A Woman Rescued a Blind, Deaf, 3-Legged Dog and It Saved Her From a House Fire.

Katie Crosley of Grady County, Oklahoma has a rescue dachshund named True. She says she took True when no one else wanted him . . . because he's blind, deaf, and only has three legs. And True returned the favor eight days ago, when he saved the family from a fire that destroyed their house. The light on the front porch had an electrical short, and caused a fire that engulfed the front of the house, and burned the entire thing down. But True was able to sense trouble, and woke up Katie by barking. So Katie and her seven-week-old son Jace were able to escape out the back.


(Huffington Post)

And Now . . . Photos of Miranda Lambert and Luke Bryan Hunting . . . But Not Together.

Thanks to social media, when country stars go hunting, everybody on the planet knows about it. And in MIRANDA LAMBERT and BLAKE SHELTON'S case, they also bagged Thanksgiving dinner. Miranda Tweeted, quote, "Baby, it's time we got back to the basics of love. First time in the woods this season . . . and with B.S.!" After the successful hunt she Tweeted, quote, "Wild hog for Thanksgiving!"
Meanwhile, LUKE BRYAN and his merchandise manager, a guy named Hunter Jobes went hunting on Saturday, but they came away empty handed. Luke Tweeted, quote, "19 degrees in Iowa. In stand with @HJobes."

Here are their hunting pics...

Shania Twain Thanks Celine Dion for Making Caesars Palace Residency a Pleasure.

Shania Twain opens her Still the One show at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on Saturday, December 1, and she's already feeling at home in Sin City. Her fellow Canadian Celine Dion was the first artist to perform at The Colosseum nearly 10 years ago, and Shania credits Celine with making the experience of performing at Caesars Palace so great for other artists. "I think everybody has learned how to make the scenario work through the experience of Celine," Shania tells the Las Vegas Sun. "I am just totally happy here. They have just done a great job of making me feel at home, and I totally do feel it already." These concerts mark Shania's return to the concert stage for the first time in nearly a decade. She has been very public about her struggle to regain her voice in the studio and on stage in the past few years.  The Colosseum stage now feels like home to Shania, and these shows are a big step for her return back into the spotlight. She says, "I had to bring myself to a point where I was back on the stage again and not just in the studio, so that has been my own journey. Nobody can encourage you; you just have to do it, physically just get out there and do it." Shania is most excited about performing for her fans again, saying, "That will be what I haven’t experienced in a long time. That will probably create a lot of adrenaline."

For a full list of Shania's announced concert dates at Caesars Palace, go to ShaniainVegas.com.

Hunter Hayes Finally Got the Chance to Trick Out His Tour Bus With . . . Recording Equipment!

Here's a reason why I'm thinking HUNTER HAYES will have a long career. When he finally got the chance to design his own tour bus, he tricked it out to score maximum action with the ladies. Just kidding.  He did the total opposite. Hunter gutted the back of his bus and installed a recording studio. He said, quote, "I went completely geeky in it. I'm in my dream world. "When I was in high school, I had binders with pictures of tour buses. I drew my set on the side of my notebook. "It's cool to finally see all those pictures in reality 'cause they look a lot better now than they did then."

Country Stars Preparing and Eating Big, Home Cooked Meals This Thanksgiving.

