Wake Up People!

It’s a Feel Good Friday at The Country Station, and you may notice that things sound a little different. Who’s that guy on this morning? And what did you do with Jerry? That guy is OM/PD Ernesto Garcia. Jerry has departed the staff. So WAKE UP! ! ! The Ernesto and Friends Show is on the air weekday mornings from 6 – 10. Reach Ernesto on the request line for your birthday announcements, or send him a “howdy” and “welcome back to the airwaves” on the Ernesto & Friends myspace page. Ernesto got his start at The Country Station fourteen years ago, and he has been heard on an intermittent basis over the years. Now he’s back to getting up before the roosters on a regular basis! Enjoy the show.

Rascal Flatts have signed a pretty sweet endorsement deal. The Flatts will partner with J.C. Penney to sponsor their upcoming concerts and promote merchandise. The Unstoppable Tour will now be billed as the Rascal Flatts American Living Unstoppable Tour. American Living is a line of merchandise developed for J.C. Penny by Polo Ralph Lauren's Global Brand Concepts. In addition to the two-year concert sponsorship that will dress Gary, Jay, and Joe Don in American Living clothing onstage, Rascal Flatts have written a new song inspired by and titled for the brand. You’ll hear the new song in commercials and it will only be available on CD on a special edition of Unstoppable available only at the department store. Net proceeds from the sale of those CDs will be donated to the J.C. Penney After School Fund, which provides children in need with access to after school programs.

In other Unstoppable news, Rascal Flatts is said to be releasing four of the tracks from the new CD before street date through iTunes. “Here Comes Goodbye,” the single and the music video, are supposed to be on iTunes on March 10. Then on March 17, 24, and 31 respectively, three additional songs will be released. The physical CD’s not out until April 7.

The pairing of Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton proved to be a financial winner for an Oklahoma animal welfare agency. A total of over $70,000 was raised to benefit TAILS (Texoma Animal Improved Living Society) through Miranda and Blake’s recent concert in Tishomingo, OK. Miranda wanted to do it because she knew there was a need for an animal shelter in the area. "I am so happy that, in this economy, people would spend their hard earned dollars to come together for one night to support one cause," Miranda boasts. “The support from the community and volunteers made this possible, and we are so grateful that this facility for abused and abandoned animals is now a reality." Miranda’s next animal-related benefit will be on May 17th in Tyler, TX. The Second Annual Cause for the Paws dinner and concert hopes to best last year’s total of $113,000 for the Humane Society of East Texas.

And finally, congratulations to Josh Turner and his wife, Jennifer. The couple is expecting a second child in the summer to join big brother, 2 year-old Hampton Otis. Shouldn't Brad Paisley and his wife, Kimberly, be having their second baby sometime soon? Oh wait. That's in April.