy of Chris Stapleton/H.E.R./National Tree Lighting
Dustin Lynch & MacKenzie Porter are at Number-One with “Thinking ‘Bout You.”
Congrats to Dustin Lynch and MacKenzie Porter – their hit “Thinking ‘Bout You” is the number-one song in country music this week on the Billboard country airplay chart.
Dustin shares the story behind the track, “So I wrote ‘Thinking ‘Bout You’ because for years I’ve been wanting to have a collab moment. I just love the history that collabs have in country music and this specific way we got into making this feel natural with a guy and a girl singing on a song was me and my song writer buddies said ‘Hey, let’s make it about a phone conversation of two people reconnecting.'”
For that collab moment…when the song was chosen to be a single at country radio, Dustin brought in Canadian country singer MacKenzie Porter, “She’s a great songwriter, a great singer, she’s got amazing tone, and it’s very accessible, and special, and unique, and identifiable and she’s a great actress…she does it all well. She makes me look bad.”
Before they knew it – the song took off like a shot. This being Dustin’s first collaboration, he said it was nice to have someone else along for the ride, “What I’ve realized is it’s fun to do it with someone else. I kinda get the duo thing now. Usually you reach these milestones and accolades, and it’s like alright, Go me, (laugh) but you can’t really communicate that with someone maybe your band members, but to have MacKenzie along for the ride, and have someone to text and celebrate the highs and here we are reaching the top.”
Dustin adds, “It’s one of those songs that just continues to surprise and to have a partner in crime on this climb has been fun, because when it first started out, MacKenzie’s like ‘Hey, I’ve never really done this in the states…is this going well?’ And I’m like ‘MacKenzie this doesn’t happen to me. This song is a rocket ship.’ This thing is growing huge, and it’s proven itself to continued to grow and really change our careers in a lot of ways.”
While they have had some recent opportunities to perform it together recently, MacKenzie says that she’s actually probably sang the song more on her own than as a duet, “The crazy part is like, we’ve actually probably sang it separately, more than we’ve sang it together, because our touring schedules are different. So then when we do get to do it together, it’s like oh yeah this is how, this is how it’s supposed to go, I’m not supposed to sing Dustin’s first verse, which I do in my own show. It just feels so natural”
This is Dustin Lynch’s 8th number-one hit, and while she has 3 number-ones on the Canadian country chart, this MacKenzie Porter’s first US country radio chart topper.
Photo Courtesy of Dustin Lynch and MacKenzie Porter
The Country Daily Yearbook: Dan + Shay Met 9 Years Ago Today, December 7th 2012
Dan + Shay are one of the hottest acts in country music, and that all started with a Christmas party in 2012.
9 years ago Dan Smyers threw a party, and one of the people to show up was Shay Mooney.
Dan shares the story, “We were at a party, at my house, and per usual, we were playing guitars, and passing guitars and singing covers. So Shay and I were hanging out that night, and I distinctly remember, I was like ‘This guy is pretty good at singing.’ And the next day we wrote a song, and that song got put on hold by a major artist that night, and we started writing more, and more songs. And we’re like, ‘This is going to work,’ and then somebody told us, ‘You guys should be a duo,’ and we’re like ‘Let’s do it.’”
Shay adds, “And here we are.”
So, what has been the key to their success all these year later, Dan says ““Balance is definitely part of what makes Dan + Shay work, when we found each other our songwriting balance, and our performing, and our harmonies kind of just met in the middle and created a sound that was unique, that people hadn’t heard before. Still till this day every-time we write we know our roles and we know where to balance each other out so that’s one of the Ying and Yang, ebb and flow things that makes this whole project work and makes it what it is today.”
Where it all began…
All the Good Things happening now…
Photo Courtesy of Dan + Shay
Jimmie Allen Heads Out On His First Headlining Tour in 2022
Jimmie Allen‘s busy schedule that he had in 2021 is going to continue in 2022 as he has announced his Down Home tour!
This will be Jimmie’s first headlining tour – and it’ll see him kicking things off in West Hollywood on February 3rd, then 18 stops later Jimmie and his tour guest Neon Union will wrap things up on May 13th in Norfolk.
Jimmie Allen and Brad Paisley‘s “Freedom Was a Highway” is a Top-10 and climbing hit on the Billboard country music airplay chart.
Cole Swindell Announces His Down To The Bar Tour 2022
Cole Swindell will be hitting the road in 2022 with his Down To The Bar tour!
Cole won’t be alone on the 3 month 16 stop trek – he’ll have Travis Denning and Ashley Cooke out with him…and they’re ready to go!
Check out the schedule for the tour here – tickets go on sale this Friday
Cole Swindell…and Lainey Wilson fans are loving their new song, “Never Say Never.” Will there be an opportunity for Lainey to sing this Cole on the Down To The Bar tour…never say never.
Photo Courtesy of Cole Swindell
Callista Clark Shares Her Version of “O Holy Night”
Callista Clark is continuing to climb the country music airplay chart with her debut single “It’s Cause I Am.”
But as a holiday present for her fans she has shared a wonderful acoustic version of the classic “O Holy Night.”
