Presenters Announced for the 2016 American Country Countdown Awards

A star-studded list of presenters has been announced for the 2016 AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS airing live from the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., Sunday, May 1 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX. In addition, rising country star Chris Janson will perform.

Presenters at the 2nd annual show include: pop music icon Paula Abdul, country newcomer Chase Bryant, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”’s Terry Crews, “So You Think You Can Dance” host Cat Deeley, country singer/songwriter Sara Evans, Season XV “American Idol” winner Trent Harmon, current two-time finalist Jana Kramer, rising country star Chris Lane, country duo Maddie & Tae, country singer/songwriter Scotty McCreery, country superstar Jennifer Nettles, current finalist Michael Ray, up-and-coming singer/songwriter Canaan Smith, actor Luke Wilson and country music legend and actor Dwight Yoakam. These names join previously announced presenters Academy Award® winner Matthew McConaughey and 2014 NASH Icon Award recipient Reba McEntire.

The two-hour 2016 AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS broadcast features 14 performances including: Kelsea Ballerini, 2016 NASH Icon Award presented by Ford F-Series recipients Brooks & Dunn, Luke Bryan, Cam, Dan + Shay, Florida Georgia Line, Sam Hunt, Janson, Martina McBride, Thomas Rhett, Cole Swindell, Carrie Underwood, and Toby Keith’s tribute to Merle Haggard, with Haggard’s longtime band the Strangers.

The AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS is based on country music’s longest-running radio countdown show (43 years), “American Country Countdown with Kix Brooks,” and honors country music’s biggest stars, based on album sales and radio airplay. Finalists and winners for all categories are based on radio airplay charts, sales and streaming data from April 1, 2015 to March 28, 2016 provided by BuzzAngle Music. Touring data is from Pollstar “The Concert Hotwire.”

Tickets for the AMERICAN COUNTRY COUNTDOWN AWARDS at the “Fabulous” Forum are on sale now at ticketmaster.com.

LoCash Featured on Premiere Episode of Vevo’s “Bandmates”

What do a tour bus, a No. 1 hit and a dream have in common? Chris Lucas and Preston Brust of the “I Love This Life” hit-making country duo, LOCASH, share them all. In this week’s premiere of Vevo’s hit series “Bandmates,” fans get to take an inside look at just how well the two best friends, co-writers and so-called ‘brothers’ know one another.

On the episode, they are prompted to guess each other’s answers to some fun personal questions, and each earns points based off of how many they answer correctly.

“Chris is like the brother I never had,” Preston told Pollstar. “I have an older brother and a younger brother but never had a brother the same age. Chris became that guy. His mom is like my mom, and my mom is like his mom. There has always been a special closeness among the families of LOCASH — even among the band members. We spend holidays together if we can,” he added.

Moreover, coming up on May 26, the “I Know Somebody” singing duo will be featured on “The Ed Bassmaster Show” airing on CMT. From the producers of MTV hits like “Teen Wolf,” and “Kesha: My Crazy Beautiful Life,” “The Ed Bassmaster Show” features YouTube sensation Ed Bassmaster and surprise celebrity guests sharing laugh-out-loud moments, leaving viewers in disbelief as each segment is more hysterical and quirky than the last. In the May 26 episode, Ed’s character, Teste, recruits LOCASH as his co-writers to come up with a one-of-a-kind song that’s sure to land him a record deal in Nashville.

Tune in to CMT (Country Music Television) at 10 p.m. ET/PT to see what amusing lyrics and melody Chris, Preston and Teste come up with!

For more information on LOCASH, please visit locashmusic.com.

Clay Walker Announces Seventh Annual Chords of Hope Benefit Concert

Country music chart-topper Clay Walker announced that he will be hosting the seventh annual Chords of Hope Benefit Concert at 3rd & Lindsley during Nashville’s CMA Fest on Wednesday, June 8th. The concert, sponsored by TEVA and Pinnacle Financial Partners, will help raise money and awareness for multiple sclerosis (MS) research with proceeds going to the MS Center at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Clay’s charity, Band Against MS (BAMS). Doors open at 6:00 PM and tickets are now available HERE.

“Chords of Hope just keeps getting better and better every year,” said Clay. “With the help of the country music community, Chords of Hope is my chance to raise awareness of MS in the Nashville area and come together with amazing artists to put on a great show.”

The benefit continues to sell out year after year and in the past has brought along special guests including Montgomery Gentry, Dustin Lynch, Craig Campbell, Greg Bates and more. Additional performers for Chords of Hope 2016 will be announced in the coming weeks.

Blackjack Billy Releases “The Booze Cruise” to Country Radio and New Lyric Video

Reviver Records recording artist Blackjack Billy re-released their popular hit single, “The Booze Cruise,” to country radio today! In addition, the band also released the lyric video to their new version of the song!

The feel-good summer anthem has already become a worldwide smash, hitting #1 in Australia, along with being certified platinum in Canada already. Grab your copy of “The Booze Cruise” on iTunes HERE.

George Strait Launches Strait To Vegas Concert Series with Sold-Out Crowd

On a balmy Friday night in Las Vegas, the heat only added to the excitement as George Strait packed the new T-Mobile Arena and captivated a record-setting 19,222 fans during the opening night of his Strait to Vegas exclusive concert series.

With his Resistol cowboy hat on his head, his signature Wrangler shirt and denim with a well-worn acoustic guitar and the expert Ace in the Hole Band backing him up, Strait proved once again that he is the undeniable “King of Country Music” and consummate entertainer. As he churned through hit after hit, he lived up to the Las Vegas Review Journal‘s bolstering observation, “George Strait is someone you can legitimately say is in a league of his own.”

“I’ve missed you guys and I’m looking forward to being here a few more nights this year,” Strait told the crowd early on in the night before performing for over two hours. In addition to playing a selection of his illustrious 60 career No. 1’s including “Give It All We’ve Got Tonight,” “Ocean Front Property,” “All My Ex’s Live in Texas” and more, Strait also took a moment to pay tribute to Merle Haggard who was not only an icon for Strait but also a friend.

“We’ll never get to hear Merle play live again, but his music will live on forever,” Strait said before performing a medley consisting of “Mama Tried,” “Fightin’ Side of Me,” and “My Life’s Been Grand,” with Strait pausing at the end in remembrance.

GRAMMY, CMA and ACM Award-winning singer/songwriter Kacey Musgraves opened the show.

Strait first announced his plans to perform a series of select shows at T-Mobile Arena last September, immediately selling out every date in the Strait to Vegas concert series for 2016 and 2017. Musgraves will join Strait as support for all 2016 dates.

Upcoming Strait to Vegas dates are as follows, with more likely to be added in 2017:
Saturday, April 23, 2016
Friday, Sept. 9, 2016
Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016
Friday, Dec. 2, 2016
Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016
Friday, Feb. 17, 2017
Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017

For more information, visit www.straittovegas.com.