Tennessee head football coach Josh Heupel visited with the media Thursday after UT’s first spring scrimmage under him and the 7th overall spring practice.
Congrats goes out to Gabby Barrett and Jimmie Allen as they have been named this year’s ACM New Female & Male Artists of the Year!
Keith Urban shared the news with each artist via a video message — which was captured on video!
Check out the moments when Gabby and Jimmie learned they each had taken home their respective ACM New Artist Award.
Gabby and Jimmie will perform on the 56th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards — broadcasting live from Nashville on Sunday April 18th, at 8PM ET / 7PM CT ON CBS.
Photo Credit: Robby Klein & BBR Music Group
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee fans will get their first glimpse of head coach Josh Heupel‘s 2021 Volunteers at 10 a.m. Saturday as the football program holds an open practice free to the public in Neyland Stadium.
All fans should enter through Gate 21, and the game day clear bag policy will be in effect. Gate 21 will open beginning at 9:15 a.m. Saturday. Ongoing COVID-19 protocols will be in effect, including face coverings upon entry and movement through the stadium. Physical distancing in the lower bowl of Neyland Stadium will be enforced.
Free parking will be available in lot G10 (PDF).
Should inclement weather move the practice indoors, Saturday’s practice would be closed to the public. Follow @Vol_Football for more information.
Concessions located near Gate 21 will be open with a limited menu.
The normal game day prohibited items list will be enforced. Autographs will be prohibited.
Heupel, a national champion and eight-time conference champion, enters his first season at the helm of Tennessee. He produced a stellar 28-8 record at UCF and brings a pedigree of prolific offenses to Knoxville. The 2018 National Coach of the Year finalist was the architect of an offensive unit that ranked in the FBS top 10 in points per game in each of his three seasons in Orlando.
Spring practice culminates with the Chevrolet Orange & White Game at 4 p.m. on April 24 in Neyland Stadium. Further details regarding the spring game will be announced soon.
Season tickets for the centennial celebration of Neyland Stadium and the start of the Heupel era are on sale now at AllVols.com. Season tickets start as low as $300, with the Vol Pass and payment plan options offered. Fans can experience the Neyland Stadium 3D map to select tickets based on preference. Fans with questions related to seats, views and options can utilize the live “CHAT” feature on AllVols.com.
-UT Athletics
Priscilla Block is releasing her first major label EP at the end of this month. The self-titled 6-song collection will be out on April 30th, and features her hit song “Just About Over You.” The following day, May 1st, Priscilla will be making her debut at the Grand Ole Opry.
While it’s been on a lot of hard work and dedication by Priscilla…the road to get here has included many twists, turns, obstacles…and Taylor Swift.
Growing up in Raleigh, North Carolina, Priscilla always wanted to be the star of the show — so she created her own audiences out of her family members, “Well, I have been an attention ho since day one. (laughs) My mom can let you know that’s true. I would make my siblings sit down and they had to listen to me sing songs growing up.”
While the reaction of the crowd was great, she discovered that performing sparked a feeling inside her that Priscilla knew she wanted to keep going, “Yeah, I mean when I started singing and performing in front of people, whether it was in church or any of the first little shows that I played, it was a feeling that I never felt before. I felt good enough. I felt just kind of like in a different world, and I loved it. I loved it, ’cause I’ve gone through times where I don’t feel good enough, but when I get up and sing, all that goes away and I feel so good”
The next phase was when she started creating her own material, by writing songs when she was a teenager, “So, I actually started writing when I was 15, and I never really had any other passions or anything that I really wanted to do after high school. I fell in love with music and couldn’t put my guitar down, and decided to make the move right outta high school.”
That move to Nashville did not start off as she had hoped — while she may have been the star of her friends and family, Priscilla faced a different reality in Music City, “My first year in Nashville was pretty tough. I kinda fell on my face pretty hard, being this 18 year old girl having no clue what I was doing in town and I just found myself at a place where you know I didn’t know what I was doing I just felt super duper lost.”
Lost to the point where a call to her sister had her on the verge of packing it all in and heading back to North Carolina, “That day I had called my sister and I said “You know, I feel like it might be time to maybe move home or whatever” and she kinda encouraged me to stick it out a little bit.”
Now cue Taylor Swift.
Priscilla has been a big fan for a long time, “So, I was a massive Taylor Swift fan growing up. I just loved her so much…I looked up to her and she was a huge reason why I moved to Nashville and I was like ‘Oh if she could do it I wanna do it’.”
