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XM Christmas Music Lineup 2009

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Well... country music is back on XM/Sirius Radio for Christmas. Last year, it was not available... this year, thankfully there is.

Country Christmas will be on XM channel 10 and Sirius channel 62 beginning December 7, 2009 and will conclude on Christmas.

Other Christmas music available on XM/Sirius include Holly SIR 3 / XM 23 (contemporary,) Holiday Traditions SIR 4 / XM 4 (traditional,) Holiday Pops SIR 79 / XM 22 (classical,) and Radio Hanukkah SIR 76 / XM 28.

2009 American Music Awards: Country Music Winners

Monday, November 23, 2009

Here are the country music related winners of the 2009 American Music Awards:

ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Taylor Swift

POP/ROCK
Female Artist: Taylor Swift

COUNTRY
Male Artist: Keith Urban
Female Artist: Taylor Swift
Band, Duo or Group: Rascal Flatts
Album: Fearless, Taylor Swift

ADULT CONTEMPORARY
Artist: Taylor Swift

T-Mobile BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST (ALL GENRES)
Gloriana

CMT Crossroads: Zac Brown Band and Jimmy Buffett

Thursday, November 19, 2009


Well, another CMT Crossroads has been announced. This one sounds like a lot of fun...

Zac Brown Band and Jimmy Buffett will be the focus of the next episode. It will be recorded in December, and then set to air sometime in March of 2010.

Lee Ann Womack Added To reba McEntire & George Strait Tour

Wow, I wanted to see the tour really bad to begin with, but now Lee Ann Womack has been added to the George Strait / Reba McEntire tour... it is now beyond a required attendance event. Event doesn't even quite come close to the magnitude of talent appearing in one night. This lineup even beats out some of the previous George Strait Country Music Festivals I've attended.

I can't imagine how truly special this show will be.

Once again, here is the tour dates for the 22-city tour:

22-Jan Baltimore, MD 1st Mariner
23-Jan Greensboro, NC Coliseum
29-Jan Knoxville, TN Thompson Boling
30-Jan Charlottesville, VA JPJ Arena
5-Feb Phoenix, AZ US Airways
6-Feb Las Vegas, NV MGM Garden Arena
18-Feb St Louis, MO Scottrade Center
19-Feb Wichita, KS Intrust Bank Arena
20-Feb Tulsa, OK BOK Arena
25-Feb Atlanta, GA Philips Arena
26-Feb Orlando, FL Amway Arena
4-Mar Memphis, TN FedEx Forum
5-Mar New Orleans, LA New Orleans Arena
6-Mar Little Rock, AR Verizon
26-Mar Portland, OR The Rose Garden
27-Mar Tacoma, WA Tacomadome
8-Apr Omaha, NE Qwest Center
9-Apr Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
10-Apr Des Moines, IA Wells Fargo Arena

CMA Awards' Ratings & Sales


This year's CMA Awards were great, and the ratings showed it:


16.8-million people watched the show for a 10.1-Rating/16-Share and won each time-slot during the show's 3-hours. This was ABC's biggest non-sportsWednesday audience in over 4-years.


CMT.com reports that their website experienced its highest-streamed CMA Awards week in history this year, with 1.6 million video streams in three days. CMT.com's CMA Red Carpet experienced a 25% increase in live streams over last year. They also had a 74% increase in video streams alone on the day after the awards.


This blog saw a 280% jump in page views overall, with the increased traffic being contributed to the awards and other factors.


As far as sales the week after the show... Good news, bad news.


Jamey Johnson saw an increase of 286% compared to the previous week sales of the current album. Lady Antebellum up 130%, Sugarland up 136%, Sugarland up 110%, Brad Paisley was up 94%, Darius Rucker up 83%, Zac Brown Band up 55%, Taylor Swift 30%, and Miranda Lambert up 25%.


