Music

Jelly Roll is having a very, very good week. His new song just hit No. 1 on Billboard and Mediabase airplay charts — uh, no, it’s not the country song. “Son of a Sinner” is inside the Country Airplay Top 30 and climbing quickly, but “Dead Man Walking” hit No. 1 on rock radio the

Brandi Carlile and Ashley McBryde are among the artists who will gather to pay tribute to the life and music of Naomi Judd just two weeks after the singer’s death. “Naomi Judd: A River of Time Celebration,” will air live and commercial-free on CMT from Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, Sunday, May 15, at 6 p.m. ET.

There are multiple potential kings of country music, with Roy Acuff, George Strait and even Elvis Presley among the possible wearers of the crown. Yet of the artists lauded as royalty, none ruled over their chosen sound quite like the king of Western swing, Bob Wills. From the late 1920s to the early 1970s, Wills

Kevin Morby’s new album This Is a Photograph, due out May 13 via Dead Oceans, begins with snatches of conversation between a child and parent. It’s hard to follow the dialogue — there’s tape fuzz, birdsong, a child calling out “Mama!” — but the sample sets a nostalgic tone, suggesting home videos and long-gone memories. It’s a

5 Seconds of Summer have dropped the third single from their new album “5SOS5”, called “Me, Myself & I”. The single was produced and co-written by Jason Evigan (Maroon 5, Dua Lipa, David Guetta, Jason Derulo), Jon Bellion (Justin Bieber, Halsey, Lauv), and Pete Nappi (GAYLE, Madison Beer), and Mick Coogan (Charlotte Lawrence, Carlie Hanson).

Evan Paul hosts Taste of Country Nights, On Demand, a weekly country music interview podcast that focuses on the music. Follow wherever podcasts are found, like Apple Podcasts and Spotify and leave a rating and review. ​​​​​​​​​​​This show is part of the Townsquare Media On Demand network. I must admit, an email with the words “jelly roll” in the subject line grabs my

Ashley Judd revealed that her mother, Naomi Judd, died by suicide and “used a firearm” in an interview with Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America Thursday. “She used a weapon. Mother used a firearm,” Judd said. “So that’s the piece of information that we are very uncomfortable sharing, but understand that we’re in a position that

Every week, The Boot highlights recent favorites from country, Americana and everything in between. In each list, music fans will find picks from our contributing team that we think you’ll love. Keep reading to check out the latest installment of The Boot’s Weekly Picks. Hannah Juanita “Girl, Where You From?” Hannah Juanita gleefully sings of her wanderlust as a

Austin, Texas-based, classically trained musician turned Americana artist Roxi Copland is sharing the new video for “I Come From Crazy,” and The Boot has the exclusive premiere. According to Copland, the title track from her latest EP was born out of divisiveness amongst her family throughout the pandemic — particularly with whether or not to get

Kane Brown‘s love of cereal has gone next level. The country singer has just announced his latest venture — his own cereal — called Kane Krunch. “Does anyone else love cereal as much as I do?! Kane Krunch available now 🔥❤️,” Brown writes in the caption of an Instagram photo that shows him lovingly cradling a box of

One day after Naomi Judd’s death, her daughters Wynonna and Ashley took the stage at the Country Music Hall of Fame to pay tribute to their mother and celebrate the induction of Naomi and Wynonna’s mother-daughter duo, the Judds. Also being inducted at the ceremony were the late Ray Charles, drummer Eddie Bayers, and the

Whether you’ve got one, are one, know one or all three, everybody’s got a mama in their lives, and country stars are no exception. Many of the genre’s biggest names will be honoring these special women on Mother’s Day 2020, which takes place on Sunday (May 9). Some country artists mark the occasion by reminiscing about

Throughout the history of country music, its trailblazing women have told their unabashedly honest forlorn tales of being cheated on. Loretta Lynn’s self-penned “Fist City” is her feisty warning to a flirty stranger, Tammy Wynette’s “Stand By Your Man” asks women to never leave their husbands despite their transgressions, and Carrie Underwood’s scorchingly vengeful “Before He Cheats” tells men to think twice before

Irish singer Dermot Kennedy has shared his new single ‘Something To Someone.’ The song marks his first release since his Top 20 UK hit, ‘Better Days’ which came out in July ’21. In a released statement Dermot spoke about the meaning behind the single; “To be something to someone. To love and be loved in

On May 11, 2013, Willie Nelson earned an honorary doctor of music degree from Boston’s Berklee College of Music during the school’s commencement ceremony. Carole King and Annie Lennox also received honorary degrees alongside Nelson. Upon finding out about the honor, Nelson “was going to ask them if I could write my own medication,” he joked

