Blake Shelton To Head Out On The Road In 2018 On His “Country Music Freaks Tour”

Country superstar Blake Shelton kicked this year off by “Doing It To Country Songs,” and he will jump into 2018 with his fellow “Country Music Freaks” on his just announced headlining tour. Shelton will hit the road alongside Brett Eldredge, Carly Pearce and very special guest Trace Adkins on February 15 in Tulsa, OK (full dates below).

“The main thing that I look forward to these days, and honestly I always have, is my live performances,” said Shelton. “And even though I’m the first to say that too much time on the road can wear me down, too much time away from the road can break my heart. It’s been a while and I cannot wait to get out there! I think this is going to be my greatest tour yet.”

The upcoming tour will showcase fan favorites along with music from Shelton’s latest project, Texoma Shore. Due this Friday, November 3 and available now for pre-order, the album is led by his quickly rising single “I’ll Name The Dogs.” The romantic tune is approaching Top 10 this week at country radio within two months of impact, with Taste of Country praising “one of the strongest, most compelling melodies of any song [Shelton] has recorded and released in years.”

In addition to the headliner himself, the “Country Music Freaks” Tour will feature performances from three of the biggest country music freaks in the business: Shelton’s chart-topping, Platinum-selling label mate Brett Eldredge, People-deemed “new voice of Country” Carly Pearce and Shelton’s “Hillbilly Bone” duet partner and good friend, Trace Adkins.

Eldredge brought his 2017 self-titled album to the top of Billboard’s all-genre Top Album Sales and Country Albums charts upon release. With six Country Airplay No. 1 singles under his belt, the singer / songwriter’s latest song “The Long Way” is already proving to be another smash with over 15 million streams and counting.

Pearce released her debut album Every Little Thing on Big Machine Records October 13 as the Top 5 title track makes her the only solo female currently ranked this high – and one of only three females to reach Top 10 this year – at country radio.

Adkins, who will join Shelton on stage for multi-song appearances during his set, has enjoyed extensive radio and sales successes throughout his 20-year career.

Added Shelton: “These are some of the best people I’ve had on a tour. Brett Eldredge is going to be there with me. I’ve known that kid for many years now and it’s been fun to see his career grow – he’s a great singer and such a funny guy to be around. He’s ugly, but it just shows you that enough talent can break down those barriers and he’s been able to make it anyway. We’re also going to have Carly Pearce out there, and she’s had a breakthrough with her first hit this year. Then bringing along my longtime friend and brother Trace Adkins – and who knows what’s going to happen with him. To be honest we don’t even really have a plan yet, I just knew we needed to spend a little time together, and what better way than out on the road?”

Tickets for the 14-date run will go on sale on November 10. American Express® Card Members can purchase tickets before the general public beginning Friday, November 3 at 10 a.m. local time through Thursday, November 9 at 10 p.m. local time.

Shelton is teaming up with CID Entertainment once again to offer VIP Experiences throughout the tour. In 2018, packages will feature new perks including an autographed ‘Country Music Freaks’ Tour plaque and an exclusive BS’ers Lounge baseball cap. VIPs will also get access to the BS’ers Lounge where Blake will perform an acoustic set and answer fan questions. More details available via www.cidentertainment.com/events/blake-shelton-tour-2018.

“COUNTRY MUSIC FREAKS” TOUR DATES
2/15/18 Tulsa, OK BOK Center
2/16/18 Lubbock, TX United Supermarkets Arena
2/17/18 Las Cruces, NM Pan American Center
2/22/18 Grand Rapids, MI Van Andel Arena
2/23/18 Moline, IL TaxSlayer Center
2/24/18 St. Louis, MO Scottrade Center
3/2/18 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
3/3/18 Bossier City, LA CenturyLink Center
3/8/18 Atlanta, GA Philips Arena
3/9/18 Greenville, SC Bon Secours Wellness Arena
3/10/18 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
3/15/18 Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
3/16/18 Baltimore, MD Royal Farms Arena
3/17/18 Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center

David Lee Murphy Releases New Single “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” featuring Kenny Chesney to Country Radio

When David Lee Murphy decided to go into the studio with his pal Kenny Chesney, he thought it would be fun to cut some tracks and drill down on a sound he created that was long on roadhouse, big on fun and built on solid songwriting. A few tracks led to a few more, and the good friends – along with co-producer Buddy Cannon — realized they had a really good album on their hands.
 
