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