Even with all the individual success of the week, it wsan't that good for country music as a whole. Sales were down 7% from the previous week, with Carrie Underwood's "Play On" in the top sales position with 128,000 in sales.

Kenny Chesney's Summer In 3-D

Wednesday, November 18, 2009




This April, Kenny Chesney will be on the big screen, and no, not the those big ones that you are used to seeing him on at his sold-out shows. The movie theater big screen, but it will be a lot like those big screens at the concert venue... the movie is titled "Kenny Chesney's Summer In 3-D."

This special event movie will bring Kenny Chesney's concert right to you in your local movie theater as a limited engagement. The 3D footage for the movie was shot over six nights in five locations -- Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Seattle, Foxboro, and Indianapolis -- using a total of 22 3D camera rigs.

The 3-D movie concert experience is set for release in April 2010. You can get more information and sign-up for alerts at http://www.thehotticket.net for when tickets will go on sale in your area.

Sounds and looks very cool to me...



ACM Announces New Board Members

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Here is the new Board Members of the Academy of Country Music....

Directors are elected from each category based on the number of members in that category. Each director serves staggered two-year terms, with half the board membership changing each year.

ACM Board Members:

  • Affiliated
  • Tony Brown/TBE, John Briggs/ASCAP Nashville
  • Artist/Entertainer/MBI
  • Craig Morgan, Dave Pomeroy/American Federation of Musicians, Blake Shelton
  • Club/Casino/Venue
  • Ed Warm/Joe’s Bar, Mark Hartley/Fitzgerald Hartley
  • Music Publisher
  • Pat Higdon/Universal Music Publishing
  • Record Company
  • Fletcher Foster/Universal South, Butch Waugh/Sony Music Nashville

    Directors At Large

  • Scott Borchetta/Big Machine Records-The Valory Music Co, Duane Clark/Flood Bumstead McCready & McCarthy
  • Benson Curb/Curb Records, Steve Dahl/PARADIGM
  • John Esposito/Warner Music Group Nashville, Matt Fischer/iTunes
  • Pete Fisher/Grand Ole Opry, Gary Gilbert/Manatt Phelps & Phillips
  • Gary Haber/Haber Corporation, Gayle Holcomb/William Morris Endeavor
  • Wade Jessen/Billboard, Bill Lardie/Anderson Merchandisers
  • Ken Levitan/Vector Management, Eddie Montgomery/Montgomery Gentry
  • Fran Romeo/Romeo Entertainment Group, Ben Vaughn/EMI Music Publishing
  • ACM Lifting Lives Chairman Gary Haber and President Gayle Holcomb and their new Board:

  • Lori Badgett/Sun Trust Bank
  • Debbie Carroll/MusiCares
  • Mike Dungan/Capitol Nashville
  • Ann Edelblute/19 Entertainment
  • Fletcher Foster/Universal South
  • Gary Gilbert/Manatt Phelps & Phillips
  • George Strait Acting Again...

    Looks like George Strait will be starring in a new movie titled "A Pure Country Gift."

    Reports are saying that the movie will be about three angels who give the gift of a beautiful singing voice to a newborn girl. As she gets older she breaks some of the angels' rules and they take away her singing voice.

    Katrina Elam will also be acting in the movie. She is played as a 9-year-old by Kaitlyn Dorff, daughter of Steve Dorff, who composed the music for the original "Pure Country" and will also compose the music for the upcoming movie.

    The movie will be directed by Chris Cain, which directed Strait's previous movie "Pure Country" and is being filmed in Nashville where there has been a few chance to be an "extra"

    It appears to be a holiday themed movie, and possible release date during the holiday season of 2010.


    2009 43rd Annual CMA Awards: Commentary

    Thursday, November 12, 2009




    Now the show is over, the parties have ended, and the awards have been given out it is time to reflect back on the show from yesterday...

    First, some shameless self-promotion... I predicted correctly video, event, album, duo, female, musician, and entertainer awards (7). Not so good on new artist, song, group, male, and single (6.) So hey, not bad.