Now, people can get their first taste of No Zip Code, an album two years and a couple upgrades in the making. “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” is a song for the times, stretched too thin, worried more than is healthy and ultimately realizing and embracing life’s inevitable leveling. With a shuffling groove, an attenuated pre-chorus and just enough reggae lift on the chorus, “Alright” may be a hymn for finding the balance to get through whatever is in front of you.
 
“You watch the news, and look around… it’s a tough world,” the man known for No. 1 “Dust on the Bottle” and popular song “Party Crowd” says of the song. “You know, you can lean into all of that, or you can step back and trust life. When you do that, it makes it easier to take a deep breath and roll with everything that’s going on around you.”
 
“I knew when I heard the song how good it was,” Chesney marvels. “And I knew David Lee had to cut it. I’m just lucky he let me sing on it.”

Chesney is – and always has been — a big fan of Murphy. As he says, “David Lee is the original hillbilly rock star. He can dig in, drill down and turn a song inside out. Back when he was solely an artist, he understood what a guy like me was thinking, feeling and getting into… Now you put him on a mic, and he sings even better than he did back then. And the songs, like that wine ole Creole Williams makes in ‘Dust on the Bottle,’ have just gotten better and better. So genuine, so real, he’s just awesome.”
 
Murphy has written No. 1s for Kenny Chesney, Gary Allan, Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean and others. “Living in Fast Forward,” “The Only Way I Know,” “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not,” “The More I Drink,” “Big Green Tractor,” “Anywhere With You,” “A Feelin’ Like That” and “Pirate Flag” have gone on to become the soundtrack of the last many years: all capturing the rush of being alive, the hardcore work ethic of country fans and desire that quickens the pulse.
 
“When I was growing up in my early ‘20s, I was listening to Waylon, Willie, Haggard and Jones,” Murphy says. “I was out on a back road, drinking beer, hearing those songs, knowing those guys lived that stuff. That’s kinda the way it is with this record: these songs aren’t about me, they are me.”
 
“With ‘Everything’s Gonna Be Alright,’ it’s like ‘Hold on. Everything’s gonna be okay.’ Kenny is an artist and producer who gives off that same kind of energy in his music. The fact that he came in and sang on this song really makes it something special to me.”
  
Enlisting Buddy Cannon, Chesney and Murphy co-produced No Zip Code. “Alright” arrives at radio this week. With Chesney coming off a two-week No. 1 on “All the Pretty Girls,” as well as releasing his Live in No Shoes Nation which opens with the Southern Illinois-born songwriter’s “Flora-Bama” and features him on “Dust on the Bottle,” the synergy between the man The Los Angeles Times calls “The People’s Superstar” and Murphy has never been stronger. Just listen.

Chris Young’s New Album LOSING SLEEP Claims The No. 1 Spot on Billboard’s Country Albums Chart

After a busy week that included his induction into the Grand Ole Opry, the release of his seventh album Losing Sleep, multiple TV appearances and the closing week of Jason Aldean’s They Don’t Know Tour, Chris Young can add another milestone to that list as his recently released record claims the top spot on Billboard’s Top Country Albums Chart. Losing Sleep is Chris Young’s seventh album and second consecutive studio album to debut at #1 on Billboard’s Country Albums Chart. With 39,000 equivalent album units in its first week, Losing Sleep also opens at #5 on the Billboard 200 all-genre chart.

“I’m excited to have Losing Sleep debut at #1!” said Young. “While I co-produced my last two albums, this is the first record where I co-wrote every song. It’s been amazing to have such a great response to the new music, and I’m looking forward to playing it live on tour starting in January.”

In addition to the brand new album, available at smarturl.it/losingsleepalbum, tickets for Chris Young Losing Sleep 2018 World Tour with special guests Kane Brown and LANCO are on-sale now at ChrisYoungCountry.com.

Cole Swindell Announces Down Home Session IV EP and Tour

Even now, after seven record-breaking consecutive No. 1 singles (10 No. 1 singles as a songwriter), sold-out shows, multiple awards as an artist and a songwriter, numerous national TV appearances and multiple RIAA Platinum-certifications, Swindell still finds it important to celebrate and honor the people and places that got him to this moment in his career by creating music and going back to where and how it all began. It’s that time of year when the ten-time No. 1 hit singer/songwriter Cole Swindell releases the fourth installment of his popular Down Home Sessions EP. Down Home Sessions IV will be released on November 24.

The Warner Bros./Warner Music Nashville recording artist will hit the road again in support of Down Home Sessions IV, returning to some of the cities, towns and venues where he made some of his first fans. The Down Home Tour IV follows three previous sold-out headlining Down Home Tours. The tour kickoff with cities and dates will be announced soon.

