Inside Music Row

We kick off another Inside Music Row with the mention of Brad Paisley - Brad and his wife Kimberly are taking the Volunteer spirit to Haiti.  They are helping financially, as well as personally visiting the area as volunteers.  Jason Aldean is also in the news as he recently made his film debut in "Sweetwater" alongside Ed Harris and January Jones, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival last month.  Easton Corbin is up next as his new single "All Over The Road" is already hit radio and is climbing up the charts.  We also mention Steve Martin as he plans to team up with Edie Brickell for a new album full of rootsy material that is a substantial departure for both artists.  "Love Has Come For You" will be released April 23rd on Rounder Recrods.  Finally, we go Inside the Song with Ben Hayslip as he talks about a song he co-wrote called "Honey Bee," which Blake Shelton took all the way to number one.

"Timeless Hits from the Past Bluegrassed" feature Russell Moore and Third Tyme Out playing classic country hits re-recorded in the band's traditional bluegrass style.  The new album features a few special guests, and is available now in Cracker Barrel stores everywhere.  With one listen to this album, you'll discover why they are one of bluegrass music's most decorated bands.  Kelly Lynn headed out to a Music City Roots show at the Loveless Barn to check them out.

Luke Laird has been a fixture in the Nashville songwriting community for years now, but that comes with having written nine number one hits for some of country music's biggest stars.  Now Luke and his wife Beth have created a new company called Creative Nation which is home to some of the top songwriters and producers in town.  We had a chance to check in with Luke to hear about his experience as a songwriter and why it's something he's very passionate about.

Randy Houser just released his third studio album, which is the first project he's done for his new label Stoney Creek Records.  We had a chance to catch up with Randy to talk about "How Country Feels."  There's lots of great music on this new project, about half of which Randy co-wrote.  Here's Kelly with more.

We kick off another Inside Music Row with the mention of Kellie Pickler - Kellie spent her Christmas vacation overseas performing for the troops on her sixth USO tour.  She visited countries in the Middle East in seven days, helping to make the holidays a little brighter for those stationed away from home.  Taylor Swift is up next as she will be on Tim McGraw's new album "Tow Lanes of Freedom."  Look for that new album on Tuesday February 5th. Also in the news is Darius Rucker - Darius has released "Wagon Wheel" to radio as his latest single and is getting fantastic response to it.  Also, Andy Griggs and Bobby Pinson has teamed up to write a song called "Twenty Little Angels," which is dedicated to the families in Newtown, CT.  One hundred percent of the song's proceeds wil go to those families through the Sandy Hook School Support Fund - check it out on iTunes.  Finally, we go Inside The Song with Andy Eutsler from Livewire to hear about their track "Livin," which also happens to be the name of their latest album.    

Craig Campbell has charted four consecutive singles and has had over a billion radio airplay audience impressions.  Yes...I said Billion.  He's now very excited about his new five-song EP "Outta My Head," and had quite a crowd at his release party here in Nashville.  We caught up with Craig out at Nashville nightspot 12th and Porter before he took the stage for friends, family, and music industry insiders.  Here's Kelly with more.  

As The Band Perry...Kimberly, Neil and Reid are taking the country music industry by storm, selling out venues all over the world, even including London's O2 arena.  We had a chance to check them out back here in the States on the set of their latest music video for "Better Dig Two."

Since "A Woman Like You" went all the way to number one as the lead single to Lee Brice's latest albu, he just had to follow it up with another big hit.  Fortunately..."Har To Love" delivered.  An amazing songwriter himself, Lee again picked a song written by others for his second single, but it's still a song you might think he would write himself.  Kelly Lynn caught up with Lee and the writers behind "Hard To Love" at a party at the Country Music Association to celebrate.

We kick off another Inside Music Row with the mention of Carrie Underwood - Carrie has been tapped to star in the role of Maria von Trapp in NBC's live broadcast of "The Sound Of Music."  The three-hour event is based on the original Broadway musical from 1959.  We also mention the CMA Songwriters Series as it is returning to the U.K. and Ireland next month - look for Kristian Bush, Brett James, Chris Young, and host Bob DiPiero.  Sarah Darling is also in the news as she will be featured on cartons of chocolate Single Decker MoonPies in support of the Home To Me Sweepstakes.  Look for the moonpies nationwide in many neighborhood grocery stores.  Up next is the new book from music industry veteran Dave Rose:  "Everything I Know About The Music Business I Learned From My Cousin Rick;  The Musician's Practical Guide to Success."  The book is geared towards musicians to help them navigate the twisting path of success in the music industry and is available through many online retailers, as well as at MyCousinRick.com.  Finally, we go Inside The Song with Kristy Lee Cook to hear about her latest single "Airborne Ranger Infantry."

Dale Dodson is known around town as an incredible songwriter, but he recently had the opportunity to produce a new album full of songs written by his late friend and co-writer Hank Cochran.  As Jamey Johnson became close with Hank through his last years, he learned that Dale was a natural fit to produce Jamey's latest album "Living For A Song:  A Tribute to Hank Cochran."  We had a chance to sit down with Dale to talk about that project.