December 4, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

Hallmark Channel/Warner Music NashvilleFor the second year running, the Hallmark Channel teamed up with Music City-based record label Warner Music Nashville to compile some of the best holiday music of the season.

Hallmark’s Christmas Album Vol. 2 features contributions from a healthy sampling of country artists, including Brett Eldredge, Gabby Barrett, Ingrid Andress and many more.

As the modern-day king of country Christmas, Brett drops not one but two tracks into the collection. His renditions of “A Holly Jolly Christmas” and “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” are both featured.

Meanwhile, Gabby and Ingrid contribute newly-released Christmas music, with Ingrid’s original “Christmas Always Finds Me” and Gabby’s 2020 take on “The First Noel” both making the track list.

Elsewhere on the project, fans can find holiday tunes from Randy Travis, High Valley, Jessie James Decker and Shy Carter. Broadway stars Aaron Tveit and Laura Osnes and singer and actor Alicia Witt also add their vocals to the project.

The Hallmark Channel’s Christmas Album Vol. 2 is available digitally now.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 4, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

Stacie Huckeba/Butterfly Records, LLC As we near the end of 2020, Dolly Parton is sticking a little bit of extra Christmas magic in fans’ stockings.

Her newest release is the hopeful “I Still Believe,” a new bonus track on her holiday album, A Holly Dolly Christmas. The song expresses optimism and hope for better times ahead, even during a year that has been difficult on people around the world.

“I believe to my very core / We’ll walk again in the sunshine / By the seashore / That we’ll dance and sing / And be happy again,” Dolly sings in the soaring chorus. “Don’t know how or when / But we will again / You’ll see / I still believe…”

Dolly will perform the new song during her upcoming A Holly Dolly Christmas television special, which airs on Sunday, December 6 at 8:30PM ET on CBS.

The new song comes at the end of a banner year for Dolly, both musically and in terms of her humanitarian contributions. In addition to her Christmas album, she also released a song called “When Life is Good Again” earlier in 2020 as a powerful message of hope for listeners during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This spring, the superstar also offered a $1 million donation to help fund Moderna’s vaccine research. This November, early data from the company revealed that the vaccine that the singer’s contribution helped fund is 94.5% effective, and they’ve already asked the FDA for an Emergency Use Authorization.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 4, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

BMLG RecordsAfter teasing something big on social media yesterday, Florida Georgia Line has delivered on their promise of an exciting announcement. The superstar country duo told fans Friday morning that they’re fifth studio album, Life Rolls On, will be out next year.

“This year has been a wild ride, and if there’s one thing we’ve learned, you have to keep your head up high,” the pair reflected on social media. “This new music truly represents where we are in our lives right now and we can’t wait for y’all to hear it.”

While FGL hasn’t yet shared an official track list, Life Rolls On will likely include their latest single, “Long Live,” which the band dropped in September. That song plays in the background of their social media teaser for their new album’s announcement.

Furthermore, it seems fans may be able to get an additional sneak peek into the track listing: FGL said when they announced their new album that anyone who pre-orders the album now will “get a bunch of tracks instantly.”

Life Rolls On comes out in full on February 12.

It’s time y’all! Humbled and excited to announce our fifth studio album, #LifeRollsOn, is out February 12th! This new music truly represents where we are in our lives right now and we can't wait for y’all to hear it. Pre-order now 🙌🏼 #FGL5https://t.co/fcVk7BiE5P pic.twitter.com/peqD6PzdHQ

— Florida Georgia Line (@FLAGALine) December 4, 2020

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By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 4, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

RCA Records Many fans know Old Dominion as the hitmaking country group with songs like “Some People Do,” “One Man Band” and “Hotel Key” under their belts.

But in addition to being prolific recording artists, they’re also successful songwriters who’ve penned hits for many fellow country stars. That’s the side of themselves the group is spotlighting in their new EP, Band Behind the Curtain.

“Once you write a great song, it’ll find its home,” reflects band member Trevor Rosen. “But first and foremost, you just gotta try and write a great song.”

Old Dominion’s new project spotlights three songs that did just that, going on to make powerful impressions on fans and at radio with the artists who recorded them.

The tracks are Kenny Chesney’s “Save it for a Rainy Day,” Sam Hunt’s “Make You Miss Me” and Dierks Bentley’s “Say You Do.” All three tracks were big hits for the artists that recorded them, and in this new collection, Old Dominion share their performances of the songs.

Beyond that, the band also shared a 10-minute film that details how each song came together, and the story of how each track ultimately landed in the lap of the artists who wound up recording it.

In addition to writing big hits for their fellow stars, Old Dominion has had a banner year as artists in 2020. They brought home numerous trophies and nominations at the ACM and CMA Awards, and most recently, they notched their first two Grammy nominations.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

December 4, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

ABC/Image Group LABack in 1982, Dolly Parton released “Hard Candy Christmas” as part of the soundtrack to The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.   And while the top 10 single is often thought of as one of the genre’s classic Christmas songs, Dolly says that strictly speaking, it’s not a holiday tune at all.

“It’s kind of funny that people think it’s a Christmas song, and it’s really not,” the singer reveals to ABC Audio. “It’s really just about people having hard times and saying, ‘It’s like a hard candy Christmas,’ like when you’re so poor that all you get for Christmas is a piece of hard candy.”

Still, Dolly says that it makes a good seasonal song, too, and plenty of other country stars agree with her. June Carter Cash, Reba McEntire, Cyndi Lauper, LeAnn Rimes and, most recently, newcomer Kassi Ashton have all recorded or performed their own versions of “Hard Candy Christmas.”

The song’s not included on A Holly Dolly Christmas, Dolly’s latest holiday album, but many other classics are, including a duet version of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” with late-night talk show host Jimmy Fallon.

Dolly got the idea for the duet after being impressed with Jimmy’s singing on his show. But when she suggested the collaboration, he had his doubts.

“He said, ‘I’m not a real singer.’ I said, ‘Well, I think you are,’” Dolly recalls. “He said, ‘I’ll sing it if you promise me you won’t use it if I don’t sing good.’ I said, ‘That’s a promise.’ And he did sing it good!”

A Holly Dolly Christmas came out in early October.

By Carena Liptak and Stephen Hubbard
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.