The 2022 ACM Awards, which took place at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Monday (March 7) night, made history as the first live major awards show to be exclusively livestreamed (on Prime Video). During the show, Morgan Wallen — whose Dangerous: The Album was the biggest album of 2021 on the Billboard 200, setting a record for longest stint in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 for a country album — won album of the year at the 57th annual Academy of Country Music Awards. That win arrives slightly more than a year after Wallen, country’s biggest rising commercial star, was caught on video using the n-word among his friends late one night in February 2021. Following the incident, Wallen apologized and asked fans not to defend him. While many radio stations initially pulled his songs, Wall...
With her new album Humble Quest set to drop later this month, Maren Morris has announced an expansive 2022 North American tour. “Oh, how I’ve missed you,” Morris wrote in a social media statement. “I can’t wait to see you out under the stars.” The “Humble Quest Tour” kicks off June 9th in Raleigh, North Carolina with support from Brent Cobb, Ruston Kelly, Joy Oladokun, Natalie Hemby, The Lone Bellow, and Brittney Spencer. Morris’ 41-date trek includes big metropolises like New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and Los Angeles, smaller spots such as Missoula, Montana, and Wilmington, North Carolina, and everything in between. Pre-sale starts tomorrow (March 8th) for members of Morris’ fan club, and general sale begins Friday, March 11th. Check out the full itinerary below, and get your tickets h...
Weezer’s got an entire genre-hopping covers album that insists Rivers Cuomo is open to anything, so we probably shouldn’t be surprised that he’s now featured on a country song. The frontman has teamed up with Morgan Evans for the track “Country Outta My Girl,” which you can listen to below. “Country Outta My Girl” has all the trappings of a modern pop-country song: twangy guitar and skittering electronic drums that mix like oil and water, a near-rap style vocal delivery, and incredibly on-the-nose lyrics that insist its artists are familiar with Southern culture. Over a scratchy acoustic riff, Evans details the ways that his Southern transplant girlfriend has maintained her country roots, from wearing cowboy boots on Rodeo Drive to drinking dirty martinis in mason jars. After Evans promise...
Summer 2022 is heating up now that The Chicks are taking Gaslighter, their first album in 14 years, out on tour. Get tickets here, and read on for more info on their Summer 2022 tour. What Is The Chicks’ Next Tour? The trailblazing country trio will hit the road for a 27-city trek that will mark their first headlining spot since releasing their eighth studio album in 2020. The US tour begins June 14th in Maryland Heights, Missouri and wraps on August 13th at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Washington. Advertisement Related Video If the album, which ranked among Consequence‘s Top 50 Albums of 2020, is any indication of their live show, fans should expect “the same strong group dynamic that put The Chicks on the map years ago.” Who Is Opening for The Chicks on Tour? The Chicks add to their...
Brooks & Dunn are taking their comeback story to arenas this summer for the newly-announced “REBOOT 2022 Tour.” The boot-scootin’ country duo – composed of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn – have stayed busy since their return from hiatus in 2019 with the release of their eleventh studio album Reboot, co-hosting duties at a Las Vegas residency with Reba McEntire, and their induction to the Country Music Hall of Fame. Get tickets here, and read on for more info on their “REBOOT 2022 Tour.” What Is Brooks & Dunn’s Next Tour? The “REBOOT 2022 Tour” is a continuation of Brooks & Dun’s first US outing in 10 years. The latest leg begins in Evansville, Indiana on May 5th and concludes at the WYCD Hoedown in Detroit, Michigan on June 25th. Advertisement Related Video In a statement, Ron...
Brooks & Dunn will return to arenas for the first time in over a decade with their Live Nation-produced Reboot 2022 Tour, which will launch in Evansville, Ind., on May 5. The trek builds on the duo’s 2021 amphitheater tour, and will wrap June 25 in Detroit. The trek will include a stop at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on June 18, as well as stops in San Antonio; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Savannah, Ga.; and more. Explore See latest videos, charts and news Openers for the tour will include King Calaway, Dillon Carmichael, Tenille Townes, Morgan Wade, Tyler Braden, Gabby Barrett, Jordan Davis, Riley Green, Walker Hayes, Jon Pardi and more. Two of these artists will take on the supporting slots at each tour date. “Last year we fired up the buses and ‘let it roll’ again,” shared Kix Brooks in a ...