Kelsey Waldon’s new song “Sweet Little Girl” opens with a dramatic introduction from Jim Lauderdale, who intones, “All the way from Monkey’s Eyebrow, Kentucky, here’s Kelsey Waldon.” And with that, she’s off, delivering a country music tale of hard living, self-medicating, and yearning for home. “I’m gonna drink myself drunk/I’m gonna get myself high/anything just

Shel Silverstein is known for his whimsical and twisted children’s poetry, compiled in books such as Where the Sidewalk Ends and A Light in the Attic. However, the Chicago native had many talents: He also wrote and illustrated the beloved children’s book The Giving Tree and was a prolific songwriter, especially for country artists. In

Craig Morgan is going on tour this fall. The singer is teaming with Operation Finally Home — an organization that provides mortgage-free homes and home modifications for veterans and other military families — to launch the run. An Army veteran himself, Morgan has been a brand ambassador for the cause since 2017. Called Operation Finally Home

Willie Nelson has postponed his upcoming concerts and canceled his Sunday night headlining gig at New Orleans’ Jazz Fest after a member of his touring band tested positive for Covid-19. The Willie Nelson Family Band was scheduled to perform in Franklin, Tennessee on Friday and Brandon, Missouri on Saturday before heading to Jazz Fest Sunday. 

The movie Urban Cowboy was a modest hit upon its 1980 release. Its soundtrack, however, was a much different, more successful story. The double LP spawned three country No. 1 hits (Johnny Lee’s “Lookin’ for Love,” Mickey Gilley‘s “Stand By Me” and Anne Murray‘s “Could I Have This Dance”), while its Kenny Rogers track, ”Love the World Away,” peaked at No.

Mandy Moore’s new full-length studio album In Real Life debuts on Friday, May 13 via Verve Forecast. In advance of the album release, she’s set to perform on TODAY on Monday, May 9 and on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday, May 10. This summer, Moore will headline an extensive tour of North America in support of the new album. It is her first tour

Gabby Barrett and Cade Foehner are going to be parents — again! Barrett shared the exciting news in a social media post on Mother’s Day (May 8), where she also revealed the baby’s gender. “My son,” she captioned her post, along with an emoji of a blue heart. “Another LIFE we get to love and

Ashley Judd penned a Mother’s Day op-ed in honor of her mother Naomi, the country legend who died April 30, the day before she and daughter Wynonna were scheduled for enshrinement in the Country Hall of Fame. “This Sunday is abruptly, shockingly, my first Mother’s Day without my mama,” Ashley wrote in USA Today.  “It

Plenty of country artists are the children of stars — and every so often, those children take to the stage to perform with their famous parents. Sometimes it’s a one-off, once-in-a-lifetime event, but occasionally, these parent-child combinations turn into lasting musical partnerships. From epic duets between Kelly Clarkson and her mother-in-law Reba McEntire to the decades-spanning

Multi-talented country newcomer Kailey Nicole has cut her teeth in several facets of the entertainment industry, including TV and film. But after a college education at the University of South California’s Music Business Program, she knew she had to pursue one of her biggest passions and dreams: singing country music. So, she made the move

Mickey Gilley, who shot to country stardom with a string of iconic hits and helped launch the Urban Cowboy craze of the 1980s, has died. According to a statement from his publicist, Gilley died “peacefully” on Saturday (May 7) in Branson, Mo., “with his family and close friends by his side.” The country legend had

Mickey Gilley, the smooth-voiced, piano-playing country crooner who helped popularize the “Urban Cowboy” movement of the Eighties, died Saturday in Branson, Missouri. He was 86. Gilley’s publicist confirmed the singer’s death. While Gilley had a run of success in the Seventies singing barroom-piano country ballads and rave-ups like “Room Full of Roses” and “Don’t the

Seventy-three years ago today (May 7, 1949), Hank Williams earned his first No. 1 hit, with “Lovesick Blues.” The song, written by Cliff Friend and Irving Mills, was first included in the 1922 musical Oh, Ernest. Emmett Miller and country singer Rex Griffin each recorded “Lovesick Blues,” in 1925 and 1939, respectively. Inspired by their recordings,

Every week, The Boot highlights recent favorites from country, Americana, folk and everything in between. In every list, you’ll find picks from our contributing team that we think you’ll love. Keep reading to check out the latest installment of The Boot’s Weekly Picks. Angel Olsen “Big Time” Angel Olsen fully embraces country music — something she’s flirted with