Blake Shelton - Gold & Platinum!

Blake Shelton has racked up some heavy metal for his latest projects. Both his recent albums, Loaded: The Best of Blake Shelton and Red River Blue, have been certified gold. His single, "God Gave Me You," has also gone platinum. His record label staff surprised him with plaques to commemorate these milestones at his concert in Georgia on Friday. Blake's Well Lit & Amplified tour continues February 9 in Erie, PA.

Blake returns to TV with the season premiere of NBC's The Voice this Sunday following the Super Bowl. He's also expected to sing "America the Beautiful" with wife Miranda Lambert prior to kickoff.

Fran Drescher Abducted by Aliens, Has Scar to Prove It!

Former Nanny star Fran Drescher is sure that aliens exist -- because she's seen them! In an interview with The Huffington Post, Drescher says before she met her now-ex-husband, Peter Marc Jacobson, they both spotted aliens once, while in a car with their respective dads. She says, "We were both in junior high. A few years later, we met, and we realized that we had the same experience. I think that somehow we were programmed to meet. We both have this scar. It's the exact same scar on the exact same spot." Though Jacobson now says Drescher's scar stems from an injury unrelated to an alien invasion, she insists, "I said to him, that's what the aliens programmed us to think." Drescher currently stars in the TV Land comedy Happily Divorced. Gee...Great title. Alien hands at work? Could be...

Miranda Lambert Postpones Concert Due to Friend's Death.

Miranda Lambert's friend, Mark "Tex" Adams, He was killed last week in a traffic accident in Florida. Adams had pulled to the side of the road to help a stranded motorist when another car crashed into both cars and killed him. No one else was killed in the crash. Miranda and Adams became friends when they were 9-years-old. She tweeted, "He was a great person. He is now in heaven with his dad." Miranda added a message to her friends saying, "Please call your friends, especially the ones you haven't talked to in awhile or maybe are not on great terms with and tell 'em you love 'em. It's so hurtful when it's too late to do that." Miranda dedicated her latest single, "Over You," to Adam at her Saturday night show in East Rutherford, NJ.

Kenny Chesney's Brothers of the Sun Tour with Tim McGraw Already Past 500,000 Ticket Mark!

Kenny Chesney's Brothers of the Sun stadium tour with Tim McGraw has already sold more than 500,000 tickets. These stadium shows will be Kenny's only concert appearances in 2012. He says, "I can't wait to get back on the road with my good friend Tim and throw one big spring break party all summer long." The Brothers of the Sun tour launches June 2 in Tampa, FL and ends with a two-night stand at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA August 24 and 25. Jake Owen and Grace Potter will also be on those stadium dates.

Our local date for the show is August 11 at MetLife Stadium!

ACM Awards Nominations Announced This Morning!

The nominees for the 47th Annual ACM Awards will be announced this morning. ACM Awards co-host Reba will take part in the announcement along with a few other surprise guests at 9:30 a.m. ET at facebook.com/AcademyofCountryMusic and Twitter.com/ACMAwards.

Real-life country fans will also announce the nominees for the ACM's top prize, Entertainer of the Year. The Academy of Country Music will launch its newly-designed website at ACMCountry.com today as well. Videos of artists reacting to their nominations will be posted on the site throughout the day. Blake Shelton and Reba will co-host the 47th Annual ACM Awards, live from Las Vegas on CBS Sunday, April 1. The show is staying put on CBS for the long run. The ACM announced a deal this week that will keep its awards shows on the network through 2021. That agreement includes the ACM's annual two-hour special broadcasts as well. It will tape on April 2 and air at a later date.

Keith Urban Celebrates #1 Hit and Renewed Friendship with Richard Marx.