Since most country stars are either from the south or live there now, you can bet home cooked meals play a huge role in their Thanksgiving celebrations. Carrie Underwood is one of the stars cooking up a feast in her kitchen this Thanksgiving. She's inviting a bunch of her friends over to join her and husband Mike Fisher at home in Nashville for the holiday. She says, "There's a lot of us that don't have a whole lot of family that live nearby, so it's kind of a bunch of family-less people hanging out together eating and cooking and drinking wine and just having a good time." For the members of Rascal Flatts, Thanksgiving is all about those home-cooked delicacies like lead singer Gary LeVox's mother's lumpy mashed potatoes and his wife's corn casserole. His band mate Joe Don Rooney is a fan of green bean casserole and ham and turkey at Thanksgiving, and the Flatts' Jay DeMarcus swears by his grandmother's macaroni and cheese recipe.
Jay tells ABC News Radio, "It doesn't have that thick hard layer on top of it. It's creamy all the way through, so you don't have to deal with that burnt sort of top layer of cheese. It's creamy all the way."
Florida Georgia Line's Tyler Hubbard calls his grandmother's sweet potato casserole his "jam" on Thanksgiving.  He tells ABC News Radio, "I love it all. You know, green beans, macaroni and cheese and all that, but, man, that sweet potato casserole that my nanny makes, it's what I look forward to all year."
Justin Moore's family keeps things pretty simple when it comes to their Thanksgiving fare with turkey and dressing on the table. He says, "The dressing, I think is, to us, more important than the turkey. We’ve got a family recipe that’s, to us, really, really good." Jana Kramer loves getting back home to her grandparents' house on Thanksgiving thanks in large part to the food. "My favorite things to eat at Thanksgiving when I'm home is my grandpa's stuffing 'cause it's so good," Jana says. "And then I have one of my favorite deserts, which is made by my grandma, and it is pumpkin pie. Yum!" Hunter Hayes heads down south to see his family in Louisiana on Thanksgiving each year. Both of his grandmothers are masters in the kitchen, and he says, "One in particular will cook for days for this meal, and it is epic. My grandmother goes all out. She cooks the best -- she cooks everything under the sun."

Carrie Underwood Says the People of Nashville Are Not "Scandalous" and "Backstabbing" Like in the Show "Nashville"

CARRIE UNDERWOOD lives in Nashville and she's also a fan of the show "Nashville". So "Rolling Stone" asked her if there are any similarities between the two. The answer is yes. But mostly no. Carrie said, quote, "I feel like the show represents our town really well. I love watching it because I'm like, 'I eat there.'" Then again, she hasn't witnessed any of the nastiness that probably keeps fans interested in the show. She adds, quote, "I hope people don't think all the ladies of country music are that scandalous, because I promise you we're not. "I hope people don't think it's all backstabbing and everybody sleeping with everybody else. That's really not the case, at least to my knowledge. "There might be all kinds of stuff going on that I don't know about, but not in my world. People really are pretty open and friendly and normal."

Taylor Swift Is Getting Death Threats for Dating Harry Styles of One Direction.

TAYLOR SWIFT and HARRY STYLES of ONE DIRECTION have yet to confirm they're dating . . . but that's not stopping his fans from posting insanely stupid stuff on Twitter. According to "The Sun", a group calling themselves Directioners hit up Twitter with death threats. One of them Tweeted, quote, "I'll murder Taylor Swift. She will not date my Harry." Another one wrote, quote, "If u dating my harry, I kill u."
One fan Tweeted a message directly to Harry that said, quote, "Harry Styles, don't date Taylor Swift. Are you insane? She's gonna write a crazy song about you that'll go number one and you'll die."

(--It appears these posts were taken down pretty quickly . . . and I doubt Taylor is worried about idle threats from misguided young girls. Still, it must be unnerving to know someone wants you dead . . . and is willing to shout it out to the world. IMHO - Whomever is doing this should be arrested and held accountable. It's not only stupid, it's a serious offense. Just sayin...)

Report: Garth Brooks Launching Full-Scale Tour in Fall 2014!

Garth Brooks fans can look forward to his first full-scale tour in more than a decade in the fall of 2014. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Garth will launch the trek just a few months after his youngest daughter graduates high school in May 2014. Garth wrapped up his one-man show at the Wynn Las Vegas over the weekend, but he is reportedly returning to the resort for a special performance in the coming months. The Las Vegas Review-Journal also reports that Garth is keeping the private jet Steve Wynn provided to shuttle him back and forth from Oklahoma to Las Vegas for the concerts.

