Soon we will have all of the details of the upcoming 2021 CMA Awards, including the nominees. The Country Music Association announced today that the nominees for the 55th Annual CMA Awards would be announced on Thursday, September 9, at 8:00 a.m. ET.
Last year, Reba McEntire and Darius Rucker co-hosted the event, which was held at Music City Center in downtown Nashville, without an audience due to the pandemic.
Maren Morris was the night’s biggest winner, taking home Single of the Year and Song of the Year, both for “The Bones.” Luke Combs won Male Vocalist of the Year, and Eric Church won the night’s highest honor, Entertainer of the Year.
“It’s going to be music that brings us out of this,” Eric said during his acceptance speech. “That is the one thing that is going to save the entire world.”
Papa Roach will be releasing a new song next week.
The track, titled “Kill the Noise,” is set to drop Thursday, September 9. You can check out a preview of the upcoming tune now via the Roach’s Instagram.
“Kill the Noise” follows the August premiere of the single “Swerve,” which features FEVER 333‘s Jason Aalon Butler and rapper Sueco. That track was the first preview of the next Papa Roach record.
Papa Roach’s most recent album, Who Do You Trust?, was released in 2019.
Alice Cooper has been chosen as one of the grand marshals for this year’s Fiesta Bowl Parade, which takes place on Saturday, December 18, in the shock rocker’s hometown of Phoenix, Arizona.
Cooper will be joined as grand marshal by the nine founders of the NCAA’s Fiesta Bowl football game, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
Fiesta Bowl executive director Mike Nealy tells the Arizona Republic that Alice is the first rock legend ever chosen for the honor. Grand marshals picked for the event traditionally are individuals or groups whose actions and activities the Fiesta Bowl organization’s commitment to promoting economic growth, aiding charities and delivering innovative experiences.
Cooper, of course, is famous for his hard-rocking music and theatrical concerts, but he’s also the founder of Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock, a faith-based organization that provides a supportive creative sanctuary for Phoenix-area teenagers.
“It will be an honor to serve as Grand Marshal for this year’s Desert Financial Fiesta Bowl Parade…Riding on a float doesn’t sound like a hard job and I can’t wait to do so in my hometown,” says Cooper. “I appreciate the generosity of Fiesta Bowl Charities in helping Phoenix-area teenagers. It’s great when I see other organizations supporting similar organizations like our Solid Rock Teen Center to get the job done for members of our community.”
The Fiesta Bowl Parade marches through downtown Phoenix and features floats, giant balloons, marching bands, antique cars, local celebrities and more. Admission is free to the public, although tickets for premium and reserved seats are on sale now for $30 at FiestaBowl.org/parade.
The parade will be broadcast live on Arizona’s Family 3TV channel, and also will be viewable online and via the AZFamily app.
The late Rick James‘ daughter, Ty, says she wanted to show the world that there was more to her famous father than just his outspoken personality, partying and drug use in the new documentary film B*tchin: The Sound and Fury of Rick James.
“The main thing that I would want people to take away is that we’re all human and we were born with imperfections,” Ty tells ABC Audio. “We all have flaws. We all make mistakes. And the most important thing is to get up and keep going and learn from your mistakes and try not to make them again.”
In the new doc, which features rare footage of the Grammy Award winning funk legend, fans will get to see James doing what he does best: songwriting, producing and putting on an amazing performance. Ty says she hopes the doc will show “how much of a genius” her dad was before he passed away at the age of 56.
“He paved the way for a lot…of artists to this day,” she says. “One of the most highly sampled musicians in the game still.”
Ty says showing that side of her father is exactly what director Sasha Jenkins did in the new doc. She notes that Jenkins stayed away from sugar coating her father’s life, while making sure to “give the fans the the truth first and foremost.”
“And that’s with the good, the bad, the ugly,” Ty explains. “And hopefully people get the lesson…’cause to me, it’s all about the lesson in life. And if you can take his story and take something positive from it and learn from it, we hit a home run.”
