Just a reminder that Shania will be running with the Olympic torch on New Year’s Day in her hometown of Timmins, Ontario!
You can view the action LIVE around 4pm PST here:
Apparently it only happens on New Year’s Eve once every 19 years – I’m talkiung about a Blue Moon. Now, mind you, it’s not that the moon will actually look blue – it’s the 2nd full moon in a month that’s called a blue moon – but it sure sounds like an excuse to eat and drink blue food… maybe order a blue drink while your at the Saddlerack with Micki and the Wolf for the huge New Years Eve Party?!?
~ a
Last New Year’s Eve, Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert learned that Champagne and home shopping channels don’t mix. The couple were enjoying some bubbly on their tour bus after their concert in Green Bay when they apparently caught the shopping bug. “Miranda and I were going to a friend’s house in Iowa, and we’d had quite a bit of Champagne at that point,” Shelton told Westwood One. “We were watching one of the home shopping channels, and we decided that since we were just drunk enough that it would be a great idea to buy these 302 pocket knives. So we bought them. Two weeks later I get this call, ‘Hey man, you got this package you have to pick up.’ We’d forgotten, and there was this huge box with literally 302 pocket knives!” Both Shelton and Lambert will probably save money this New Year’s since they’re both off the road. And if you happened to receive a pocket knife from one of them as a gift, now you know the rest of the story.
The Vegas debut of Garth Brooks, the crowning of CMA Entertainer of the Year Taylor Swift, the breakup of Brooks & Dunn and the engagement of Carrie Underwood are among the top stories of 2009. But the soundtrack to these milestones is led by Jason Aldean’s “She’s Country,” which was the most-heard song of the year at radio, according to Mediabase. “I felt like it was something really cool when I first heard it,” Aldean told us at his No. 1 party for the song. “Now, did I know that it would be a four-week No. 1? No. But I felt like it was a really cool song that if radio played it, it had a good shot at something really special happening with it.” Zac Brown Band’s “Whatever It Is,” Darius Rucker’s “It Won’t Be Like This For Long,” Keith Urban’s “Sweet Thing” and Toby Keith’s “God Love Her” round out the top five. Speaking of Urban, he is 2009’s most-heard artist and Top Male artist at radio with his hits “Sweet Thing,” “Only You Can Love Me This Way,” “Kiss A Girl” and “Start A Band” (with Brad Paisley). According to trade publication Country Aircheck, Urban broke Kenny Chesney’s three-year run atop both lists. The Top Female Performer was Taylor Swift, Top Duo/Group was Zac Brown Band and Top New Artist went to “Boots On” singer Randy Houser.
Need Lady Antebellum’s new CD “Need You Now” now?? Well, they’re letting you have one pre-release song each week until the CD comes out on January 26th! Here’s the link for American Honey – this week’s pre-release: http://twitter.com/ladyantebellum/statuses/6932377996 Merry Christamas indeed!!
Better Luck Next Year, Susan Boyle: She’s not just Entertainer of the Year in country music. According to the editors and broadcasters of the Associated Press, Taylor Swift is the Entertainer of the Year. (Note the period.) “I am so honored and so excited,” Swift tells AP. “This was so unexpected, and I could not be more grateful.” The news service polled its reporters nationwide to determine the winner. “She writes her own songs and has her own sparkly style,” Stars And Stripes‘ entertainment editor Danielle L. Kiracofe says of Swift. “She’s managed to do all of this with grace, class and poise — and without uttering a swear word, dancing on a pole or wearing next to nothing.”
Sleigh Bells & Rings: Are You Listening? The rumors are true. Carrie Underwood and 
NHL player boyfriend Mike Fisher are engaged to be married. “I’m happy to confirm that Carrie is engaged to Mike, and the couple couldn’t be happier,” Carrie’s publicist told us Monday (12/21). Fisher popped the question Sunday (12/20). A wedding date hasn’t been set. “It’s true,” the center for the Ottawa Senators told the Ottawa Citizen Monday (12/21) before his morning skate. “We’re obviously excited and very happy and so, exciting times for sure.”
» Upcoming Albums 
Lady Antebellum Need You Now (1/26)
Gary Allan TBD (2/2)
Josh Turner Haywire (2/9)
Josh Thompson Way Out There (2/23)
No Woman Is An Island: Trading Music City’s chill for Caribbean latitudes, Carrie Underwood turned her Atlantis Resort concert into an extended Bahamas vacation last week. Underwood told us before Nashville’s 2009 Symphony Ball that she was having so much fun in the sun, she didn’t notice any of the photographers documenting her activities. “I’ve never been anywhere tropical, so it was really nice to extend our trip,” she says. “The pictures afterward were not so nice. I’m good with my self [image], but it’s December. This is not bikini season, and I’ve been munching on some comfort foods this time of year, too.” Speaking of Self, Underwood is the magazine’s January cover girl. Inside the issue, she dishes about her life goals, fashion risks and style tips.