Keith Urban celebrated his #1 hit "Long Hot Summer" with his co-writer, pop star Richard Marx, Wednesday in Nashville, but it wasn't your typical music industry event. After accepting their trophies from different organizations, Keith and Richard invited two young artists they found on YouTube to perform the song with them. Teenage guitarist Leslie Strong from Kentucky and singer Patrick Woolam of Kansas City had uploaded videos of themselves performing "Long Hot Summer" online, and Keith contacted them and brought them to Nashville for the event.
The inspiration didn't stop there. It turns out Keith and Richard had some kind of issue between them after writing Keith's hits "Better Life" and "Everybody" in the past few years. They wouldn't go into detail, but Keith said Richard really taught him a lot about friendship through this experience. "I wanted to really make it up to Richard and show him that our friendship really means something to me," Keith explains. That's when they arranged to get together again and write a song. Keith says of "Long Hot Summer," "It wasn't born of a quota to write a song. It was born of a want for us to reconnect. The song was just a byproduct of that desire."
For those of you wondering, Keith's voice sounded great Wednesday following his vocal cord surgery last month. Keith's first official performance after his surgery is coming up February 3 at the Grand Ole Opry.

David Nail Is Addicted to Twitter!

Some artists pay attention to their Twitter and Facebook pages . . . while others clearly push it off on "their people". And then there are those who LIVE their lives on them. Taylor Swift, Blake Shelton and LeAnn Rimes come to mind. And let's add DAVID NAIL to the list. Twitter is a drug that he can't live without. David said, quote, "I'm addicted to it. I think it's a brilliant avenue to share news with people." David wasn't all that interested at first, and then THE MAN got him hooked. He said, quote, "I can remember my record label begging me to get involved with this thing called Twitter and I thought, that's so ridiculous. "Who cares that I'm eating lunch at Arby's right now? But it just became addicting like a drug." David has 45,000 followers and he says he'll answer just about any question they have, especially when it comes to sports. I checked out David's Twitter page just to see what he's up to and I found an awesome Tweet from yesterday. He wrote, quote, "On the @SouthwestAir plane, man in his late 50s trying desperately to hit on flight attendant in exit row! Thrown up in my mouth twice!"

Now THAT'S funny!

One Giant Leap For FANKIND!

Not since 2007 have I been this excited! I have to say that the Post Season has been the best it's been in years. I've watched every game and watched my beloved NY Giants defy the odds week after week, win after win. I have to say, I thought I was spent after the Green Bay game, not nearly as spent as I was after the 49ers game. The one constant, my favorite player of all time, Michael Strahan. When the odds were so stacked against the Giants, Michael continued to place his support squarely behind the Giants as I have. So, in tribute to Big Blue, here are some pics, including what I have done to the On Air studio. Go Giants! Bring it on home!!! By The Way...I have't washed that Manning jersey since the 25-14 win over the Jets! Thanks to my wife for understanding!

Emotionally spent after the 49ers game.

2 of my favorite Jets Fans & my two babies showing love and support for The G Men.
(L to R John, Sunny, Bob, Me and Bridget)

Me (sporting my Victor Cruz jersey...NICE!), Bob and Jeramiah in front of the Big Blue Wall under construction!

Craig Morgan Has Steven Tyler's Back on the National Anthem Controversy

A lot of people piled on STEVEN TYLER for his less-than-stellar performance of the National Anthem at Sunday's New England Patriots / Baltimore Ravens game. CRAIG MORGAN is NOT one of them. Craig's had the honor of singing the anthem a bunch of times and he feels Steven's pain.
He told TasteOfCountry.com, quote, "The Anthem is a tough song to do, and I feel bad for anybody who gets out there and has problems with it."
Craig says the first problem is getting the sound right. Even if the performer has in-ear monitors, it's difficult to hear when you're in ball fields or arenas . . . especially in gigantic NFL stadiums. He continues, quote, "The second is the pressure. It's just you, man. There's no music, there's nothing to cover you up. "It ain't like it's a song that you wrote. If I'm singing 'This Ole Boy' and I forget some words or something, I can kind of make something up and not a lot of attention (is) paid to it. You can't do that with the National Anthem."

Lee Brice's Tour Bus Caught Fire While He and His Crew Were Inside . . . But No One Was Hurt.

