Watch Dolly Parton and Katy Perry Sing a Medley of Parton's Hits at Last Night's ACM Awards

Living legend Dolly Parton performed alongside living Jeremy Scott fever dream Katy “Jolene” Perry at last night’s ACM awards, and the crowd loved every second of it. The duo blessed us with a medley of “Coat of Many Colors,” “Jolene,” and “9 to 5"—a satisfying trifecta of Parton classics—and added fuel to my…
Rayna and Deacon Finally Got Married on Nashville (But He Definitely Tried to Ruin It)
On Wednesday, Rayna and Deacon finally got married—but not before the groom and the rest of the family almost ruined it all, because that’s the way of the heart-wrenching nighttime soap called Nashville. So how many ways was the #Nashvillewedding nearly cancelled? Let’s look back and commiserate, shall we?
20 'Lost' Tracks From Dolly, Linda, and Emmylou To Be Released Later This Year
Imagine if someone approached you and asked, “Wanna hear some new music from Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, and Emmylou Harris?” How would you respond? With a silent shrug? A quick “No”? With a gasp, followed by, “What do I look like, some kind of dummy? Of course I wanna hear some new music from Trio!” If it’s more…
The Property Brothers Released a Country Music Video and Now I Understand Their Fame Even Less
For years, Drew and Jonathan Scott were just twin brothers who were tremendously and inexplicably famous on HGTV due to their shared love of property and each other. But late last year, they transitioned into twin brothers who are using their tremendous and inexplicable fame on HGTV due to their shared love of…
Jamie Lynn Spears Is Now a Hit Songwriter Thanks to Horrifying Country Single 'I Got the Boy'
Jamie Lynn Spears, former Nickelodeon star and sister of Britney Jean, has just reached a fairly significant milestone in her blossoming songwriting career: she’s entered the Billboard Hot 100. Spears co-write Jana Kramer’s “I Got the Boy,” which debuted at No. 92 this week.
Rejected Titles for Carrie Underwood's New Single 'What I Never Knew I Always Wanted'
Carrie Underwood, the Grammy-winning country singer who will destroy your property with a baseball bat and never get charged for it, released a new track from her upcoming album Storyteller this week, and it’s got a long title. Not Illinois-era Sufjan Stevens long, but long.
Love Is Dead: Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert Are Getting Divorced
Country music power couple Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert’s divorce is expected to be finalized on Monday, according to TMZ. Shelton reportedly filed in Oklahoma.
Watch Carrie Underwood Rap Wiz Khalifa's 'See You Again'
Wiz Khalifa’s “See You Again” is catchy as hell and that knowledge isn’t lost on Carrie Underwood, who gave the song a Nashville twist in at the Big Barrel Country Music Festival on Sunday. Cue the twangy guitars!
Where Are the Women in Country Music? Watching, Waiting and Ready
It’s 85 degrees out as dusk lowers itself onto downtown Nashville. A breeze slowly wends its way through the crowd, roaming around the hordes of young women in short-shorts, every article of clothing possible covered in fringe, perfectly curled hair rolling down their backs, blindingly white grins open wide as they…
Brandy Clark, the Best Storyteller in Country Music
Titled like a nod to Salinger or a year-end anthology, Brandy Clark’s debut album 12 Stories begins with a promise, as well as a reminder of what country music has always claimed, and lately, often, failed, to do. It’s stories, not anecdotes, not scenarios, not atmosphere that drives the genre—but real stories, rife…
Is Sam Hunt Truly the Drake of Country Music?
Sam Hunt, the former college football player turned country hit-maker responsible for love-lorn, hip-hop infused tracks, has been compared to Drake before, in a way that perhaps reveals the mainstream music press’s biases a little too clearly. (They’ve been particularly linked after Hunt covered “Marvin’s Room” in…
Bounty Hunter Shoots, Kills Country Star Randy Howard
Randy Howard was an early ‘80s country star who toured with the likes of Willie Nelson and released novelty numbers like “All American Redneck” (“He’s got a pick-up truck/he loves to fuck”) and “My Nose Don’t Work No More” which is, obviously, about snorting too much cocaine. Unfortunately, like all the best country…
Country Music Dude: In Radio, Female Performers Are Basically Garnishes
Country Aircheck Weekly is a trade publication devoted to country radio news, not exactly a popular read for most households. But their latest issue has drawn the attention of star Martina McBride because of an interview with music consultant Keith Hill, who said if country music is a salad, men are the lettuce and…
RaeLynn's 'For A Boy' Is Some Cool Old-Fashioned Gender Essentialism
RaeLynn, the artist behind “God Made Girls” (and a former The Voice contestant) is back, and her latest song is full of just as many boring assumptions about the differences between men and women as the last. It’s aptly titled “For A Boy” (subtitle “You Sure Are Sensitive!” not included).
Little Big Town's 'Girl Crush': a Perfect Storm of Country Controversy
In December, the band Little Big Town released "Girl Crush," the second single off their album Pain Killer. The track title wasn't exactly going to endear it to those who chafe at the term "girl crush." But the song's subject matter has also alienated the very people who should love it, because it flirts with…
Miley Cyrus Should and Probably Will Do a Country Album
Miley Cyrus's musical and literal roots are in country/rock music (ahem, godmother Dolly Parton and dad Billy Rae Cyrus), so it wasn't much of a surprise to see her cover Paul Simon's "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" during SNL's 40th anniversary special this weekend. But the degree to which she killed it, displaying…
A Moment of Appreciation for the Glorious Country Fashions of the '90s
On Wednesday night, I had a grand old time watching the CMA Awards, inexplicable Ariana Grande appearance and all. But around the time Loretta Lynn showed up wearing ten tons of sequins and they ran that supercut of classic Vince Gill moments, I began to long for the fabulous country music fashions of the 1990s.