Florida Georgia Line Welcomed into Country Music Fold Thanks to "Cruise"

Florida Georgia Line star is definitely on the rise, and their fellow country stars are taking note. Keith Urban, Taylor Swift, and Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles have all tweeted about their love for Florida Georgia Line's debut hit, "Cruise," and that makes the duo's Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley very happy.
"It's super neat to see in country music, I mean, the encouragement and the camaraderie, the sense of family that there is," Tyler tells ABC News Radio. " I don't know if it's just in this genre or what, but it's just cool. Everybody lifts everybody up and encourages each other." Florida Georgia Line has also becoming buddies with their tourmates this fall Jake Owen and Love and Theft. Jake even featured Florida Georgia Line on his recently released Endless Summer EP too. As they  continue making music, Florida Georgia Line plans to extend that same welcoming attitude. Tyler says, "[We] look forward to being able to do that down the road for whoever's up and coming next." Florida Georgia Line's debut album, Here's to the Good Times, comes out December 4.

Jason Aldean And His Wife Told "CBS This Morning" That They're Doing Fine . . . Even Though Their Marriage Hasn't Always Been Roses.

JASON ALDEAN and his wife Jessica were on yesterday's "CBS This Morning". It was their first public appearance together since Jason was caught "messing around" with former "American Idol" contestant BRITTANY KERR. The show started with a taped piece about Jason's "amazing rise" to the top. They touched on his yearly "Concert for the Cure" and then got down to business and asked how they're doing. Jason fielded that one. He said, quote, "I think we're fine. "Anytime you go through something like that it's tough. We've been together a long time and have been through a lot of things together. Those are things most people get to deal with in private. We didn't have the luxury of doing that. "I would say go ask any couple that's been married 30, 40, 50 years. I guarantee-"  That's when Jessica jumped in and said, "I would love to hear THEIR story." And Jason wrapped it up, saying, quote, "It hasn't always been roses."

Click Here To Watch The Interview!

Hunter Hayes Explains Why He Played All the Instruments on His Debut Album

I always thought HUNTER HAYES played every instrument on his self-titled debut album because he wanted to impress people. But no, Hunter says he only did it because he didn't have money and, well, because he could! He told VH1, quote, "It's a process born out of the way I used to do my demos because I didn't really have a choice. I knew a couple of instruments, and I had a bunch of gear. "And if I was gonna write songs, I'd never hear them finished until I'd actually cut them myself. I didn't have money to do demos, and there was nobody else really around at the time. So it just kind of became a way I'm used to working, and we ended up making the whole record that way."

By the way... Check out the video. It's Hunter at age 4 on stage with Hank Jr.! AMAZING!

The National Corvette Museum Has an Exhibit Featuring Vintage Cars Owned by Brad Paisley, Kix Brooks, George Strait and Dolly Parton.

If you love country music AND muscle cars, well, here's your nirvana. The National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky has an exhibit called "Country Music Stars and Cars". It's a collection of Corvettes and Camaros owned by country stars. The exhibit includes Tim McGraw and Faith Hill's 1960 Corvette, Brad Paisley's 1999 Vette, Troy Gentry's 1970 Camaro SS, Steve Wariner's 1966 Vette, Roy Orbison's 1967 Corvette and Marty Robbins' 1981 Corvette. Three of my favorites include KIX BROOKS' 1958 Corvette, GEORGE STRAIT'S 1958 Corvette and DOLLY PARTON'S 1968 Camaro (pictured above). Probably because I HAD a 1967 Camaro SS. Yup, sold it. What a stupid kid I was!

Click here to check them out!
CorvetteMuseum.org

Eric Church Will Not Be Rushed Into Recording a New Album.

Nobody tells ERIC CHURCH what to do . . . not even the record company suits who sign the checks.  Eric was asked if winning the CMA Album of the Year award for "Chief" might inspire him to cash in by rushing out a follow-up record. Eric will have no part of that. He said, quote, "Hell no, I'm gonna wait longer. I think there [are] a lot of reasons to make records.  The one thing I won't do is I won't make records for an economic reason. "It won't be because a label needs to make a quarterly number or we need to promote a tour. The next record will come when creatively it's the right time." Eric pointed out that he took his time recording "Chief", and that worked out pretty well. He adds, quote, "I'm not gonna rush it and when it's time it'll be time."

