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KHAZ Country Music News: Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw Make Top 10 on “Pollstar” 2012 Worldwide Tours List

Though they didn’t tour outside of the U.S., Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw‘s Brothers of the Sun trek has landed on Pollstar‘s Year End List of 2012’s Top 50 Worldwide Tours. Kenny and Tim’s tour took in $96.5 million to come in at #7 on the list, behind the likes of Lady Gaga, Coldplay and Bruce Springsteen. Madonna was on top of the touring list for the year, with more than $296 million coming in from her MDNA tour.

Jason Aldean ranked at #24 on the list with $40 million coming in from his My Kinda Party tour. Brad Paisley ranked 28th with $36.8 million, while Lady Antebellum ranked 32nd, making $35.7 million. Zac Brown Band, Eric Church, Carrie Underwood and Rascal Flatts were also ranked in the 40s.

Pollstar will release their full touring report on 2012 later this month.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: Jason Aldean Looks Forward to Playing Stadiums and Madison Square Garden This Year

Jason Aldean is poised to break new ground on the touring front this year with some very big shows on the books with his Night Train tour.

He tells ABC News Radio, “We’ve got some things coming up in 2013 that are gonna be firsts for us. You know, headlining stadiums for the first time and getting to play venues that have always been really big and high on our list.”

Those venues include Chicago’s Wrigley Field and Boston’s Fenway Park.  Jason’s also planning his first headlining show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden in 2013. That New York concert date hasn’t been announced yet.

He says of the new year, “For me, it’s about doing those kinds of things, I think.”

Jason is also focused on promoting his latest album, Night Train, in the new year.  For a full list of Jason’s concert dates, go to JasonAldean.com.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: Report: Emmylou Harris Under Investigation for Hit-and-Run

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office is taking a close look at an alleged hit-and-run incident involving Emmylou Harris on October 1.  According to TMZ.com, the 12-time Grammy winner allegedly hit a car with her rental car on the 405 Freeway in Los Angeles and then fled the scene.

The other driver filed a police report, and that launched a California Highway Patrol investigation.  The CHP sent their findings to the district attorney’s office, who will ultimately decide if the country singer should be prosecuted.

Emmylou’s spokesperson tells TMZ that it was a “minor traffic accident,” adding that Harris “unintentionally rubbed bumpers with another vehicle.” The rep says Emmylou didn’t even realize the cars made contact.

The rep adds that the incident was a “garden-variety accident that happens every day on the 405,” and Harris has reported the collision to her insurance company.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: The Year in Review 2012: Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw Celebrate Friendship with Brothers of the Sun Tour

Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw celebrated their 20-plus year friendship with the Brothers of the Sun stadium tour over the summer. The two shared the stage at the end of each show singing their new CMA Award-winning duet “Feel Like a Rock Star,” among other hits. The tour took in more than $96 million to rank as Billboard‘s #1 country tour of 2012.

Kenny also released his new album, Welcome to the Fishbowl, scoring a big hit with the steamy song “Come Over.” Tim scored a #1 country album with Emotional Traffic in February, even though he didn’t promote it due to ongoing legal battles with his former label, Curb Records. His new project, Two Lanes of Freedom, is due out on his new label, Big Machine Records, early next year.

Tim also reunited with wife Faith Hill for a limited run of shows at the Venetian in Las Vegas starting in December. Kenny will hit the road again in March with his No Shoes Nation tour, playing stadiums and arenas coast to coast. 

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: The Year in Review 2012: Jason Aldean Is Country’s Hottest Ticket in 2012

Jason Aldean became country’s hot new ticket seller in 2012 with his My Kinda Party tour playing to a total 1.9 million fans. His My Kinda Party album scored double platinum status in 2012, while the new set, Night Train, went platinum just four weeks after it was released late in the year. The number-one hits kept coming with “Fly Over States” and “Take a Little Ride” hitting the top spot.

Jason opened the CMA Awards in November with buddies Eric Church and Luke Bryan singing their new single, “The Only Way I Know.” Jason also took part in the platinum-selling Lionel Richie duets album Tuskegee and appeared on the ACM special celebrating that project on CBS.

TMZ caught Jason appearing to get intimate in photos with a former American Idol contestant at a Los Angeles club, but Jason promptly apologized and the incident seems to have had little effect on his career. Look for Jason to play more stadium shows on the Night Train tour in 2013.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: Eric Church Makes “New York Times” List of 2012’s Best Concerts

Eric Church‘s March 14, 2012 show at New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom has made the New York Times list of “The Best Concerts of 2012, as Seen by TimesCritics.” The recap described the concert as “a mean show,” saying Eric delivered his “post-outlaw anthems” with “verve and tension, as if he might not be allowed to for much longer.”

Eric is the only country artist on the list, which also includes Neil Young and Crazy Horse, Jay-Z and Radiohead, among others.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: The Year in Review 2012: Little Big Town Takes Over the Airwaves with “Pontoon”

Little Big Town‘s “Pontoon” scored the group their first #1 hit after 13 years as a band. The song was everywhere over the summer and led to Little Big Town taking CMA Single of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year in November.

