Music News Archives

Luke Bryan is confirmed as the host of this year’s 2021 Country Music Association Awards (CMAs). The 45-year-old Bryan posted on social media that he will host the 55th annual awards show live in Nashville this November. The event will mark Bryan’s first time hosting the CMA Awards. Bryan tweeted: “It’s an honor to announce I’ll be hosting the 55th annual #CMAawards for the first time! Tune in to the live show Wednesday, Nov. 10 at 8/7c on ABC. Don’t miss Country Music’s biggest night! @CountryMusic”

Jon Pardi honored Randy Travis with a performance of two of his iconic country hits, paying tribute to Travis during CMT’s Artist Of A Lifetime. In a video clip recorded at The Nashville Palace in Tennessee, Pardi pays homage to the country music legend days ahead of the CMT’s Artist Of The Year special, which aired last week.

Lee Brice has earned his 9th consecutive No. 1 with the ballad “Memory I Don’t Mess With.” The song has now simultaneously reached the top of the charts on both the Billboard and Mediabase radio charts.

George Strait is set to headline Austin’s newest venue, the Moody Center, next April as part of their grand opening ceremony, and Strait will be joined by Willie Nelson & Family, as well as Randy Rogers Band. The manager of Moody Center says, “While planning our grand opening celebration, we knew we had an obligation to the Lone Star State. George Strait, Willie Nelson and Randy are all Texas natives who have built legendary careers while having an unbelievable impact on the country music industry. It doesn’t get any bigger than this.”

Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. made the decision last week that Kacey Musgraves’ latest album ‘star-crossed’ is ineligible for the country album category at the upcoming Grammys. Members of the screening committees can reject recordings if they do not feel they fit into the genre, though they remain eligible for the all-genre Album of the Year category. Musgraves, who released ‘star-crossed’ on Sept. 10, already has six Grammy awards — two of those wins are in the country album category – in 2014 for Same Trailer Different Park, and in 2019 for Golden Hour. Golden Hour also won Album of the Year that year.