Pre-Order Kenny's "The Road and the Radio"!

Being an associate of Amazon for about 7 years now, I thought I would search for Kenny Chesney's latest album"The Road and the Radio" at Amazon.com. Low and behold, they have the album available for pre-ordering!

Click the links or "Buy from amazon.com" button in the box to the left. I'd say, it's a very good price at $10.99 USD (at the time of this posting).

The Road and the Radio will be released on November 8, 2005 and I for one, cannot wait!

Chesney & Wilson Show Pat Green a 'Summer Camp' Vibe

Good article on how it's like with Kenny on the road. It's cool Pat Green had the experience with both Chesney and Wilson!

Source: 2theadvocate.com

Entertainment writer Fresh from being opening act for the biggest tour of the year, Texas singer-songwriter Pat Green brings his solo tour back to Baton Rouge for an Oct. 27 show at the Varsity Theatre.

Green, whose hits include "Wave On Wave" and "Baby Doll," saw his opening act slot on a 44-date trek with country stars Kenny Chesney and Gretchen Wilson as a golden opportunity.

"Taking my little independent band that's somehow creeping around radio and putting it on the big stage was pretty cool," he said before a show at the Georgia Theatre in Athens. "It was a big deal, very lucky. Hopefully, it'll give us a leg up."

Green had a half-hour to make his mark with the Chesney and Wilson fans who filled venues ranging from about 10,000 to 55,000 seats. He knew he had to strike fast and true.
"You have to," Green said. "If you don't, well, you miss your shot. I felt like, from the first day we stepped on stage, that we had a tight package. During the time that we had allotted, we kicked their teeth in as long as we could."

Offstage was fun, too.

"It was a great kind of summer-camp vibe," Green said. "Everybody was having a good time. Nobody missed out and you just woke up in a new city and did it all over."
Green's no newcomer to the music game, but growing artist that he is, he learned a thing or two from headliners Chesney and Wilson.

"I been watching Kenny on TV since I was in my freshman year in college," Green said. "You gotta pay your dues, that's what I took from him. And from Gretchen, I guess, if you can catch that lightning in a bottle and find that one song (Wilson's 2004 hit, "Redneck Woman"), or write that one song, that changes the world, then you can get to the top pretty fast. So, as far as I know, I'm doing the right thing."

The right thing for Green isn't a gimmick or a marketing plan.
"More than anything," the singer explained, "if you concentrate on the most important things, the studio and the stage, then the rest kind of falls in naturally. The show and then the studio, and if you don't get the connection, you're not gonna get anywhere in the business. You can't have one without the other."

A link in the great Texas singer-songwriter tradition, Green caught the bug for writing songs from fellow Texans Jerry Jeff Walker and Robert Earl Keen. Mainstream singer-songwriter stars Bruce Springsteen and Dave Matthews inspired him, too.

"It was the songwriter that first caught me," Green said. "And then the songwriter up on a huge stage, in front of all the lights and people, really solidified that was what I wanted to do."
Green is about to enter a new phase in his career. He's left the New York-based Republic Records and is considering offers from major labels in Nashville. Breaking a country act such as himself from New York was just too difficult, he said.

Republic, Green said, "got tired of running into the same walls. We were like, 'OK, we gotta make this thing happen down in Nashville.' "

This sort of thinking represented a change of mind for Green.
"I thought for the longest time that Nashville was the enemy," he admitted. "But, really, there's a certain few people in Nashville that run the music business in directions that I don't like. So long as I steer clear of them it's all cool.

"I'm not trying to be corporate," Green said. "I'm not trying to sell out. I'm just trying to get my music in the largest number of ears I can get it in. In order to do that, you have to navigate that slippery side of the business. That's something I wasn't prepared to deal with when I was 18. Now that I have a wife and kid and I'm 30, I'm like, 'OK, I can deal with this.' "

Kenny's Thoughts on His New Album "The Road and the Radio"

Source: netmusiccountdown.com

NASHVILLE, TN Wednesday Oct.19.2005 -- Kenny Chesney tells Country Weekly that he just couldn't quite declare his "The Road and the Radio" CD finished until he found the single, "Who You'd Be Today.""I realized we had a pretty good album but not a great one," Kenny explained. Finding "Who You'd Be Today" helped bring it all together. "After I recorded this song, I found a few others that started to fit. Creatively, this was the most challenging record I've made... But I'm proud of this record because of it."