Their new album, Tornado, held the top spot on Billboard‘s Country Albums chart for five consecutive weeks, and they played most of the album every night on Rascal Flatts‘ Changed tour. Little Big Town‘s Kimberly Schlapman also launched her cooking show, Kimberly’s Simply Southern, on GAC this year.  The second season will debut in 2013.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: The Year in Review 2012: Eric Church Breaks Through to Country Super-Stardom

Eric Church cemented his place in country music in 2012 thanks to his platinum-selling release Chief, which was named CMA Album of the Year in November. Eric also broke through at radio, scoring two #1 hits with “Drink in My Hand” and “Springsteen.” He even got a personal note from Bruce Springsteen, with The Boss telling him he loved the song.

Though Eric took a little heat for his comments to Rolling Stone about artists who come from TV talent competitions, he could do no wrong on the road with his Blood, Sweat & Beers tour regularly selling out arenas. Besides playing a few solo shows and opening the stadium dates on Kenny Chesney‘s No Shoes Nation tour, Eric plans to take most of 2013 to write his fourth album. 

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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Winners: Chicken Soup for the Soul Books with 99 KZ Country

We are giving away two Chicken Soup for the Soul books.

1.)  The Power Of Positive
101 Inspirational Stories about Changing Your Life through Positive Thinking.
Attitude is everything. And this book will uplift and inspire readers with its 101 success stories about the power of positive thinking and how contributors changed their lives, solved problems, or overcame challenges through a positive attitude, counting their blessings, or other epiphanies.

2.)  Think Positive For Great Health
Inspiring Chicken Soup for the Soul stories and accessible leading-edge medical information from Dr. Jeff Brown of Harvard Medical School. Dr. Brown unlocks the mysteries of the mind/body connection and shows you how you can feel better and really be better by using your mind and thinking positively. The great stories will show you how other people have used positive thinking to affect their physical and mental well-being.

Winners:  Connie Jo Austin, Lillie Kingsley, Susan Cooper, Pat Sauer and Amorette Windholz.

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KHAZ Country Music News: Jason Aldean Leading the Party on “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” on ABC

Jason Aldean will make his first appearance on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest Monday night, and he’ll be thinking of the late Dick Clarkas the ball drops in Times Square ringing in 2013.

Jason grew up watching New Year’s Rockin’ Eve back home in Georgia, and he tells ABC News Radio, “I would have loved to have been able to do this when Dick was still around and hosting the show and doing that kind of stuff, but Seacrest isn’t too bad either.  So, I’m excited to be a part of it.”

Jason plans to have fun with his New Year’s Eve performance, and he doesn’t think it will take much persuading to get the audience in a party mood that night.

Jason says, “They’re ready to have a good time anyway.  So, you just kind of go out and help ’em out a little bit.”

While Jason is all about the party on New Year’s Eve, he isn’t one for New Year’s resolutions.

“A couple of years ago I said I was going to try to do better at returning phone calls and texts and things like that, and that didn’t happen either,” Jason says.  “So I’m just over making New Year’s resolutions.  I don’t do it anymore.”

Look for Taylor Swift to also perform on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest Monday night on ABC.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: Oak Ridge Boys Sing For George H.W. Bush

(AP) – Former President George H.W. Bush’s condition may be improving, thanks to the Oak Ridge Boys. Bush’s wife, Barbara, asked that the group sing for him over the telephone Friday. Singer Joe Bonsall says within 45 minutes they gathered in the group’s office and made the call. Bush requested they sing “Elvira,” and they obliged. They followed it up with “Amazing Grace.” Singer Duane Allen says he’s really proud to be an Oak Ridge Boy after being able to sing for a president they consider a friend. Bush was hospitalized November 23 for treatment of a bronchitis-related cough. He’s been moved out of intensive care into a regular hospital room.

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: Chris Young Learned from the Best Before Launching Liquid Neon Tour

Chris Young opened a ton of shows for country superstars like Jason Aldean, Rascal Flatts and Miranda Lambertbefore striking out on his own with the Liquid Neon tour this year.  Watching those other artists, he was able to learn about everything from the art of putting a set list together, to running the business of a big touring operation.

“I really have picked up a lot from watching and being on those tours with other acts that have been doing it at that level a lot longer than me,” Chris says. “You’ve gotta watch them and pick up stuff.”

As for his own concert production, Chris says he’s worked to create moments in the show that are intimate.

He says, “I always have really enjoyed seeing people do kind of like a breakdown in their show, and doing something that’s a little more acoustic, and we’ve added that for this tour with the Liquid Neon tour.”

Chris will start his Liquid Neon tour up again with a show in Chicago on January 23, 2013.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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KHAZ Country Music News: Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert Voted Most Desirable Celebrity Neighbors

Look for a bidding war on any available property next door to Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert. The country couple was voted the most desirable celebrity neighbors among those responding to the sixth annual Zillow Celebrity Neighbor Survey. Ten percent of adults surveyed chose Blake and Miranda, while nine percent went with Taylor Swift. Taylor tied with Reese Witherspoonto come in second place.

The cast of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo topped the survey when it comes to worst possible celebrity neighbors, with 21 percent of the vote. Kim Kardashian and Kanye West were second, with 18 percent.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

 

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