Music

Blake Shelton has announced his first full-length studio record in nearly four years. The Oklahoma native will release Body Language on May 21st. The album is the follow-up to Shelton’s 2017 long-player Texoma Shore. Body Language — a Conway Twitty-esque title if ever there were one — spans 12 tracks, including Shelton’s current single “Minimum

Thomas Rhett has written several hit songs for other artists since releasing his debut single in 2012. A little-known song about young love and youthful indiscretion led to his major break, however. With “What’s Your Country Song,” Rhett has 17 No. 1 singles, including the generational love song “Die a Happy Man” and the genre-bending “Make

Dean Dillon is perhaps best known for co-writing more than 70 songs recorded by George Strait. However — as if that career-defining feat isn’t enough — Dillon’s discography also includes solo recordings dating back to the ‘70s, a stint as an entertainer at Opryland, a creatively enriching run as Gary Stewart’s duet partner and a catalog

Eric Church is a “Break It Kind of Guy” in the final instant-grat track off his upcoming album series, Heart & Soul. The funk-infused song opens with an ear-catching guitar lick as Church beckons, “Somebody turn it up.” Throughout the song, the Chief is a rule-breaking rejector of routine who keeps his gun loaded and spikes his coffee

Mando Saenz titled his first album in eight years All My Shame. But the veteran Nashville songwriter who’s had his songs recorded by Miranda Lambert, Midland, and Lee Ann Womack has nothing to regret. Despite the heaviness of the record’s title, Saenz isn’t repenting for past sins. Instead, he’s celebrating the empowerment that comes with

She’s been a country mainstream artist for more than 40 years, and is a vivid storyteller and, like many beloved country stars, a chronic over-sharer, so it’s easy enough to assume that even casual fans know just about everything there is to know about recording artist and actor Reba McEntire. We, however, beg to differ.

Miko Marks is feeling like a kid again — musically speaking, that is. “I’m like, ‘Is this really happening?’ I still feel like … I haven’t done this before,” she tells The Boot a few weeks prior to the Friday (March 26) release of her new album, Our Country. In her voice, there’s joy and excitement,

Thomas Rhett is going big to celebrate the release of his new album, Country Again, Side A. On the record’s release day, April 30, the country star has planned a livestreaming, full-band concert. Thomas Rhett: One Night Only From Nashville will begin at 7PM CT, via Veeps. Fans from around the world will be able to

Miranda Lambert’s collaborative Marfa Tapes project with Jack Ingram and Jon Randall has released another new song. The harmony-drenched cheating saga “Am I Right or Amarillo” made its debut on Friday, with the full album arriving May 7th. As with previously released Marfa Tapes tracks, “Am I Right or Amarillo” is stripped down in production

Sara Watkins‘ new album, Under the Pepper Tree, would not exist if not for 2020. “Definitely not. Definitely not,” she tells The Boot a few weeks before the record’s Friday (March 26) release. At home after the cancellation of a tour due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the singer-songwriter “experienced a different rhythm of life.” “It was

Chris Young and Kane Brown celebrate their “Famous Friends” in the music video for the collaborative track. The video opens with Young picking Brown up in his truck so they can travel around town to greet their friends on the street, each buddy getting a moment to shine on their own personal red carpet under flashing lights. Along the

The Oak Ridge Boys are heading to the Front Porch with their new album. The Country Music Hall of Fame group of Duane Allen, Joe Bonsall, William Lee Golden and Richard Sterban have announced the Summer 2021 release of Front Porch Singin’. The 11-song project was recorded in 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, during socially distanced studio sessions at historic RCA

Eric Church leans into his outspoken, rebellious side on the new song “Break It Kind of Guy,” the latest (and final) preview of his album trio Heart & Soul. The collection will be issued over the course of a week beginning April 16th with Heart; Soul arrives April 23rd and features “Break It Kind of

Reyna Roberts hesitates to call 2020 great. It’s hard to describe a year full of death and hardship due to a global pandemic, a reckoning with racism and inequality in the United States, and a variety of other social and political turmoil as anything even resembling good, but for the singer, songwriter and pianist with

Indie-folk trio the Accidentals worked with an incredible list of artists on their forthcoming EP: Kim Richey, Mary Gauthier and more. “Night Train,” premiering exclusively on The Boot, is a songwriting collaboration with Dar Williams. “Night Train,” the Accidentals tell The Boot, hopes for healing and a better future. It “became an anthem … for