Chesney Wins ASCAP Voice of Music Award

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Kenny Chesney has won the ASCAP Voice of Music Award at the performing-rights organization’s 43rd annual country music awards show.

“First and foremost, I consider myself a songwriter,”

Kenny performed his song “I Go Back” at the annual ASCAP Country Music Awards at the Ryman Auditorium.

“First and foremost, I consider myself a songwriter,” accepting the honor, said the 37 year old Chesney. His new album, “The Road and the Radio,” will be released in November 2005.

Previous recipients of the award, given to songwriters whose music gives people’s lives a voice through song, are Garth Brooks, Amy Grant, George Strait and Diane Warren.

Craig Wiseman of group Rascal Flatts was named ASCAP’s songwriter of the year for singles that include “In a Real Love,” “Live Like You Were Dying,” “Rough and Ready” and “That’s What It’s All About.”

ASCAP named “Live Like You Were Dying,” a Tim McGraw hit on which Wiseman shares writing credit, its song of the year.

Wiseman has written or co-written 90 charted singles and 13 No. 1 country hits throughout his career. This was his second ASCAP songwriter of the year award. ASCAP’s songwriter/artist of the year is John Rich of duo Big & Rich, who co-wrote “Here for the Party,” “Holy Water,” “Redneck Woman,” “Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” and “When I Think About Cheatin.”

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers is among three U.S. performing-rights organizations that represent songwriters in licensing music and collecting and distributing royalties from play on radio and in television, films, ads and other media.

Renee Thinking About Adoption

Not that I really care about Renee too much anymore... But I thought it would be important to post this for Chesney fans like you and myself to see what's really going on inside her pretty little head. lol!

Source: monstersandcritics.com
Renee Zellweger has revealed she wants to adopt an orphaned baby, just days after her ex Jack White announced he is expecting his first child.

The Hollywood actress is said to be desperate to have children but, since splitting from husband Kenny Chesney last month, has been left with little hope.

So the 'Bridget Jones' actress has reportedly asked advice from Angelina Jolie, who has an adopted Cambodian tot Maddox, four, and Ethiopian baby Zahara.

The pair are reportedly planning a trip to Ethiopia where there are five million orphans.
A source at the country's state-run adoption agency said: "Renee still has to meet the same ten conditions as everybody else.

"The main two are that she's financially secure and law-abiding."

The news of Jack White's impending fatherhood came less than a month after Renee's marriage to country singer Kenny Chesney ended.

Renée and Kenny shocked fans when they announced they had wed on May 9 in a sunset ceremony in the Virgin Islands.

But just four months later their marriage was annulled, with the 'Bridget Jones' star citing 'fraud' as the reason for their split.

The White Stripes frontman and British model Karen Elson made announced the pregnancy to their family last weekend, in Michigan.

White secretly wed Elson in a canoe on the Amazon in June, just four months after he split from Renée.

Chesney: Finalist In The Top Tour Category

Source: Billboard.com

U2's mammoth Vertigo tour is a finalist in four categories for the Billboard Touring Awards, the most of any outing this year. The outing is a finalist in the top tour, top draw and top Boxscore categories, and U2's management company Principle Management is a finalist for top manager.

The Billboard Touring Awards recognize the year’s highest achievements in the concert industry. The awards, which are based on box-office data gathered from Billboard Boxscore reports from Nov. 24, 2004, through Sept. 30, 2005, will be presented at an Oct. 26 reception at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York that wraps the second annual Roadwork conference.

Neil Diamond and Kenny Chesney are also finalists in the top tour category, which reflects gross dollars. U2, Chesney and Dave Matthews Band are finalists in the top draw category, which reflects total attendance. Chesney’s A Place in the Sun tour is also in the running for top package.

Another multiple finalist is the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tenn., which is among the leading performers in the top Boxscore and top festival categories.

The breakthrough act award recognizes an artist or band in its first decade that cracks the top 25 tours listings for the first time. Coldplay and Rascal Flatts fit that description this year.
Finalists in the top manager and top agency categories are based on the combined totals of all the acts they represent in the top 25 tours.