On that same day as the call to her sister where she was ready to call it quits, a chance encounter with Taylor on a street in Nashville turned Priscilla’s career…and life, around.
She shares the story, “That day Taylor Swift was driving by, I was wearing a Taylor Swift t-shirt, and she pulled her car over to the side of the road and hopped into her passenger seat, opened up her car door and was like ‘Hey girl, I love your shirt’ and it was really the moment that I needed. It’s funny like I didn’t even tell her I did music I was just like ‘Thank you so much’ like, she had no clue how much that meant to me but that really was the day that I knew that I needed to give music a shot. I quit my job, I quit school, and I just ran fast, and I don’t run!!!”
Now that it was full steam ahead thanks to the Taylor pep talk, Priscilla made one other change in her career as well, “When it really started working was when I was like, ‘Man, I am who I am. I’m a curvy girl – I’m gonna sing about it, I’m kind of like a big ol’ hot mess all the time – I’m gonna sing about that, too. I’m also the girl that can break down crying, so I’m gonna sing about that, too.’ And, you know, once I really made that switch and realized that I didn’t have to be anybody that anybody wanted me to be, was when it all kinda started shifting.”
“Just About Over You” is her current single that’s climbing the country airplay chart, and while she wrote it from her personal experience, and from a female point of view, Priscilla feels its a relatable song to anyone because of the emotions it deals with, “That’s what I love so much about this song…is I feel like the guys can relate to it…the girls can, and you know, it doesn’t necessarily have to be either side.”
Having that connection, for Priscilla, is what country music is all about, “Listening to country music makes me feel every emotion in the world, whether I’m sad or happy. I remember the first time I heard ‘Stupid Boy,’ and there was just something about that song that moved me completely. This is why I write country music”
Talking about her new collection of music that’s coming out on April 30th, Priscilla says, “This EP is such a vulnerable side of who I am and where I’ve been, it’s my story of falling apart in order to find myself again. I hope that when you hear these songs, they make you feel that it’s ok to not be perfect and realize that sometimes we need the lows to value the highs… AND ONCE YOU REGAIN THAT CONFIDENCE… LET IT SHOW BABY!”
Priscilla had a hand in writing all 6-songs on her EP, which you can pre-save right HERE – including this one…check out the music video of Priscilla Block’s “Just About Over You.”
Photos Courtesy of UMG Nashville
Eric Church shared with fans the news we’ve all been waiting for — a tour announcement!
Back in February, Eric said that a tour was on its way this year, but didn’t give any more details.
Today he’s dropping tour dates, and venues!
In a video Eric shared “I’m happy to announce The Gather Again tour coming to a city near you!”
He adds, “I cannot wait to get back on the road, and play live music for good friends.”
Eric believes the key to getting back to where we can all come together is people doing their part and getting the COVID vaccine, as he says in Billboard, “You’ve got to get needles in arms”
The Gather Again tour starts in Kentucky at Rupp Arena on September 17th 2021.
Check out Eric Church’s video announcement here, and the full list of tour dates below.
The Gather Again Tour
Sept. 17, 2021 Rupp Arena Lexington, Ky.
Sept. 18, 2021 Nationwide Arena Columbus, Ohio
Sept. 24, 2021 Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse Cleveland, Ohio
Sept. 25, 2021 KeyBank Center Buffalo, N.Y.
Oct. 1, 2021 Alerus Center Grand Forks, N.D.
Oct. 2, 2021 Bell MTS Place Winnipeg, Manitoba
Oct. 8, 2021 PPG Paints Arena Pittsburgh, Pa.
Oct. 9, 2021 Wells Fargo Center Philadelphia, Pa.
Oct. 15, 2021 Ball Arena Denver, Colo.
Oct. 22, 2021 Scotiabank Saddledome Calgary, Alberta
Oct. 23, 2021 SaskTel Centre Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Oct. 29, 2021 Rogers Arena Vancouver, British Columbia
Oct. 30, 2021 Climate Pledge Arena Seattle, Wash.
Nov. 12, 2021 Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tenn.
Nov. 13, 2021 Ford Center Evansville, Ind.
Dec. 3, 2021 SNHU Arena Manchester, N.H.
Dec. 4, 2021 UBS Arena Belmont Park, N.Y.
Dec. 10, 2021 The Anthem Washington, D.C.
