Brian O’Connell was recently honored with the Bob Kingsley Living Legend Award.

O’Connell serves as President of Country Music Touring and Festivals for Live Nation. Over his more than 30 year career, he has worked with artists including Toby Keith, Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert, Thomas Rhett, Morgan Wallen, Lainey Wilson and more. He developed the Country Megaticket, and has developed festivals including Watershed, Faster Horses, Route 91 Harvest, and Seven Peaks. His Live Nation Country Nation division acquired Tortuga in 2018.

He has been honored with the CMA Touring Lifetime Achievement Award, is a ten-time winner of the Academy of Country Music’s Promoter of the Year award, a six-time winner of the Country Music Association’s Talent Buyer/Promoter of the Year award and currently serves on the CMA Board of Directors. In 2013, O’Connell was named Promoter of the Year by IEBA. He earned the 2006 Bill Graham Promoter of the Year Award, as well as the 2013, 2014, and 2017 Talent Buyer of the Year Award. Faster Horses and Tortuga have both been named Festival of the Year by the Academy of Country Music.

O’Connell was given the honor last night (March 9) at a sold-out event at the Opry House supporting the Grand Ole Opry Trust Fund. Lauren Alaina, Dierks Bentley, Clint Black, Rascal Flatts, Tyler Hubbard, Tim McGraw, Darius Rucker and Keith Urban each performed at the event. Dan Rogers, Bob Roux, T.K. Kimbrell, Joey Lee, Rod Essig and Curt Motley served as speakers.

The Bob Kingsley Living Legend Award was established over ten years ago to recognize the distinguished career of the veteran country radio host. Past honorees include Joe Galante (2015), Jim Ed Norman (2016), Lorianne Crook & Charlie Chase (2017), Clarence Spalding (2018), Lon Helton (2019), Bart Herbison & Erika Wollam Nichols (2023), Sarah Trahern (2024), and Scott Borchetta (2025).

Country Radio Seminar has revealed the lineup for this year’s “Team MCA at the Ryman” luncheon. Performers set to take the stage include 49 Winchester, Kassi Ashton, Brothers Osborne, Dalton Davis, Carter Faith, Wyatt Flores, Vince Gill, Jacob Hackworth, Tyler Hubbard, Vincent Mason, Parker McCollum, Madden Metcalf, NEEDTOBREATHE, Jon Pardi, Keith Urban and Kenny Whitmire.

The show will take place on March 19 at the Ryman Auditorium. Doors will open at 11:30 a.m., with the show kicking off at 12 p.m. Lunch will be served in boxed form upon entry to the Ryman.

“This is an incredibly special year for us as it marks our first Ryman luncheon as MCA. The legacy of this event runs deep at CRS and within the country music community, and we are honored to carry that tradition forward. With such an extraordinary lineup of artists representing the strength and diversity of our roster, we’re excited to celebrate this new chapter as MCA while continuing to support and champion our partners at country radio,” says Damon Moberly, Senior Vice President, Promotion and Touring, MCA.

Online registration for CRS 2026 has closed. On-site registration will be available in Nashville for $799 through the start of the event.

Ingrid Andress will hit the road this May on the six-date “Low-Key Sessions.”

Kicking off May 8 in Newport, Kentucky, the trek will stop in Grand Rapids, Indianapolis, Omaha, Des Moines and Minneapolis.

“New music is on the way, and before the world hears it, I want to share these songs — and the stories behind them — in a way that feels truly up close and personal,” Andress shares. “The Low-Key Sessions will be just me, my piano and a guitar player in an intimate setting. I can’t wait to get back out there and share what I’ve been working on with the people who’ve always meant the most — my fans.”

Andress recently released her brand-new track, “Now I Know,” which she wrote alongside Derrick Southerland and Sam Ellis. Andress is slated to release more music later this year.

The Listening Room celebrated its 20th anniversary with a special show at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville last Tuesday (March 3), featuring performances by over 25 songwriters and artists and surprise guests.

Joining the venue’s Owner and Founder Chris Blair on the stage to celebrate the momentous occasion were Matt Jenkins, Rachel Thibodeau, Victoria Shaw, Jordan Feliz, Jordan Walker, Brian White, Chris DeStefano, Ashley Gorley, Blessing Offor, James Slater, Old Dominion, Jo Dee Messina, Brett Young, Boyz II Men, Lee Thomas Miller, Wendell Mobley, Brian Davis, Drew Baldridge, J.T. Harding, Phil Barton, Rob Williford, Liz Rose and Hardy.

The evening was full of special moments, including Baldridge bringing Blair to tears with an ask from the Grand Ole Opry for him to serve as a Guest Announcer on March 24. Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s Office also presented a proclamation officially declaring March 3, 2026, as “The Listening Room Day” in Music City.

The night featured stripped down performances from over two dozen songwriters and artists including an emotional memorial tribute to Brett James, Hardy debuting an unreleased song, a Young and Boyz II Men collaboration, Harding gifting his guitar to a young concertgoer from the stage, and a sing along finale.

“20 years ago, I had this crazy dream to build a place that I could come and play songs with my friends that actually paid songwriters for what they do. If you had told me that we would be standing right here in the mother church 20 years later, to a sold-out show, I would have told you that you were crazy, but here we are,” shares Blair, whose story has been profiled recently in MusicRow, Billboard, Nashville Scene, American Songwriter, Nashville Lifestyles, and more.

Located in Nashville’s historic International Harvester building at 618 4th Avenue South, The Listening Room hosts two main stage live shows a night throughout the week along with two Saturday shows. The iconic stage has hosted talent such as Vince Gill, Trisha Yearwood, Chris Stapleton, Garth Brooks, Lainey Wilson, and Hardy over the years.

Luke Combs and SiriusXM have launched Luke Combs Radio, an exclusive new pop-up channel celebrating Combs’ upcoming new album, The Way I Am and “My Kinda Saturday Night Tour.”

Available in cars on channel 79 until March 20, then on channel 57 March 20-27, Luke Combs Radio will also be available on the SiriusXM app March 7 until April 5. Curated and presented by Combs himself, the channel features the music that has personally shaped him, spanning country, rock and beyond. and also spotlights the music his parents shared with him growing up in North Carolina, taking listeners on a deep dive into his personal soundtrack of ’70s and ’80s classic rock and ’90s and 2000s country.

Fans can expect to hear artists like Billy Joel, Elton John, Alan Jackson, George Strait and many more that have left a lasting impact on the superstar, and the channel will also play all of Combs’ chart-topping hits, such as “Back in the Saddle,” “When It Rains It Pours,” “Beer Never Broke My Heart” and more, along with album cuts and one-of-a-kind collaborations with artists across genres that have punctuated his career over the past decade.

Combs recently made history as the first country artist with two songs earning a billion streams on Spotify, the first with four singles certified RIAA Diamond, and recently extended his record for the most consecutive No. 1 singles at country radio as he earned his 20th chart-topper with “Back in the Saddle.” His new album The Way I Am is due out March 20.