Pulse – Country Music News

Shania Twain has added six new dates to her 2023 Queen of Me Tour. The tour will now play in 49 cities across 55 dates within North America and Europe next year with the addition of second shows in Moncton, NB, and Glasgow, UK, along with new shows in Bethel, NY, New Orleans, LA, Leeds, UK, and Netherlands, NL. Tickets for the newly added dates go on sale starting Friday (December 2nd) at 10 a.m. local at LiveNation.com.

The Queen of Me Tour kicks off on Friday, April 28th at Spokane Arena in Spokane, WA and wraps up on Saturday, September 30th at Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam, NL. This will be Shania's first tour in nearly five years, following on the heels of her Las Vegas residency run.

Shania will be joined by special guests Kelsea Ballerini, Lindsay Ell, Hailey Whitters, Breland, Robyn Ottolini, Priscilla Block, and Mickey Guyton on select dates throughout the global tour.

Shania's upcoming album, also called Queen of Me, will be released on February 3rd.

Brett Young is following up his recent sold-out European tour with a headlining U.S. spring tour with special guests Morgan Evans and Ashley Cooke. The Brett Young: 5 Tour 3 2 1 launches on March 30th in Columbus, OH. Tickets will be available for purchase starting December 2nd at 10 a.m. local time at brettyoungmusic.com.

In other Brett news, he will release a new version of his song, "You Ain't Here To Kiss Me," on Friday (December 2nd). He said, "I can be a very emotional songwriter and, for some reason, the sad, reflective songs, often come naturally for me. The song is a true story about a situation my now wife and I had many years back - it just describes the feeling of missing someone and seeing everyone else around you in happy relationships. (Producer) Dann Huff has been wanting to cut a new version of it for a while so we thought the timing was right to give it a bit of a new life around this coming New Year."

Christmas is coming early for Luke Combs fans who also happen to love Crocs! He has collaborated with the shoe brand to create a new fishing-themed style complete with Mossy Oak camouflage pattern and Jibbitz charms that include a bobber, hook, and reel. The Luke Combs X Crocs collaboration will be available for just 24 hours beginning on Wednesday (November 30th) at 12 p.m. ET.

Luke shared the details on social media with a video message to fans along with a couple pictures of his latest Luke Combs X Crocs collaboration.

This marks Luke's fifth time to team up with Crocs.

Eric Church and his longtime manager, John Peets, have partnered to form a new endeavor and "all-inclusive enterprise" called Solid Entertainment, according to a release. The company will oversee Eric's new SiriusXM Channel, Outsiders Radio, and his Lower Broadway venue, bar and restaurant, called Chief's, along with his own in-house merchandise operation and fan club, known as the Church Choir.

Eric said, "I'm incredibly proud of the path we've taken to get to this point in all our careers and to have experienced so much of it together. As our business continues to expand in different areas, it was important to me to establish a team of people that is focused on this growth. None of us got into music for the business of it, yet it's part of how we are our most creative selves: through finding those other avenues for connection. It's humbling to be in a position where such incredibly talented people want to focus on the future together."

Peets added, "I am very proud to take our professional relationship to the next level. We have been working creatively together since 2004, and Solid Entertainment represents a fresh look and a continued commitment to all that we have built. I look forward to adding to this foundation with an eye towards all that is to come with the ongoing expansion of Eric's empire."

Eric's dedicated SiriusXM Channel officially launched on November 4th.

Chief's is supposed to open sometime in the new year.

Justin Moore says he initially hated his new single, "You, Me & Whiskey," featuring Priscilla Block. And by hate he means love. He explains: "When I first heard the title to ‘You, Me & Whiskey,' I thought, ‘I hate this song, cause I like the title and I didn't write it. And I'm only puttin' songs I wrote on this album.' And then I heard the song and said, ‘Well, crap. I gotta cut that.' And (laughs) naw, it's so well written, and a really good song, and it was nothing like anything we had for the album."

"You, Me & Whiskey" will be on Justin's upcoming album, which is scheduled for release in 2023.

He'll kick off his tour of the same name featuring Priscilla on February 2nd in Rapid City, SD.

Keith Urban is proud to be a part of what he calls the “tribe” of country music artists in Nashville, but fears things are changing. In a recent interview, he talked about his perceived division of that community, something he feels needs to be remedied.

He said, it’s like it’s being "ripped apart." He explained that “keeping it strong and keeping it together is really important."

He didn’t mention specifics, but he stressed the importance of having the support of friends and family during hard times.

Keith is a big supporter among his colleagues, he recently did something rare among artists, he attended and promoted the CMA Awards, despite not being nominated.

Kelsea Ballerini just bought a house from Kacey Musgraves. Through a private sale, she paid just under $2.5 million for the 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom, 3,494-square-foot home in Nashville.

According to Dirt.com, she signed the papers on November 16, the day after her divorce was finalized. Kelsea calls it her “dream home.”

