One Country

Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw To Tour Together In 2012

McGraw Says Tour Mates Will ‘Make Each Other Better’

By Phyllis Stark Nov 14, 2011 6:27PM

It’ll be black hat vs. straw hat when Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney hit the road together for next year’s Brothers of the Sun tour, an outing their publicists are already helpfully calling the “musical event of 2012.”

The 19-date stadium tour kicks off June 2, 2012 in Tampa, Fla., and runs through Aug. 25, where it wraps in Foxboro, Mass.

Brothers of the Sun will be the first time in 10 years that Chesney and McGraw have toured together. The tour will also feature opening acts rock band Grace Potter & The Nocturnals and country singer Jake Owen.

Chesney will close the shows, he tells Billboard.biz. “Technically I am closing, but Tim and I are going to give the fans their money’s worth,” Chesney says. “If I was being correct about it, I’d say me and Tim are closing. We’re going to try and change it up every night, have as much fun as we possibly can.”

McGraw, who has been friends with Chesney since they were both new artists in the early ’90s, tells Billboard.biz there is a competitive aspect to the relationship. “We’re great friends, but we're also competitive guys, too,” he says. “We played basketball when we were on tour last time, his guys against my guys, and got in heated competitions. Of course, you know we kicked their ass. But he’s a great competitor, as am I . . . The fun we'll have pushing each other [on tour], I think we’re going to make each other better."

“Tim and I have been great friends since we first toured together, and I can’t wait to get back on the road with him,” Chesney said in a press release announcing the tour. “He’s one of my closest friends in music and in life, and I know this tour is going to be something special.”

“Our friendship was forged on the road, so it’s going to be a blast heading out with Kenny again,” added McGraw. “We'll be having as much fun on stage as the fans will be having in the audience.”

Tickets for shows in Dallas, Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Chicago; East Rutherford, N.J.; Detroit; and Foxboro will go on sale December 3 through Ticketmaster. On-sale info for the remaining dates will be announced in the coming weeks.

Taylor Swift Is CMA Entertainer Of The Year

Tells Fans 'You Have Made My Year'

By Phyllis Stark Nov 9, 2011 10:07PM

After what was shaping up to be a winless night, a delighted Taylor Swift bounded to the stage when her name was called for the CMA's top prize: entertainer of the year, an honor she previously won in 2009.

"This is thanks to all the fans who filled up those stadiums and arenas all over the world this year," she said, referencing her internationally popular Speak Now Tour. She thanked by name each of the fellow artists who came out at her U.S. shows and performed surprise duets with the 21-year-old singer in various cities.

Addressing her fans, Swift said, "You have made my year."

After the show, Swift told the media, "The reason why we celebrate like we just won the Superbowl is because there are some many people involved in making something like this happen."

On her songwriting, Swift said, "The most amazing feeling is to see a song start out as an idea that hits you in the middle of your day and haunts you until you write it, and then you’re playing it in your living room, and then it goes out into the world and you can look out at a crowd of 50,000 people and they’re singing it back to you.

"You spend so much time daydreaming about your future and it’s a blast to call it a career."

Miranda Lambert Tops CMA Female Vocalist Category

It's a Repeat Win For Lambert

By Phyllis Stark Nov 9, 2011 10:00PM

Tonight's CMA Award winners are reminiscent of last year, with several artists repeating in the categories they dominated in 2010. The latest to do so is Miranda Lambert, just named the CMA's female vocalist of the year once again.

Like her husband Blake Shelton, who won the male vocalist prize for the second consecutive year a few minutes earlier, Lambert said she had not expected to win.

Addressing fellow nominees Sara Evans, Martina McBride, Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood, Lambert said, "I am very, very humbled to be standing up in front of these great women who deserve it."

Backstage after the show, she commented about one of the themes of the show being the power of young, female singer songwriters with wins for herself, Kimberly Perry and Taylor Swift. Lambert said a song lyric ran through her mind when Swift won: "Who rules the world? Girls."

And with her latest album her fourth to debut at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart, Lambert said, "You hope when you get into this business you can make history, and to actually see it happen is [amazing]."

Blake Shelton Repeats As CMA Male Vocalist

Thanks The 'Crazy People' For The Win

By Phyllis Stark Nov 9, 2011 9:27PM

Blake Shelton was a repeat winner in the CMA's male vocalist of the year category, an award he also won last year.

A clearly surprised Shelton said he hadn't prepared a speech because, "I didn’t think y’all would let me get away with this two times."