As previously reported, the Dave Matthews Band will receive Roadwork '05's Humanitarian Award for the band's philanthropic efforts. Pioneering promoter Jack Boyle, chairman emeritus for Clear Channel Entertainment and founder of Cellar Door Concerts, will receive the Legend of Live Award.

ASCAP to honor Kenny Chesney

Source: NewKerala

NASHVILLE: The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Thursday named Kenny Chesney as the recipient of its highest country music award.

Chesney will be given the Voice of Music Award during the 43rd Annual ASCAP Country Music Awards gala Oct. 17 at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium.

The publishers and writers of the most performed country songs in 2004 that are registered with ASCAP will also be honored.

The award going to Chesney honors artists and songwriters whose music gives people a voice, ASCAP said in a news release.

Only four other artists have received the award: Garth Brooks, George Strait, Diane Warren and Amy Grant.

Chesney was named Entertainer of the Year by both the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.

Interview With Country Weekly

Source: Country Weekly

In a Country Weekly exclusive, Kenny opens up about the tough times, The Road and the Radio—and his new life.

From afar, Kenny Chesney's Nashville-area home looks like a postcard of a stately English countryside mansion. The paved path leading to his driveway curves around tall trees and vast expanses of green lawn, stretching over about four long city blocks. It's a stunning piece of property, even by country star standards.

Once inside Kenny's house, it's apparent this East Tennessee native enjoys his down-home comforts. Photos are everywhere, on walls and nearly every table. Most are candid shots of family and friends enjoying themselves—and plenty of shots from the islands, too.

The living room centers on a large, flat-screen TV and looks set up for friends to cheer on Kenny's beloved University of Tennessee Volunteers. The kitchen has a stainless steel blender pulled to the front of the counter, and the way the glasses and plates are arranged on shelves suggests they get plenty of use.

Zellweger Confronts Reporter

Source: News24

Los Angeles - Renee Zellweger has stormed into a newspaper office to confront a reporter who apparently made her look "slutty".

The Oscar winner, recently split from husband Kenny Chesney, was furious when the New York Post said she had a new man.

The newspaper had described Irish singer Damien Rice as "her new beau", reports the Mirror.
The star went into the office and rang the reporter, saying: "Come down because I want to talk to you."

She told the writer: "That story was hurtful about me being with another man. It wasn't true and it made me look slutty."

Zellweger, 36, insisted she and Rice were old friends and denied they were romantically involved.

More Info on Kenny's New Album, Appearances

Source: Reuters

Newly single country superstar Kenny Chesney will release his second studio album of the year on November 8, and is planning a number of television appearances to promote the set. "The Road and the Radio" (BNA) is expected to feature 11 tracks, including first single "Who You'd Be Today," "Tequila Loves Me (Even if You Don't)," "Another Beer in Mexico," "Living in Fast Forward" and "You Save Me."

Chesney topped the Billboard 200 albums chart in February with "Be As You Are: Songs From an Old Blue Chair," which has sold 1 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Although Chesney has yet to announce tour plans in support of the set, he has scheduled a November 7 performance on ABC's "Good Morning America" in New York's Times Square. The network is also preparing a Chesney special to air the week of Thanksgiving.

Hello ... Goodbye

Source: People Magazine

Pretty good article in People magazine about Kenny and Renee. Here's a little bit of the article this week:

Four months after their island wedding, Renée Zellweger and Kenny Chesney take the drastic step of annulment. Says a friend: 'It just wasn't right for either of them'.

On Sept. 16, the day after the sudden end of her four-month marriage to Kenny Chesney became public, Renée Zellweger was in New York, where she turned up at a steakhouse in the Hamptons. She requested a table for one, kicked off her sandals and quietly dined on salmon and steamed spinach before leaving a $100 tip. "She didn't act sad or upset," says an observer. "She was so sweet."

New Kenny Chesney Video: Who You'd Be Today

See the full video online here! Tear jerker I must say - Awesome song too!

