Kelsea Ballerini injects some female energy into the top country albums chart this week with her newest release, Subject To Change. The album, released via Black River, comes in at No. 3 with 19K in total consumption (9.6K album only/12 million song streams).

Elsewhere on the albums chart, Morgan Wallen remains in the top spot with Dangerous: The Double Album notching 46K in total consumption (1.4K album only/57 million song streams). Zach Bryan‘s American Heartbreak comes in at No. 2, adding 25K. Luke Combs‘ Growin’ Up takes fourth with 17K, and Kane Brown‘s Different Man seals the top five with 17K.

On the top country streaming songs chart, all remains the same. Bryan’s “Something In The Orange” takes the top spot for a second week with 12 million streams. Wallen’s “You Proof” remains in No. 2 with 11 million streams and his “Wasted On You” claims fifth with 7.8 million streams. Combs’ “The Kind Of Love We Make” keeps the third spot with 10 million, and Bailey Zimmerman‘s “Rock And A Hard Place” takes fourth with 9.5 million streams.

Western Edge Exhibit At CMHOF Opens With All-Star Country-Rock Concert

Pictured (L-R, back row): CMHOFM’s Michael Gray, Alison brown, Jimmie Fadden, Vince Gill, Jeff Hanna, Randy Lewis, Sean Watkins, Rob Ickes, James Intveld, Mark Fain, Jesse Furay Lynch, Al Perkins, Kai Clark, Chris Hillman, Herb Pedersen, CMHOFM’s Abi Tapia; (L-R, front row): Sara Watkins, Rosie Flores, Denny Sarokin, Steve Duncan, JayDee Maness, Rodney Dillard, John McEuen, Richie Furay, Wendy Moten, John Jorgenson. Photo: Terry Wyatt/Getty Images for Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum celebrated the opening of its newest exhibit, Western Edge: The Roots and Reverberations of Los Angeles Country-Rock, presented by City National Bank, with a special concert.

An all-star lineup performed in the museum’s CMA Theater, including torchbearers who have been influenced by the sounds and artists from the L.A. music scene, including Alison Brown, Jimmie Fadden, Rosie Flores, Country Music Hall of Fame member Vince Gill, Jeff Hanna, Chris Hillman, John McEuen, Wendy Moten, Herb Pedersen, Al Perkins, and more.

The Western Edge exhibit, which is now open for a nearly three-year run, traces the L.A.-based communities of visionary singers, songwriters and musicians who, between the 1960s-1980s frequented local nightclubs, embraced country music, and created and shaped the musical fusion of “country-rock.”

CMA Hosts First-Ever Industry Event In New Zealand With Kane Brown

Pictured (L-R): Garrett Nichols (Restless Road), Colton Pack (Restless Road), Kane Brown, Milly Olykan (CMA Vice President, International Relations and Development), Zach Beeken (Restless Road), and manager Martha Earls (Owner, Neon Coast). Photo: Oli Spencer

CMA hosted its first-ever industry event in New Zealand with Kane Brown for label executives, media, local artists and influencers. CMA partnered with Sony Music New Zealand and Frontier Touring for a pre-show reception leading into his show at Spark Arena in Auckland on Sept. 25.

Brown’s international tour included sold-out headlining dates in Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland and CMC. While in Australia, Brown was recognized by Sony Australia for over 285 million streams in the country, as well his 6x Platinum single “One Thing Right,” 3x Platinum single “Heaven,” and 2x Platinum singles “What Ifs” and “Be Like That.”

“At CMA, our mission is to expand the country music genre globally, and this opportunity was the first step in building and fostering a country music industry community in New Zealand,” says Milly Olykan, Vice President, International Relations and Development. “Kane is the first country artist to perform an arena show in New Zealand Aotearoa in six years, so we wanted to capitalize on that moment to begin developing the relationships that will help us build the genre. Kane Brown and Restless Road were incredibly well received, and it was exciting to see the potential of the market.”

