The latest from Jimmy Carter in Nashville

Mercury Records singer/songwriter Kacey Musgraves received FIVE nominations for the 49th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards (ACMs) for FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR, ALBUM OF THE YEAR (as Artist & Producer), SONG OF THE YEAR (“Mama’s Broken Heart” songwriter) and VIDEO OF THE YEAR (“Blowin’ Smoke”). This is the second consecutive year that Musgraves has been nominated for Female Vocalist and Video of the Year for the Academy of Country Music Awards. This has been an exciting week for the 25-year old Texas native. On Sunday, Musgraves took home two GRAMMY’S from the 56th Annual Grammy Awards for BEST COUNTRY SONG (“Merry Go ‘Round) and BEST COUNTRY ALBUM (Same Trailer Different Park) making her the first artist in history to win BEST COUNTRY ALBUM with a major label debut. During the telecast of the Grammy Awards, Musgraves performed her penned song “Follow Your Arrow;” a song that Billboard named as its No. 2 Best Song of 2013. Following the performance of “Follow Your Arro

The GARTH BROOKS Comeback Special Event SOLD OUT! All 3 shows are now sold out. 240,000 tickets sell out in 90 mins. LOS ANGELES- JAN 30 2014- All three dates for The Garth Brooks Comeback Special Event are now SOLD OUT. In excess of 10,000 people queued around the country at Ticketmaster outlets and the entire 240,000 tickets sold out in 90 minutes. This is the first time that an artist has sold out 3 dates at Croke Park in one day. Bob Doyle, Garth Brooks manager said ‘We’re thrilled. Peter Aiken, his team and Ticketmaster have done an amazing job’ ‘In 52 years of business this is the fastest selling concert Aiken Promotions have ever been involved in’, Peter Aiken said. The Garth Brooks Comeback Special Event will take place on Friday 25, Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 July 2014 at Croke Park. About Garth Brooks Certified by the RIAA in 2000 as the #1-selling solo artist in U.S. history, Garth Brooks has sold in excess of 128 million albums and has received every

ACM AWARDS TO AIR LIVE FROM MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA IN LAS VEGAS Sunday, April 6, 2014 at 8:00 PM live ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network Miranda Lambert and Tim McGraw lead with 7 nominations; Keith Urban receives 6 nominations; Lee Brice, Kacey Musgraves, Blake Shelton, and Taylor Swift each receive 5 nominations; Florida Georgia Line and Lady Antebellum each receive 4 nominations; Luke Bryan and Darius Rucker each receive 3 nominations Tweet: Nominations Announced for the 49th @ACMawards – Country Music’s Party of the Year® [LINK TO NEWS] ENCINO, CA (January 29, 2014) – Nominations were announced today for the 49th ANNUAL ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS, Country Music’s Party of the Year®, honoring country music’s superstars and hottest emerging talent. Hosted by four-time ACM Award winner Blake Shelton and reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Luke Bryan, the ACM Awards are produced for television by dick clark productions and will be broadcast LIVE from the

Miranda MuttNation Foundation’s New “Mutts Across America” Initiative Grants More than a Quarter of a Million Dollars To 50 Shelters in 50 States Wednesday, January 22, 2014 Miranda's MuttNation Foundation is thrilled to announce their Mutts Across America: 50 States/50 Shelters initiative. A total of $253,660 was donated to shelters in each of the 50 states, with the minimum donation to an individual shelter being $3000. Miranda Lambert said, “We are thrilled to be able to reach out to every state and recognize shelters and organizations working at a grassroots level to help animals. It’s those people on the ground, day in and day out, who really make a huge difference.” The MuttNation Foundation board along with partners at the RACE (Ran's Animal Care Express) team worked diligently to find the most deserving shelters in each of the 50 states. Operating under the premise that fans, friends, colleagues and benefactors across the US have sown into MuttNation Foundation in th

COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME® AND MUSEUM SETS ALL-TIME ATTENDANCE RECORD IN 2013 NASHVILLE, Tenn., January 17, 2014 – The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum set an all-time attendance record in 2013, museum officials announced today. The 2013 attendance total of 668,777 people is the largest in the institution’s 46-year history. “We would like to thank our local, national and international visitors for such strong support,” said Museum Director Kyle Young. “Through November 2013, our operating revenues increased by about 25% over prior year, we held expenses in check, and we expect those numbers to hold through December 2013. In these challenging economic times, we don’t take this for granted. “We attribute the strong year to several factors,” Young continued. “We had a great mix of exhibitions: The Bakersfield Sound: Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and California Country; Carrie Underwood: The Blown Away Tour; and Reba: All the Women I Am

