Top 10 country songs of 2021? Top 10 country albums? Of course it's subjective and if you think your favorite artist has been intentionally slighted, you may be right. Artists To Watch lists are also popular this time of year and to understand how to interpret them there’s some things you need to know about the motives of the people writing them. And there’s some things to look for to pick apart the good ones from the bad ones.

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Tweet: Find me @BillyDukes

Dolly Parton appears fearless, but Emily Lordi knows that’s not true. Throughout her immersive profile, Lordi unpacks the country legend’s loyalties, tendencies and secret influences in a way that’s informative, personal and artistic. You can find The Grit and Glory of Dolly Parton on the cover of T Magazine, the New York Times Style Magazine, and it’s also available online. But I invited Emily to the podcast to talk about the process and experience of sitting across from the country queen knowing full well that she’s been asked just about everything during her dynamic 50-plus year career.

Read: The Grit and Glory of Dolly Parton

Read: Find The Meaning of Soul: Black Music and Resilience Since the 1960s  on Amazon

Tweet: Emily J. Lordi on Twitter

Charley Pride died after catching the coronavirus and people want to blame the CMA Awards. Is that fair and what questions should we be asking about Pride's life, death and this pandemic? Also, at 12:50 Andrea Williams updates something she said last week on the podcast about Darius Rucker's role (and by extension any modern Black country music hitmaker) in advancing equality in country music.

Read: Andrea Williams' article in Vulture: Charley Pride Deserved Better Than What Country Music Could Ever Give Him.

Read: Marcus Dowling's story in the Boot: 'Kiss An Angel Good Mornin'': The Life, Times and Music That Made Charley Prides' Greatest Hit.

On Twitter: Andrea Williams’ Updated Tweets About Darius Rucker. 

In radio, there’s this concept known as planned spontaneity and my guest today knows a thing or two about it. Kalie Shore has had her fair share of unplanned spontaneity, and frankly a lot of it has been tragic. But she’s also figured out how to use tragedy and drama as tools to carve out a fascinating lane for herself as a singer, songwriter, influencer and now host of the Too Much To Say podcast. 

2:15 | How the podcast came together 
7:30 | Kalie Shorr's interviewing philosophy 
11:30 | How gad conversations can be good interviews 
22:00 | Is there still a chip on her shoulder?
26:50 | RIP Disney Country

Buy: Kalie Shorr's Open Book: Unabridged album at Amazon.
Follow: Kalie Shorr on Twitter, @KalieShorr

If you're on country Twitter, you've noticed Andrea Williams, a distinguished author and journalist, and the woman who has pledged to call out any person or institution that knowingly or unknowingly contributes to boxing out Black and Latino artists in country music. Andrea is loud and defiant and the kind of person you want on her side and — as Jason Isbell and Maren Morris found out — unafraid of calling out the woke liberal all stars.

Tweet: Find Andrea Williams on Twitter @AndreaWillWrite

Read: Find Andrea's book, Baseball's Leading Lady: Effa Manley and the Rise and Fall of the Negro Leagues on Amazon. 

Read: Why Haven't We Had a Black Woman Country Star? from the Nashville Scene

Read: Rolling Stone's article on the Black Country Music Association 

Listen: Priscilla Renea's website

CMA Country Christmas Ratings came out. And ratings in general are not something I enjoy talking about or even believe in, the level ratings for the 2020 CMA Country Christmas (and by extension dismal ratings for the CMA and ACM Awards) I do believe can tell us something about not only the show, but awards shows in general this year and next year. It's just uncomfortable watching something like looks like a super spreader event.

Source: CMA Country Christmas Ratings via Show Buzz Daily
Source: CMA Awards Ratings via Variety
Source: ACM Awards Ratings via Variety

Ironically, the pandemic may be to blame for Chase Rice's unsavory tweet in support of his new radio single.

Also this week, how to navigate Dolly Parton pandemonium if you're a journalist who's just interviewed Dolly Parton. Plus, why it's not fair to say the lack of Black and Latino artists is simply a numbers game.

Contest: The Eric Church ViewFinder I'm giving away. Tweet about the show with the #CMMP hashtag for a chance to win.