    Personally, the award winners overall I believe were the right choices, overall. A few misses and a few that were so close in their merits, there was no way to pick a true winner. When voting, I must say it was really tough to choose. Two big surprises of the night, that were pleasant surprises was Lady Antebellum for Group and Single, and of course what seems to be one of the biggest headlines of the show Darius Rucker winning New Artist of the Year.

    Rucker's win was so great, his performance and his acceptance speech were of such high class. Yes, I know he is not new to music or performing, but there was something special about him that night. When he said thanks to the fans for accepting him.. I don't think he was exclusively talking about his color of skin, rather more so allowing a pop artist come to country music and perform country music, and be accepted. Accepted, to say the least Darius.. try welcomed and the gratitude of the fans show through the straight #1 songs. Quiet impressive for a "new artist" I'd say.

    For the performances, it was an interesting year. They were actually very good, overall. Some year's not so much, this year, right on. Each and everyone of them were enjoyable and full of energy. The first performance of Taylor Swift, when watching it live, I thought was a miss, but the second watch it was actually pretty good. Whatever your thought on her first performance was, the second time around certainly made up for it! Overall, this year's show really showcased not only the pop-country styles, but, real country as well that has come to be such a trending focus of country music of present. In the past years, I'd never imagine Jamey Johnson being on stage.. or Daughtry and Vince Gill doing such a great song... the list goes on.

    Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood as hosts have now established themselves as great hosts. Entertaining, representative of the music, made the show a lot of fun, and kept the show moving along at a good pace. They made this year's show just even better.

    The show should showcase the music of the past year and its performers, but also be a summary of the overall sound, and this year I feel The CMA did this perfectly.

    Another year is complete... let the countdown begin to the 44th CMA Awards, a year is a long time in the world of country music and I'm excited to see whats in store...

    2009 CMA Awards: Performances

    Here is this year's list of performances. Also provided are clips from those albums that are available for download! Amazon downloads are DRM-free and can be played on any device that supports MP3...

    2009 CMA Awards Performances
    • Forever & Always- Taylor Swift
    • Alright- Darius Rucker
    • White Liar- Miranda Lambert
    • Welcome to the Future- Brad Paisley
    • Devil Went Down to Georgia- Zac Brown Band
    • I Need You Now- Lady Antebellum
    • Cowboy Casanova- Miranda Lambert
    • Tennessee Line- Daughtry with Vince Gill*
    • 'Til Summer Comes Around-Keith Urban
    • Southern Voice- Tim McGraw
    • Keep You- Sugarland
    • Honky Tonk Stomp- Brooks & Dunn
    • Between Jennings and Jones- Jamey Johnson with Kid Rock*
    • Fifteen- Taylor Swift
    • Big Green Tractor- Jason Aldean
    • Consider Me Gone- Reba McEntire
    • People Are Crazy- Billy Currington
    • I'm Alive- Kenny Chesney with Dave Matthews
    *These songs were special performances, and only the solo version of the song is available at this time.


    What a show of great performances for sure! More commentary coming soon about the show

    2009 CMA Winners

    Wednesday, November 11, 2009




    Event of The Year
    "Start A Band"
    Brad Paisley / Keith Urban

    Musician of The Year
    Mac McAnally

    Video of The Year
    "Love Story"
    Taylor Swift

    Single of The Year
    "I Run To You"
    Lady Antebellum

    Song of The Year
    "In Color"
    Jamey Johnson

    Group of the Year
    Lady Antebellum

    New Artist of the Year
    Darius Rucker

    Duo of the Year
    Sugarland

    Male Artist of the Year
    Brad Paisley

    Album of the Year
    "Fearless" Taylor Swift

    Female Artist of the Year
    Taylor Swift

    Entertainer of the Year
    Taylor Swift

    2009 CMA Awards

    Want to chat just a bit during the show? You can send me a message over on the right side of the blog page under E-mail & Live chat. I'll try to be available as much as I can during the coverage..