Lil Nas X would like to tell the world that he’s pregnant — with his first album, Montero.
Taking to social media on Thursday, the 22-year-old rapper put on a convincing fake baby bump to star in an over-the-top maternity photo shoot, which included flowing outfits, flower crowns and bouquets of flowers. The slideshow even included a fake ultrasound.
“SURPRISE! I can’t believe i’m finally announcing this,” the Grammy-winner announced. “My little bundle of joy ‘MONTERO’ is due September 17, 2021.”
In an interview with People, Lil Nas X explained what inspired him to spoof a maternity shoot. As it turns out, the idea came to him while listening to Megan Thee Stallion‘s verse on one of the album’s tracks, “Dolla Sign Slime.”
“I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is amazing,’ so I immediately called my stylist,” he dished. “She was like, ‘Wow, this all comes together. Your album. Your baby.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, this is my baby, huh?’ As a joke, she was like, ‘Yeah, you should do a pregnancy shoot.'”
“I was like, ‘You know what? That’s actually brilliant’… So now we have this entire thing coming out, and it’s going to be amazing,” Lil Nas X said. He added that he’s “both the mother and the father” of the album, though the producers who he worked with are “like the dads too…or maybe uncles.”
The faux maternity shoot follows Nas’ recent parody of Drake‘s highly anticipated Certified Lover Boy album artwork. Drizzy revealed his album cover on Monday, which features 12 pregnant woman emojis. Lil Nas X then issued his own interpretation of the cover art, claiming the Montero cover consisted of emojis of 12 pregnant men.
Jimmie Allen has made no secret of his love of all things Disney. The singer, who has been to Disney World more than 70 times, visits the theme park not just to have fun, but to find inspiration from founder Walt Disney.
“When I was a kid, I just loved the movies,” Jimmie tells BroBible. “But then I started having an obsession with Walt, because Walt’s a guy that had a dream. He had a goal he wanted to reach. His first character, Oswald, was stolen from him, and instead of giving up, he came back, took out loans and bet on himself.”
Jimmie, who proposed to his now-wife, Alexis Gale, at Disney World, visits the park when he needs to get his creative juices flowing.
“Walt was a dreamer,” Jimmie says. “He executed his plans and he made it happen. So Walt is a huge inspiration. And every time I go to Disney, I ride rides sometimes, but for me, it’s my spot. Everybody has a place where they get inspired, and for me, it’s Disney World.”
Jimmie’s current single, “Freedom Was a Highway,” a duet with Brad Paisley, is currently in the top 20.
Britney: Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic; Monica: Karwai Tang/Getty Images
Monica Lewinsky has nothing but sympathy for Britney Spears.
The former White House intern who became the impetus for former President Bill Clinton‘s impeachment feels that while the media treated her and Britney similarly, they were maligned for very different reasons. But she tells InStyle that perceptions of famous women have “moved forward” since the 90s and early aughts.
“I think it’s long overdue and wonderful to see it happening for different women in different arenas and scenarios,” Lewinsky explained. “I made a mistake. Britney didn’t.”
Lewinsky also recalled running into Britney “in the early 2000s” at the New York City department store Henri Bendel.
“She was with Justin Timberlake,” she reflected. “I had my handbag company at the time, and she said she thought the bags were cute. I was beside myself, so I got her some. But at that time I wasn’t able to have the perspective to recognize, ‘Oh, this is happening to other women.'”
She continued, “When the fat-shaming happened to Jessica Simpson [in 2009], I thought, ‘Oh, O.K. This didn’t just happen to me. This is happening now to other people, too.'”
Lewinsky, who’s played by actress Beanie Feldstein in the forthcoming FX series Impeachment: American Crime Story, discussed America’s growing awareness about how she says the media mistreated her, which has led to many apologies.
“There were other young women this happened to, and there’s an enormous amount of collateral damage. So I think it’s not just an apology to a person; it’s an apology to how you’ve affected a culture,” Lewinsky said.
“It’s not surprising that this de-objectifying of women is happening alongside the #MeToo movement,” she added. “They braid together in a way that makes sense.”