Chesney to perform at 2005 AMA's

MARIAH CAREY, KENNY CHESNEY and ROB THOMAS are the first stars confirmed to perform at the 2005 American Music Awards.The stars are all AMA nominees, and bosses of the show say additional artists will be added to the line-up at a later date.The ceremony, which will take place in Los Angeles on 22 November (2005), will be hosted by CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER.

Kenny will be "OK" after split with Renee

Darn right Kenny will be okay!

Source: Y! News

NEW YORK - Less than a week after Renee Zellweger filed for an annulment from Kenny Chesney, the country music star assured fans, "I'll be OK."

"I'm all right. I'm good. There have been better times, but I'll be OK," Chesney told Country Weekly magazine for its Oct. 24 issue, on newsstands Oct. 10. The interview was conducted Monday at the singer's home outside Nashville, Tenn.

In court papers filed Sept. 14, Zellweger listed "fraud" as the reason for the breakup after four months of marriage. The "Bridget Jones" actress and Chesney married in a surprise Caribbean island ceremony in May after first meeting in January.

"I hit everything so hard this year," Chesney said. "I had the biggest tour I've ever done, I had a record to finish that was real important to me, and, of course, I had something new in my personal life and I was trying to do that too. It really ended up being too much."

Chesney, 37, was named Country Music Association entertainer of the year in November, while his "When the Sun Goes Down" was named album of the year.

"I'm tired right now, but by next year, I'll be excited to get back to it. And it'll be about the music again, not about the sideshow."

Farm Aid Debut for Kenny

It's great to see Kenny not thinking too much about the Renee thing and focus his attention on something positive like Farm Aid. Keep up the great work Kenny!

Source: CMT.com

TINLEY PARK, Ill. -- Back when the original Farm Aid was just getting started, Kenny Chesney was only a teenager. But Sunday (Sept. 18) at the 20th anniversary concert in the Chicago suburb of Tinley Park, Ill., Chesney was all grown up and showing all 25,000 fans he was just fine. And to the fans close enough to hold up their "We Love You, Kenny" signs, he mouthed a very genuine, "Thank you."

As expected, Chesney made no mention of the annulment of his marriage to actress Renee Zellweger, a story that made national news last week. However, he would not allow news photographers to take photos during his performance.

Chesney's set was packed with sure things, like "Live Those Songs," "Big Star," "Young" and "Anything but Mine." He dedicated "Back Where I Come From" to everybody in the audience that had grown up in the country. "I understand the importance of keeping people close to the soil, growing up like I did," Chesney said. "When you're from a small town, you've got to band together. That's why I'm so proud to be here."

Chesney even thanked his friend, Farm Aid co-founder John Mellencamp, for inspiring him. "Years ago, Mellencamp told me I oughta write more of my own songs," Chesney said. "He inspired me, and I wrote this song the very next day." The lyrics of "I Go Back" gained a new meaning after Chesney explained what gave him the push to write about Jack & Diane -- years after Mellencamp himself did so.

Fans got even louder when Chesney closed his part of the Farm Aid show with "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy." How else would you end the concert meant to help the family farms that actually use a John Deere?

This may have been Chesney's first Farm Aid, but Mellencamp has been in it for the long haul, having co-founded the nonprofit organization in 1985 with Willie Nelson and Neil Young. So when it was Mellencamp's turn to sing, he sang his message loud and clear. He was as outspoken as ever with songs about fighting authority, life and death in a small town and discrimination of all kinds. But nothing could've hit closer to home for the family farmers scattered throughout the crowd than Mellencamp's "Rain on the Scarecrow." The crowd was almost silent as he sang, "The crops we grew last summer/Weren't enough to pay the loans/Couldn't buy the seed to plant this spring/And the farmers' bank foreclosed."

Reports: Kenny Chesney & Rene Zellweger Call It Quits

I guess the rumors were correct, Kenny and Rene have announced they will be seeking an annulment. When I heard this last night (sorry I didn't post this until this morning), I was a bit surprised but at the same time reporters have been saying they were in trouble shortly after they got married. It's too bad because they seemed like a pretty good couple. I have a feeling their careers are just too busy for them to work on a marriage or even enjoy each other. The single life is probably the better way to go for these people until their careers have chilled out some.

I'm sure plenty of women out there are breathing a sigh of relief now that Kenny is back on the market. LOL!