    I will be using Twitter during the show.. cntryalive is the username to follow, can setup SMS messages if you wont be in front of the computer during the show.


    News Channel 5's webcam updates every 5 minutes or so, you can view that to see a little bit of whats going on from the outside.
    http://www.newschannel5.com/Global/category.asp?C=101671

    WKRN will have live coverage on the red carpet beginning at 7pm EST.
    http://www.wkrn.com/global/Category.asp?C=178272

    The Country Music Is Love blog is holding a live chat...
    http://www.countrymusicislove.com/chat

    2009 CMA Awards Coverage

    Tuesday, November 10, 2009

    Country Music Alive will be following the 43rd Annual Country Music Association Awards this year in a few formats...

    The live- as it happens comments, winners, and other great information during the award show itself follow me on Twitter! I will begin shortly after 5:00pm EST. If you aren't going to be near a television, follow and add me to your SMS following for updates to your mobile phone. You can find Country Music Alive on Twitter as username: cntryalive

    Of course, here on the blog I will have the winners list posted directly after the show, usually within 5 minutes of its conclusion. The performance list (who sang what) will be out shortly after the show or definitely by the next day. Then, in the days after plenty of commentary and such.

    In case you don't know...

    The CMT Red Carpet Show will air on CMT at 7:00pm EST.
    The 43rd Annual CMA Awards will be aired live on ABC at 8pm EST.

    Performers for the CMA Awards are: Jason Aldean, Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney and Dave Mathews, Billy Currington, Vince Gill and Daughtry, Kid Rock and Jamey Johnson, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker, George Strait, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, and Zac Brown Band.

    Presenters are Dale Earnhardt Jr., Neil Flynn, Patricia Heaton, Julianne Hough, Randy Houser, The Judds, Kid Rock, Kris Kristofferson, Jake Owen, Kellie Pickler, LeAnn Rimes, Robin Roberts, and Lee Ann Womack.

    CMT will air a re-cap show on Saturday Nov. 14 at 1:30pm EST. CMT will also re-air the entire show later this month.

    CMA Predictions From Other Sites..

    Here are few other websites in what they are predicting for tomorrow night!

    Prediction roundup...

    Tha Good Life Reviews .com


    Entertainer Of The Year…. Taylor Swift

    Album Of The Year…. Fearless-Taylor Swift

    Female Vocalist Of The Year... Reba McEntire

    Male Vocalist Of The Year …. Kenny Chesney

    Music Video Of The Year…. “Boots On” – Randy Houser

    Musical Event Of The Year…. “Start A Band” – Brad Paisley w/ Keith Urban

    Best New Artist Of The Year…. Zac Brown Band

    Best Single Of The Year …. “Chicken Fried” – Zac Brown Band

    Best Song Of The Year …. “Then” – Brad Paisley

    Vocal Duo Of The Year…. Brooks & Dunn

    Vocal Group Of The Year…. Rascal Flatts


    From Country Universe:


    Entertainer: Brad Paisley

    Female: Carrie Underwood

    Male: Brad Paisley

    Duo: Sugarland

    Group: Lady Antebellum

    New Artist: Darius Rucker

    Album: Jamey Johnson

    Single: "In Color"

    Song: "In Color"

    Event: "I Told You So"

    Video: "Love Story"


    Roughstock.com:


    Video: "Boots On"

    Event: "Down The Road"

    Group: Zac Brown

    Duo: Brooks & Dunn

    New Artist: Darius Rucker

    Female: Carrie Underwood

    Male: Brad Paisley

    Single: "Then"

    Song: "In Color"


    Urban Country Blog:

    Single: "Then" / "Chicken Fried" tie

    Song: "In Color"

    Album: Fearless

    Group: Rascal Flatts

    Duo: Sugarland

    Musician: Mac McAnally

    Video: "Love Story"