Carrie Underwood is set for an upcoming awards show performance that’s probably going to be pretty different from what her county fans normally get to see. The country superstar is slated to perform at the Latin American Music Awards on April 15, taking the stage with Spanish singer David Bisbal. Underwood teamed with Bisbal to

Ahead of Friday’s premiere of their CMT Crossroads, Margo Price and Nathaniel Rateliff have released a video of their performance of Price’s “Twinkle Twinkle.” It’s a gritty, funky collaboration, with a Jimi Hendrix-like guitar riff and a healthy dose of swagger from both of the featured artists. Price takes the first verse, debunking the idea

Smithfield‘s new song “Sunday Best” began as something much darker, but was always going to represent where the country duo was headed next. A new acoustic version of the track exemplifies all of it. Trey Smith and Jen Fielder were re-thinking their approach even before the pandemic. A new EP was recorded before COVID-19 shut

Singer-songwriter Katie Jo‘s debut album, Pawn Shop Queen, chronicles some of the most traumatic experiences of her young life. Its title track, however, offers a bit of optimism: a reminder that our worst moments don’t define us, but make us stronger. Jo describes “Pawn Shop Queen” — which is premiering exclusively on The Boot — as “an

Charley Crockett‘s newest album is a tribute to his friend and fellow musician, James “Slim” Hand, but his new music video for its song “Midnight Run” turns the story into his own. Crockett admits that “Midnight Run” — a cut from Hand’s 2009 Rounder Records release Shadow on the Ground — remains a bit of a

Marty Stuart has announced the digital album Songs I Sing in the Dark, a collection of 20 acoustic numbers that he’ll debut on a monthly basis. The first installment is Stuart’s version of “Ready for the Times to Get Better” and, as the Country Music Hall of Fame member explains in a new video, it

If you love a country song that’s been released in the past decade, there’s a chance that Natalie Hemby had a hand in it. From Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town to Kacey Musgraves and Maren Morris, plenty of country artists have recorded songs written by Hemby at some point in their careers. With six No. 1

Portia Clark‘s road to duetting with Darius Rucker begins in 2017, backstage at gala for the Starkey Hearing Foundation, and while it turned out to be an important moment, it’s nowhere near the most interesting part of her story. By the time Clark met Rucker, she’d been involved with the Starkey Hearing Foundation — founded by

There’s been a major switch-up in The Voice‘s Season 20 Battles Rounds coaching lineup: Kelly Clarkson is out sick, and filling in for her is none other than Kelsea Ballerini. Ballerini’s surprise appearance was revealed during the latest episode of the show on Monday night (March 22), as host Carson Daly explained that Clarkson was under

Kenny Chesney has scrapped his Chillaxification Tour. Originally set for 2020 and then postponed until 2021, the stadium trek is now slated for 2022 under a new name and with different opening acts, according to a press release. “All of the stadiums on the 2021 itinerary will still host Chesney’s 2022 tour. It will be

Since Brett Eldredge‘s debut studio album, Bring You Back, was released in 2013, the singer has been able to celebrate a solid string of successes: five No. 1 singles, seven songs certified platinum and nominations for a number of different honors, ranging from the ACM Awards to Teen Choice Awards. Eldredge has also become known as a

Chapel Hart proudly proclaim ”You Can Have Him Jolene” in their new single, which pairs nicely with a hilarious music video. Comprised of sisters Danica and Devynn Hart and their cousin Trea Swindle, Chapel Hart put their feistiest foot forward in this callback to Dolly Parton‘s iconic 1973 hit “Jolene.” The video follows Danica as she catches onto her partner’s

Miranda Lambert strung up her old hit “Heart Like Mine” for actor Matthew McConaughey‘s virtual We’re Texas storm recovery benefit concert on Sunday (March 21). While doing so, the Wildcard 2021 Grammy Awards winner wore ironic patches across the chest of her Western-wear button-up labeling her a “School Crossing Guard” and an “Outlaw.” The twee affectations were minor

In 2019, Dolly Parton became the first country-music artist to receive the MusiCares Person of the Year honor, following past recipients like Fleetwood Mac, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, and Carole King. Now fans will be able to witness the typically industry-only event: On April 7th, Netflix premieres Dolly Parton: A MusiCares Tribute. Taped just before