LEE BRICE'S tour bus caught fire on Saturday a few hours before his show at TOBY KEITH'S I Love This Bar and Grill in Mesa, Arizona. Lee and some of his crew were on the bus at the time but everyone got off safely. Lee told Phoenix's KNXV-TV, quote, "I was sleeping. A few of us were sleeping. They were like,'bus is on fire, we're not kidding.' So we had to run off and within a couple of minutes it was in flames. The whole back was burned through." After firefighters cleared the passengers they pulled out the luggage and equipment. A few items were lost, like stage clothes and some gear. Officials believe the fire started in the engine area, perhaps from a short in the bus batteries. Lee put it all in perspective when he said, quote, "You know what, everybody is okay and that's really the most important thing. We're blessed. We'll be okay." By the way . . . Lee Brice and his band managed to shake the whole thing off and still do their show that night.

William Shatner Has Been Killed Off as the Priceline Negotiator!

Characters are killed off on TV shows and in movie franchises all the time. But have you ever heard of it happening in a COMMERCIAL? You have now. Priceline.com has killed off WILLIAM SHATNER'S character, the Priceline Negotiator, as part of a new re-branding strategy. But at least he goes out in a blaze of glory. Or, if you want to get technical, an exploding bus.

(The ad starts airing on Monday, but it's online already. Check it out)

My Prank On The WPDH Morning Show.

Yesterday I played a prank on the WPDH morning show. My friend (and fellow Giants fan) from the town police dept dropped by the studios to lend me some NY Giants swag to decorate the studio. Everyone saw him walk in alone. He left with me. One of the best on the spot pranks ever. Thank you to Coop, Kricket and Jonna Spilbor for laughing!

Taylor Swift & Zac Efron together??

Is ZAC EFRON setting himself up to be a future TAYLOR SWIFT song lyric? "Us Weekly" says Zac and Taylor were spotted having dinner at an Italian restaurant in Los Angeles earlier this month. A source says, quote, "They were deep in conversation and very giggly." But another source says it was NOT a romantic hookup, quote, "They were in L.A. doing press stuff together, and after they were done, they decided to grab dinner. They have been friends a long time."

(--Zac and Taylor both provide voices for "The Lorax", which is hitting theaters in March.)

Is Steel Magnolia Breaking Up?

Last fall, while STEEL MAGNOLIA'S JOSHUA SCOTT JONES was in rehab, his partner MEGHAN LINSEY did her best to keep the act together. That included doing shows as a solo act and even bringing in JAMES OTTO to take Joshua's place for dates on REBA MCENTIRE'S tour. But now it looks like things are totally falling apart. The band dropped their record company and they've canceled their March 24th concert in Greeneville, Tennessee. A spokesperson for the Greeneville venue made it sound like it's all over. He told tricities.com, quote, "It is our understanding, that the duo is no longer performing together." And while everyone ELSE is talking about the possible breakup, Meghan and Joshua are keeping quiet. That alone is suspicious because if they were still going strong, they certainly would've quashed all those rumors by now. I expect we'll hear something soon, though. According to their website, Steel Magnolia has a show THIS Saturday in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.

Alan Jackson Shaved Off His Decades-Old Mustache!

ALAN JACKSON made a HUGE change in his life. He shaved off his signature mustache . . . in favor of a new, scruffy-face look. Well, he did for his new video, "So You Don't Have to Love Me Anymore"

Here it is! Enjoy!

Jake Owen Is Having Surgery on His Broken Collarbone Today . . . So He's Postponing Shows Until Further Notice.

Despite JAKE OWEN'S promise not to cancel any shows because of his broken collarbone, he's postponing shows until further notice. But it's not something he had any control over, because his doctor decided to schedule SURGERY for TODAY! Here's Jake's Tweet from yesterday when he sensed something bad was up. He wrote, quote, "In the Dr. waiting on my sentence. You know it's not good when he comes in and says, 'That break is worse than the football teams'.'Damn." Soon after that Jake got the bad news. He Tweeted, quote, "I guess I spoke too soon. So sorry to my friends and fans. I'm going in for surgery tomorrow morning. My shows will be postponed." (--Jake's shows tomorrow and Thursday in Chicago WILL BE rescheduled . . . but it's too early to say when.)According to Jake's tour page, his next scheduled show is February 3rd in Dallas, Texas.
(--This is the downside of updating your every thought or move on Twitter and Facebook. Jake promised the whole world that, despite busting his shoulder, he would honor his tour dates. I'm pretty sure he'll think twice the next time.)