Drew Baldridge Celebrates Country Born Project At Sony Music Publishing Event

Pictured (L-R): Mason Hunter (BMI), Rusty Gaston (Sony Music Publishing), Drew Baldridge, Jennifer Johnson (Riser House), Leslie Roberts (BMI), Laurel Kittleson-Cobb (Rainier Entertainment)

Drew Baldridge celebrated the release of his sophomore album Country Born on Friday (Sept. 30) at a gathering with industry, friends, and family at Sony Music Publishing. The project was released via Patoka Records in partnership with Riser House.

Justin Champagne & Snoop Dogg Team For ‘If She Ain’t Country’ Remix

Justin Champagne has released a new remix for “If She Ain’t Country” featuring Snoop Dogg. Snoop is also featured in the music video, which was directed by Ed Pryor and shot at Snoop’s compound in California.

“I’m amped to have this song out with Snoop Dogg,” exclaims Champagne. “He’s such a cultural icon and it’s such an honor to have him remix one of my songs.”

Reba McEntire is extending her “Reba: Live In Concert” tour after multiple sell-outs on the upcoming fall dates.

The superstar has announced 14 additional dates for spring of 2023 featuring special guests Terri Clark and The Isaacs. The spring run will kick off March 9 in Jacksonville and run through April 15, wrapping at NYC’s Madison Square Garden, marking the first time McEntire has played the iconic venue. She’ll also visit Milwaukee, Reno, Salt Lake City, LA and more during the spring leg.

“I am very grateful we’re continuing this tour on into 2023,” McEntire shares. “I’ve had so much fun being back out on the road and doing what I love to do most, entertaining people. And now getting to headline places like Madison Square Garden and bring my buddies Terri Clark and The Isaacs with me? Well, that’s just the extra icing on an already triple-layered, stuffed and filled, iced and frosted cake!”

Tickets go on sale Friday, Oct. 7 with a special fan presale starting tomorrow (Oct. 4) by joining McEntire’s email list. The presale code will be emailed out on Tuesday morning prior to the presale.

The fall leg of “Reba: Live In Concert” is set to kick off Oct. 13 in Lafayette, Louisiana.

“Reba: Live in Concert” 2023 Tour Dates:
March 9 – Jacksonville, FL – VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena
March 10 – Columbia, SC – Colonial Life Arena
March 11 – Charlottesville, VA – John Paul Jones Arena
March 17 – Milwaukee, WI – Fiserv Forum
March 18 – Moline, IL – Vibrant Arena at the Mark
March 23 – Reno, NV – Reno Events Center
March 24 – Nampa, ID – Ford Idaho Center**
March 25 – Salt Lake City, UT – Vivint Arena
March 30 – Phoenix, AZ – Footprint Center
March 31 – Palm Desert, CA – Acrisure Arena
April 1 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl
April 13 – Manchester, NH – SNHU Arena
April 14 – Hershey, PA – GIANT Center
April 15 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
** On sale Friday, October 14 at 10am local time

Zach Williams. Photo: Courtesy of PFA Media

Multi-Platinum artist Zach Williams‘ trip to stardom has taken him, both mentally and physically, down many roads. Though those roads were bumpy at times, Williams is not afraid to travel back down them and reflect on what has led him to where he is today. Fans in tow, he does just that through the tracks on his latest album A Hundred Highways, out today (Sept. 30) via Provident Label Group.

The Arkansas native grew up listening to all types of music. His grandfather introduced him to country greats Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, George Jones and more. In college, he developed a love for the blues as well as rock bands such as The Allman Brothers Band and The Black Crowes, and began playing guitar. But the soundtrack of his earliest memories centers around the Christian genre. The son of a worship leader, church was a big part of Williams’ upbringing. As a result, he was exposed to groups such as Petra and The Imperials in addition to artists such as Rich Mullins, Keith Green and more at a young age.

As Williams got older, he started to drift away from his faith.