Check it out here…
When it comes to the holiday season, Callista and her family worked right up to the big day because of where they lived, “Well, I grew up on a Christmas tree farm, so up until actually Christmas Eve when people are done with their Christmas tree buying, we’ll be doing that almost every day. And Christmas Eve, I spend that with my dad‘s mom on that side of the family, with all the cousins over there. And we just eat and have so much fun and then go home really late and then wake up Christmas morning and spend that at my house. And then that night we go to my mom’s side of the family. So, it’s like always jam-packed with family.”
This is surely going to be a great Christmas for Callista Clark and her family.
Then right after the holidays Callista will be hitting the road with Maddie & Tae, and Sacha on the Next Women of Country tour.
The tour covers 13 states, and 16 stops over the first two months of 2022 – check out the schedule here…
● Jan 6 – Town Theatre – Oklahoma City, OK
● Jan 7 – House of Blues – Houston, TX
● Jan 12 – Brighton Music Hall- Boston, MA
● Jan 13 – Gramercy Theatre – New York, NY
● Jan 14 – Baltimore Soundstage – Baltimore, MD
● Jan 15 – Jergel’s Rhythm Grille – Warrendale, PA
● Jan 19 – Moonshine Beach- San Diego, CA
● Jan 20 – The Roxy – West Hollywood, CA
● Jan 21 – Club Rodeo Rio – San Jose, CA
● Jan 22 – Goldfield Trading Post – Sacramento, CA
● Feb 3 – Elevation at The Intersection – Grand Rapids, MI
● Feb 4 – The Castle Theater – Bloomington, IL
● Feb 5 – The Bluestone – Columbus, OH
● Feb 10 – Brooklyn Bowl – Nashville, TN
● Feb 11 – Von Braun Center – Mars Music Hall – Huntsville, AL
● Feb 12 – Buckhead Theatre – Atlanta, GA
Fans will be looking to see Callista Clark perform this one live and in-person – “It’s Cause I Am.”
Photo Courtesy of Callista Clark
Old Dominion is Teasing Their New Single, and There’s “No Hard Feelings”
Old Dominion shared with fans on social media that “No Hard Feelings” will be “Coming to a radio near you soon.”
“No Hard Feelings” is one of the 13-tracks on Old Dominion’s Time, Tequila, & Therapy – in fact it’s the song that inspired the album’s title.
Talking about the song, Old Dominion lead singer Matthew Ramsey says, “‘No Hard Feelings’ was a title that I’ve had for probably a year or whatever…just carrying it around. It’s something you hear people say.”
Matthew adds that it’s those kinds of everyday phrases that catch his attention as a songwriter. “Those are typically the ones that catch my ear is, you know, you hear people say it throughout their daily lives…hey ‘no hard feelings’…and I just thought that seems like an interesting idea. I didn’t know where it would go but I knew my friends would help me get there.”
Those friends are fellow bandmates Brad Tursi, Whitt Sellers, Geoff Sprung and Trevor Rosen, who along with Shane McAnally, are all credited as the track’s writers.
“No Hard Feelings” was written, along with all the other songs on Time, Tequila & Therapy during a 3 week working retreat last year to Asheville, North Carolina. During the national quarantine, the 5 guys along with Shane felt the need to get out of Nashville and work on music…not knowing what the result would be.
But as they came together, distraction free from daily life, the music followed and an album started to form.
When it came to “No Hard Feelings” Matthew shares, “So we sat down and, and what we got was, you know, a breakup song about someone trying to move through it. And just, you know, all the stages of grief really, that you have to go through until you get to the point where you truly have no hard feelings, and you could say, ‘I want you to be happy. I love you. I wish it was me. Do I wish it was me? Hell yeah. But it’s not and I’ve got no hard feelings’.”
Check out the music video for “No Hard Feelings” from Old Dominion here…
Photo Credit: Mason Allen
Lauren Alaina Talks With The Talk About Her New Book, Getting Good At Being You
Tuesday December 7th, Lauren Alaina will be releasing her book, Getting Good At Being You.
Lauren recently stopped by The Talk, and shared that she wish she had this book when she was 16, and hopes that her words can help at least one person out there who is struggling, and for them to know they are not alone.
Lauren says “Writing a book is very different than writing a song, because a song is writing a 3 minute summary of a situation, writing a book is dedication an entire chapter to a situation. It’s really breaking it down, and getting into the details…it’s vulnerable in a completely different way.”
Check out the conversation with Lauren here…
Lauren is also climbing the country music chart with Jon Pardi and their song “Getting Over Him” – which is from her album, Sitting Pretty On Top Of The World…
Photo Courtesy of Lauren Alaina
The Country Daily Yearbook: Chris Young Number-One in 2015 with “I’m Comin’ Over”
On this day back 2015 Chris Young was in the middle of a 3-week run at Number-One with “I’m Comin’ Over.”
It was the lead single and title track of his album of the same name.
I’m Comin’ Over was the first time Chris took the reins as producer, along with Corey Crowder.
At the time, Chris said, “It’s just I think the next step for me as far as who I want to be. Another tool in the toolbox, so to speak, of not just being the songwriter and the vocalist but also being the producer and I think there is just more control on starting with that blank sheet of paper going all the way to when people press play on a single.”
“I’m Comin’ Over” was Chris’ 6th chart topper of his career…
Chris is currently at country radio with his single “At The End Of A Bar” with Mitchell Tenpenny.
Photo Credit: Jeff Johnson
Additional Images Courtesy of Chris Young/Sony Music Nashville
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