Here are a few reports from this morning's news:

Source: CMT News

Kenny Chesney and Renee Zellweger are annulling their five-month marriage, Chesney's publicist confirmed Thursday afternoon (Sept. 15).

Another source close to Chesney said Zellweger was in New York when she initiated the annulment proceedings and that the singer received the news Wednesday (Sept. 14) in Nashville.

The couple married May 9 on the island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where he owns a house. It was the first marriage for both.

Source: Sify Movies

Washington: After only four-months, Hollywood actress Renee Zellweger and country singer Kenny Chesney are having their marriage annulled.

The Oscar-winning actress reportedly filed for an annulment from her country star husband on Wednesday (14Sep05) in Los Angeles.

"The reports are true," E! Online quoted Zellweger's spokesperson Nanci Ryder as saying.

"There are no further details," she added Zellweger, 36, and Chesney, 37, wed May 9 on a beach in the Virgin Islands, which happened about five months after the couple met at a tsunami relief benefit in January 2005.

The marriage was the first for both.

Source: BBC News

Oscar-winning actress Renee Zellweger and country singer Kenny Chesney are seeking an annulment after four months of marriage.
The Bridget Jones star, 36, married Chesney, 37, on a Caribbean beach in May, having met four months earlier at a benefit for tsunami victims.

In court papers Zellweger listed "fraud" as the reason for the break-up but did not elaborate.

Chesney is one of the biggest country music stars in the US.

He was named entertainer of the year at the US Academy of Country Music awards in May, with hits including Me and You and She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy.

Zellweger won a best supporting actress Oscar for Cold Mountain in 2004, and was also nominated for her roles in Chicago and Bridget Jones's Diary.

It was the first marriage for both Zellweger and Chesney.

Marriage 'invalid': (This gives a good explaination of what an annulment is)

In US law, an annulment is a decree that a marriage was invalid from its outset.

Anyone seeking an annulment on the grounds of "fraud" must prove that their partner misrepresented some matter that was vital to the marriage.

This may include the concealment of a fact such as an existing spouse, permanent impotence or a criminal history.

If either party was under the influence of drugs or alcohol when the marriage took place, it may also be grounds for its annulment.

However, Zellweger's lawyer and her spokeswoman Nanci Ryder declined to give any details regarding the "fraud" claim in this case.

In her court submission, Zellweger also demanded that the court rule out the possibility of spousal financial support for Chesney.

The pair first met at the Concert of Hope tsunami relief benefit in January, where Chesney was singing and Zellweger was answering telephones.

Source: E! News

A week ago, Renee Zellweger was "happily married" to Kenny Chesney. But in the whirlwind romantic life of the Oscar-winning actress, a lot can happen in seven days.

Wednesday in Los Angeles, Zellweger checked the paperwork box marked "fraud," and filed for an annulment from her country star husband of four months.

"The reports are true," Zellweger rep Nanci Ryder confirmed. "There are no further details."

Zellweger, 36, and Chesney, 37, wed May 9 on a beach in the Virgin Islands. The bride wore a strapless Carolina Herrera; the groom, a black Stetson.

New Kenny Chesney Song: Who You Would Be Today

It was weird... I heard this song as soon as I got into my office this morning that sounded like Kenny Chesney, but I didn't recognize the song. Turns out, he released a song to the radio stations already. The song is called "Who You Would Be Today". I only heard the second half of the song, but it sounded a little like a tear-jerker. Pretty good song though. Can you tell that I'm just itchin' for new Chesney material?

9/11 2005: Four Years Have Past

I would like to take a minute [or two] to remember our heros, victims and families of the victims of 9/11/2001. It seems just like yesterday that we were under attack from the lowest scum of the earth/cowards that slammed aircraft into buildings. I will never forget that fateful day and I hope no American that experienced it will ever forget that day and the people who lost their lives.

I pray for all who were affected by the attacks of 9/11.

CMA Award Nominations 2005

So they are picking the nominees for the CMA Awards today. I'm kind of pissed that Kenny Chesney wasn't nominated in a couple of categories like Single of the Year, Album of the Year and Song of the Year or Video of the Year, but hey... He can't win everything, right?

