Music

One thing is for sure that Katy Perry remains a master at executing chart-topping formulas. It’s been 10 years since Katy Perry’s mega-blockbuster Teenage Dream set an almost untouchable bar for modern pop albums of  the 21st century. It became the first album to land five songs at the top of the charts since Michael Jackson’s

Brent Cobb takes the dismissive phrase “shut up and sing” — a popular retort to musicians who dare talk about politics or social issues — and turns it on its head in his new song, appropriately titled “Shut Up and Sing.” It’s the latest release off the Georgia songwriter’s new album Keep ‘Em on They

The opening lines to Lainey Wilson‘s new single, “Things a Man Oughta Know,” rattle off just a few of the everyday chores that she doesn’t need a man to do for her. Wilson knows how to change a tire, catch a fish and shoot a gun. This tough-as-nails singer has all the life skills she needs — no boyfriend

Sheryl Crow‘s message that you get back what you give is aimed at anyone who leads with hate, but there’s no mistaking who her “In the End” music video is targeting. The country-rocker dropped the new song on Friday afternoon (Aug. 28), with little pre-promotion. Crow, a longtime critic of President Donald Trump, opens with

Aug. 30 marks a big anniversary for Kenny Chesney: It was on that date, 23 years ago, that the Tennessee native reached a career turning point with “She’s Got It All,” from his fourth album, I Will Stand. The song became his first No. 1 Billboard hit on Aug. 30, 1997. Written by Craig Wiseman and

Keith Urban cranks up and sings an ode to a free spirit in his new song “Tumbleweed,” released on Friday. It’s Urban’s latest offering from the forthcoming album The Speed of Now Part 1, due out September 18th. “Tumbleweed” — written by the Cadillac Three’s Jaren Johnston and Neil Mason, with James McNair — kicks

If Brett Eldridge‘s wistful “Sunday Drive” isn’t enough to make listeners weep, its visual counterpart should do the trick. Eldridge himself even cried after he watched his new music video for the first time. The black-and-white clip deftly illustrates the song’s sentimental thrust, portraying weekend cruises that hold more importance as time goes on. In

Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani will return to television this fall. After a delay, a premiere date for Season 19 of The Voice has been announced. Per the show’s official Twitter, the reality series will return on Oct. 19, a Monday. Shelton, Stefani, John Legend and Kelly Clarkson are the show’s returning judges. Host Carson Daly will also

Eric Church has never been afraid to do something unexpected or risky when it comes to his music. In fact, that attitude and fearlessness can be traced all the way back to his debut album, 2006’s Sinners Like Me. During an in-depth Q&A session at the 2020 Country Radio Seminar in Nashville, Church looked back on his choice

Life is a blink. One minute you’re in the backseat of your parents’ car, being driven for ice cream, and the next you’re taking care of your folks, ushering them into the car to take them to some appointment or another. That’s the message of Brett Eldredge’s music video for “Sunday Drive,” the title track

West Coast vibes mark Old Dominion‘s new single “Never Be Sorry,” the fourth from their self-titled album. Strong songwriting is a given for this group, but warm, vibrant accents allow this subtle heartbreaker to stand out from others in their catalog. Singer Matt Ramsey wrote “Never Be Sorry” with bandmates Trevor Rosen and Brad Tursi,

Jeannie Seely got one of her first shots at country music stardom thanks to Dottie West, who recorded recorded the Seely-penned “It Just Takes Practice” for 1965’s Dottie West Sings. The two built a friendship, and it was West who encouraged Seely to move from California to Nashville. When Seely was in a car accident in 1977,

More than a decade before Tim McGraw starred with Sandra Bullock in the Oscar-winning film The Blind Side, Trisha Yearwood appeared with the actress in a movie that has mostly been forgotten. Yearwood played herself in director Peter Bogdanovich’s 1993 film The Thing Called Love, which stars River Phoenix as James Wright, a rising but troubled

Modern-day freight-hoppers ride the rails in Billy Strings’ new video for “Watch It Fall.” A track off the bluegrass singer-guitarist’s latest album Home, the song castigates U.S. society for its addiction to capitalism and fossil fuels via lyrics like “How long until there is nothing left at all?” In the picturesque, daring video, directed by