Blake Shelton Watches "Say Yes to the Dress" with Miranda Lambert.

Every married man knows you have to compromise here and there if you hope to see your wife naked, here and there. But I have to admit that BLAKE SHELTON surprised me with what he admitted in "Redbook". He was talking about the little things he and Miranda do together during their valuable time at home. He said, quote, "It's the stupid things that a lot of people wouldn't think twice about that are a big deal for us. When we're home, she's very domestic, and I am too, as long as it's not deer season. (We'll be) doing laundry while watching 'Good Morning America' or 'Say Yes to the Dress', or Miranda cooking dinner for me and me telling her how good it is . . . those kinds of things are a major big deal for us."

Jake Owen Busted His Collarbone Snowboarding . . . But He's Hoping to Honor His Concert Dates

JAKE OWEN broke his collarbone while snowboarding in Colorado on Friday. I'm sure he was hurting, but not bad enough to stay away from his Twitter page. That same day he Tweeted, quote, "Just broke my collarbone. Guess I charged this mountain a little too hard. Friday the 13th showed its face today." One of Jake's fans saw the post and wondered if he'd make his shows this Wednesday and Thursday in Chicago. Jake answered him pretty quickly. He wrote, quote, "If I have to sit on a stool I'll be there. I can't let y'all down." This is NOT the first time Jake broke his collarbone. He also did it when he was a wee lad. He posted that photo too, saying, quote, "Last time I broke my collarbone. That's me and my bro after I fell off my 4-wheeler. Thanks mom for dressing us alike."

Utah Jazz Birthday Cake FAIL!

In case you missed it, some fans at a Utah Jazz game got a happy birthday surprise Tuesday night: And by that, I mean a sheet cake with candles was accidentally DROPPED on them from the upper deck. The team's bear mascot was standing in the front row of the second level, presenting the cake to a long-time season ticket holder. Then he tilted it so a camera could get a shot, and the cake slid off the plate and fell about 30 feet. Luckily, the people it landed on had a REALLY good sense of humor about it. They even started smearing it on each other's faces. This is priceless!!!

Brad Paisley Got a "D" in His First College Guitar Class

BRAD PAISLEY is always getting props for his mad skills on the guitar. And rightly so, he's way good. So how surprising is it to hear he got a "D" in his first guitar class at Belmont University. Brad talked about it in his book, "Diary of a Player". He wrote, quote, "I, Brad Paisley, future multiple winner of the 'Guitar Player' magazine reader's poll for best country guitarist . . . got a D in guitar." The bad grade was because Brad flaked on class, like, all the time. For some reason, his teacher had a problem with him "not even showing up or learning anything" he was told to learn.

Ronnie Dunn Still Loves Getting Validation From Other Artists.

RONNIE DUNN has won tons of awards and sold millions of records, so you might think he's over what people think of his stuff. Not so. He was totally jacked when KEITH URBAN gave him props on his song "Cost of Livin'". Ronnie told CMT.com, quote, "Keith had called me a couple times when the record first came out and said, "Man, this is hands down song of the year." He'll even text me and say, "I'm listening to the song." Ronnie got even more excited when he heard TIM MCGRAW liked the record too. He said, quote, "I was in Montana a few months ago, and McGraw called and said he was on his way to the Opry And he said, "Man, this song just hit me." For him to pick up the phone and do that is a big deal. I was speechless. He caught me totally off guard. "To get that kind of validation from guys in the business is pretty strong. Especially from those two."

