Music City Minute

Samantha Stephens

Samantha Stephens is a Georgia native who first jumped onstage at age four... and hasn't gotten offstage since, really. She's performed all over the southeast, in show choirs, musicals, bands, and solo gigs for former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue, and Six Flags Over Georgia. In 2008, she joined forces with producer Jimmy Byrd, Brian Harrison (Shelby Lynne/Lucinda Williams) and musicians Brian Owings (Emmylou Harris/Buddy Miller) to hit the studio for her first EP. I'm happy to call Nashville, Tennessee home and find some peace in my deep country roots. I'm homegrown. That ain't no lie. I really could sleep in cowboy boots, wear wife-beater tanks like K-Fed, Sunday drive in the Jeep, write kooky poetry, talk country music, and stay eternally inspired by the Eastside. Forever and Ever...Amen. Do hope you like what you hear!
:-)

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Craig Morgan Donates 15 Acoustic Guitars to Tennessee Middle School

Monarch PublicityCraig Morgan stopped by Dickson Middle School in Dickson, TN west of Nashville Tuesday to donate 15 Dean acoustic guitars to the school's music program. ; While he was there, Craig talked with the students about the importance of music, gave them a quick guitar lesson and even wrote a song with them.

"Music has always been such an important part of my life,” says Craig. ; “I’m happy to give back so that others can share in that experience."

Craig will share his new music with fans February 28 when his new album, This Ole Boy, hits stores. ; The title cut from that project is now climbing the country singles chart.

Joe Nichols and Wife Heather Expecting a Baby this Spring

Show Dog/UniversalJoe Nichols and his wife Heather are expecting their first baby together this spring according to People. ; They have been trying to have a child for awhile now, and Joe says, "I have to give all the credit to my wife -- she has been a trooper through all of this, and I am so happy.”

Joe and Heather were married in 2007 in Georgia. ; Joe has a 13-year-old daughter named Ashelyn from a previous relationship.

Country Star Trivia

Comstock/ThinkstockWhat is the name of Reba's husband and longtime manager? ANSWER: Narvel Blackstock.

Keith Urban Hopes to Help Contestants on Australian Version of The Voice

ABC/Katherine BomboyKeith Urban took part in several talent competitions growing up, and he took some harsh criticism from the judges. ; That's part of the reason he's hoping to make a positive impact as a mentor on Australia's version of The Voice. ; Keith is currently in Australia taping the show.

He tells The Tennessean, "My want is to help someone realize that, ‘You nailed these things, and any artist has areas they need help with, and I may have these faults myself and that’s why, maybe I’m pointing them out in you,’" Keith adds, “I look at this as an opportunity to give back and help somebody.”

Keith's fellow mentors on the show are Seal, Good Charlotte's Joel Madden and singer Delta Goodrem.

Opening Acts Darius Rucker and Thompson Square Have Big Fans in Lady Antebellum

Brantley Gutierrez Lady Antebellum brings its Own the Night tour to Nashville Wednesday for a hometown show with special guests Darius Rucker and Thompson Square. But while fans might come out first and foremost to see the headliners, Lady A's members are fans of the openers.

Darius's rock group Hootie & The Blowfish, was a musical influence on Lady A's Charles Kelley. ; He says, "I've got a video of me singing 'Hold My Hand" at probably 10 years old. ; It's pretty awesome."

Darius has become a friend to the group and Charles is thrilled to have him perform on the bill. ; "He could go out and headline on his own," Charles said. ; "You know, that meant a lot that he wanted to come on board and be a part of this."

Thompson Square got Lady Antebellum's attention when they hit #1 with "Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not." Charles says, "We kind of locked them in early on before they went out with Taylor Swift or somebody."

Lady A's Dave Haywood points to Thompson Square's vocal talent. ; "They got great harmonies too," Dave explains. ; "We love duos and groups. ; We're honestly big fans."

Lady Antebellum continues the Own the Night tour this weekend with shows in Detroit and Evansville, IN.

