Country Daypop Archives

Kimberly Perry, from The Band Perry, confirmed on Sunday, March 4, that she and husband J.P. Arencibia are splitting.  Perry and Arencibia’s divorce paperwork cites irreconcilable differences as the reason for their split.  “Yes, sadly it’s true, my marriage has come to an end,” Perry wrote on Instagram. “I know that beauty will come from these ashes and, as always, I want to thank you all for your love and support.” The couple got engaged in the fall of 2013 at Perry’s parents’ house, and married on June 12, 2014, at the First Presbyterian Church in her hometown of Greeneville. As has been previously reported, the couple met backstage at a meet-and-greet for the band’s performance at the Florida Strawberry Festival in 2012, after the Arencibia, who was a fan of the group, went backstage and asked Perry for her phone number.   

Blake Shelton had to cancel his Saturday night (Mar. 3) date at the CenturyLink Center in Bossier City, La., due to a case of the flu. The show has been rescheduled to Tuesday, Mar. 6. Shelton took to social media, explaining he almost never has to postpone a show, but the flu just got the best of him. He also apologized to fans who were scheduled to see his show on Saturday night. Shelton promised fans in a later tweet that he’d “make up for the inconvenience” and that his support guests Brett Eldredge, Carly Pearce and Trace Adkins would still be on the bill at the make-up show. Ticket holders who are unable to make Tuesday’s date will get a full refund.  Shelton’s Country Music Freaks Tour is set to run through March.

Country music legend Ronnie Prophet, who had 26 hit singles in Canada, five which charted in the U.S. and also hosted several television shows, died Friday, March 2 in Florida from cardiac and kidney failure. “With a very heavy heart, but with so many fond memories, so very sad to hear the legendary Ronnie Prophet passed away this morning at the age of 80,” family spokesperson Dave Bancroft posted on Prophet’s Facebook page. Prophet’s wife, singer Glory-Anne Carriere, made her own post on her personal Facebook page.  In the ’70s, he became a household name when he hosted CBC’s Country Roads (1973), then CTV’s The Ronnie Prophet Show (1974) and Grand Old Country (1975-1980). From 1973 to 1992, Prophet had 26 charting country singles in Canada. Five songs ranked on Billboard charts from 1975 to 1977, beginning with “Sanctuary” and followed by “Shine On,”  “It’s Enough,” “Big Big World” and “It’s Ain’t Easy Lovin’ Me.” He also had a half-dozen hits with his wife.

The Academy of Country Music Awards has shared the list of nominees for the 53rd annual celebration, which is set for April 15. Chris Stapleton leads the nominees with eight nods, including Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, and Album of the Year. Other stars such as Keith Urban and Miranda Lambert racked up multiple nominations, while relative newcomers like Thomas Rhett, Maren Morris, and Midland also scored multiple nods.   Read the full list of ACM Awards nominees below and tune in to CBS on April 15 at 8 p.m. for the live ceremony.

Reba McEntire is going to be back as the host of the ACM Awards in 2018. McEntire announced the 2018 ACM Awards nominees on Thursday morning (March 1) during an appearance on CBS This Morning, and ET Online revealed that she is returning to host the awards show in 2018. ET host Nancy O’Dell helped reveal the rest of the 2018 ACM Awards nominees. The news comes just after Dierks Bentley revealed that he and Luke Bryan were not returning to host in 2018. Bentley and Bryan co-hosted the awards for two years, and Bryan hosted the show three times with Blake Shelton prior to that. The 2018 ACM Awards will take place on April 15, 2018. They will be broadcast live on CBS from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.