Ingrid Andress is trying to clear up an internet rumor about her love life. She says that if you Google her name, it comes up that she’s married to Hall of Fame soccer player Abby Wambach.

Truth is, she’s not married at all but she does have a boyfriend. Ingrid told Taste of Country, “My boyfriend's like, 'What are you not telling me?'” She called the rumor “The most fake thing” she’s ever seen.

Ingrid recently celebrated a #1 song with "Wishful Drinking," a duet with Sam Hunt.

Sam Hunt released a new single and video over the long holiday weekend.  “Start Nowhere” was inspired from his experience of growing up in a small town.

In an interview with American Songwriter he talked about co-writing the song and said, “If you stay gone too long without coming home, you can get a little disconnected. Sometimes the only way to get your feet back on the ground is to go back home where you grew up.”

The music video is a compilation of real footage of his family and friends in his hometown of Cedartown, Georgia.

Luke Bryan has been a judge on American Idol since 2018 and he’s geared up for a new season to launch February 18. Luke tells us more: [“Facilitating the American dream of people that are chasing their dreams and chasing the stars, that’s the neatest thing about American Idol. When a kid walks through the door, you never know if they’re gonna change our lives, change their lives and change some people watching at home, change their lives too. That’s the special part about American Idol, a kid can walk in and for the rest of their life, they can go follow their dreams and do what they love – sing music.”] SOUNDCUE :28 (OC: sing music)

Thomas Rhett heads into Thanksgiving day tomorrow (Thursday, November 24th) with one more thing to be grateful for -- his 20th Number One hit in less than a decade with this week's chart-topper, "Half of Me," featuring Riley Green. The song tops both the Billboard and Mediabase/Country Aircheck charts this week making it the longest active consecutive Number One streak on the Country Aircheck chart, according to a release.

Thomas said, "20 No. Ones in 10 years is mind-blowing. The support since 2012 by radio, songwriters, my team and all the fans has been incredible. This is insane and I'm so grateful for this wild ride! I can't wait to see what the next decade has in store."

In 2013, Thomas scored his first Number One single, "It Goes Like This." He co-wrote the track with his father Rhett Akins, along with Ben Hayslip and Jimmy Robbins, standing out as the first Number One song written by a father and son.

Lady A's Charles Kelley shared a personal new song that he just wrote on social media yesterday (Wednesday, November 22nd). It's called "As Far As You Could," and Charles captioned the post, "This song is my goodbye letter to alcohol…I wrote ‘As Far As You Could' with my bandmate Dave (Haywood) and the talented Jimmy Robbins and this is the demo. This song was very therapeutic to write and I hope it can meet someone where they are."

Charles has shared his struggles with alcohol over the past few years, even bowing out of the trio's Request Line Tour, which was ultimately postponed this past August in order to support Charles' "journey to sobriety."

Cody Johnson says he basically avoids sweets throughout the year, but he makes an exception on Thanksgiving Day. He tells us: "Man, I've really changed my eating habits over the years, and I've grown to where I really don't like sweets anymore. Come Thanksgiving, now that's different. I'm gonna clean you out of the banana pudding, and all the pie and all that good stuff, cobbler, but not really a sweets guy. I don't know, I don't know why I grew out of that."

Cody wraps up his tour for the year on December 9th with a sold out show at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas.

He continues climbing the charts with his current Top 30 hit, "Human."

Everyone has their favorite Thanksgiving dinner must-haves, and for Ryan Hurd and Maren Morris, they can agree on one thing -- carbs! They tell us: "My favorite Thanksgiving side is, I think, mashed potatoes. (Maren) Yeah, I mean anything carb-related but I mean I think when it's done right like green bean casserole is the jam. (Ryan) Oh heck yeah. Last year we had a turkey and then we also did a prime rib so we kind of mixed it up for people and feel like that gave us all a new perspective."

Ryan and Maren have spent the past several days at an unknown tropical destination as they've kept fans updated with several social media picture posts.

Matt Stell's chart-topping hit, "Prayed For You," was recently certified double platinum by the RIAA. He was visiting his label's New York City office last Wednesday (November 16th) when he was surprised with a plaque before performing at Mulcahy's in Wantagh, NY, during his The Man Made Tour.

Matt said, "If I told you when we sat down to write ‘Prayed For You' that I knew it would one day go double Platinum, I'd be lying. I've said it before, but it takes so many people doing a great job to have success in this business. It starts with a song, but it certainly doesn't end there. I‘m lucky to be on this team and get to celebrate with everyone because this is a win for us all."

He continues climbing the country charts with his latest single, "Man Made."

Hank Williams, Jr. and producer and Black Keys member Dan Auerbach will be featured on PBS' Front And Center, set to air on Saturday (November 26th). The two were recorded at Nashville's American Legion Post 82 in an intimate set. Check local listings for times.

Kenny Chesney has announced his 2023 tour plans and so far, they only include arena tours through the late spring. The I Go Back 2023 Tour will open on March 25th in State College, PA with special guest Kelsea Ballerini on all dates. The tour is currently scheduled to wrap up on May 27th in Orange Beach, AL followed by a previously announced date at the Hy-Vee Indy Race in Des Moines, IA on July 22nd.