LITTLE BIG TOWN'S KIMBERLY SCHLAPMAN WINS TASTE AWARD FOR "KIMBERLY’S SIMPLY SOUTHERN" The GAC show wins for “Best Home Chef in a Series” NASHVILLE TN (Friday, January 17, 2014) – Little Big Town’s Kimberly Schlapman took home the award for “Best Home Chef in a Series” last night at the 5th Annual Taste Awards in Los Angeles for her GAC cooking show Kimberly’s Simply Southern. The award show honors the year’s best in food, fashion and lifestyle programs on television, film, online and radio. "Looking back on the memories of me as a little girl standing at our kitchen counter pretending to have my own cooking show makes this award such an honor and privilege to receive," said Kimberly. "Thank you so much to the Taste Awards and to the fans who took the time to vote for me and make this dream come true! I am so very grateful." Kimberly’s Simply Southern is currently filming season 3 and is expected to premiere this spring on GAC. To view photo

Nashville, TN (January 17, 2014) – Nashville newcomers Dan + Shay will be joining Blake Shelton and The Band Perry on Shelton’s Ten Times Crazier Tour 2014, set to launch this summer in June. Celebrating the recent release of their debut single "19 You + Me," Dan + Shay became the most added new duo of 2013 at Country Radio with their breakout hit, which has impressively already landed in the Top 20 on the charts only thirteen weeks after its introduction. Garnering an impressive 59 first-week adds at Country Radio, Dan + Shay have set a new record for the biggest first week by a new duo in Country Aircheck history. The nostalgic feel-good single was written by the pair along with Nashville songwriter Danny Orton and is the first track from their forthcoming album due out later this year on Warner Bros. Records. A lyric video for “19 You + Me” created by the duo and videographer Patrick Tracy is posted on DanAndShay.com and has just surpassed 1 million views, while the

FASTER HORSES FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR SECOND YEAR WITH UNRIVALED LINE UP INCLUDING TIM MCGRAW, KEITH URBAN,MIRANDA LAMBERT, KIP MOORE, LITTLE BIG TOWN AND MORE PASSES FOR THE THREE-DAY CAMPING AND MUSIC FESTIVAL GO ON SALE JAN. 23 Nashville, TN – Jan. 13, 2014 – The Faster Horses Festival is returning for a second year on July 18, 19 and 20, after its hugely successful first run last summer which saw over 20,000 fans per day head for the Irish Hills of Brooklyn, MI. This year's line up for the three day "hillbilly sleepover" includes superstars Tim McGraw, Keith Urban and Miranda Lambert along with top acts Little Big Town, Kip Moore, Brett Eldredge, Joe Diffie, Jana Kramer, Ashley Monroe, Parmalee, Cassadee Pope, Dan + Shay, Dee Jay Silver, Chris Stapleton, Cole Swindell and Austin Webb, with more to be announced in the coming weeks. Three-day festival and camping passes go on sale Thurs., Jan. 23 at 10:00 A ET. For more information, visit fasterhorsesfestival.co

McGraw Unveils Details For The SUNDOWN HEAVEN TOWN 2014 TOUR Nashville, TN- Jan. 13, 2014- Coming on the heels of three consecutive No. one smash hits and a sold out tour in 2013, Superstar Tim McGraw is riding major momentum into the new year with brand new music and plans for an even bigger summer ahead. "Lookin' For That Girl," the lead single from his next Big Machine Records release, is available to radio today and to fans for purchase at iTunes on Jan. 21. Entertainment Weekly is offering a first listen of the song available here. "This last year was unbelievable, and I don't have any plans to let off the gas now. We didn't want to waste any time getting new music out," said McGraw. "With every album, my approach is to push a few of my own boundaries and try things I've never done before. It was hard to choose a lead single off this project because I really felt like we had six or seven good options. I kept coming back to 

Nashville, TN – Jan. 13, 2014 - Seven–time GRAMMY award-winning trio Lady Antebellum returned to the stage this weekend on their headlining TAKE ME DOWNTOWN TOUR. Saturday night's show (pictured here) in Toledo, OH at the Huntington Center hosted a capacity crowd of eager fans. "It's indisputable that Lady A has amazing chemistry that has grown stronger…" noted the Toledo Blade. "The one impression to take away from Lady A's 90-minute set was the enthusiasm that the set was delivered…the unbridled joy on the faces of the three close friends was priceless." This weekend, the tour continues to Fargo, ND and Rapid City, SD with special guests Kip Moore and Kacey Musgraves. For a full list of tour dates and for ticket information, visit www.ladyantebellum.com.

