Thursday News Brief

News From Around The Country
There’s no question that Lady Antebellum has reigned supreme on the Billboard Country Albums chart in 2010. This week, Lady Antebellum has the number one album on the country chart and the number ten album on Billboard’s Top 200 chart. To date, Lady Antebellum has sold nearly two-point-four million copies of Need You Now. That success translates to the trio headlining their first tour in the fall. They’ve been playing stadiums and arenas as the opening act for the past couple of years, but Dave Haywood says they aren’t ready to venture into that type of tour yet. Instead, Lady Antebellum wants their first tour to be intimate with the fans who have given them so much success. Look for the trio to appear in theatres around the country.

Kenny Chesney will join Will Farrell, Samuel L. Jackson, and Brooklyn Decker as a presenter on the 18th Annual ESPY Awards on ESPN July 14th. In the meantime, Kenny is currently in the final stages of co-producing his ninety-minute documentary on the importance of high school football, which features many of the biggest names in NFL. ……In June, Darryl Worley held his annual Hitmakers & Harley’s concert series, and the numbers are in. The concerts raised over $120,000 to support The Darryl Worley Foundation this year. …… Pat Green received the Texas Music Chart’s Decade Award Sunday night during Houston’s Freedom Festival. The honor recognized Pat for receiving more airplay than any other artist in the ten year history of the Texas music chart.

Dancing For Dummies

Tuesday night without Dancing? We're feeling underprivileged. To prepare for next week's episode of Dancing With The Stars, how about a dance lesson? Julianne Hough's exclusive videos are on cmt.com. Her latest episode talks about her wardrobe malfunction at last Monday's rehearsal.




Today is Half Off Wednesday and The Country Station is having a Spring Cleaning Clearance Sale. All remaining certificates for Desert Learning Center, A Taste of India Restaurant, and Pro Tax Service are BETTER THAN HALF OFF! Shop early while supplies last!


Sugarland is currently on a European tour; Jennifer Nettles lost her voice which forced the band to cancel two concerts. To make it up to the fans, Sugarland held a meet-and-greet at Naval Air Station Sigonella in Italy last Saturday and rescheduled their Sunday show in Naples, Italy, for March 24. They were expected to perform last night in Paris, with additional dates planned for Germany, the Netherlands, England, Ireland and Scotland.

Sara Evans is set to join the ranks of country authors. She has signed a four book deal with a publishing company to work with writer Rachel Hauck and should have her first novel on shelves later this year. The book is will be the first in a series, and it will be released in conjunction with her next album which she’s still working on. Sara calls her novel an "emotional, Southern-flavored, multi-generational tale, featuring a compelling love story.”

On a recent flight out of Nashville, a bird hit a plane just after take-off and forced the aircraft to return to BNA. Pat Green and Randy Houser were on board, bound for a show in Birmingham. Surely with visions of the Hudson River landing fresh in his mind, Pat chose to give up his seat and take the bus to Alabama. Randy remained on board. Both arrived safely at the next gig.

If you’re watching CBS on April 1st, you might want to take what you see with a grain of salt. On April Fool’s Day, you’ll see a show called I Get That A Lot where celebrities are featured working in normal people jobs. Viewers can watch Heidi Klum work in a pizza place while denying that she is herself to questioning customers. LeAnn Rimes, Jessica Simpson, and Ice-T among others will be on the show.

Got Costume?

Justin Moore's dog (and The Country Station) wishes you a Happy Halloween.

TIMELINE - -

Last night: Pat Green livened up an old dirt field. After the lighting of the Homecoming Bonfire, local band, The Moonshiners, opened the show. Playing a mix of original tunes and live band favorites, the Las Cruces-based band entertained for about an hour to their largest crowd to date. As the bonfire died down, Pat Green came on to a roaring approval and the crowd migrated closer to the stage. Pat kept the crowd dancing and moshing through a full set of his hits, a few new songs, and impromptu banter. Following the set, the crowd reeled Pat back on stage for an encore by way of a Green fan's familiar call of adult phrasing. Pat obliged with a musical story about his day in Las Cruces, complete with fried food at Farley's and a trip to the mall. The show ended with the crowd's favorite "Wave On Wave," followed by an opportunity to meet Pat at the merch table.

This morning: Carrie Underwood Campaign Sign winners will be announced and posted after final judging is completed to break the tie. Thank you to everyone who turned in such great signs. You caused more difference of opinion between the judges than Randy, Paula, and Simon have displayed in 7 years! Everyone is to be congratulated for the beautiful work and effort to make the signs, but there are only so many tickets. Grab yours at the Pan Am Box office or ticketmaster.com so you don't miss Carrie Underwood and Little Big Town this Monday night! And bring your signs to brighten up the crowd!

This afternoon: Monster Mash at Mesilla Valley Mall. Costume contest sign-up starts at 5 pm and is limited to the first 25 entrants in each age group. Top 3 in each age group receive valuable prizes. In-mall Trick or Treating runs from 6 - 8 pm at participating merchants, while supplies last.

Tonight: Halloween Party at Grahams! $1000 cash prize to the best costume. K-Great 104 will be live at the party from 10 pm - 1 am!

Tomorrow: Rest from the sugar high! No, seriously, there's a football game to attend! Aggies vs. Boise State Homecoming game.