Kenny said, "'I Go Back' is a song about holding all those things that shaped you very close and keeping them alive anyway you can. In 2023, I decided rather than just go repeat what we did on this summer's stadium tour, I wanted to take this band and these songs to a lot of the cities we played on our way up, call it the I Go Back Tour and do just that."

Kenny and Kelsea won the 2021 Country Music Association Vocal Event and Video of the Year for their hit duet, "Half of My Hometown," as well as being nominated for 2022 CMA Single of the Year. Kenny said, "Kelsea understands everything about where I come from, because she's from there, too . . . I have been one of Kelsea's biggest fans ever since. She's a writer, a girl who sings from her heart and isn't afraid to honor where she comes from. To me, there was no other choice for this tour."

Kelsea added, "Music has taken me so many incredible places. Around the world, singing with some of my heroes in pop, alternative and contemporary music, but singing with Kenny is going home. He was the only voice I heard on ‘half of my hometown,' and when he comes in, it's just like hitting the Knoxville city limits. So to be able to go out to those cities like the place he and I grew up with an artist who's accomplished what he has, it's a lot like going home."

Tickets to the I Go Back Tour 2023 go on sale on December 2nd at 10 a.m. local time at KennyChesney.com.

Dierks Bentley's Thanksgiving meal is not complete without one rather important item. He tells us: "You gotta have a big turkey. Thanksgiving is not possible without a turkey. We cook it traditionally, but when we're in, a couple of Thanksgivings ago, we were here in Nashville, we did the whole fry the turkey up, and it was great. It just tasted so good; all those juices get locked in there, and I love that too. You really can't, to me, cook a turkey wrong. I'm gonna eat it any way, and I have over the years. I've done turkey every way you could do it. I'm pretty good any way you want to cook it up, but you've got to have a turkey for Thanksgiving."

Dierks will likely be giving thanks for his latest hit single, "Gold," which is a Top 20 hit and climbing on the country charts. The song will be included on his upcoming 10th studio album due out sometime next year.

Miranda Lambert doesn't only write songs. She's about to become a published author with the release of her very first cookbook called Y'all Eat Yet? The book includes 50 recipes that have been handed down to the singer from her grandmother and mother. Y'all Eat Yet? will be released on April 25th and will retail for $32.50.

Miranda shared the news and a few pictures of the book on social media writing in part, "I was blessed to be raised by two generations of hell-raising, hard working women who knew how to make people feel good. This is a look into our lives and the food we've made along the way."

Recipes included in the book are Nonny's Banana Pudding, Paw Paw's Bar-B-Que Sauce, Dutch Oven (Coffee Can) Campfire Cobbler, Stacked Enchilada Bake, Jalapeño Pimento Cheese, Roasted Root Vegetable Winter Salad, and Whiskey Cupcakes.

Steve Wariner, Lauren Alaina, Scotty McCreery, Steven Curtis Chapman; Chris Janson, Josh Turner and Chris Young, Lorrie Morgan, and Ricky Skaggs will all be performing during the month-long Opry Country Christmas at the Grand Ole Opry House. Hosted by Opry member Larry Gatlin, Opry Country Christmas will showcase songs of the holiday season beginning November 27th and running through December 22nd for a total of eight shows.

Additional artists scheduled for various Opry Country Christmas shows include John Berry, Louise Mandrell, Kathy Mattea, Jeannie Seely, and Rhonda Vincent. Tickets are on-sale now starting at $55.00 at opry.com.

Parker McCollum has announced dates for the second leg of his upcoming 2023 headlining tour, set to launch on May 18th in Toledo, OH. He will be joined by up-and-coming acts Larry Fleet, Jackson Dean and the Randy Rogers Band.

Parker said, "Cannot wait to be out on the road next year! Headlining a tour for most of the year and getting to take Larry Fleet and Jackson Dean along with me is going to be a blast. Such a talented guys who deserve the spotlight."

Tickets go on sale to the general public on December 2nd at 10 a.m. local time at ParkerMcCollum.com.

Parker's next single, "Stoned," will head to Country radio early next month.

Lainey Wilson debuted her original song, "Smell Like Smoke," during episode 503 of Paramount Network's hit series Yellowstone. Lainey made her acting debut in the Season 5 premiere as a musician named Abby, a role co-creator Taylor Sheridan created specifically for her, and one that will see her sing more original music throughout the season.

Tenille Townes will make her acting debut in Hallmark Movies & Mysteries new original Time for Him to Come Home for Christmas. The movie will premiere on Saturday (November 26th) at 10 p.m. ET on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries as part of the network's annual "Miracles of Christmas" programming event. It's the fifth installment from executive producer Blake Shelton, based on the book Time for Me to Come Home by Dorothy Shackleford, who is Blake's mother, and Travis Thrasher, and Blake's song of the same name, which Tenille performs during the film.