Rascal Flatts Bringing New Album, "Changed," to the Big Screen for One Night Only in April

Big Machine RecordsRascal Flatts is taking its new album, Changed, to the big screen. ; Rascal Flatts: Changed -- One Night Exclusive Theater Event will screen in theaters across the U.S. and Canada on the night of April 5, two days after the album's release on April 3. ; The special will include exclusive access into the lives of Flatts band members Gary LeVox, Joe Don Rooney and Jay DeMarcus.

The guys will also perform their biggest hits as well as new music from Changed during the theater event. ; Tickets will go on sale early next month at FathomEvents.com.

The lead single from Changed, "Banjo," is now climbing the country chart.

Nashville Notes

Burke/Triolo Productions/ThinkstockChris Cagle will sing the national anthem at the Drive4COPD 300 NASCAR race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, FL this Saturday.

ACM Awards co-hosts Reba and Blake Shelton filmed promos in Nashville Tuesday for the April 1 CBS broadcast.

Carrie Underwood Gives Fans a Sneak Peek of New Single, "Good Girl"

Arista NashvilleCarrie Underwood has posted a YouTube video giving fans a sneak peek of her new single, "Good Girl." ; The clip shows Carrie in the studio on the last day of recording for her new album as they put the finishing touches on the single. ; Before opening the door to the studio control room where the song is being played, Carrie says, "I don't think I'm supposed to do this, but I'm so excited about the first single 'Good Girl," I thought I'd give you guys a little teaser 'cause hey, what are they going to do to me?"

From what we can hear, "Good Girl" sounds like another up tempo track in the same vein as Carrie's hits "Last Name" and "Cowboy Casanova."

"Good Girl" will be released to radio Thursday. ; Carrie's full album will be in stores May 1.

Taylor Swift and Zac Efron Deny Relationship, Sing Together on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show"

13 ManagementTaylor Swift and Zac Efron appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Tuesday to promote their new animated movie, Dr. Seuss' The Lorax, in theaters March 2. ; During the interview, Taylor cleared up rumors she and Zac are in a relationship.

"We are not a couple," Taylor told Ellen. "He is awesome. ; We are not a couple though."

Taylor says it was really improbable that she and Zac would fall on love on the set since The Lorax was animated. ; She joked about it saying, "Like, 'Oh my God, as we were recording our voiceovers on separate coasts, we really connected.'"

Taylor and Zac are good friends though, and she even taught him how to play the Foster the People hit "Pumped Up Kicks" on guitar. ; The co-stars performed the song for Ellen, but then changed the words up to talk about some of the weird pranks Ellen has played on them over the years.

Solo Cup Company CEO Endorses Toby Keith's Hit "Red Solo Cup"

Greg WatermannThe folks at Solo Cup Company celebrated their 75th anniversary last year, but they're still partying thanks to Toby Keith's hit "Red Solo Cup." ; That song first got on the radar at the Solo Cup building last year thanks to a YouTube video of Toby performing the song. ; The official video for the song has now been viewed nearly 12 million times, and "Red Solo Cup" has been certified platinum for a million paid downloads.

Though "Red Solo Cup" hasn't popped up in any official Solo Cup commercials, the company's CEO ; Bob Korzenski tells the Chicago Sun-Times, "We’re happy the way it turned out. ; Our products are all about entertainment and having a good time. ; The song captures that perfectly.”

The song has also given Solo Cup employees an extra kick in their step. ; "It’s had a positive impact on morale,” says Korzenski.

"Red Solo Cup" has been featured on Fox's Glee. ; It appears on Toby Keith's latest studio album, Clancy's Tavern.

Sugarland Responds to Indiana State Fair Collapse Lawsuit

Mercury NashvilleSugarland has responded to a lawsuit filed on behalf of 51 people connected to the stage collapse last August at the Indiana State Fair. ; The suit claims Sugarland, the concert promoter and those who built the stage were negligent in allowing the stage to be overloaded by heavy gear, failing to monitor the weather properly and failing to evacuate the area in a timely manner before the collapse.

According to Indianapolis ABC affiliate WRTV, the response from Sugarland's lawyer states they had nothing to do with the construction of the stage at the Indianapolis State Fair as it was not set up just for their concert.

