While his new single “My Masterpiece” is working its way up the country music airplay chart, Darius Rucker took to social media to give his fans a special version of his number-1 song and officially proclaim that “It’s #BeersandSunshine season!!”
Check it out here…
And for his current single – watch the music video for “My Masterpiece” from Darius Rucker here…
Photo Credit: David McClister
Did you catch the Kennedy Center Honors telecast this weekend?
Garth Brooks was celebrated along with actress-dancer-choreographer Debbie Allen, singer-songwriter-activist Joan Baez, violinist Midori and beloved TV and film star Dick Van Dyke.
In a show filled with awesome moments and performances, it was Kelly Clarkson‘s version of “The Dance” that has people talking…
When it came to picking a song to sing to honor her friend and musical hero, Kelly says “Honestly, they asked me to do…to do this and I was like, ‘Which song do I pick?’ I was like, ‘There are so many! I could go so many different ways!’ I thought about, you know, going big – I didn’t know what to do. But I love ‘The Dance,’ and I thought it was a special thing ’cause we just shared this moment on my show, so I thought it would be cool.’
Watch the performance here…
Photos Courtesy of Kennedy Center Honors
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – An SEC-leading seven LVFLs have been members of WNBA rosters this season, with six players continuing to hold down positions with teams through the first month of play in 2021.
Thus far, Diamond DeShields and Isabelle Harrison have shined the brightest. Below are summaries of each Lady Vol alum’s results through June 7.
6-2 / G-F / Minnesota Lynx / 1st Season
Due to a stress fracture in her left foot, Davis remains sidelined in her first season in the WNBA and has yet to see action…She was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2021 draft by the Lynx.
Next Game: June 8 at Washington (7 p.m. ET, Twitter, NBC Sports Washington, NBA TV Canada)
6-1 / G / Chicago Sky / 4th Season
Starting all nine games thus far, DeShields is averaging 13.2 ppg., 3.9 rpg.. 2.9 apg. and 1.4 spg. for the Sky while seeing 33.9 minutes of duty per contest…With six games of double-figure scoring under her belt in 2021, she tossed in a season-best 26 vs. Phoenix on June 1…The LVFL ranks No. 3 in scoring on the team behind Candace Parker (16.0) and Kahleah Copper (14.6).
Next Game: June 9 vs. Indiana (8 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network, WCIU, Fever.WNBA.com)
6-3 / F / Dallas Wings / 5th Season
Has played in eight games after returning from postseason play overseas…Has two starts and is averaging 8.9 ppg. and 6.5 rpg. while playing 25.5 minutes per contest for the Wings…Has scored in double figures four times and is coming off a game vs. Seattle on June 6 in which she tallied 14 points and eight rebounds in her team’s victory…Harrison also had a 16-point, 11-rebound effort vs. the Storm on May 22, carding season highs in each category.
Next Game: June 8 at Phoenix (10 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network, Bally Sports AZ, Bally Sports SW)
6-4 / F-C / Chicago Sky / 14th Season
Due to an ankle injury, she has played only one game this season, firing in 16 points and pulling down eight rebounds on May 15 vs. Washington…In that contest, her debut with her hometown Chicago Sky, Parker hit five of 10 shots from the field and had 3-for-4 efforts from behind the arc and the free-throw line. She also added four assists, two blocks and a steal in 25 minutes during the victory over the Mystics…The Sky staff is hopeful of having their star player back soon.
Next Game: June 9 vs. Indiana (8 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network, WCIU, Fever.WNBA.com)
6-6 / C / Seattle Storm / 4th Season
After concluding play overseas, Russell rejoined the Storm and has started five of seven contests this season in helping the four-time WNBA champs to second place in the league standings at 7-2 through June 7…She is putting up 4.9 ppg., 6.4 rpg., 1.9 apg. and 1.1 spg. while playing 22.3 minutes per game…She had season bests of 12 points vs. Dallas on June 4 and 11 rebounds vs. Indiana on June 1.
Next Game: June 9 at Atlanta (7 p.m. ET, Bally Sports SE-ATL, JOETV, TSN)
6-2 / G-F / Atlanta Dream / 10th Season
Has seen action in four games for the Dream…She is averaging 2.3 ppg. and 0.8 rpg. over 9.5 minutes per contest…Her best outing came against Indiana on May 21, when she connected on all but one of her four three-point attempts en route to nine points in five minutes of action…Most recently, she logged a season-most 13 minutes of duty vs. Minnesota, recording three boards and two assists vs. the Lynx.
Next Game: June 9 vs. Seattle (7 p.m. ET, Bally Sports SE-ATL, JOETV, TSN)
6-2 / F / Phoenix Mercury / 5th Season / Currently Inactive
Signed a temporary contract with Phoenix during training camp…Played four games for the Mercury before being released on May 26…Saw 4.8 minutes of action per game during that span, averaging 1.0 points and 1.8 rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the field…Hit field goals vs. Minnesota on May 14 and Washington on May 18…Had a season-best four rebounds vs. Connecticut on May 21 in her final game before leaving the roster.