Taylor Swift Still Keeps in Touch with Conor Kennedy AND She'll be performing on Thursday's "X Factor"

TAYLOR SWIFT does NOT trash every guy she's ever dated. She claims to be "incredibly close" with TAYLOR LAUTNER and now we're hearing she's still on speaking terms with CONOR KENNEDY.
According to the "New York Post", Taylor and Conor still talk on the phone and there's a solid chance they'll see each when she attends the RFK Gala on December 3rd. Apparently, the only reason they broke up was because Taylor knew she'd be out of her mind busy promoting "Red" plus there's that little issue of Conor still being in high school. Taylor will also be performing her song "State of Grace" from her new album "Red" on Thursday's "X Factor". It'll be the first time she's performing that song on TV.

Toby Keith Talks About His Gall Bladder Attack.

TOBY KEITH opened up a little more about last summer's gall bladder surgery. Like a lot of guys, he tried to man-up at first and then it brought him to his knees and he HAD to get 'er done. Toby said, quote, "I had an attack [that] I thought was weird indigestion back in December. Then it was gone for three months and I didn't think anything about it. I thought it was a cramp. "Then in March I was on the golf course and by the third hole, I hit my drive and then started feeling that same thing I had three months earlier. "Me and the guys hit our second shots and by the time I got to the green, I was doubled over, and dry heaving, broke out in a sweat. "Everybody says when you have a gall bladder attack, it feels like a heart attack. And I didn't think it was that bad. It felt like a stomach cramp."

Tim McGraw Hung Out With Some Soldiers As Part of Operation Homefront.

TIM MCGRAW surprised about 30 Nashville area troops and their families who were being treated to lunch at an Outback Steakhouse last Thursday. It was a Veteran's Day salute organized by Outback and Operation Homefront. Tim hung out with the troops and posed for some photos. He was pretty humble about it too. He told the troops, quote, "I just want to say thank you. You guys are the best. We get to do the things that we do because of you." A little later Tim added, quote, "I think the military is the most important thing we have in the country. But in the larger scope we wouldn't be able to do the things we do without the security of our military."

Toby Keith and Rodney Atkins Salute the Troops This Veterans Day Weekend!

This Veteran's Day weekend, we remember the troops who have served to protect the United States. No format of music consistently honors those who serve as much as country music, and that's evident with stars like Toby Keith and Rodney Atkins who regularly perform for the troops overseas. Toby has played nearly 200 shows for the troops overseas since he started his yearly tours with the U.S.O. more than a decade ago. He began doing the tours in honor of his veteran father. Says Toby, "I just kind of went and I got there and saw the void that was there and the U.S.O. was like, 'Man, any time you want to come back, we'll take you.'" Toby has been back every year since and often goes out to entertain troops on very remote bases. Even seeing a helicopter is a big deal to these troops who may be deployed out there for 18 months.
"It's like, 'Something's coming out here to see us.'" Toby says. "There may be 25 guys out in the middle of nowhere." Toby plans to continue making the trips as long as he can, and he says, "I'm honored to do it. It's great boys and girls, and thank God we have 'em over there." Rodney Atkins can speak firsthand to the intense work the troops put in every day to defend America's freedom. Looking back on one of his tours entertaining the troops in Afghanistan, Rodney recalls getting up in the middle of the night and seeing a soldier doing intense physical training in the freezing rain. Rodney says, "He was carrying sandbags, like 200 pound sandbags and throwing them down and then he’d pick them back up in the freezing rain.  He’d walk twenty five yards, whatever, throw it down, pick it back up. " Rodney walked over to the soldier and asked him if he had been ordered to do this training. The soldier told him no one ordered him to get up at 3 a.m.
Rodney recalls him saying, "I’m doing this because I never know when I’m gonna have to carry one of my brothers or sisters back through the gates of hell.'" When he heard that, Rodney realized he had nothing to complain about at all in his life. He says, "It’s just amazing what they go through.  Keep the men and women in your prayers."

Miranda Lambert Will Never Record a Christmas Album . . . Thanks to Blake Shelton!

