Dierks Bentley

Dierks Bentley gave a couple of hundred guests a taste of Nashville that they haven’t seen as he played host to friends, label executives, media and country radio programmers in town for the CMA Awards at his majestic property just south of Music City on Tuesday night.

Guests were loaded in pickup trucks and taken up to a high spot on his land, otherwise known as “The Ridge,” and as they walked towards the blazing bonfire surrounded by bales of hay, each person was given a bundle with gloves and a Dierks’ ski hat to keep them warm, while they enjoyed the music of Station Inn staples, the Nashville Brigade bluegrass band. Adult beverages were served in Mason jars, while the buffet featured down home grub — pork barbecue, ribs, chicken, corn muffins and apple pie. There was also a hot chocolate stand, complete with jumbo marshmallows, Hershey’s chocolate bars and graham crackers, so invited guests could make s’mores. Vintage lanterns, cars and gas station pumps lined the party, giving it a truly laid-back and comfortable atmosphere.

Among the faces huddled around the bonfire was pal Jack Ingram, who has been in town writing songs.
Dierks got on stage to welcome everyone to his place, which he explained he bought piece-by-piece after several of his songs hit the charts. “I have no agenda here, except to give a sincere thanks to radio for playing my songs,” he said, also thanking guests for embracing his bluegrass-influenced album, ‘Up on the Ridge.’

Later in the evening, the Arizona native climbed on stage for a second time to perform a pair of songs from his CMA-nominated Album of the Year.

As his invited guests left the party to head back down to their cars and shuttle buses, they were given parting gifts — vintage lunchboxes containing bottle openers and goodies to get them through the rest of the busy CMA week.

Dierks was up bright and early Wednesday morning, performing on ABC’s ‘Good Morning America.’ He’ll also sing on the 44th annual CMA Awards tonight, where he’s up for three trophies: Album, Male Vocalist and Music Event of the Year.

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Dierks Bentley

Dierks Bentley gave a couple of hundred guests a taste of Nashville that they haven’t seen as he played host to friends, label executives, media and country radio programmers in town for the CMA Awards at his majestic property just south of Music City on Tuesday night.

Guests were loaded in pickup trucks and taken up to a high spot on his land, otherwise known as “The Ridge,” and as they walked towards the blazing bonfire surrounded by bales of hay, each person was given a bundle with gloves and a Dierks’ ski hat to keep them warm, while they enjoyed the music of Station Inn staples, the Nashville Brigade bluegrass band. Adult beverages were served in Mason jars, while the buffet featured down home grub — pork barbecue, ribs, chicken, corn muffins and apple pie. There was also a hot chocolate stand, complete with jumbo marshmallows, Hershey’s chocolate bars and graham crackers, so invited guests could make s’mores. Vintage lanterns, cars and gas station pumps lined the party, giving it a truly laid-back and comfortable atmosphere.

Among the faces huddled around the bonfire was pal Jack Ingram, who has been in town writing songs.
Dierks got on stage to welcome everyone to his place, which he explained he bought piece-by-piece after several of his songs hit the charts. “I have no agenda here, except to give a sincere thanks to radio for playing my songs,” he said, also thanking guests for embracing his bluegrass-influenced album, ‘Up on the Ridge.’

Later in the evening, the Arizona native climbed on stage for a second time to perform a pair of songs from his CMA-nominated Album of the Year.

As his invited guests left the party to head back down to their cars and shuttle buses, they were given parting gifts — vintage lunchboxes containing bottle openers and goodies to get them through the rest of the busy CMA week.

Dierks was up bright and early Wednesday morning, performing on ABC’s ‘Good Morning America.’ He’ll also sing on the 44th annual CMA Awards tonight, where he’s up for three trophies: Album, Male Vocalist and Music Event of the Year.

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Blake Shelton

Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, Trace Adkins and Mac McAnally are among the early winners at the 44th annual CMA Awards in three categories announced prior to Wednesday's (Nov. 10) telecast on ABC.

Lambert and director Trey Fanjoy shared the video of the year win for "The House That Built Me." Lambert was still on the red carpet outside Nashville's Bridgestone Arena when the award was announced. Fanjoy said, "I swear to God, I'm going to cry tonight. I'm so excited. ... She's such a wonderful artist, and she's so deserving. Tonight Miranda made country music history, and I'm proud to be her friend and a woman in country music." Lambert is nominated for nine awards -- the most ever for a female artist at the CMA Awards.

Shelton and Adkins shared the honor in the musical event category for "Hillbilly Bone." Commenting on his first CMA win, Shelton said, "Thank you, fans! Yeah! That's how I like to start the night right there. I can relax and get drunk now! ... If Trace were here -- and he's not -- I'm sure he would have said something like, "You better be glad we won this, or I would have whipped somebody's ass."

Guitarist Mac McAnally, known for his work with Kenny Chesney and Jimmy Buffett, accepted his third consecutive musician of the year award.

"The guys I got nominated with are all better than me, but if this means I get to keep picking with them, then I'm the luckiest guy in the room," he said.

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Zac Brown Band

Just prior to taking the stage with Alan Jackson to perform their hit, 'As She's Walking Away,' the Zac Brown Band were honored with the CMA Award for Best New Artist. It's an award the Georgia natives ought to be used to winning, having taken the Grammy in the same category (against a field of pop and rock acts) earlier this year.

"Thanks so much to all the fans," Zac Brown said from the stage. "To all our team, to all our wives, especially, that believe in us and that we come home to, and everybody here that's given us a shot. It's an honor to live on a legacy, getting to do what we love to do and try to be the best musicians that we can possibly be."

While some artists could let such winning ways go to their heads, Zac assures the group's fans they're doing their best to stay well-grounded.

"We love our fans and are very connected with our fans," Zac Brown told The Boot, earlier this year, while lamenting that the band's schedule hasn't given him the chance to spend as much extra time with fans as he'd like. "I just hope everybody stays with us. We are not trying to be snobs or jerks. We are in a whirlwind trying to figure out the best way to be accessible. [People think] we have changed. We haven't."

The Zac Brown Band also received a nomination for Entertainer of the Year.

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Kenny Chesney

Kenny Chesney and the Zac Brown Band will play nine stadium concerts together in 2011 as part of Chesney's Goin' Coastal tour. The announcement was made Thursday (Nov.4).

Billy Currington will perform at all nine shows. Uncle Kracker, who sang with Chesney on the No. 1 hit "When The Sun Goes Down," will open the shows, except for an Aug. 27 date near Boston.

Tickets for the stadium shows go on sale starting Nov. 20. Additional arena and amphitheater dates will be announced later. Tour organizers say it will be Chesney's most extensive tour since 2006.

Tickets will be available at Chesney's official website. Presale tickets will be made available to members of his fan club before the on-sale dates for the general public. The concert dates, cities, venues and public sale dates are:

March 19: Tampa, Fla. Raymond James Stadium (on sale Dec. 11)
April 16: Dallas, Cowboys Stadium (on sale Dec. 4)
June 4: Washington, FedEx Field (on sale Dec. 3)
June 11: Green Bay, Wis., Lambeau Field (on sale Dec. 11)
June 18: Philadelphia, Lincoln Financial Field (on sale Nov. 20)
July 2: Pittsburgh Heinz Field (on sale Dec. 4)
July 30: Kansas City, Arrowhead Stadium (on sale Dec. 4)
Aug. 20: Detroit (venue and on-sale date TBA)
Aug 27: Foxboro, Mass., Gillette Stadium (on sale Nov. 20)

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