-UT Athletics
This is A Day in the Country with Paul Koffy – June 7th
On this day in 2019 Luke Combs released his EP, The Prequel – which includes the hit “Beer Never Broke My Heart.”
In 2017 Kelsea Ballerini sent “Legends” to radio
In 2005 Keith Urban was starting his second week at number-1 with “Making Memories of Us” – the song would reign at the top for 3 more weeks
And on this day in 1991, Alan Jackson became a member of the Grand Ole Opry
Photo Courtesy of Kelsea Ballerini
Old Dominion‘s new song “I Was On A Boat That Day” has the guys sharing stories about some pretty big events from their career, that actually happened on a boat.
Lead singer Matthew Ramsey recalls that the name for their second album, Happy Endings, which contains the hits “No Such Thing As A Broken Heart,” “Hotel Key,” and “Written In The Sand” – was actually “discovered” on a boat.
Watch them share the story here…
Check out the music video for Old Dominion’s “I Was On A Boat That Day.”
Photo Credit: Mason Allen
Maddie & Tae not only returned to performing live this past weekend, but they videoed the experience so fans could go behind the scenes.
While both of them were excited to be back, Maddie shared that she was battling a stomach bug — but nothing was going to stop her from hitting the stage.
Check out their show experience in Kentucky right here…
One of the songs that the fans were treated to when Maddie & Tae returned to the concert stage – was “Woman You Got” – check out the acoustic version of the track here…
Photo Credit: Nolan Feldpausch
The music video for Dillon Carmichael‘s “Hot Beer” is available now.
Dillon says, “Thank you to Jon Pardi for helping me put the song together and joining the video!”
He also added, “Thank you for not hitting me with any projectile objects, Emma Conn”
“Hot Beer” is the title track from Dillon’s EP of the same name, watch the video for the track here…and stick around for the outtakes at the end…
Photo Courtesy of Dillon Carmichael
Andrew Jannakos‘ debut EP Gone Too Soon is out now.
Talking about his project, Andrew says, “It’s an incredible feeling to be able to put out my first debut EP with Sony Music Nashville – It’s every artist’s dream to be able to write, record & release their own music …and I hope this EP shows who I am as an artist, a writer & the diversity that I bring into Country music.”
He adds, “Being different is an ability & makes you stand out …it makes you, YOU. I still dream of the day touring in front of thousands of fans singing my songs back to me. This is EP is just one step closer to that reality! Thank y’all so much for the support and thank you to everyone who helped bring this EP to life!!”
Gone Too Soon track list
1. “Gone Too Soon” (Andrew Jannakos / Josh Bricker / Jason Afable)
2. “When The Whiskey Runs Out” (Andrew Jannakos / Chris La Corte / Justin Wilson)
3. “Like Yesterday” (Andrew Jannakos / Kyle Clark / Alex Pennington Smith)
4. “Somebody Loves You” (Andrew Jannakos / Jason Afable / Kyle Clark / Sam Koon)
5. “We’ve Always Loved” (Andrew Jannakos / Jason Duke / Alex Pennington Smith)
6. “Wine Country” (Andrew Jannakos / Jason Afable / Eric Mallon / Alex Pennington Smith)
Watch the music video for “Gone Too Soon” the title track of the new EP from Andrew Jannakos here…
Photo Courtesy of Sony Music Nashville
Brett Young‘s new collection of music is now available for fans to check out!
Weekends Look A Little Different These Days features 8 tracks, including Brett’s recent number-one hit “Lady” and his current single at country radio “Not Yet.”
When it comes to creating and selecting the songs that he’s going to release, Brett doesn’t worry about picking ones with the thought of them going to number-one on the charts, he has a more important plan when it comes to his music, “I think I don’t feel pressure to get number ones. I already can’t even believe this is happening, so that’s not really it. It’s pressure to figure out what about the music is working and why the fans are gravitating towards it. And I think, for me, it’s always seemed to be that if I’m honest and vulnerable in the music, more people are able to connect with me and with the music.”
Brett adds, “Writing this record…I had to stretch myself as a writer a little bit now that this chapter of my life is like a pretty solid foothold. Like this is my wife, and these are my children. And this is a stage that’s gonna last for a minute. Until the kids are grown and out of the house, I’m pretty much in this stage for a minute. So, the pressure to write another number one is not really the one that I feel. It’s just to continue to kind of pull back the curtain for the fans. And kinda putting myself out there in songs that aren’t necessarily about what I’m going through right at this minute was challenging, but also I think will keep us kind of running that same path.”