He thanked his record label, management team and wife, but saved his most effusive thanks for his fans, whom he referred to as "all you freaking crazy people out here”

Backstage after the show, a true to form Shelton made an unprintable phallic joke about the trophy.

On a more serious note, he said, "Last year maybe I got the underdog vote, but this year I didn’t think I could get away with that." But now, with a second win under his belt, Shelton said, "For the first time I feel secure in the country music industry because it’s such a fickle industry. I feel like last year wasn’t just a fluke now."

Lady Antebellum Wins Vocal Group

One More Win For The Band Perry

By Phyllis Stark Nov 9, 2011 9:20PM

No surprises in the CMA vocal group category with Lady Antebellum scoring the win for the third year in a row. They bested contenders the Band Perry, Little Big Town, Rascal Flatts and Zac Brown Band.

But the Band Perry was hardly disappointed. Moments later, they were back on stage accepting their third award of the night, this one in the new artist category, where they reigned over three seasoned acts, Luke Bryan, Eric Church and Chris Young, as well as another genuine newcomer, Thompson Square.

With just 40 minutes left in the show, The Band Perry is emerging as the night's biggest winner.

Backstage later in the night, the Band Perry's Kimberly Perry, who was wearing a vintage dress made in 1905, said, "The CMAs have always been the Superbowl in the Band Perry household, so we feel like we’re waking away with Superbowl rings.

Asked about their crossover success on pop radio, Perry said, "We sort of feel like we’re part of the country evangelism team. We like hearing country songs on pop radio."

Chesney, Potter Talk About CMA Video Win

'The Chemistry Was Obvious,' Chesney Says

By Phyllis Stark Nov 9, 2011 8:56PM

Backstage at the CMA Awards, Kenny Chesney, Grace Potter and director Shaun Silva talked about their video of the year win earlier in the night for "You and Tequila."

Chesney said the success of the song, sung by two artists who had never met before the recording session, shows "the power of music." He said the song is "such a tortured soul song , so when I recorded it I felt like I needed the female perspective." He was familiar with Potter's music, particularly a song she's written when she was 17 called "Apologies," which he says "killed me," and knew she was the right fit for "You and Tequila."

In the studio, he said, "the chemistry was obvious and Shaun captured that chemistry," on the video.

Potter called the video "an unbeleivable illustration of a song about subtlety and longing." She also noted that what she's learned doing a few tour dates with Chesney this summer is that "Country music and rock and roll are really not that different."

Spoiler Alert: Jason Aldean Wins Album Of The Year

Trophy For 'My Kinda Party' Is His Second Of The Night

By Phyllis Stark Nov 9, 2011 8:35PM

Jason Aldean is already a repeat winner at the CMA Awards, adding an album of the year prize for "My Kinda Party" to the musical event prize he won even before the telecast began.

In the coveted album category, Aldean beat out strong competition from Taylor Swift, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton and Zac Brown Band.

"What a year," Aldean declared in his acceptance speech, before going on to thank his wife and daughters, his team and producer Michael Knox, who shared the award with him.

"This is the guy that found me in a club in Atlanta, Ga., brought me to town 13 years ago and has made every record I’ve ever done," he said of Knox. "I wouldn’t be here without him.”

Backstage after the show, Aldean said he thought he had a shot at winning the musical event prize based on the success of his duet with Kelly Clarkson, but the album of the year win was a complete surprise.

"It was just a cool night altogether," he says of the awards show. "This album’s been really special in a lot of ways.

"I definitely think album of the year is a big one," he added. "To win something like this is cool simply because you get to share that with everybody [involved]. It’s kind of a group win."

He's already at work on his next album and said, "We’ve already found some great songs and the ball’s rolling now. I love the way the album’s shaping up."

Spoiler Alert: Sugarland Takes Home CMA Vocal Duo Prize

Thank The People Of Indiana In Acceptance Speech

By Phyllis Stark Nov 9, 2011 7:58PM

As expected, Sugarland was named the CMA's vocal duo of the year. They had been a virtual shoo-in in the category.

In a very brief acceptance speech, Jennifer Nettles said, "I’d like to dedicate this to the fans." Agreed partner Kristian Bush, "Our fans saved us this year." Nettles added a thank you to "the good folks of Indiana," a reference to the August tragedy before the Sugarland show at the Indiana State Fair in which their stage collapsed killing six fans and one crew member, and injuring 45 others.

about the blogger

Veteran entertainment journalist Phyllis Stark has been reporting extensively on the music industry for two decades. As a freelance writer, her work appears regularly in numerous publications and sites. She previously was Nashville Bureau Chief at Billboard magazine.

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