    Event: "Start A Band"

    New Artist: Zac Brown

    Female: Carrie Underwood

    Male: Keith Urban

    Entertainer: Taylor Swift



    My Kind of Country:


    Entertainer: Brad Paisley

    Male: Brad Paisleu

    Female: Miranda Lambert

    Group: Zac Brown

    Duo: Sugarland

    New: Jamey Johnson

    Musician: Paul Franklin

    Album: That Lonesome Song

    Single: "In Color"

    Song: "In Color"

    Event: "Everything But Quits"

    Video: "Troubador"



    The 9513


    Entertainer Of The Year: Brad Paisley
    Male Vocalist of The Year: Brad Paisley
    Female Vocalist of The Year: Carrie Underwood
    Vocal Group of The Year: Zac Brown Band
    Vocal Duo of The Year: Sugarland
    New Artist of The Year: Jamey Johnson
    Musician of The Year: Mac Macanally and Paul Franklin (tie)
    Album of The Year: Jamey Johnson – That Lonesome Song
    Single of The Year: Jamey Johnson – “In Color”
    Song of The Year: Jamey Johnson – “In Color” and Billy Currington – “People Are Crazy” (tie)
    Musical Event of The Year: Randy Travis and Carrie Underwood – “I Told You So”
    Video of The Year: Taylor Swift – “Love Story”

    George Strait and Reba McEntire Tour Together

    Tuesday, November 03, 2009

    Well, first there was the announcement of Trace Adkins and Martina McBride touring together... and now an announcement of another superstar duo hitting the tour schedule in 2010.

    George Strait and Reba McEntire will head out on tour together for 2010. Pretty exciting to think of seeing 2 such living legends on the same night and place. Just think all of the hits and record sales they have between them... mind boggling to think about.

    2010 TOUR DATES

    Date City Venue



    22-Jan Baltimore, MD 1st Mariner
    23-Jan Greensboro, NC Coliseum
    29-Jan Knoxville, TN Thompson Boling
    30-Jan Charlottesville, VA JPJ Arena
    5-Feb Phoenix, AZ US Airways
    6-Feb Las Vegas, NV MGM
    18-Feb St Louis, MO Scottrade Center
    19-Feb Wichita, KS Intrust Bank Arena
    20-Feb Tulsa, OK BOK Arena
    25-Feb Atlanta, GA Philips Arena
    26-Feb Orlando, FL Amway Arena
    4-Mar Memphis, TN FedEx Forum
    5-Mar New Orleans, LA New Orleans Arena
    6-Mar Little Rock, AR Verizon
    26-Mar Portland, OR The Rose Garden
    27-Mar Tacoma, WA Tacomadome
    8-Apr Omaha, NE Qwest Center
    9-Apr Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
    10-Apr Des Moines, IA Wells Fargo Arena

    You know good and well, there will be more information on Country Music Alive on this tour...

    Win Brad Paisley's "American Saturday Night" CD

    Sunday, November 01, 2009

    Thank you all for the best month ever for Country Music Alive! October was just amazing with the number of visitors and comments! Lets make November even better by telling your friends and family about Country Music Alive!

    Remember to visit the website: http://www.countrymusicalive.com/
    Become a Fan on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/ygxcbxg
    Follow on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/cntryalive
    Subscribe to the Blog: (use form at top right)

    Now... as a way of saying thanks....

    I have 1 copy of Brad Paisley's "American Saturday Night" to give to 1 lucky winner! Send your name and city/state to contest@countrymusicalive.com by Friday November 6, 2009 at 12:00pm Eastern.

    1 entry per person, per e-mail address. No exceptions. Please, only United States mailing addresses only, due to shipping charges. You will be asked to reply with in 1 day with your mailing address if you are selected as the winner. The information collected will be only used for shipping. Contest entry email addresses will not be used for any reason. You will receive an automated response to confirm entry only. Good luck!