Hopefully, Kenny will take Entertainer of the Year again and it would be nice if he gets Male Vocalist of the Year.

Man... Choices are so hard to pick in the Female Vocalist of the Year and the Horizon Award. It will be interesting to see how close I am with my picks. It would be nice if Montgomery Gentry would win Duo of the Year, but I'm thinking Brooks & Dunn will probably take it. Don't get me wrong... I love B&D, but I also really like Montgomery Gentry as well. You know, Van Zant might just surprise us with that category. I haven't really watched every video, but I did think Toby Keith's As Good As I Once Was was a pretty funny video. He needs to win something, ya know? Musician of the Year -- I have no idea who will win it, I just had to pick something. :)

So what are your choices? If you want, go ahead and post a response if you like.

Following are the final nominees (my picks are in red):

Entertainer of the Year
Kenny Chesney
Alan Jackson
Toby Keith
Brad Paisley
Keith Urban

Female Vocalist of the Year
Sara Evans
Alison Krauss
Martina McBride
Gretchen Wilson
Lee Ann Womack

Male Vocalist of the Year
Kenny Chesney
Alan Jackson
Brad Paisley
George Strait
Keith Urban

Horizon Award
Dierks Bentley
Big & Rich
Miranda Lambert
Julie Roberts
Sugarland

Vocal Group of the Year
Alison Krauss & Union Station Featuring Jerry Douglas
Diamond Rio
Lonestar
Rascal Flatts
Sugarland

Vocal Duo of the Year
Big & Rich
Brooks & Dunn
Montgomery Gentry
Van Zant
The Warren Brothers

Single of the Year
(Award Goes to Artist and Producer)

"Alcohol"
Artist: Brad Paisley
Producer: Frank Rogers
Arista Nashville

"As Good As I Once Was"
Artist: Toby Keith
Producers: Toby Keith, James Stroud
DreamWorks Records Nashville

"Baby Girl"
Artist: Sugarland
Producer: Garth Fundis
Mercury Records Nashville

"Bless the Broken Road"
Artist: Rascal Flatts
Producers: Mark Bright, Rascal Flatts, Marty Williams
Lyric Street Records

"I May Hate Myself in the Morning"
Artist: Lee Ann Womack
Producer: Byron Gallimore
MCA Nashville

Album of the Year
(Award Goes to Artist and Producer)

Be Here
Artist: Keith Urban
Producers: Dann Huff, Keith Urban
Capitol Records Nashville

Feels Like Today
Artist: Rascal Flatts
Producers: Mark Bright, Rascal Flatts, Marty Williams
Lyric Street Records

Live Like You Were Dying
Artist: Tim McGraw
Producers: Byron Gallimore, Tim McGraw, Darran Smith
Curb Records

Somewhere Down in Texas
Artist: George Strait
Producers: Tony Brown, George Strait
MCA Nashville

There's More Where That Came From
Artist: Lee Ann Womack
Producers: Greg Droman, Byron Gallimore
MCA Nashville

Song of the Year
(Award Goes to Songwriter and Primary Publisher)

"Alcohol"
Songwriter: Brad Paisley
Publishers: EMI April, Sea Gayle Music

"As Good As I Once Was"
Songwriters: Scotty Emerick, Toby Keith
Publishers: Tokeco Tunes, Sony/ATV Songs, Big Yellow Dog Music, Florida Cracker Music

"Bless the Broken Road"
Songwriters: Bobby Boyd, Jeff Hanna, Marcus Hummon
Publishers: Careers-BMG Music, Floyd's Dream Music, Jeff Diggs Music

"I May Hate Myself in the Morning"
Songwriter: Odie Blackmon
Publisher: Cal IV Songs

"Redneck Woman"
Songwriters: John Rich, Gretchen Wilson
Publishers: Sony/ATV, Cross Keys, Hoosiermama Music, WB Music

"Whiskey Lullaby"
Songwriters: Bill Anderson, Jon Randall
Publishers: Sony/ATV, Mr. Bubba Music, Reynsong, Wha Ya Say Music

Musical Event of the Year
"Good News, Bad News"
George Strait With Lee Ann Womack
MCA Nashville