Read: Emily Lordi's, "The Grit and Glory of Dolly Parton" in the New York Times.

This week's show notes:

2:00 Morgan Wallen gets a second life 

7:59 Are Tyler, Brian and Florida Georgia Line being honest with us? 

11:20 Live Nation is doubling down on live country music, but I’m not buying it. 

16:40 Sara Evans has a real sad COVID-19 story. 

18:07 Taylor Swift’s high class drama is robbing her of country credibility. 

19:02 Dolly Fever and how to make sure your story gets seen. 

21:45 Here’s why Luke Combs was snubbed at the 2021 Grammy Awards 

25:30 The CMAs had all the time in the world to be inclusive but couldn’t get it right. 

34:36 How coronavirus left Chase Rice acting like a fool on Twitter

Country music is built on stories of humility, faith and redemption and this week’s guest has a good one. If you’ve ever taken a relationship for granted or if you’ve ever looked at the best thing that ever happened to you and thought “meh, what else is there?” you’ll relate to author Jerry Broadway. 

Maybe you know him best as just Broadway, part of the nationally syndicated Bud and Broadway radio show but before that in institution at radio stations across the southeast and Midwest in markets like Tulsa and St. Louis. He’s an ACM and CMA winner and a familiar face to famous country stars like Keith Urban and Brad Paisley. But today, Broadway is just Grayson’s dad. 

The book is called Amazing Grayson after his teenage son Grayson, who’ll get to know in just a second. But really it’s one man’s story of redemption and the family that stood by him through often fatal impulses, like infidelity, ego and selfishness. Throw in some testicular cancer, a special needs child and the fragile nature of jobs in this industry and you see why this combustible story could easily have been a tragedy. But it’s not, thanks to one person. Well, thanks to God and one person.

Note: Days after recording this interview, Oklahoma City radio station KXXY announced they were bringing the syndicated Bud and Broadway Show.

Read: Amazing Grayson on Amazon

Learn More: Bud and Broadway Show's Homepage

Contest: The Eric Church ViewFinder I'm giving away. Tweet about the show with the #CMMP hashtag for a chance to win. 

Artists like Priscilla Block, Andrew Jannakos and Elvie Shane are using TikTok to tilt the playing field to their advantage. Freelance journalist Tom Roland explains how and why it's working.

Is TikTok for real, or is the social media platform another flash in the pan that promises more wannabe country music stars than actual stars? Recently, Tom Roland wrote an article for the Billboard Country Update called TikTok’s Timely Rise In Country Music.

If you don't understand the platform, don't worry. If you're deep in a TikTok wormhole, you'll appreciate what Tom says about the path artists are taking and why it's legit.

Read: TikTok's Timely Rise In Country Music

Contest: The Eric Church ViewFinder I'm giving away. Tweet about the show with the #CMMP hashtag for a chance to win.

Bookmark: Roland Note, The Ultimate Country Music Database

Listen: Andrew Jannakos, "Gone Too Soon"
Listen: Elvie Shane, "My Boy"
Listen: Priscilla Block, "Just About Over You"
Listen: Priscilla Block, "Thick Thighs"

After years of talking to morning radio deejays, Kelleigh Bannen is one. She hosts the Kelleigh Bannen Show on Apple Music Radio and gets to talk to artists like Chris Stapleton, Cam, Luke Combs and more. It's been an adjustment, but she's no newbie and her approach to interviewing is to study, listen and learn before she talks. 

What’s it like interviewing friends? How hard will she push people she knows to tell stories they might need a little pushing to tell? How comfortable is she asking the hard questions that sometimes you have to ask?

We talk about her interview with Chris, one of the few he did leading up to the release of Starting Over.  We also talk about the art of interviewing and how she's trying to find that sweet spot between good conversation and good journalism. I'm a fan of Kelleigh's approach, as you'll hear. Check her out at the links below.

The Kelleigh Bannen Show, M-F at 7AM

Today's Country With Kelleigh Bannen, Fridays at 8AM

Follow Kelleigh on Twitter, @KelleighBannen

We talked about my reviews of her song "Famous" and "Sorry On the Rocks."

Find her other podcast, This Nashville Life.