Dec. 11, 2021 The Anthem Washington, D.C.
Dec. 17, 2021 Bon Secours Wellness Arena Greenville, S.C.
Dec. 18, 2021 Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, N.C.
Jan. 7, 2022 Pinnacle Bank Arena Lincoln, Neb.
Jan. 8, 2022 Denny Sanford PREMIER Center Sioux Falls, S.D.
Jan. 14, 2022 Scotiabank Arena Toronto, Ontario
Jan. 15, 2022 Canadian Tire Centre Ottawa, Ontario
Jan. 21, 2022 Van Andel Arena Grand Rapids, Mich.
Jan. 22, 2022 Little Caesars Arena Detroit, Mich.
Feb. 4, 2022 KFC Yum! Center Louisville, Ky.
Feb. 5, 2022 Bankers Life Fieldhouse Indianapolis, Ind.
Feb. 11, 2022 CHI Health Center Omaha Omaha, Neb.
Feb. 12, 2022 Wells Fargo Arena Des Moines, Iowa
Feb. 18, 2022 T-Mobile Center Kansas City, Mo.
Feb 19, 2022 BOK Center Tulsa, Okla.
Feb. 25, 2022 Hampton Coliseum Hampton, Va.
Feb. 26, 2022 Spectrum Center Charlotte, N.C.
March 4, 2022 Amway Center Orlando, Fla.
March 5, 2022 Amalie Arena Tampa, Fla.
March 11, 2022 United Center Chicago, Ill.
March 12, 2022 Enterprise Center St. Louis, Mo.
March 18, 2022 Resch Center Green Bay, Wis.
March 19, 2022 Resch Center Green Bay, Wis.
March 25, 2022 Legacy Arena at the BJCC Birmingham, Ala.
March 26, 2022 Simmons Bank Arena Little Rock, Ark.
April 1, 2022 Dickies Arena Fort Worth, Texas
April 2, 2022 AT&T Center San Antonio, Texas
April 8, 2022 Toyota Center Houston, Texas
April 9, 2022 Smoothie King Center New Orleans, La.
April 15, 2022 Moda Center Portland, Ore.
April 16, 2022 Spokane Arena Spokane, Wash.
April 29, 2022 ExtraMile Arena Boise, Idaho
April 30, 2022 Vivint Arena Salt Lake City, Utah
May 6, 2022 Pechanga Arena San Diego, Calif.
May 7, 2022 STAPLES Center Los Angeles, Calif.
May 11, 2022 Golden 1 Center Sacramento, Calif.
May 13, 2022 T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas, Nev.
May 14, 2022 Gila River Arena Glendale, Ariz.
May 20, 2022 Madison Square Garden New York, N.Y.
Tickets to all U.S. dates go on sale to the general public Friday, May 7 at 10 a.m. local time at www.EricChurch.com. Church Choir members may access tickets early via pre-sale on Tuesday, May 4 at 10 a.m. local time. On sale information for the Canadian dates will be announced soon.
Photo Credit: Anthony D’Angio
Just a few short months after her brother, Randy died, Dolly Parton is suffering another loss, as her Uncle Bill Owens has died at the age of 85.
Dolly shared, “I’ve lost my beloved Uncle Bill Owens. I knew my heart would break when he passed, and it did. I’ll start this eulogy by saying I wouldn’t be here if he hadn’t been there. He was there… there in my young years to encourage me to keep playing my guitar, to keep writing my songs, to keep practicing my singing. And he was there to help build my confidence standing on stage where he was always standing behind me or close beside me with his big ol’ red Gretsch guitar.
He was there to take me around to all of the local shows, got me my first job on the ‘Cas Walker Show.’ He took me back-&-forth to Nashville through the years, walked up-&-down the streets with me, knocking on doors to get me signed up to labels or publishing companies.
It’s really hard to say or to know for sure what all you owe somebody for your success. But I can tell you for sure that I owe Uncle Billy an awful lot.
Uncle Bill was so many things. He loved the music, loved to play, loved his guitar and loved to write and sing. He wrote great songs, at least 800 of them through the years. We wrote several songs together, the biggest one being ‘Put It Off Until Tomorrow.’ We won our first big award on that one back in 1966. It was the BMI Song of the Year.
He wrote songs that were recorded by Loretta Lynn, Porter Wagoner,Ricky Skaggs, Kris Kristofferson and many others. He also traveled the road with many big artists playing his guitar, including playing on stage with me in my early years in Nashville.