While his family is having a major impact on his creative process, Brett also realizes that focusing all of his music on his situation is a bit of a trap, because not all of his fans are in the same stage of life, “I think the bigger obstacle for me…I wasn’t alienating any fans that weren’t new parents or weren’t newly married. You know, you can’t just put out a nursery rhymes record because that’s the stage of life that you’re in. So, as affected as I was by this stage of my life while we were writing these songs, I was also really conscious of making sure there was something for everybody. So, there were a lot of those kind of obstacles that presented themselves in trying to make sure that we didn’t write eight songs about being a new parent and a new father. And so, it was interesting. It was, I think, the most challenging writing for a project has been to this point.“
Brett’s new collection of music includes…
1. “Weekends Look A Little Different These Days” (Brett Young, Ben Caver, Zach Crowell)
2. “Lady” (Brett Young, Ross Copperman, Jon Nite)
3. “This” (Brett Young, Justin Ebach, Amy Wadge, Geoffrey Warburton)
4. “Dear Me” (Brett Young, Justin Ebach, Ashley Gorley, Jon Nite, Jimmy Robbins)
5. “Leave Me Alone” (Brett Young, Jesse Frasure, Steven Lee Olsen)
6. “Not Yet” (Brett Young, Kelly Archer, Justin Ebach)
7. “You Got Away With It” (Brett Young, Justin Ebach, Ashley Gorley, Jon Nite, Jimmy Robbins)
8. “You Didn’t” (Brett Young, Ashley Gorley, Jon Nite, Jimmy Robbins)
Along with the new music, Brett is also launching The Weekends tour with openers Maddie & Tae, Ryan Hurd, Filmore, and Matt Ferranti.
Brett says, “Announcing a headlining tour and preparing to release new music…truly feels like a dream and something I won’t ever take for granted. It’s emotional thinking about reuniting not only with my band and crew after so much time apart, but with the FANS! I can’t wait to make up for lost time and finally get to perform these new ones we’ve been working on.”
One of the new tracks that Brett Young will be bring to fans live and in person on tour starting in September is his new single “Not Yet” – which you can listen to here…
Photo Credit: RIKER BROTHERS
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – A shutdown outing from the pitching staff and a two-run homer from Drew Gilbert helped propel Tennessee to a 3-1 victory over Liberty to claim the Knoxville Regional title Sunday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
With the win, Tennessee advances to the Super Regional stage of the NCAA Tournament (which was introduced in 1999) for just the third time in program history and first time since 2005. Next weekend’s Super Regional in Knoxville will mark the first time that Tennessee has ever hosted a Super Regional.
While it was five home runs and nine total runs scored that powered the Vols to Saturday’s win over Liberty, Sunday’s win was made possible by standout performances on the mound from seniors Will Heflin and Sean Hunley.
Getting the start, Heflin went 5.1 innings and tied his career high with eight strikeouts, allowing four hits. Hunley took over and threw the final 3.2 innings of the game, striking out five and allowing only one hit to earn his eighth save of the year.
As compared to its combined 21 hits in its first two games of the Knoxville Regional, Tennessee had a quiet night offensively with six hits as a team, which came from six different players, but got some big hits when it needed them most.
After a scoreless two and a half innings between to start the game, the Vols got the scoring started in the bottom of the third inning with a two-out RBI single from Jake Rucker to score Max Ferguson, who doubled down the left-field line one batter earlier.
Two innings later in the bottom of the fifth, Drew Gilbert continued his hot weekend and extended Tennessee’s lead to 3-0 with a two-run home run that cleared the video board in right-center field. The homer turned out to be the game-winning hit for UT.
Liberty quickly responded to Gilbert’s homer with its only run of the day, as an RBI fielder’s choice by Trey McDyre allowed Aaron Anderson to beat out a throw at home plate. After Heflin struck out the next batter, Hunley took over with one out and runners on first and second and preceded to strike out the next two batters, putting an end to Liberty’s most serious threat of the night.
The Vols will now wait to find out their Super Regional opponent as No. 14 seed Oregon and LSU battle it out in Eugene for the right to travel to Knoxville.
ALL-REGIONAL TEAM: Five Vols were named to the Knoxville All-Regional team, which was selected by a 16-member voting panel of media. Connor Pavolony, Luc Lipcius, Liam Spence, Drew Gilbert and Camden Sewell all received recognition, while Gilbert was named the regional’s Most Outstanding Player.
BUSY WEEKEND FOR GILBERT: With his two-run shot in the fifth inning, Drew Gilbert became just the second Vol in the last 10 years to record three straight games with a home run. The first was Luc Lipcius, who accomplished the feat earlier this season with homers in three straight games against Kentucky.
Box Score (PDF) | Postgame Quotes (PDF) | Regional Stats (PDF) | Knoxville Regional Central
-UT Athletics
