In case you missed it...
Blake Shelton's run as the longest-tenured coach on "The Voice" is over. The OG coach had been there from the beginning, and put a bow on his epic run with last night's Season 23 finale. Prior to the show, Blake was hit up for an interview in which he explained that, while it's bound to be an emotional night, that fans shouldn't misunderstand. "If I cry in the finale, don't misunderstand it. It may be tears of joy." Blake went on to say that the twelve years spent on "The Voice" coincided with the most important part of his life. "What it did for my personal life, what it did for my career, new friends I've made, it's just been a once in a lifetime thing...I have a lot of friends (who told me) 'This will never happen again... very few times does a show become this big and you get to take this ride...and now looking back after twelve years I can see what they mean...it's like hitting the lottery.' See our "The Voice" recap here, and see the Blake interview below...
Morgan Wallen is on an historic tear. His "One Thing At A Time" album dropped March 3 - and four singles have been released from the 36-song double album. Three of them have hit #1 ("You Proof," "Thought You Should Know" and "Last Night") and the title track currently sits in the Top Ten. So, striking while the iron is white hot, a fifth Wallen single is set for release: "Everything I Love." The uptempo song features lyrical and musical call-backs to the Allman Brothers' classic "Midnight Rider" and is a perfect song to wrap up summer for his fans. Check out the song below...
One of the most iconic pieces of country music memorabilia has found its way home - to the Country Music Hall Of Fame. The banjo played by bluegrass legend Earl Scruggs for over 60 years was donated to the HoF earlier this week. The Gibson RB-Granada Mastertone banjo remained Scruggs' primary instrument until his passing in March 2012. Vince Gill, Country Music Hall of Fame member and president of the museum's board, opened the donation ceremony, thanking the Scruggs family for their generosity and offering his perspectives on the banjo and its donation. "It's so valuable to the history of music, and the history of Earl and his family," he said. Several performances celebrating Scruggs accompanied the ceremony:
- The Earls of Leicester, with "Salty Dog Blues" and "Rollin' In My Sweet Baby's Arms"
- Sierra Ferrell, with "Before I Met You"
- Alison Brown performed "Earl's Breakdown" on Scruggs' donated Gibson banjo. She was joined onstage by the Earls of Leicester in reuniting and playing four other original instruments used by Flatt & Scruggs, including Lester Flatt's Martin D-28 guitar from the museum's permanent collection.
The donation ceremony will be available to watch in its entirety on the museum's website later this week.