Warner Music Nashville has teamed with Atlantic Records and Bad Realm Records to bring singer-songwriter Breland to the WMN roster. Breland is in the top 15 on Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart with his feature on Dierks Bentley’s single “Beers on Me” with HARDY, and will debut his new song “Praise The Lord” at the 57th annual ACM Awards on March 7. Breland is the second country artist to be recognized as part of Amazon Music’s Breakthrough Artist program. He’s on the road opening shows for Russell Dickerson. He becomes the latest in a long line of acts that pop divisions are partnering with their Nashville counterparts to work and vice versa. WMN and Warner Records’ pop division already work together on Gabby Barrett and Dan + Shay to garner pop airplay on certain releases. Universal Musi...
In 2020, Big Loud artist-writer Ernest (full name: Ernest Keith Smith) was a writer on five Top 10 songs, including chart-toppers for Morgan Wallen (“More Than My Hometown”) and Chris Lane (“Big, Big Plans”). Last year, Ernest co-wrote “Breaking Up Was Easy in the ‘90s” another chart-topper for Sam Hunt. Ernest also contributed to 11 songs on Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album, which became the best-selling album of 2021. Explore Explore Ernest See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news This year, Ernest is breaking through for his own artistry, with a top 20 hit of his own on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart with the breakup-and-makeup anthem “Flower Shops,” featuring Wallen. On March 11, Ernest follow this success with the release of Flower Sho...
Morgan Wallen‘s “Sand in My Boots” reaches the summit of Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart dated Feb. 26. In the tracking week ending Feb. 20, the song, released on Republic/Big Loud Records, increased by 4% to 24.9 million in audience, according to MRC Data. “I always felt this song was extremely special, timeless even,” Wallen tells Billboard of the ballad, which Ashley Gorley, HARDY and Josh Osborne co-wrote. “None of this would be possible without the incredible team that works behind the scenes. I’m blessed to work with great writers, producers, musicians and my Big Loud family. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who continues to believe in this music we are so blessed to create.” The 28-year-old Wallen, from Sneedville, Tenn., achieves his fifth Country Airplay leader....
Sam Hunt‘s pregnant wife, Hannah Lee Fowler, has reportedly filed for divorce after five years of marriage. Fowler alleges that the country music star, 37, is “guilty of inappropriate marital conduct” and “guilty of adultery,” according to court documents obtained by TMZ. Prior to the report, it was not publicly known that Hunt and Fowler, who married in April 2017, were expecting a child together. The legal docs, filed in Tennessee, reportedly reveal that Fowler is pregnant and due in May. Explore Explore Sam Hunt See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Billboard has reached out to Hunt’s representatives for comment. Fowler is asking for alimony, child support and primary custody of their forthcoming child, according to TMZ. “The husband is guilty of such cru...
An unexpected run-in with Taylor Swift made a huge impact on Priscilla Block‘s life. The rising country singer behind “My Bar” was just about ready to leave Nashville when she had a chance meeting with Swift — while she was actually wearing a Taylor Swift T-shirt. “I’m about a year into town and just crumbling, day by day, and I call my sister one day and I was like, ‘Hey, I have no clue what I’m doing out here.’ It was just the whole ‘If you come home, you didn’t fail. It’s OK,’” Block, whose debut album Welcome to the Block Party just arrived, recalled on an episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show last week. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news She continued, “And that day, Taylor Swift was driving by. I was leaving work, and I was wear...
Chris Stapleton has extended his long-running North American headlining tour, “All-American Road Show,” with dozens of new dates through 2022. While the trek kicks off on March 17th at the Houston Rodeo, the 25 added shows include stops throughout June, July, August, and October in cities like Los Angeles, San Diego, Cleveland, Detroit, Tampa and New Orleans. Stapleton’s “All-American Road Show” will also feature a long list of special guests throughout its run, including appearances by Willie Nelson, Yola, Margo Price, Sheryl Crow, Elle King, The Highwomen, Mavis Staples, George Strait, and more. Tickets for the latest round of shows go on sale next Friday, Feb. 25th, at 10 a.m. local time, with various pre-sales for the country star’s fan club in the days before. Book your seat here...