New Country Star News
Country Music news
Headlines From January - February 2009
Another Year With New Country Star ! It's a brand new year here at New Country Star and we couldn't go any further into 2009 without taking time to "thank you"! Some of you pull us up with your morning coffee, even before you go out to pick up the paper, some of you check our headlines from your mobile web, but it is all of your continued clicks and readership that drives all of us to bring you more of what "you" want to see on the site. All of our correspondents have been busy working on new projects and reaching out in new directions. Sara Jo has been in the kitchen with a full camera crew trying out your recipes! And the much anticipated New Voting Page will be stirring the pot too with some unexpected artist polls. Then of course, over to your right, you might have noticed our Indie News column. We want you to know every successful artist in the business, not just who's being played on local radio, but all of the greatest music in 2009. Get Ready, because with your help and continued feedback, this is going to be an incredible year !
Obama Sworn and Sung Into Office
Regardless of how you voted in the election, the United States now has a new leader, and unless you were buried under a rock earlier this week, you caught at least some of the Inaugural day events. The swearing in of the 44th President drew record numbers not only to Washington, but to the internet, as well.
The swearing in of U.S. President Barack Obama and other inauguration activities generated massive Web traffic on Tuesday, which lead to site slow downs for many of the top news sites, but not to a general meltdown of the Internet. Millions of people had been expected to tune in online, and so they did. Among sites reporting slowdowns were those of ABC, CBS, Business, the L.A. Times, NBC, National Public Radio, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal. But we're here to report on music news, and of that, there was plenty! What a FANtabulous job Beyonce Knowles did singing the Etta James classic "At Last" requested by the President and First Lady for their first dance. Beyonce was overcome with emotion, during her role in the offiicial Inaugural Ball, which was named by the President and Staff, as the "Neighborhood Ball". Beyonce told reporters, "This is a dream come true and I could not be more honored and excited to be a part of this moment in history... I'm sorry." as a teary- eyed, overjoyed Knowles apologized for letting her emotions overcome her. Singing a classic like that with an emotionally filled vocal delivery, did make history!
Your Favorite
Soap Stars Sing ! We've heard from many of our readers who are also fans of ABC Daytime. So this one's for all of you! Check out your favorite stars from General Hospital, All My Children, and One Life To Live, as they sing the Sonny & Cher classic, "I Got You Babe".
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Indie News Johnny Bulford Country Showdown Winner !
On Thursday, Johnny Bulford became the 27th Annual Colgate Country Showdown Winner and received a $100,000 Grand Prize Check! Bulford, an Orlando native, is a singer/songwriter who has opened for Collin Raye, the Warren Brothers, Josh Turner, Emerson Drive, Chris Cagle, Diamond Rio and Tanya Tucker. His style has been compared to Vince Gill, Garth Brooks and James Taylor. He was a State finalist in the 2003 Colgate Country Showdown and won the state title in 2004. He wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on his CD "What Happens Here Stays Here." LeAnn Rimes hosted the final competition which was held at the Ryman Auditorium in Downtown Nashville.
You can find out more about Johnny Bulford right here in our Artist Directory. Click on the Artist button above to find out more about Johnny and other hot country acts to watch. www.newcountrystar.com/JohnnyBulford.htm
Keith Urban's New Sweet Thing !
Keith's excited to show off a brand new Gibson Guitar during the making of his video "Sweet Thing". The video, which was shot in a barn in Springhill, Tennessee will mark the seventh video in which Keith has worked with director Trey Fanjoy. Regarding that sweet new guitar, Keith says, "I just bought it yesterday, I have to put it in the video in order to justify buying it." The video Debuts Today! You can also watch Behind The Scenes Footage on Keith's website
Indie News Artists You Should Know !
Dion Pride started singing and playing guitar by the age of 5. He began five years of classical and modern piano when he was eight years old, started drums at the age of 10, then took up bass at age 12. Following in his famous father's footsteps, he started performing when he turned 14. Dion attended North Texas State Music College and engineered for Cecca Sound Recording Studio for four years. His demos became legendary, playing and singing all of the parts himself. If you're wondering if he's ever worked with his father? Actually yes, he played lead guitar for Charley Pride for two years. These days, he remains busy writing and recording in Nashville and regarding a recording contract, Dion says that he's in discussions.
Great Sound! Check Him Out Here
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Warner Bros. Artists Yanked From You Tube !
If you're a You Tube regular, you may have noticed an absence of some of your favorite artist's music videos. Figment of your imagination? Not at all. A dispute between Google Inc., the current owners of You Tube, and Warner Music Group caused the record label to pull thousands of music videos from the You Tube site on December the 20th, just before the holidays. The holidays a time for greed? Well in this case, apparently. CNN Money.com reports that "Warner wants more money from You Tube for streaming rights" on behalf of their artists. But wait... doesn't You Tube already pay licensing fees to ASCAP and BMI? Most certainly! ASCAP and BMI are the two large organizations in place to collect per-play fees from every company that broadcasts (even your local grocer who plays the radio overhead), to be distributed as royalties to the songwriters and artists. So if the record labels now say they are collecting royalties on behalf of the artists, doesn't that kind of eliminate the need for ASCAP and BMI? It certainly eliminates the need for someone. Kind of reminds you of Grandma's old saying, "too many cooks spoil the soup." Right now something smells pretty rank!
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Kevin James Stars in "Paul Blart Mall Cop"
Will it be the Greatest Story of Mall Time? Everyone's favorite comedian and even semi-talented musician has a new movie hitting theaters this Friday. Musician? Sure, we don't lie here at NCS! If you didn't hear his self-penned "The Margy Song" or see the 'made for the series' music video to the song, you really missed out! So maybe there are a few of you that missed Kevin's songwriting skills during his show "King of Queens" which ran for nine seasons, from 1998 to it's final broadcast which aired on May 14th, 2007.
James, who is one of the most gifted comedians around, also proved he's got chops and even a little skill on the six-string. An unskilled musician couldn't make it look that funny that easily. If you are a Kevin James fan then you would also remember the episodes where he decided to try the harmonica and even funnier his infamous, "written in five minutes until he got bored" Doug and Carrie song, played and sung acoustically in one episode. Kevin's new movie Paul Blart Mall Cop is in theaters this now!
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