The statement reads, "The incident at issue in this litigation resulted from a gust of wind of unprecedented intensity, which caused a structure that may have been improperly designed, maintained and\or inspected to fail. As such, this was a true accident or Act of God."

An attorney for some of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit claims Sugarland twice refused to cancel the concert because they were concerned with getting to their next show. The band denies claims it was their responsibility to cancel the concert in case of inclement weather.

Sugarland's response also claims that "some or all of the plaintiffs failed to exercise due care for their own safety" and that "some or all of the plaintiffs knowingly and voluntarily assumed and\or incurred the risk of injury to themselves."

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages. Sugarland's manager Gail Gellman released a statement Tuesday on behalf of the duo.

"Sadly when a tragedy occurs, people want to point fingers and try to sensationalize the disaster," she says. "The single most important thing to Sugarland are their fans. ;Their support and love over the past ;nine years has been unmatched. ;For anyone to think otherwise is completely devastating to them."

Miranda Lambert Turned One of Her Airstream Trailers into a Rolling Bar on the Road

Randee St. NicholasMiranda Lambert is such a big fan of vintage Airstream trailers she wrote and recorded a song about them on her Revolution album. ; She spent a lot of time thinking about Airstreams while working on that song. ; She tells Valley24.com, "Thinking about them so much turned into buying three of them."

Miranda carries one of the trailers with her on her On Fire tour. ; "I had one of the Airstreams decorated and made into a bar, so I would have somewhere to hang out with friends when they come visit me on the road," Miranda explains.

Her tour continues Thursday in Macon, GA with special guests Chris Young and Jerrod Niemann.

Luke Bryan Putting Off Headlining Shows for Now

Capitol NashvilleLuke Bryan launched his own headlining tour last year, but now he's opening shows on his pal Jason Aldean's 2012 My Kinda Party tour. ; Luke is on a roll with a steady stream of hits on the radio, but he wants to score a few more chart toppers before he helms his own tour again.

"I think you ever step out there too soon as a headliner, it's a scary deal to go too soon," Luke says, "and I just felt like this year I would be a little presumptuous for me to go all out for major headlining."

Luke plays for nearly an hour on tour with Jason, and that gives him just enough time to perform all his hit songs for the fans. ; The shows on this tour have been selling out very quickly, and Luke says, "I think it's always important for me to just know I'm here to add to what Jason's got going on and still to gain fans."

Fans who catch Luke's set on the Jason Aldean tour will hear him perform the new single "Drunk on You" from his gold-selling album, tailgates & tanlines.

Jason Aldean Explains Why He's Keeping Ticket Prices Reasonable

James Minchin IIIJason Aldean has one of the top tours in country music this year, playing to packed arenas from coast to coast. ; One of the secrets to Jason's success is keeping his tickets reasonably priced for fans. ; He tells The Minneapolis Star-Tribune, "You can go out and charge 80 bucks for a ticket and have the place half full or you can charge 40 bucks a ticket and have the place completely full and you make the same amount of money. ; It's just common sense."

Jason's 2012 My Kinda Party tour continues with a show in Nashville Friday night.

Taylor Swift Remembers Whitney Houston as "Relatable"

Big Machine RecordsThough Taylor Swift wasn't even born when Whitney Houston's career launched in the mid-80s, the late superstar had a big impact on her. ; "I was a huge fan of Whitney," Taylor told E! at the L.A. premiere of her new movie Dr. Seuss's The Lorax. ; "And I was also a fan of her spirit. ; She was always smiling and I just always felt like she was relatable."

Like Whitney before her, Taylor has crossed over into the film world, and Taylor was reportedly in talks to appear as Eponine in the upcoming film adaptation of Les Misérables. ; That role went to another actress, but Taylor isn't losing any sleep over it. She says, "Things sometimes don't happen, and it happens all the time that things don't come together. ; But the thing about my life is that everybody seems to know all these different versions of stories that may or may not be true."

Taylor voices the character Audrey in Dr. Seuss's The Lorax, in theaters March 2.