“Do not fear, be brave, and endure.” Those were the words that Eric Church spoke before he debuted his brand new song “Never Break Heart”. He was also not wearing his sunglasses, which was the first time I have ever seen him perform without them. I am not a huge Eric Church fan, but his performance tonight and his message before it made me gain a new found respect for him.
Category: Country Music
ACM Our Country : Shania Twain
Shania Twain sang a medley of her two hits “Honey I’m Home” and “Man I’m A Woman” inside of a barn with her horse keeping her company. I grew up listening to Shania, so seeing her smiling face and hearing her familiar voice provided me a comfort I have not had in a while.
ACM Our Country : Kelsea Ballerini
Kelsea Ballerini stated “what a time to be alive.. but what a time to bring music to our world.” Such a perfect statement. She played her hit single “Homecoming Queen”, and it was just her, her vocals, and her guitar. Her performance was also less filtered and organic. She has such a sweet and humble spirit and I always love hearing her sing live.
ACM Our Country : Little Big Town
Little Big Town sang their newest single, “Next To You”. All four of them each in their own homes, wearing headphones. Their performance was the most organic and less edited of all of them so far. It was beautiful to hear the rawness in their vocals and to see a true “inside my home” visual. Very well written song, as well.
ACM Our Country : Lady Antebellum
Lady Antebellum also dedicated their song “What I Am Leaving For” to all the workers in the medical field. Our HEROS, as they so truly called them. Charles, Hillary, and Dave recorded all separately in their own homes. Such a sweet and fitting song choice. They sounded incredible too!
ACM Our Country: Opening
Gayle King is the host and opened with a disclaimer stating that all the performances tonight were filmed with social distancing due to the Corona Virus. Her words, “music is healing – and we all know country music is one of the best at doing this.” Loved this!
The ACM reigning Entertainer of the Year Keith Urban opened the night with the first performance! He gave a sincere and heartfelt thank you to all the medical workers in the front lines of this epidemic. He stated that this is a strange time and that he genuinely misses his fans. He played the song “Wasted Time”, stating that now it has even more of a resonance to him because of how much maybe we have all taken for granted. Absolutely ADORE him! I thoroughly enjoyed his stripped back performance with just him and his guitar inside his home studio.
ACM Our Country: Live Response
Hey guys! So tonight as the ACM “Our Country” special airs, I will be making quick posts about my thoughts on some of the performances. Feel free to share AND comment on what you thought of the songs, artists, and performances tonight!
Tune in on CBS at 8/7c and follow along with me!
ACM Awards Postponed Due To Corona Virus
The ACM Awards, originally scheduled to air on Sunday, April 5th, 2020, has been rescheduled to air on Wednesday, September 16th, 2020. The show will still air on CBS and as originally announced, Keith Urban is still set to be the host. As disappointing as this is for country artists and fans alike, the Academy of Country Music has put together a special program entitled, “ACM Presents: Our Country”, which will be aired on the original date of the awards, April 5th. The show will be comprised of performances by artists in their homes, and flashbacks to some of the greatest moments in the award show history.
To read more about the story, read this article by People Magazine.
Click here to read the incredible lineup scheduled for “ACM Presents: Our Country”!
Kelsea Ballerini Releases Self Titled Album “Kelsea”
https://www.grammy.com/recording-academy/news/kelsea-ballerini-talks-legends-sophomore-album-touring
On March 20th, 2020, Kelsea Ballerini released her third album, titled simply “Kelsea”. Not only is this release self titled, but Kelsea also was a co-producer on this record.
According to Nash Country Daily, Kelsea stated : “I learned a lot [as co-producer]. I think on my first two albums, I was more of a student. I think I was learning more about musicality and being a musician. I hadn’t even played a full band show when I made my first album, so I think I had a lot to learn. But now, I trust myself a lot more. I’m more invested in this album. Not only did I write it all, but I was part of bringing it to life in the studio, too, which is the full journey of the songs.”
Click here to read the Rolling Stone’s review of “Kelsea”!
Joe Diffie Passes Away at 61
The infamous 90’s country artist, Joe Diffie, passed away today, Sunday, March 29th, 2020. Diffie’s publicist confirmed rumors that the artist had contracted the Corona Virus later last week. His death is being confirmed as complications from Covid-19.
Read more about the story here .
Click below to listen to one of Joe’s greatest hits, “Pickup Man”. RIP, Joe Diffie. Thank you for all you contributed to country music.
Inside Country 