Here Are The Top Ten Country Dance Songs of 2011

Every December a company named Marco Club Connection asks 240 club owners, DJs and dance instructors to list the most requested country dance songs of the year. Then they crunch the numbers and announce the Top 10 Country Dance Songs of the Year. Here is your list from 2011 . .

#1.) "Country Girl (Shake it For Me)" . . . Luke Bryan
#2.) "Footloose" . . . Blake Shelton
#3.) "Fake I.D." . . . Big & Rich
#4.) "Honey Bee" . . . Blake Shelton
#5.) "Wanna Take You Home" . . . Gloriana
#6.) "Love Done Gone" . . . Billy Currington
#7.) "Dirt Road Anthem" . . . Jason Aldean
#8.) "Am I The Only One" . . . Dierks Bentley
#9.) "Kickin' Up Mud" . . . The Lacs
#10.) "You" . . . Chris Young

Former Drive-By Trucker Jason Isbell Accused Dierks Bentley of Ripping Off One of His Songs.

Former DRIVE-BY TRUCKER JASON ISBELL is absolutely convinced that DIERKS BENTLEY'S song "Home" plagiarizes his masterpiece, "In A Razor Town". And Jason may be taking legal action to prove his point. More on that later.
It all started on Friday when Jason wrote on his Twitter page, Quote, "Dierks' has officially ripped off my song 'In A Razor Town'. Dierks is a D-bag." Jason added, quote, "The song of Dierks' is called 'Home'." If Dierks did plagiarize the song, he had help. He co-wrote it with songwriters Dan Wilson and Brett Beavers. (--Wilson co-wrote ADELE'S "Someone Like You". He's also written for the DIXIE CHICKS and KEITH URBAN, to name a few.) And even though Jason knows about the co-writers, he still blames Dierks. He Tweeted, quote, "I love @DanWilsonMusic's songwriting, but I bet he's never heard my song. I bet Dierks brought that idea to the table and Dan ran with it. I have had too much stolen lately. Not gonna let this slide." A Twitter war broke out once Dierks jumped into the mix. On Saturday he Tweeted, quote, "@jasonisbel is that what you 'bet' happened? That's how you imagine it? #fantasyworld #get-over-yourself." To prove his point, Dierks' next Tweet included a link to an interview Dan Wilson did with ASCAP where he talks about the writing session for "Home". Wilson said the "verse melody" was "mostly Brett" and that Brett said the song "fell from the sky." Then Dierks took it up a notch by slamming Jason with this Tweet, quote, "JUST IN: 'Nashville and L.A. songwriters running out of ideas . . . rushing to steal Jason's songs!'" This is where Jason must have contacted his overpriced attorneys, because on Saturday he Tweeted, quote, "I officially 'can't talk about it right now.' We'll see what pans out."

Hillary Scott Got Married Over The Weekend!

Hey Gang! This is all I have so far...

HILLARY SCOTT married her fiancé, drummer Chris Tyrrell, on Saturday in upstate New York. The happy couple posted a video on the LADY ANTEBELLUM website.

Check Out The Very Special Message To The Fans!

Did Jake Owen Party So Hard That He Broke John Rich's Sink?

Thanks to Twitter, we know that JAKE OWEN went to a party at JOHN RICH'S house over the holidays. We also know that John thinks Jake busted up his sink while at the party and didn't own up to it. On Wednesday, John Tweeted, quote, "@jakeowen Dude! I fixed the sink you broke at the party here at the house I know you didn't mean it! Ha-haa! Come on back!" Jake responded with this denial, quote, "@johnrich ha-ha...That thing was broken already. That's what you get for that high tech fancy (crap)." John tagged that with this response, quote, "High tech faucet??? Ha-ha!"

Have you ever broken anything at someones house and didn't say anything about it? LOL!

What Song Was Number One the Week You Were Born?

The new thing on Facebook is people looking up the song that was number one the week they were born, then posting the video on their Facebook wall.
Even if you're too cool to participate in Facebook trends, it actually IS interesting to find out what your "Birth Song" is. To find your song, go to Wikipedia and look up 'List of number-one hits.' Then select United States, click on your birth year, and find the week you were born. Then prepare to feel old.