Holdyn Barder is focusing on the positive and finding the good in his new single “It’s All Love.” The song is premiering exclusively at The Boot; press play below to listen. Written by Tim James, Lance Miller and Patrick Jason Matthews, and produced by Chris Loocke, who plays guitar for Chase Rice, “It’s All Love” is

Chrissy Metz wasn’t planning to spend her quarantine in Nashville per se, but when a trip from her home in Los Angeles to Music City for studio time coincided with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, she wasn’t complaining. “There’s no rush to go back, since we don’t know when we’re going to production — and I’ve been

When Josh Turner began contemplating just which country artists he wanted to cover on his new album, Country State of Mind, he knew darn well he wanted to sing something from ”the King of Country Music,” George Strait. “I felt like this record wouldn’t be complete without a George Strait song because of what he has contributed to

Songwriter Dan Penn doesn’t put out albums under his name very often. The celebrated co-writer behind numerous Memphis/Muscle Shoals-era soul hits, including “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man,” “Dark End of the Street,” “I’m Your Puppet,” and “Cry Like a Baby” has released only a handful of studio recordings since 1973, beginning with his solo

Hit country songwriter Luke Laird is stepping in front of the mic for his debut album. Music Row, his first release as an artist, is due out on Sept. 18. Laird’s self-produced project features 10 tracks that, per a press release, “chronicl[e] his journey from being a kid in rural Hartstown, Pa., to becoming one of the

With just a few acoustic guitar chords and a percussive shaker, Chris Stapleton announced that a new song — possibly even a new radio single — is on the way. The song, “Starting Over,” will drop on Thursday (Aug. 27). The “Broken Halos” hitmaker shared that the song will release at 12PM ET. It’s a familiar beat for those

Dwight Yoakam became a first-time father at an age when many dads are looking forward to getting their kids out of the house, but he’s hardly an anomaly in country music. There are at least 10 more singers who had children much later in life, including three who were past 60! Listed below are the most

Justin Townes Earle likely died from a “probable drug overdose,” a spokesperson at the Metro Nashville Police Department confirmed to Rolling Stone on Tuesday. Police conducted a welfare check at the 38-year-old songwriter’s Nashville apartment on Sunday after one of Earle’s friends said they hadn’t heard from him since Thursday. MNPD spokesperson Don Aaron told

As Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton once sang, you can’t make old friends. Now, LoCash put their own spin on that idea — and raise a glass to it — in their new single, “Beers to Catch Up On.” There are some friendships that never change. No matter how many years it’s been since the

It’s no secret that Tyler Farr is a sucker for a good story song. He proved it seven years ago with “Redneck Crazy,” and on his June EP, Only Truck in Town, Farr continues to show heavy favor for evocative lyrics and powerful storytelling. He’s also got a knack for framing well-trod country subject matter in a fresh light. This

Love and Theft‘s Stephen Barker Liles has been married to his wife, Jenna Michelle Kennedy, since Aug. 24, 2014 — but if it were up to the musician, they would have tied the knot long before then. “I loved her for a long time and would have asked her sooner,” Barker Liles told People at the time of

Whether it’s coming out of Nashville, New York, L.A., or points in between, there’s no shortage of fresh tunes, especially from artists who have yet to become household names. Rolling Stone Country selects some of the best new music releases from country and Americana artists. Flo, “Talking to Myself” Chilean pop-country performer Flo has a

Rhiannon Giddens‘ new song “Don’t Call Me Names” is an impassioned plea for equality. The verses tell of a love affair gone sour, but the chorus is a more universal rallying cry for anyone who feels held back or beaten down. “Don’t call me names / Don’t yell at me / Don’t think you can

Justin Townes Earle, a noted singer-songwriter and the son of fellow musician Steve Earle, has died. He was 38 years old. Earle’s family announced the news of his death on Facebook on Sunday (Aug. 23). A cause of death was not given. Justin Townes Earle was born in Nashville on Jan. 4, 1982, the son of

Trace Adkins had already earned 10 Top 20 hits by this time in 2003. He’d had his first No. 1 single, “(This Ain’t) No Thinkin’ Thing,” and had released four Top 10 albums, as well as a hits collection. But chances are, it’s his induction into the Grand Ole Opry that makes Aug. 23 stand