MIRANDA LAMBERT is one of the performers on BLAKE SHELTON'S holiday special "Not So Family Christmas", which airs December 3rd on NBC. During the taping she was asked if she'll ever record a holiday album, and she shut that door hard.  She said, quote, "I will never do a Christmas album because Blake wears me out with Christmas music. "He listens to it all year round. I love Christmas music and Christmas, but Blake does enough for both of us." Miranda also thinks the season is too commercialized. She added, quote, "They start playing Christmas music before Halloween. By the time it gets here, I'm over it. I get burnt out. "

Check Out Scarlett Johansson's Ugly New Tattoo!

When people decide something is art, then it's art . . . no matter how crappy it looks. And SCARLETT JOHANSSON'S new tattoo is a testament to that. Scarlett got a poorly-drawn horseshoe on her ribcage, along with the words "Lucky You". And it looks like a CHILD drew it. The thing is, it was actually drawn by a famous French artist who goes by the name FUZI. And this is just his style. He does a lot of tattoos, and they all look like they're poorly-drawn. (--Here's a gallery in case you're interested.) Scarlett's a fan of this guy . . . so we have to assume she's very happy with her new ink.
Meanwhile, just about everybody she shows this to is going to think she got RIPPED OFF by a shoddy tattoo artist.  Either that, or it was done by her prison cellmate.  Is it really "hip" when pretty much NOBODY gets it?

Jake Owen's Family Getting Ready to Welcome Daughter Pearl This Month!

Jake Owen and his wife Lacey will welcome their daughter Pearl into the world later this month, and Jake's parents are very excited about their first grandchild's impending arrival. Jake says, "My mom has asked me for years, 'When are you gonna get married?  When are you gonna get married?  I want grandbabies.'" Jake's grandparents are looking forward to becoming great grand-parents too. He says, "There’s a lot of cool feelings goin’ around the Owen household these days." Jake's family is happy to see him settled down with wife Lacey too. They tied the knot in May, and Jake says, "Lacey came into my life at a time when I needed it most -- and needed her the most, and thankfully she’ll be here with me ‘til my dying day." Jake is getting in a few shows this weekend on his The Summer Never Ends tour before the baby arrives. He's got a show in South Carolina and two shows in Georgia with special guests Love and Theft and Florida Georgia Line.

Tim McGraw, Dierks Bentley, Dave Haywood and Charles Kelley Got Huge Style Props From "GQ" Magazine!

Would you be surprised to hear that "GQ" magazine was paying attention to last week's CMAs?
They were AND they gave big time style props to Dierks Bentley, Tim McGraw, and Lady Antebellum's Dave Haywood and Charles Kelley. Here's what they wrote, quote, "(These four) nail about every point we drive home here at 'GQ' when it comes to things like fit, proportion and keeping things minimal without being boring. "Musicians tend to be given more sartorial leeway than their artistic brethren in the acting field but these gents prove there's no need for it. Men of the Grammys take note and start booking time with your tailors."

The Band Perry Debuts Big at iTunes with "Better Dig Two".

The Band Perry made quite a splash last week with the premiere of their new single, "Better Dig Two." The song hit #1 on the iTunes Country Songs chart and #3 on the overall songs tally there, with 82,000 copies sold in the first week. They also performed "Better Dig Two" on the CMA Awards last Thursday and filmed the song's video on Friday. "Better Dig Two" is the lead single from The Band Perry's sophomore album, due out in April 2013. After taping a performance on ABC's CMA Country Christmas Saturday, The Band Perry headed over to Europe. They've got shows all this week in Sweden, Norway, Ireland and the U.K.

Brad Paisley Finds Deeper Meaning Performing "Southern Comfort Zone" at Grand Ole Opry.