Here's The Link! Have Fun!

Carrie Underwood Saved the Life of a Dog...

First, let me say that it breaks my heart to have to report a story like this but, to report that a person has a heart of gold, it totally worth reading on...
CARRIE UNDERWOOD may be a big star, but she's not above jumping out of her car to save a stray dog's life. It happened over the holidays when she was on her way back to Nashville after visiting her family. Carrie spotted two Labrador puppies on the side of the road. Sadly, only one was still alive and according to the emergency vet, it was most likely THROWN from a moving vehicle. (--I believe there's a place in hell for people who treat living creatures like that. But I Digress.) After the puppy was treated, Carrie brought it home and named it Stella. She also talked some neighbors into adopting it.(--Carrie didn't keep the pup because she already has two dogs, plus Stella needs full-time attention right now.)

There is not enough to be said for that of kindness. Animals and young children are the embodiment of innocence and do not deserve such treatment. I just find it mind boggling how people can be so mean and uncaring. Thank God for people like Carrie and all the people defending the innocents everywhere.

-Hammer

Blake Shelton Threatened to "Throat Punch" People Who Disrespected Kelly Clarkson.

KELLY CLARKSON started a Twitter firestorm last week when she said she "loved" RON PAUL as the Republican nominee for President. It began with this Tweet, quote, "I love Ron Paul. I liked him a lot during the last Republican nomination and no one gave him a chance. If he wins the nomination for the Republican Party in 2012 he's got my vote. Too bad he probably won't."
Unfortunately, when you talk politics, the haters come out. People started Tweeting their angry disapproval of Kelly's political views . . . with some even accusing Ron Paul of being racist and homophobic. (Really??? Come on...)
Kelly did her best to make nice. At one point she Tweeted, quote, "I am really sorry if I have offended anyone. Obviously, that was not my intent. I do not support racism." Well, Kelly's buddy BLAKE SHELTON never met a Twitter controversy he didn't like . . . so he enthusiastically jumped in. Blake Tweeted, quote, "I love you! I'll listen to your viewpoints anytime. And I really wouldn't mind throat punching someone for you either!"

Now THAT'S why I really like (and relate to) Blake Shelton! Go, Blake!

A Woman Lost Her Wedding Ring 16 Years Ago and Just Found It Growing on a Carrot in Her Garden!

Back in 1995, Lena Paahlsson of northern Sweden was baking for Christmas and her wedding ring vanished. Her family searched everywhere . . . they even pulled up the floorboards, but they couldn't find it. Now, SIXTEEN YEARS LATER, Lena was in her garden picking carrots, and found one with her RING wrapped around it. Here's what her family thinks happened: The ring fell down the drain. They fed the contents of the garbage disposal to their sheep. The ring passed through the sheep's digestive system and they used the sheep's waste to fertilize the garden. Since the ring was part of their compost, it made it into the garden, and somehow a carrot grew RIGHT THROUGH THE RING. Of course, 16 years have passed. And as it goes in marriage, the ring doesn't fit Lena's finger anymore. She says she's planning to have it resized because, quote, "I had given up hope, now that I've found it, I want to be able to use it."

And Now . . . New Year's Resolutions From Your Favorite Country Artists.

Are New Year's Resolutions a waste of time? Perhaps, but it's always fun to mock the hopes and dreams of others. And so, here are a few resolutions from your favorite country artists.

Blake Shelton: "To win 'The Voice'."

Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry: "To get my divorce over and get in shape and write a bunch of hit songs."

Thompson Square's Keifer Thompson: "To play less 'Call of Duty'!"

Sunny Sweeney: "To clean out my closet. That may take all of 2012 though, so make that my 2013 resolution also."

Josh Thompson: "Making more time for family."

Jerrod Niemann: "(To) find out all my friends' New Year's resolutions and help them ruin them immediately. Like if one friend wants to quit drinking, I figure I'll just put a six-pack on his front porch on January 1st . . . because I know they're going to drink by the 4th anyways."