“I can’t really put my finger on why I did,” says Williams. “When you turn a certain age, you start thinking you know more than everybody else. You go out [into the world] and try to figure [life] out for yourself.”

He became the front man for an up-and-coming rock band and fully immersed himself in the music world. Along the way, Williams found himself spinning in the vicious vortex of addiction.

“For 15 years, I was running from everything I grew up knowing. But that seed [of faith] had been planted in me at such an early age, and it was still there. My amazing family was always there to guide me through the process. I think that’s what brought me back,” he shares.

Williams then made the decision to change his ways, and left his music career in the rearview mirror. He became heavily involved in the church and following in his father’s footsteps, became a worship leader.

The two-time Grammy winner wrote “Love is a Battleground,” featured on the 15-track album, for his wife Crystal. Throughout the song, he describes how thankful he is that she never gave up and stood by him during the hardest parts of his journey.

The title of the album comes from the track “Looking For You,” one of Williams’ favorite songs and the most personal one on A Hundred Highways.

“[“Looking For You”] sums up the whole record because I think about the places I’ve been in my life, all of the dead end streets and dark highways, and I realized that I tried to fill a hole within me with everything else that the world had to offer. There’s a saying ‘The first place you find something is always the last place you look.’ In the last place I looked, I found Jesus. It wasn’t until then that I realized that I had been searching for him this whole time.”

Performing music still tinted the windows of his life as he sang with the congregation while leading services.

In December of 2014, Williams led the church Christmas service, and music producer and songwriter Jonathan Smith, who was his wife’s family for the holidays, happened to fill a pew. Moved by Williams’ vocals, Smith invited him to Music City. They began to write together and Williams’ eventually signed a deal with Provident Label Group.

Over the past 3 years, Smith and Williams have worked to bring A Hundred Highways to life. Not worried about what genre the collection of songs embodied or whether a track would hit No. 1 or not, they told Williams’ story.

A blend of country, rock, Christian and more, Williams defines the genre of this new album as simply, “Zach Williams.”

He states, “I want this record to be a reflection of the journey of how I’ve gotten to where I am. I want people to listen to these songs and know that they are loved.”

Williams’ new album A Hundred Highways is available everywhere now.

Trisha Yearwood will flip the switch on the Opry’s signature barn backdrop on Oct. 14, turning it pink for “Opry Goes Pink” to support the fight against breast cancer.

“We all have friends and family members who are battling, have won, and those who have lost their fights against breast cancer,” Yearwood notes. “Everyone who knows me knows how important this cause is to me, in particular prevention, yearly screenings, early detection, and research for effective treatments and cures. I’m honored to flip the switch and join the Grand Ole Opry in spreading information and love during Breast Cancer Awareness month.”

Other artists slated to perform that evening include Opry members The Oak Ridge Boys and Mandy Barnett, as well as Easton Corbin and Miko Marks, who will make her Opry debut.

Beginning Friday (Sept. 30) when fans order tickets, $5 from every ticket sold will be donated to Susan G. Komen for the fight against breast cancer. Tickets are available at opry.com and at (800) SEE-OPRY.

Next week, the Opry will celebrate its 97th birthday with six nights of shows, hosting its traditional Tuesday, Friday and Saturday night shows, as well as Thursday night’s Opry Country Classics. The special birthday week shows will include Wednesday and Sunday night programs.. Additionally, a special “Opry Loves The ’90s” Studio A live fan event featuring Deana Carter is scheduled for Oct. 8.

Among those scheduled for appearances on birthday week shows are Opry NextStage artist Breland,  Chapel Hart and Jon Pardi, plus Opry members Bill Anderson, Terri Clark, Vince Gill, The Isaacs, Jamey Johnson, Craig Morgan, Carly Pearce, Ricky Skaggs, Steve Wariner, Chris Young and more.

Fans are also invited to the Opry Plaza for free music celebrating the Opry’s birthday on Friday evening, Oct. 7, and all day Saturday, Oct. 8.