Brad Paisley's latest single, "Southern Comfort Zone," talks about seeing his home in Tennessee through new eyes after touring the world playing music. The song took on even deeper meaning when Brad recently performed it on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry. He was there to invite his friend Darius Rucker to become an Opry member when the show's management team unexpectedly asked him to sing. Brad says, "I went out with an acoustic guitar and sang that. And it’s a different song by yourself without the band rockin’ behind you." Singing that song on the same circle of wood on the Opry stage where country legends including Hank Williams, Sr. and Patsy Cline have stood was a big moment for Brad. He explains, "I'm standing in the circle, in my musical home, which I've been in love with since the first time I was allowed there to play." Brad goes on to draw parallels between Tennessee and the fictional home of the hobbits in J.R.R. Tolkien's celebrated trilogy, saying, "It's the Shire in Lord of the Rings. It's the place that's beautiful, ideal to live, which I appreciate more now after having seen the world." Look for Brad's new album featuring "Southern Comfort Zone" to come out next spring.

Justin Moore Working to Keep Traditional Country Music Alive.

Justin Moore is one of modern country's most traditional-leaning artists, and he plans to continue in that vein on his forthcoming albums. Says Justin, "I'm always gonna do my part to keep that music alive for not only the generations that grew up on it when that's all there was, but also trying to keep it out there for the coming generations so that it'll continue to be relevant down the road." Though he gravitates towards those traditional sounds, Justin knows he has to keep his music sounding fresh to compete on country radio.
"I understand that I've got to keep growing as an artist, and I think radio dictates that a little bit or a lot," Justin explains He's obviously doing a good job of keeping his sound up to date. Justin's latest hit, "Til My Last Day," is climbing up the charts fast as the latest release from his Outlaws Like Me album.

Zac Brown Band Taking Some Time Off the Road for November and December

Zac Brown Band is keeping busy with a handful of arena dates this winter, but they're also taking some time off in the coming weeks to recharge and regroup after a very busy year so far. The guys have been touring constantly and released their new album, Uncaged, earlier this year. The band's fiddle player Jimmy De Martini tells MLive.com, "Last time we had any time off, it was to record our new album, Uncaged, but this time, we have some real time off, and I’m excited about that." The band will be back on the road again heavily in 2013, and Jimmy adds, "By March, we’ll have a whole new touring rig and production."
To keep up with their complete tour schedule, go to ZacBrownBand.com.

CMA Awards Bring in Strong Ratings for ABC!

The CMA Awards brought in strong ratings for ABC Thursday night winning the night above all other networks. The three-hour broadcast also brought in the most Thursday night viewers ABC has had for a non-sports show in three years. The CMA Awards also garnered ABC's strongest audience among adults 18-to-49-year-olds so far this season. If you missed the CMA Awards broadcast, you have another chance coming up Wednesday, November 21. CMT will re-air the show that night at 9 ET.

Miranda Lambert Is Looking for the Next Generation of Female Country Stars.

Miranda Lambert won her third consecutive CMA Female Vocalist of the Year trophy last week, so she is definitely qualified to speak on the state of female acts in the country genre. Since Miranda, Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood rose to prominence in the middle of the last decade, no other solo, country female act has broken through in a big way. Sunny Sweeney and Jane Kramer have had one top 10 hit apiece in the past few years, but newer acts like Kelleigh Bannen and Kristen Kelly aren't gaining ground at radio yet. That doesn't sit well with Miranda. She says, "I'm so thankful to be able to be the reigning Female Vocalist three times in a row and to be standing here, but I know it's gonna be time to pass that trophy on to the next, and I hope there's enough females to put in that category," This year's CMA Female Vocalist category was a little odd with pop star Kelly Clarkson nominated as one of the five nominees. Kelly is a good friend of Miranda's, but she doesn't make her home specifically in country music. Miranda wants to use her status as the top female vocalist in the genre to champion those new country female acts saying, "There's some great talent out there, and we're gonna accept it."

CMA Winners List.

Here's a list of winners at the 46th Annual CMA Awards, held in Nashville Thursday night. How did you do?