Plus, this weekend there are plenty of events to attend around Las Cruces, including the DAAC Renaissance Arts Fair at Young Park and the Street Legends Custom Car Super Show and Music Fest at the SNM Fairgrounds. Be sure to check out the Events page for all the details.

News From Around The Country

Homebodies and DVRs can see Beer For My Horses this weekend. CMT will air the Toby Keith / Rodney Carrington film before it is released to DVD. George Strait has been named Artist of the Decade by the Academy of Country Music. Has anybody ever decided what we're calling this first decade of the century? The Oh's? Alan Jackson is next up to have a CMT Giants special done in his honor on December 6th.

Create The News Before It's Reported

Pat Green is in town TONIGHT. The free concert is part of NMSU Homecoming acvitivites. Don’t miss Pat at the bonfire, south of Aggie Memorial Stadium.

4 days until the Carnival Ride Tour rides into Las Cruces. TODAY is the deadline to submit your Carrie Underwood Campaign Signs. All entries must be in by 3 pm, and the winners will be announced on the morning show Tomorrow. See all the contest details and some of the entries here.

Concert Report

The local area is pretty rich in concerts the next couple of weeks. TONIGHT, Texas-country artist Johnny Cooper is LIVE at TAKE II. Tune in after lunchtime for a chance to hear from Johnny. And Aaron Watson hits Whiskey Dicks TOMORROW NIGHT. Stay tuned to win a pair of tickets to Johnny Cooper; Aaron Watson is so cheap you don’t need to win tickets. Friday night, all ladies age 21 and up are admitted free for Aaron Watson; guys 21 and over pay $10. Ages 18-20 may attend the show, but both genders pay $20.

NEXT WEEK, Pat Green is back in town. The free October 30th concert will be at the NMSU Homecoming Bonfire staging area. And then, of course, the night before the elections is the big concert with Carrie Underwood and Little Big Town at the Pan Am Center. To win free tickets to the Carnival Ride Tour, just submit a picture of your Carrie Underwood campaign sign creation. Hurry! Winners will be chosen soon. All the details are here.

If you need some more inspiration for your sign, how about this image of Carrie Underwood and her wax figure at Madame Tussauds museum in New York? “Vote Carrie – She’s No Dummy.” “Underwood. Real. Live. In Las Cruces.” The possibilities for your campaign signs are as limitless as your imagination.

She recorded “Blue Christmas” as a “duet” with Elvis, now Martina McBride has been invited to help kick off the holiday season at Graceland in November by flipping the switch on the traditional blue lights and decorations. The song is part of the recently released Elvis Presley Christmas Duets album; which includes artists such as Carrie Underwood, Sara Evans, and Gretchen Wilson.

The pranksters are at it again. Many have asked how the Nashville Metro Police felt about the recent arrest prank Jewel played on Brad Paisley. Nashville newspaper The Tennessean reports Metro police spokesman Dan Aaron as saying they aren’t upset about the pranksters acting like police officers since they were not wearing official Metro police uniforms. They also never represented themselves as Metro police officers. Aaron goes on to say Brad could easily have made “a complaint about being handcuffed and placed in the back of the car” and the police would have had to investigate it, but instead, Brad chose to play along and accept it as a joke. No word on retaliation toward Jewel, but Brad did try to prank opening act Chuck Wicks. Brad asked his other opening act and Chuck’s girlfriend, Julianne Hough, to star in a video that he wanted to play during Chuck’s set. Julianne was hesitant at first, but quickly joined the fun. In the video, which Brad played for the crowd on the stage monitors, Julianne told Chuck that she’s breaking up with him. It didn’t work. Julianne says that Chuck didn’t believe it for a second.

Half Off Wednesday: It's Better Than A Bonk With A Beer

Heidi-ho … here we go! It’s another Half Off Wednesday at The Country Station. Today you can save more than half during the One Day Only Clearance Sale on all remaining Half Off Certificates. Offer good while supplies last. And while we’re cleaning things up, you may also notice that between additions and date shuffling, there’s been a lot of movement on the CD Release List lately. Be sure to check back from time to time to see what’s coming out when.

You ever been bonked with a beer? Unfortunately, Pat Green can attest to the fact that it hurts! Pat was in the middle of a 75-minute set at the Michigan International Speedway when he was hit in the head with a full can of beer! According to reports, Pat asked the audience for a drink. A fan threw a beer onstage and he caught it. But a second can came flying as well, and it hit him right between the eyes. The impact knocked Pat out - abruptly ending the show. Medics treated him at the scene.

A couple of country ladies are standing up for cancer research. Carrie Underwood and LeAnn Rimes will lend their voices to the single “Just Stand Up” – with proceeds from the sales of the song earmarked to go to cancer research. A handful of other female pop singers are also featured on the track that will be available in stores and for download on September 2nd. Then on September 5th the ladies will unite on stage to perform “Just Stand Up” live for the Stand Up To Cancer television special, scheduled to broadcast simultaneously on ABC, CBS and NBC.

And if you’re anxious to see the trailer for Trace Adkins’ upcoming film An American Carol, here you go. Trace plays the “Ghost of Christmas Future.” The story is based loosely on Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, with a patriotic twist. The film centers around a character that is a parody of Michael Moore named “Michael Malone” and Trace plays one of the ghosts that shows him the true meaning of patriotism. The film also stars Kelsey Grammer, Dennis Hopper, Jon Voight, and James Woods. In theatres October 3rd.