Music

Kelly Clarkson is being sued by her management company over alleged unpaid commissions. According to the lawsuit filed by Starstruck Management Group on Tuesday (Sept. 29) in Los Angeles Superior Court, the singer, The Voice coach and talk show host owes more than $1 million in unpaid commission. Variety reports that the suit claims Clarkson has paid

49 Winchester songwriter and lead singer Isaac Gibson found himself stranded overnight in the small town of Hays, Kan., and left with an idea for a song. The Appalachia-bred country-soul band is premiering the track exclusively with The Boot; press play below to watch a live performance of the tune. “Hays, Kansas” “walloped me,” Gibson admits,

Zara Larsson unleashes a remix of her buzzing hit single “WOW” featuring Sabrina Carpenter. Get it HERE via TEN/Epic Records. Last month, “WOW” exploded on the heels of a sync during a romantic dance sequence between the two main characters in the Netflix Original hit film Work It. Watch it HERE. In the aftermath, the track vaulted up the charts of both Top 40 and Dance Radio

Kane Brown imagines a better future for all the children of the world — regardless of race or socioeconomic status — in his “Worldwide Beautiful” music video. “Worldwide Beautiful,” which also lends its name to Brown’s now-postponed 2020 tour, was first released back in June. The song is a timely call for racial justice and mutual

It’s difficult enough to connect with another human being in the time of Covid, but that didn’t stop Courtney Marie Andrews from taking things a step further — by traveling from her home in Nashville to an isolated cottage on the island of Nantucket, where a reliable wireless signal to do an interview is about

Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers‘ friendship was a playful, flirtatious one, as both artists admitted time and again. That dynamic is on display in a newly released clip from one of Parton’s eponymous television variety shows, which is premiering exclusively on The Boot. “This is so much fun, and I knew it would be, because every

Four years ago, Amanda Shires wrote a song about abortion — about a group of women talking about another woman getting one, specifically. The subject matter was important, she knew, but the song itself wasn’t fitting quite right alongside her others, so she tucked it away. “I needed time, I think, to think about presenting it to the

Terry McBride plays the father, Patty Loveless plays the mother, and Chris Stapleton helped fill in the details of “Rebels & Angels,” the title track of McBride’s upcoming solo album. The song is a classic American love story delivered in three-quarters time. McBride, formerly the frontman and namesake of the ’90s band McBride & the Ride, wrote the

Michael Ray’s new song “Whiskey and Rain” is equal parts Ronnie Milsap and Gary Allan, a mix of the piano man’s Eighties swing and the Nineties lonesomeness of Allan’s Smoke Rings in the Dark. “It’s been nothing but a hangover trying to get over you,” Ray sings in a pronounced but easygoing twang, a sign

Zac Brown Band multi-instrumentalist Clay Cook and his wife, Brooke, have welcomed their third child. People reports that the country couple welcomed a daughter, Cecilia “Ceci” Ellen Cook, in Newnan, Georgia, on Friday (Sept. 25). Ceci joins her two older brothers, 3 1/2-year-old Charles “Charlie” Robert and Theron “Teddie” Maine, 2. “We could not feel

Nobody said it because so few understood it, but Granger Smith and his wife Amber’s immediate call to give back to the hospital where their 3-year-old son died was not intuitive. Within days, if not sooner, the couple was praising the staff and their efforts. It’s not that the nurses and doctors at the Dell

Filmore‘s debut album drops Friday (Sept. 25), and he’s celebrating with the release of a lyric video for his latest single, “Nothing’s Better.” The clip is premiering exclusively on The Boot; press play above to watch. To a beatbox-esque beat, a twangy guitar and a snap track, the song’s lyrics celebrate the freedom that comes

Willie Nelson has paired his political anthem “Vote ‘Em Out” — which the country legend premiered ahead of the 2018 midterms election — with a new animated video to spread its message before Election Day 2020. Nelson first performed the track at a 2018 rally in support of Beto O’Rourke during his Texas senatorial race

Florida Georgia Line‘s Tyler Hubbard is a boy dad for the second time in just over a year. The singer and his wife, Hayley, welcomed their third baby and second son on Thursday (Sept. 24). Atlas Roy Hubbard was born at 6:44PM in Nashville, weighing in at 8 lbs., 2 oz., and measuring 21 inches,

Eight years ago today, on Sept. 26, 2012, George Strait shocked the country music community by announcing that he was retiring from touring. The King of Country Music held a press conference at the Country Music Hall of Fame, announcing that his The Cowboy Rides Away Tour would be his farewell tour; the trek kicked off