Entertainer of the Year
Blake Shelton

Album of the Year
Eric Church, Chief

Male Vocalist
Blake Shelton

Female Vocalist
Miranda Lambert

Vocal Group of the Year
Little Big Town

Single of the Year
"Pontoon," Little Big Town

Song of the Year (Award to Songwriter)
"Over You," Miranda Lambert (Artist), Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert (Writers)

Musical Event
"Feel Like a Rock Star," Kenny Chesney duet with Tim McGraw

Vocal Duo
Thompson Square

New Artist
Hunter Hayes

Music Video
"Red Solo Cup," Toby Keith
Musician

Mac McAnally

CMA Awards to Feature Star-Studded Performances and Competitive Categories

Winning a CMA Award is a very prestigious honor, but most country stars will tell you they're more focused on their performance slot the night of the show. That's definitely true for Keith Urban, who says, "That is the absolute moment that matters most to me, is getting to play. 'Cause the other stuff is, I don't know about the other stuff.  I know about playing, that's the only thing I know about." Keith joins a star-studded lineup of performers at Thursday night's CMA Awards including the show's hosts Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, who is expected to perform his latest hit "Southern Comfort Zone." Jason Aldean has a big surprise in store for fans with his performance slot while his former duet partner Kelly Clarkson is teaming up on the show with Vince Gill to sing their new collaboration, "Don't Rush." Other performers on the show include Lady Antebellum, Taylor Swift, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown Band, Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town. Tim McGraw will debut his new song, "One of Those Nights," and his wife Faith Hill will deliver her single, "American Heart." They'll also take part in a tribute to Willie Nelson on the show. The Band Perry will sing their new single, "Better Dig Two," on the CMA Awards, and New Artist of the Year nominees Hunter Hayes and Brantley Gilbert have landed performance slots too. Darius Rucker, Reba, Jake Owen, Sugarland, Martina McBride, Lisa Marie Presley and Kellie Pickler are set to present trophies during the broadcast along with ABC stars Tim Allen from Last Man Standing and Nashville's Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere.
As for the nominees, Eric Church is the lead nominee with five nods including Album of the Year for Chief.  Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert each have four nods while Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Little Big Town, Taylor Swift and Dierks Bentley each walked away with three nominations.

Here is the full list of CMA nominees:

Entertainer of the Year
Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

Album of the Year
Eric Church, Chief
Miranda Lambert, Four the Record
Dierks Bentley, Home
Lady Antebellum, Own the Night
Luke Bryan, tailgates & tanlines

Male Vocalist
Jason Aldean
Luke Bryan
Eric Church
Blake Shelton
Keith Urban

Female Vocalist
Kelly Clarkson
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

Vocal Group of the Year
Eli Young Band
Lady Antebellum
Little Big Town
The Band Perry
Zac Brown Band

Single of the Year
"Dirt Road Anthem," Jason Aldean
"God Gave Me You," Blake Shelton
"Home," Dierks Bentley
"Pontoon," Little Big Town
"Springsteen," Eric Church

Song of the Year (Award to Songwriter)
"Even if It Breaks Your Heart," Eli Young Band (Artist), Will Hoge and Eric Paslay (Writers)
"God Gave Me You," Blake Shelton (Artist), Dave Barnes (Writer)
"Home," Dierks Bentley (Artist), Dierks Bentley and Dan Wilson (Writers)
"Over You," Miranda Lambert (Artist), Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert (Writers)
"Springsteen," Eric Church (Artist), Eric Church, Jeff Hyde and Ryan Tyndell (Writers)

Musical Event
"Dixie Highway," Alan Jackson with Zac Brown Band
"Feel Like a Rock Star," Kenny Chesney duet with Tim McGraw
"Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die," Willie Nelson, Snoop Dogg (or Lion), Kris Kristofferson and Jamey Johnson
"Safe and Sound," Taylor Swift with The Civil Wars
"Stuck on You," Lionel Richie and Darius Rucker

Vocal Duo
Big & Rich
Love and Theft
Sugarland
The Civil Wars
Thompson Square

New Artist
Lee Brice
Brantley Gilbert
Hunter Hayes
Love and Theft
Thompson Square

Music Video
"Come Over," Kenny Chesney
"Over You," Miranda Lambert
"Pontoon," Little Big Town
"Red Solo Cup," Toby Keith
"Springsteen," Eric Church

Musician
Sam Bush
Paul Franklin
Dann Huff
Brent Mason
Mac McAnally