Nashville, TN – January 15, 2014 – Award winning singer/songwriter Dierks Bentley is amping up his 2014 tour schedule with the announcement today he will headline the 2014 RISER TOUR. The first leg will kick off May 9 in Charlotte, NC and continue through the summer with special guests Chris Young, Chase Rice and Jon Pardi. Fans can purchase tickets beginning Jan. 24 for select cities as part of tour promoter Live Nation’s Country Megaticket at www.Megaticket.com and additional ticket information will be available in the coming weeks at www.dierks.com. “This tour is the culmination of everything I've been working on for the past two years, both out on the road and in the studio recording RISER,” said Bentley. "I know what my fans want: a kick ass show, an affordable ticket and a good parking lot scene to get the pre-gaming going! The guys opening the show and getting the party started all know how to put on a great live show, and when it comes time for my set, I can promise t

STADIUM SHOWS SET FOR 2014 SUMMER ALL DATES ON FIRST LEG OF TOUR HAVE SOLD-OUT! Nashville - (January 14, 2014) – Reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Luke Bryan is kicking-off the New Year with the announcement of his first-ever headline stadium shows, which will take place this summer on his “That’s My Kind of Night Tour.” The stadium dates are: June 21 in Pittsburgh, Penn. at Heinz Field; Lincoln Financial Field on August 15 in Philadelphia, Penn. and on August 31 in Chicago, Ill. at Soldier Field. The tour’s second leg will launch on May 3 in Vancouver, BC at Rogers Arena and will run through October. Luke, along with Brian O’Connell, President, Live Nation Nashville, revealed the stadium dates this morning during a press conference held at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena where Luke is busy rehearsing for the tour’s first-leg kick off on January 16 in Columbus, Ohio. Fans can purchase tickets beginning Jan. 24 for select cities on the second leg of the tour as part of Li

First Announced Stadium Dates Will Include Special Guests Florida Georgia Line and Tyler Farr Nashville, TN – January 9, 2014 – From New York City this morning, Multi-Platinum entertainer Jason Aldean announced the details of his 2014 BURN IT DOWN TOUR that will kick off May 1 in Roanoke, VA and continue on to roughly 50 cities through the end of the year. Red-hot duo Florida Georgia Line and breakthrough artist Tyler Farr are also on the bill. Aldean also revealed from MLB.com studios that the trek will hit baseball stadiums across the country, including Nationals Park (Washington, D.C.), Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia, PA), PNC Park (Pittsburgh, PA) and Great American Ball Park (Cincinnati, OH). Fans can purchase tickets beginning Jan. 24 for select cities as part of tour promoter Live Nation’s Country Megaticket at www.Megaticket.com, and additional ticketing information will be available in the coming weeks at www.jasonaldean.com. “It's no secret that I grew up dre

Award-Winning Duo “Stay” On Top With Fourth Consecutive, Multi-Week #1 In US & Canada FGL Joins Jason Aldean’s NIGHT TRAIN Tour 2014 Florida Georgia Line NASHVILLE, TN (January 7, 2014) – Following an epic 2013, it is no surprise that Florida Georgia Line is ringing in the New Year on top. The award-winning duo's breakout MULTI-PLATINUM debut “Cruise” has been named the best-selling digital Country single in history for sales of over 6.6 million downloads by Soundscan. To top it off, their passion-fueled single “Stay” dominated all four Country Radio charts in the US and Canada this week, marking their fourth consecutive, multi-week #1. FGL exploded with their smash “Cruise” and followed with the PLATINUM “Get Your Shine On” and GOLD “Round Here.” To date, more than 10 million tracks worldwide have been sold from FGL’s Republic Nashville debut album, HERE’S TO THE GOOD TIMES, which has been certified PLATINUM in the US and GOLD in Canada. The breakout duo closed