Paul Cauthen and Orville Peck both bring a dash of soul to their solo music, but together, the pair dial it up as the Unrighteous Brothers. They’ve released under that moniker two Righteous Brothers covers, staying faithful to the original hits while adding just a bit of their own style. In a press release, Cauthen explains

Dolly Parton’s most memorable on-screen appearances, from concert specials to cameos with Oprah Winfrey and Bob Hope, are assembled for the new 19-DVD box set Dolly: The Ultimate Collection. One of the most cherished clips is from 1974, when Parton bid farewell to her frequent duet partner and confidant Porter Wagoner by singing “I Will

The year 2020 has been an emotional roller coaster for pretty much everyone, but Mickey Guyton‘s (metaphorical) ride has included a few more drops, loops and thrills. A decade ago, Guyton signed her record deal with Capitol Nashville. It wasn’t until 2015 that she released her debut single, the soaring breakup anthem “Better Than You

Caylee Hammack‘s debut album, If It Wasn’t for You, wraps up with the poppy, vaguely bombastic “New Level of Life.” The song finds the singer giving thanks to an ex for breaking up with her; she’s so much better off without him, she’s realized. It was a real situation Hammack found herself in, she tells

Ashley McBryde carries on the great country tradition of giving bad men what they deserve in her new song “Martha Divine.” Only in this case, he gets to live knowing his loose trousers led to a wanton woman’s demise. Part Dixie Chicks‘ “Goodbye Earl” (as they were known then), part Carrie Underwood‘s ”Two Black Cadillacs,” “Martha Divine”

First-round Grammy voting gets underway on September 30th and runs through October 12th. For our 2021 Grammy preview issue, we asked a series of likely contenders for next year’s awards to reflect on their past experiences at the ceremony, look ahead to the future, and discuss the albums and singles that could earn them a statue

He’s been spending more time at home recently due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, but Jon Pardi‘s still keeping plenty busy. “We’re building some stuff around my house that’s keeping me really occupied, and then between writing every week and whatever pops up, there’s a lot going on,” the singer shares. “I’m not just binging

Country music can trace its roots back in myriad directions, with influences hailing from Appalachia, the British Isles, Africa and south of the border. But the thread that pulls all of country music together is the lonely cry of the western cowboy. From the earliest years of television and radio, the ideals of cowboy life

Scotty McCreery‘s country accent keeps ”You Time” safely between the country buoys, but the lead single from his fourth studio album is his most progressive in half a decade. Producer Frank Rogers is back for the new song, but the pair lean left (slightly) of country music’s traditional center with vocal effects and guitar tones made popular by the

After more than a half-year hiatus because of the ongoing pandemic, the Time Jumpers will resume their Monday-night residency at Nashville club 3rd and Lindsley on October 5th. But the Western swing band will do so without Vince Gill. A member of the group since 2010, the multi-Grammy winner and current member of the Eagles,

Trisha Yearwood has unveiled a moving music video for “I’ll Carry You Home.” It’s the poignant ballad the country singer recently performed at the 2020 ACM Awards that hails from her 2019 studio effort, Every Girl. While Yearwood’s rendition at the 55th Academy of Country Music Awards served as a tribute to those we’ve lost this

It’s been about six months since Maren Morris and her husband, Ryan Hurd, welcomed baby boy Hayes in March. Now, the singer says she’s beginning to write songs again, and she’s been working on expanding her circle of co-writers. “I’m trying to mix it up and not always use my same, like, four friends that I’m really

Although the majority of 2020 has been a swirl of upheaval and unprecedented new normals, it’s hard to deny that the year has brought forth some moments of simplicity and opportunities to pause and strip down. A good example comes in the form of a new music video from Chris Stapleton for “Starting Over,” which showcases everything great

Drive-By Truckers have released a pointed lyric video for “21st Century USA,” one of the understated highlights from the band’s 2020 record, The Unraveling. “I wrote this song during a rest stop outside of Gillette, Wyoming in January of 2018,” says the band’s co-frontman Patterson Hood. “Its blending of the personal and political provided the

Keith Urban‘s father wasn’t one to express his emotions. In his childhood home, the country superstar admits, conversations about feelings were not often had. “I was raised in a house with a dad that was always like, ‘Shhh. Don’t rock the boat. Don’t talk about anything; say [it] in your music,'” Urban shares in a