March 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

Daniel MeigsBefore Ashley McBryde shares her Never Will: Live From a Distance EP this spring, the singer is sharing her live version of one of the project’s most ferocious tracks, “Shut Up Sheila.”

A seething missive dedicated to the bossy “Sheila” who comes in between a family in mourning and their grieving process, the song takes on an extra-fiery element when Ashley performs it live against a backdrop of smoke and blue neon.

“There’s somebody in your family that you want to smack in the face and tell them to shut up,” Ashley told Rolling Stone back when her album, Never Will, arrived in April 2020. “But because we are from the South or we live in the South, we use our ‘company manners’ all the time. We don’t always get to ball that fist up and go, ‘Shut up!’”

Since the COVID-19 pandemic made it impossible for Ashley to tour her new music after dropping Never Will, the six-song live EP offers a selection of songs from that project, performed in a live setting.

“Getting together to rehearse and record these live versions safely was our way of giving the fans a taste of what they would have seen had the world not changed so much,” the singer explained of making the new record.

Never Will: Live From a Distance arrives in full on May 28.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

ABCLuke Combs is already looking ahead to his third album.

The singer previewed an unreleased song called “See Me Now” on social media this week, posting a clip of himself performing it with just his acoustic guitar as accompaniment. “Y’all wanted an album 3 preview, so here’s a little sneak peek,” he wrote.

Luke hasn’t shared any additional details about the content of his next album, or when fans can expect it to arrive. When it does drop, the project will follow his landmark 2019 release, What You See is What You Get.

Setting a number of chart records and breaking several milestones, Luke’s second album was a massive accomplishment for the singer, earning a spot as one of the top ten albums of 2020 in any genre. Between the album’s original release and its October 2020 deluxe edition, What You See Ain’t Always What You Get, it produced five number-one hit singles at country radio.

Luke’s currently angling to bring that number up to six: Just weeks ago, he revealed that “Forever After All” will be his next single off the project. As of this Friday, the song is already a Top 30 hit on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.

Y’all wanted an album 3 preview, so here’s a little sneak peek. This one’s called “See Me Now” – written with @callme_raymond, @Jamesmcnmusic, and @kentonbryant. Hope y’all love it. pic.twitter.com/7kxxSZkVq7

— Luke Combs 🎤 (@lukecombs) March 26, 2021

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

Mercury NashvilleMaddie & Tae spell out all their flaws and strengths in the up-tempo “Woman You Got,” a new single that’s headed to radio next month.

“I talk smack, I make messes / I win bread, I’m kinda selfish,” duo members Maddie Font and Taylor Kerr sing, rattling off the things their new spouses need to know about them. “Don’t trust me in the kitchen / Don’t dare me, I ain’t chicken…”

Both band mates had a hand in writing “Woman You Got,” and they admit the lyrics are spot-on descriptions of their real-life personalities.

“This song is the most autobiographical song we have ever written,” Maddie says. “Our hope is that this song is an anthem for all our fans, male and female!”

Maddie and Taylor got married to their longtime loves in late 2019 and early 2020, respectively, and it’s not the first time they’ve mined their marriages for songwriting inspiration. Their 2020 holiday EP, We Need Christmas, included “Merry Married Christmas,” a song about how having someone special to celebrate with makes the holiday season extra sweet.

Maddie & Tae’s new song comes on the heels of the announcement that the duo will be the next CMA Foundation Artist Ambassadors, using their platform to advocate for music education and helping support music programs in schools everywhere.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

The Valory Music Co.As excitement brews for Thomas Rhett’s next album, Country Again: Side A, the singer is planning a special, one-night-only event to celebrate release day.

On April 30, TR will host a livestream event called Thomas Rhett One Night Only from Nashville, inviting fans from around the world to hear him play the new songs live with a full band behind him.

“It’s been a year and a half since I last played a live show,” Thomas explains. “It’s been good to keep sharing music in all the ways we’ve made work (mostly in front of my plaid curtains), but we really wanted to take it up a few notches until we can safely get back out there on the road. It’ll be where we play some new stuff for the first time and have a chance to share what the songs mean to me!”

You can now pick up tickets to the show, and also purchase VIP packages for a post-show Q&A with Thomas.

The lead single from Country Again:Side A is “What’s Your Country Song?,” which just went number one at country radio earlier this week. That song marks Thomas’ 11th consecutive chart-topping hit, and extends his reign as the country singer with the longest-running streak of number-one songs.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 26, 2021 • No Comments • Country Music News

Spencer PeeplesMiranda Lambert, Jack Ingram and Jon Randall are back with “Am I Right or Amarillo,” the newest track to be released off their forthcoming acoustic project, The Marfa Tapes.

In addition to the other 12 songs on the album’s track list, “Am I Right or Amarillo” was recorded in the three singer-songwriters’ home state of Texas, in the middle-of-nowhere town of Marfa.

“‘Am I Right or Amarillo’ was a Jack Ingram line,” remembers Jon of the song. “I think we were talking about the most time we’ve ever spent in Amarillo was at the truck stop. We just started riffing on the title and a cheating song showed itself. We all miss country cheating songs so we just went with it. It is really more of a bluegrass kind of thing.”

The trio also shared a simple music video to along with their new song, featuring a montage of grainy, black-and-white video footage shout out the window of a moving car.

The Marfa Tapes will be out in full on May 7. It includes a new version of Miranda’s 2018 ACM Song of the Year, “Tin Man,” which was written in Marfa alongside Jack and Jon.

By Carena Liptak
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.