Inside Music Row

Reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Luke Bryan has seen a lot of changes in his career since releasing "All My Friends Say" back in 2007.  We had a chance to check in with Luke at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena to hear all about some exciting career news.  

Tyler Farr hit the big time with his first full length studio album "Redneck Crazy" last summer, which included the now-number one hit of the same name.  We had a chance to catch up with Tyler to celebrate his very first number one along with writers Mark Irwin, Josh Kear, and Chirs Tompkins at a party at ASCAP. 

We kick off another Inside Music Row with the mention of Jake Owen as he is gearing up for his return to the road with his 'Day Of Gold" headlining tour.  Look for Parmalee, Thomas Rhett, and The Cadillac Three to join him when the new tour kicks off March 20th in South Dakota.  Cole Swindell is up next as he is riding the success of his gold single "Chillin' It."  Cole is on tour for the second time with Luke Bryan on the "That's My Kind of Night" tour.  Missy Robertson of Duck Dynasty is mentioned next as she recently launched her new "Missy Robertson by Southern Fashion House" clothing line.  Finally, we go Inside The Song with Brett Eldredge to hear all about his new single "Beat Of The Music."

Cruz Contreras certainly knows about life on the road.  After his first group dissolved, he hit the road again as a truck driver based in East Tennessee.  It didn't take him long to put the pieces together for his next venture, which is growing stronger every year.  With a voice compared to Randy Travis, Dan Tyminski, and even Ralph Stanley, he is leading The Black Lillies to national acclaim.  With their third studio album "Runaway Freeway Blues," they continue to leave home in Knoxville, Tennessee to play over 200 dates each year.  We had a chance to catch up with them on a swing through Nashville to hear what they're all about.

Georgia boy Billy Currington is enjoying his latest run of success.  Since he signed his first label deal with Mercury Records just over ten years ago, he's put out five studio albums, charted eleven top forty hits, and celebrated seven number ones.  We had achance to catch up with Billy and writers Ashley Gorley, Chris DeStefano, and Rhett Akins to celebrate the success of his latest number one "Hey Girl."

Rascal Flatts is one of country music's most popular groups ever, and in the last thirteen years, they've certainly been one of the most successful.  We had a chance to preview new music from their upcoming album, including the new single "Rewind," plus we got the scoop on their plans for early this year, including their first radio tour since their "Praying For Daylight" days.

We kick off another Inside Music Row with the metion of Zac Brown Band and Jake Owen as they will both be part of a four-day pre-Super Bowl event on a cruise ship docked in the Hudson River.  Florida Georgia Line is up next as they continue to "Curise" to new heights with the number one best-selling digital country single of all time.  Look for Brian and Tyler out on the road with Jason Aldean's "Night Train Tour" before their own "Here's To The Good Times" Tour gets started.  Taylor Swift is also in the news as she was at the top of DoSomething.org's list of "Top 20 Celebs Gone Good" for the second consecutive year.  Finally, we go Inside The Song with Krystal Keith to hear about her song "Daddy Dance With Me."

Kellie Pickler was surprised at her record label with a very special delivery.  She and her husband Kyle Jacobs received their very own barrel of Old Number Seven from Master Distiller Jeff Arnett of Lynchburg, Tennessee.  Kelly Lynn headed out to learn how they hooked up with Jack Daniels for their 47 cases of Tennessee whiskey.

In our last segment, we featured the celebration for “Round Here” from Florida Georgia Line.  This was a huge day for one of the writers of that song, Thomas Rhett, as he also was able to celebrate his very first number one as an artist.  Here is more with Thomas and writers Ben Hayslip, Jimmy Robbins, and his dad Rhett Akins.

Here at Inside Music Row, we always try to get into the music, and celebrate with artists and writers when songs do well.  We hit up a very special double number one party, where Thomas Rhett was the artist on one, and a writer on the other.  The first hit to celebrate that day was “Round Here” from Florida Georgia Line.  Thomas Rhett joined Rodney Clawson and Chris Tompkins on the writing session that produced that hit, so we headed out to the big celebration to find out more about that song.