Kelsea Ballerini Returns To Her Hometown of Knoxville For Special Album Release Celebration

On Saturday night, the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development teamed up with two-time Academy of Country Music Award winner Kelsea Ballerini for a one-of-a-kind album celebration in her hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee. Fans from 28 states came together to celebrate the release of Ballerini’s upcoming sophomore album, “Unapologetically,” out Nov. 3.

The special concert experience was part of the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development’s Snapchat Concert Series and their ongoing ‘The Soundtrack of America. Made in Tennessee.’ brand campaign. The event took place at Ballerini’s alma mater, Central High School, the same place where she performed an original song for the first time as a student. Tickets to the album celebration show were offered free through Tennessee Tourism’s Snapchat and sold out in one minute.

Ballerini took the stage with high energy performances of “I Hate Love Songs,” “Legends,” “Miss Me More,” “Roses” and “Unapologetically” from her upcoming album, as well as “Dibs,” “Love Me Like You Mean It,” “Peter Pan,” “Square Pegs,” “Stilettos,” “XO” and “Yeah Boy” from her RIAA GOLD-certified debut “The First Time.” Ballerini also surprised the crowd by doing an acoustic style cover of Justin Bieber’s “Sorry.”

Prior to her performance of “Unapologetically,” Ballerini brought up her fiancé, Morgan Evans, to show how unapologetically in love she is. In-between songs, Ballerini took a moment to sit on the edge of the stage and have an intimate conversation with fans, explaining the meaning behind the songs on her new album and what it meant to be back in her hometown performing at her old high school. She also thanked the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development, who gifted all attendees with “Unapologetically” download cards prior to the album’s release date on Nov 3.

Kelsea Ballerini TN Department of Tourism
Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for Tennessee Department of Tourist Development

After finishing her set, Ballerini returned to the stage with the school’s principal and made a surprise donation of $20,000 to Central High School. The principal then surprised her with the school’s highest honor, the Bobcat Award. Ballerini ended the night with a fitting performance of “High School.” Prior to the show, Ballerini received a one-of-a-kind “platinum record” from the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development to commemorate this special celebration show. She also participated in a meet and greet with lucky winners and gave them a sneak listen into her not-yet-released album.

To open the show, Ryan Griffin, who co-wrote Ballerini’s hit single “Dibs,” took the stage and performed a few of his original songs. Griffin recently released his first EP, “Sake Of The Summer,” led by the single “Back Seats and Burnt CDs.” As a songwriter, Griffin’s words mirror his life and translate to his music, which is authentic, and you can feel the truth, vulnerability and compassion in each song.

“The two years I spent at Central were some of the most character and career defining for me. It’s one of the most special places in the world to me,” said Kelsea Ballerini. “It’s so cool to bring it full circle to the first time I ever sang a song I’d written on stage at Central. Being able to come back and celebrate my second album release where it all started seemed like the purest way to kick everything off. It was super emotional, but really special.”

Fans who followed “Tennessee” on Snapchat also gained access to brand new content pieces with Ballerini, including highlights of her journey as an aspiring singer-songwriter from Knoxville, to one of country music’s top female artist, as well as a trip down memory lane to her favorite Knoxville area spots.

Kelsea’s favorite Knoxville spots include Rita’s Bakery and their thumbprint cookies, Litton’s Market & Restaurant with the best burger in town, The Tennessee Theatre, Civic Coliseum, Market Square, WIVK-FM, and of course, Central High School.

“To host Kelsea Ballerini’s homecoming at Central High School where her music career literally began is a great fit for us and makes perfect sense,” Commissioner Kevin Triplett, Tennessee Department of Tourist Development said. “Arguably Tennessee’s greatest export to our country and the world is our music. Our mission is to inspire travel to Tennessee, which often motivates artists to live here or start their careers here. To bring together the great music and wonderful family experiences of Knoxville by presenting one of Tennessee’s brightest new artists in her own hometown is a way of doing that. Kelsea Ballerini showed the world tonight why we say ‘The Soundtrack of America is Made in Tennessee’.”

Tennessee has long been known as a global music destination, where the genres of blues, bluegrass, country, gospel, soul, rockabilly, and rock ‘n’ roll originated and has more musicians per capita than any other place in the world. It is the state where artists come to create and perform their music. Tennessee is home to world-renowned music attractions including Graceland, Beale Street, Tennessee Theatre, Sun Studio, Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Bluebird Cafe, Birthplace of Country Music Museum, Grand Ole Opry and the famous Ryman Auditorium.

For more information, visit tnvacation.com and follow “Tennessee” on Snapchat, and join the conversation using hashtag #MadeinTN.