July 31, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

Erick Anderson / eafotoCharlie Daniels’ Volunteer Jam will return in 2021, highlighting the life and legacy of the late country and southern rock superstar. Alabama, Ricky Skaggs, Old Crow Medicine Show, Cece Winans and Junior Brown were added to the bill this week.

The event previously announced performances from Chris Janson, Charley Pride, the Marshall Tucker Band and many more. Additionally, Charlie’s longtime outfit The Charlie Daniels Band will perform as part of the tribute to the late performer, who died on July 6.

“I am forever grateful for all of the love and support Charlie Jr. and I have received since Charlie’s passing,” says the singer’s widow, Hazel. “Charlie would be excited and extremely proud that his Volunteer Jam would continue. I want to express my sincere thanks to the artists paying tribute to Charlie.”

In a nod to the uncertain times of the COVID-19 pandemic, the event is offering 500 free tickets to those who have donated their time in recent emergency relief efforts across middle Tennessee. Those tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

The 2021 Volunteer Jam: A Musical Salute to Charlie Daniels is scheduled to take place next February 22 at 7PM CT. The event will be held in downtown Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

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

July 31, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

Warner Music NashvilleHot on the heels of their new single’s release on Friday, Dan + Shay dropped a gravity-defying video to match the dazzling vocal acrobatics of “I Should Probably Go to Bed.”

The clip begins inside an old mansion filled with vintage appliances and a recurring aesthetic theme of red and yellow. Bandmates Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney find themselves lost in different sections of the house, and before long, things start to go sidewise — literally.

Whiskey glasses topple, furniture levitates, a hallway fills with fluttering sheets of loose paper and the two country stars find themselves sliding from wall to wall, as the song’s emotion ramps up to a climax. Meanwhile, in the town below, people stop at intersections and basketball courts to stare up at the sky in amazement, as the old house floats in the air above them.

“I Should Probably Go to Bed” follows “10,000 Hours,” the duo’s 2019 hit duet with pop superstar Justin Bieber. Dan +Shay have been teasing their new single for several days, dropping short trailer teasers of the track and music video on social media.

If the duo plan on following a traditional album release format, then “I Should Probably Go to Bed” is likely the second single from an upcoming, as-yet-unannounced fourth album.

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

July 31, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

Eric Ryan AndersonBrothers Osborne put prejudice aside in their bluesy new “Hatin’ Somebody,” a feel-good jam session with an important lesson to share.

The song acknowledges that even though two different groups of people may never grow to like each other enough to be friends, they can still put aside their differences and coexist, because, as the duo sings in the chorus, “Hatin’ somebody ain’t never got nobody nowhere.”

The brother duo’s lyrics get personal in the second verse, where they recall a piece of wisdom passed down from their hillbilly-turned-city-transplant grandfather, who had to adjust to a different way of life when he changed his surroundings.

“We threw our grandfather into that song, imagining ‘A stubborn hillbilly in the middle of the city / Learning how not to throw stones,’” explains lead vocalist TJ Osborne. “As the song says, we’re all in the same damn boat, and ‘Hatin somebody ain’t never got nobody nowhere.’”

“Hatin’ Somebody” follows the Brothers Osborne’s Top 30 single, “All Night.” Both songs are included on the duo’s forthcoming third album, Skeletons, which is due out on October 9.

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

July 31, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

EMI Music NashvilleEric Church surprised fans with a new song this week, dropping his gritty and soulful “Bad Mother Trucker.”

The song celebrates all the tough-as-nails ladies who can outpace any man they meet. Eric’s lyrics speak from the perspective of a female trucker’s son whose mama taught him everything he knows about respecting women.

“She is hell on wheels where the road meets the rubber / A real gear jammer, a white line wonder / Yeah, you only get one, and I wouldn’t want another / ‘Cause mama was a bad mother trucker,” he sings in the chorus.

In addition to the woman he sings about in the lyrics, Eric enlisted another “Bad Mother Trucker” to help him record the song. The country superstar’s longtime backup vocalist turned songwriting and duet partner Joanna Cotten, provides soulful vocal harmony throughout the song.

“Bad Mother Trucker” follows Eric’s latest single, “Stick That in Your Country Song.”

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

July 31, 2020 • No Comments • Country Music News

Home Grown MusicWritten and released from quarantine, Zac Brown Band’s newest digital single, “You and Islands,” is a tropical mini-escape.

“Got so much going on / The whole world’s going wrong / I wish that tide could reach us now / And wash away all the gray,” frontman Zac Brown sings in the song’s breezy first verse, as he looks ahead to more carefree days after the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic passes.

“This unprecedented time at home has given us the opportunity to write and share new music with our fans,” Zac explains of the new single. “As we continue to navigate through this together, we hope our music can bring you a little bit of positivity and transport you to a different time or place — even if just for a few minutes.”

“You and Islands” follows the group’s latest single, “The Man Who Loves You the Most,” which is a quarantine-inspired ode to Zac’s four daughters. While that song found the group appreciating the little things about their unexpected downtime with family, “You and Islands” focuses more on a brighter future ahead.

“This was a fun track to record,” Zac adds. “We hope you sing along with us as we daydream about days to come!”

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