"I'll Never Be Free"
Willie Nelson With Lee Ann Womack
Lost Highway Records

"New Again"
Brad Paisley and Sara Evans
Wind Up Records

"Party for Two"
Shania Twain With Billy Currington
Mercury Records Nashville

"Trip Around the Sun"
Jimmy Buffett With Martina McBride
RCA Records

Music Video of the Year
(Award Goes to Artist and Director)

"Alcohol"
Artist: Brad Paisley
Director: Jim Shea

"As Good As I Once Was"
Artist: Toby Keith
Director: Michael Salomon

"Days Go By"
Artist: Keith Urban
Director: Wayne Isham

"I May Hate Myself in the Morning"
Artist: Lee Ann Womack
Director: Trey Fanjoy

"When I Think About Cheatin'"
Artists: Gretchen Wilson
Directors: Robert Deaton, George J. Flanigen IV

Musician of the Year
Jerry Douglas -- Dobro
Paul Franklin -- Steel Guitar
Dann Huff -- Electric Guitar
Brent Mason -- Guitar/Electric Guitar
Randy Scruggs -- Guitar/Mandolin

Hurricane Katrina Relief

Looks like Kenny is also getting into the act in helping out families of this horrible natural disaster.

It was nice to see Tim McGraw doing his part on NBC the other night along with some 18 celebrities, including Wynton Marsalis, Lindsay Lohan, Leonardo DiCaprio, Harry Connick Jr., Mike Myers, Hilary Swank, Claire Danes, John Goodman and Aaron Neville. It took an unexpected turn when the outspoken rapper Kanye West launched into a tirade about the government's response to the disaster, claiming "George Bush doesn't care about black people." I wonder if Kenny will be doing a similar television special?

Here's what I found off of Mr. Chesney's official website news page which was posted today (fresh off the presses):

FARM AID OFFERS IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE FOR FARMERS DEVASTATED BY HURRICANE KATRINA

Farm Aid will channel emergency assistance to farm families devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Farm Aid today activated the Family Farm Disaster Fund to encourage donations so that farm families can get the help they need to recover from the hurricane and continue farming.
"This is a moment when each of us can take stock of what we can offer to everyone affected by this catastrophe, and Farm Aid is in a position to act for farm families," said Farm Aid President Willie Nelson. "Crop and livestock losses will be massive. Many farm buildings were destroyed in the storm and ensuing flooding. A disaster of this magnitude can be a breaking point for many Southern family farms."

Individuals can contribute to Farm Aid's disaster fund on-line at www.farmaid.org or by calling 1-800-FARM-AID. In addition to funds raised by people across the country, Farm Aid has sent an initial $30,000 to several of its partner family farm organizations in the southeast. The funds will allow the Federation of Southern Cooperatives and the Louisiana Interchurch Conference to immediately begin assessing needs in these states and providing emergency relief. The Farmers Legal Action Group will also step in with information they have developed on how farmers can access federal disaster programs.

For twenty years, Farm Aid has responded to many weather-related disasters that have pushed family farmers to the brink of ruin. Already, there is an outpouring of desire among farmers and farm groups to help other farm families affected by Katrina.
"Fortunately, we can convene our farm group partners across the country to develop additional longer-term actions that Farm Aid and its donors can support," added Farm Aid Executive Director Carolyn Mugar.

While the full extent of the damage to family farms is still unknown, Farm Aid representatives have been told that the infrastructure of many rural southeastern communities has been devastated and will take months to repair. That means many farm families are facing an extended period without phone service, electricity, clean water or modes of transportation. In addition, major crop losses are anticipated as many crops were just a week or two from being harvested when the hurricane hit. Without transport or feed for farm animals, livestock and poultry farmers face serious challenges to keep their animals alive over the coming days and weeks.

Farm Aid will hold its 20th Anniversary concert on September 18 in Tinley Park, IL, just south of Chicago. Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp held the first Farm Aid concert in 1985 in Champaign, IL to raise awareness about the loss of family farms and to raise funds to keep farm families on their land. Dave Matthews joined the Farm Aid Board of Directors in 2001. Farm Aid has raised more than $27 million to promote a strong and resilient family farm system of agriculture. Through public education and direct grants, Farm Aid supports national, regional and local efforts to build and strengthen family farm food production.

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