Just moments before the highly anticipated release of Drake‘s Certified Lover Boy, the rapper announced it would be delayed — but only by two hours.
Taking to Instagram, the “Laugh Now, Cry Later” rapper shared a table of the upcoming album’s track list, showcasing 21 songs and where they are in the process of being completed.
“CLB FOR YOUR LISTENING PLEASURE EVERYWHERE @ 2AM EST,” he announced in the caption.
CLB, which is the sixth studio album from the Canadian rapper, was scheduled to drop at the stroke of midnight on Friday after several previous delays. Drake confirmed Friday’s release date Monday morning on Instagram, sharing a graphic of 12 pregnant woman emojis. He’s also promoted the album’s collaborators by taking out huge billboards in their respective hometowns.
“Hey Nigeria Tems is on CLB,” a billboard in the African country read, referring to a female singer who was nominated at this year’s BET Awards for Best New International Artist.
Other billboards in New York, Chicago, and Atlanta revealed that JAY-Z, Lil Durk, Young Thug, Future, 21 Savage and Lil Baby, also make appearances on Certified Lover Boy.
Here’s the track list:
“Champagne Poetry”
“Papi’s Home”
“Girls Want Girls” ft. Lil Baby
“In the Bible” ft. Lil Durk & Giveon
“Love All” ft. Jay-Z
“Fair Trade” ft. Travis Scott
“Way 2 Sexy” ft. Future and Young Thug
“TSU”
“N 2 Deep” ft. Future
“Pipe Down”
“Yebba’s Heartbreak”
“No Friends In The Industry”
“Knife Talk” ft. 21 Savage & Project Pat
“7am on Bridle Path”
“Race My Mind”
“Fountains” ft. Tems
“Get Along Better” ft. Ty Dolla $ign
“You Only Live Twice” ft. Rick Ross & Lil Wayne
“IMY2” ft. Kid Cudi
“F***ing Fans”
“The Remorse”
Keith Urban is mourning the loss of his production manager, Randy “Baja” Fletcher. The 72-year-old, who also worked with Brooks & Dunn, Waylon Jennings, ZZ Top and more, died August 27 from injuries sustained the day before while setting up for Keith to perform at Bash on the Bay in Ohio.
“Randy Baja Fletcher loved people,” Keith told Billboard. “Now that’s a phrase that’s a lot easier, and more often said than done. But, this man truly did love people, and music, and life, and he lived it right. He saw the commonality in all of us and I can promise you this, once you’d been in the orbit of his light, he’d stay with you forever.”
Keith also praised Baja for his always bright outlook on life.
“Some people ask are you a ‘glass half full or a glass half empty’ kinda person? Baja’s view was ‘What a beautiful glass,” Keith shared. “I loved him. We all loved him, and I’m grateful he chose us as his road family for 10 years.”
Sure, Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney are superstars with millions in the bank now. But once, they were just working musicians struggling to make a living.
Today, the entrance to Music Row features a roundabout showcasing the statue known as Musica. But back then, there was a stoplight next to a row of country-star-themed souvenir shops and a place to get a bite to eat.
“There was a place called Houndogs Hot Dogs that was right on the corner of where the circle is now in Nashville, where the statues are,” Tim remembers. “And Kenny Chesney, Tracy Lawrence and I sat with guitars on stools just playing music for people that would come up and buy hot dogs. And we lived off those hot dogs.”
According to Tim, that all came to an abrupt halt, thanks to Kenny.
“I think Kenny got us fired because there were clown heads on the trash cans, and our job at the end of the night when we finished singing, we were supposed to take the clown heads, run a chain through ‘em and lock ‘em up,” Tim says.
“And I think Kenny didn’t do it one night and they got stolen, and we got fired,” he laughs.
All is well now, of course, between the two country legends, as Kenny’s “Knowing You” approaches the top ten, and Tim’s new single, “7500 OBO,” has just started its climb. They join the rest of America in celebrating Labor Day on Monday.