Uncle Bill worked at Dollywood from the time we opened in the family show for many years. He was funny, friendly and generous. He always had a kind word for everybody and gave good advice to young people starting in the business.
He joined forces with Dollywood, The American Chestnut Foundation, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and The American Eagle Foundation to bring back the endangered chestnut tree to the Great Smoky Mountain area. That was his passion.
He also championed the cause of protecting the natural environment at Dollywood in 1986. During that time, he took it upon himself, with his wife Sandy, to plant 70,000 trees on the Park property.
I bet a lot of our own relatives don’t even know all of the great things that Uncle Bill did behind the scenes through his life. But the greatest thing he ever did for me was to help me see my dreams come true and for that I will be forever grateful. I’m sure that Uncle Bill’s friends, fans, his wife Sandy, his kids, grandkids and great grandkids will join me when I say that we will always love you. Rest in peace, Uncle Bill.”
Headline Photo Courtesy of Getty Images
Additional Photo Courtesy of Dolly Parton
Clay Walker has a brand new album arriving for fans on July 30th.
Texas to Tennessee earned that name as Clay recorded tracks for the project in both states.
Working between Nashville and Galveston, Clay assembled 10 songs for the album, including the lead track “Need A Bar.”
He says, “I am so excited to announce I’ll be releasing a brand new album this summer called Texas To Tennessee. I’m really proud of these songs and can’t wait to share them with y’all. So grateful for my incredible team and producers Michael Knox and Jaron Boyer for making this happen.”
Clay had a hand in crafting each track on the album as he was a co-writer on each song. He shares, “I got to write with the best writers in country music, every writer on this album is accomplished, most came in with ideas they thought fit me or developed ideas I brought and it led to real cohesiveness in all these songs.”
The track listing for Texas To Tennessee is
1. “Anything To Do With You” (Clay Walker, Brandon Kinney, Shane Minor, Mike Mobley)
2. “Need A Bar Sometimes” (Walker, Jaron Boyer, Josh Mirenda, George Birge)
3. “Catching Up With An Ol’ Memory” (Walker, Boyer, Birge, Lalo Guzman)
4. “Country Side” (Clay Walker, Boyer, Lynn Wilbanks)
5. “Cowboy Loves A Woman” (Walker, Jennifer Hanson, Mark Nesler)
6. “Texas To Tennessee” (Walker, Hanson, Nesler)
7. “I Just Wanna Hold You” (Walker, Boyer, Ben Stennis)
8. “Loving You Then” (Walker, Boyer, Brad Rempel, Stennis)
9. “You Look Good” (Walker, Boyer, Michael Tyler)
10. “One More” (Walker, David Lee Murphy, Justin Weaver)
Texas To Tennessee – produced by Michael Knox (Jason Aldean) and Jaron Boyer (Dierks Bentley‘s “Somewhere On A Beach”), arrives July 30th, and is available for pre-order May 7th.
Check out the music video for the first single from Clay Walker’s upcoming album right here — this is “Need A Bar Sometimes.”
Photos Courtesy of Shore Fire PR & Show Dog Nashville
ACM New Female Artist of the Year Award nominee Tenille Arts took part in the ACM Wine Down Wednesday series this week.
Tenille opened by saying, “I’m so excited to be a part of this, first off I just want to thank the ACMs for having me, and 1000 Stories Wine, for letting me be a part of this awesome series for such a great cause. 1000 Stories Wine is actually donating…on behalf of every artist that is a part of this series, they’re donating two-thousand dollars to the ACM Lifting Lives COVID 19 Response fund, and that’s going to directly help people in the country music scene that have really struggled over the past year.”
After expressing her excitement about her very first ACM Award nomination, Tenille also joked that when it came to being a part of ACM Wine Down Wednesday, “I absolutely love anything that involves wine, so I am so here for this!”
If you missed it live — catch the replay of Tenille Arts on this week’s ACM Wine Down Wednesday, right HERE…
You can also see the music video for her Top-10 smash hit “Somebody Like That” right here…
Photo Credit: Rachel Deeb
Tennessee senior tight end Princeton Fant spoke with the media Wednesday before the team’s first scrimmage of the spring and 7th overall practice.
Tennessee senior defensive back Theo Jackson spoke with the media Wednesday before the team’s first scrimmage of the spring and 7th overall practice.
