Video: Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert performing “Over You” in honor of Oklahoma tornado victims on “The Voice”
randa Lambert, right, and Blake Shelton accept the award for song of the year for “Over You” at the 48th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, April 7, 2013. (AP file)
Check out this touching video of Oklahoma country music superstar Blake Shelton and his wife Miranda Lambert delivering an emotional tribute to his tornado-ravaged home state to open tonight’s live episode of “The Voice.”
The country music power couple, who live in Tishomingo, performed a heartfelt acoustic rendition of Lambert’s emotional chart-topper “Over You.” The couple co-wrote the song about the death of Shelton’s brother, Richie, in a car accident. The song has earned song of the year honors from the Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association.
As previously reported, with less than a minute left in tonight’s live results show, “The Voice” Carson Daly revealed that Muskogee’s The Swon Brothers received enough public votes to advance to the Top 8 on the hit reality TV show.
The first duo to make it to “The Voice’s” live playoffs, Zach and Colton Swon are competing on Shelton’s Team Blake. Shelton is an Ada native.
-BAM
The Swon Brothers advance to the Top 8 on “The Voice”
With less than a minute left in tonight’s live results show, “The Voice” Carson Daly revealed that Muskogee’s The Swon Brothers received enough public votes to advance to the Top 8 on the hit reality TV show.
For Oklahoma music fans, it was a triumphant ending for a show that started with Oklahoma country music superstar Blake Shelton, one of the show’s celebrity coaches, and his wife Miranda Lambert delivering an emotional tribute to his tornado-ravaged home state. Shelton is an Ada native.
To open tonight’s show, the country music power couple, who live in Tishomingo, performed a heartfelt acoustic rendition of Lambert’s emotional chart-topper “Over You.” The couple co-wrote the song about the death of Shelton’s brother, Richie, in a car accident. The song has earned song of the year honors from the Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association.
To see video of the performance, click here.
Throughout the one-hour show, urgings to donate to the tornado victims in Oklahoma flashed onscreen.
Zach and Colton Swon, who are competing on Shelton’s Team Blake, delivered an uptempo rendition of Randy Houser’s “How Country Feels” during Monday’s Top 10 live performance show.
But the brothers, who are the first duo to reach “The Voice’s” live playoffs, indicated Monday night that it was difficult to focus on the show because of the devastating news coming out of their home state, where a massive tornado had ravaged Moore just a few hours before.
“It’s hard to enjoy a night like this,” said Colton Swon.
“Our hearts are definitely going out to you, first and foremost,” Zach told viewers in their home state.
Tonight’s eliminated contestants were Kris Thomas of Team Shakira and Josiah Hawley of Team Usher.
Here is “The Voice” Top 8:
Team Blake: The Swon Brothers, Danielle Bradbury, Holly Tucker
Team Adam Levine: Judith Hill, Sarah Sims, Amber Carrington
Team Usher: Michelle Chamuel
Team Shakira: Sasha Allen
-BAM
UPDATED Video: Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert to perform “Over You” in honor of Oklahoma on “The Voice” tonight; Swon Brothers contending on tonight’s show
Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert (AP file)
UPDATED at 9:48 p.m. Tuesday: If you missed Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert’s performance on “The Voice,” click here to view it. – BAM
Oklahoma country music superstars Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert, who live in Tishomingo, will perform a special rendition of their emotional hit “Over You” in honor of Oklahomans affected by this week’s deadly tornadoes tonight on “The Voice.”
The hit reality TV show, on which Shelton serves as a celebrity coach, airs live at 8 tonight on NBC.
The Swon Brothers
“Blake and I will be performing an acoustic version of “Over You” tonite on @NBCTheVoice dedicated to Oklahoma. #PrayForOklahoma,” Lambert posted today on Twitter @mirandalambert.
Lambert and Shelton co-wrote her emotional chart-topper about the death of his brother, Richie, in a car accident. The song has earned song of the year honors from the Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association.
On Twitter Monday night, Lambert urged her followers to “Pray. That’s all we an do. Pray for peace for Oklahoma.”
Also on tonight’s live episode of “The Voice,” Muskogee’s The Swon Brothers, as well as other contenders on “The Voice” Season 4 Top 10, will learn if they received enough votes to continue on in the competition.
Zach and Colton Swon, the first duo to reach the reality show’s live playoffs, gave an uptempo rendition of Randy Houser’s “How Country Feels” during Monday’s live performance show.
But they indicated that it was difficult to focus on the show because of the devastating news coming out of their home state.
“It’s hard to enjoy a night like this,” said Colton Swon.
“Our hearts are definitely going out to you, first and foremost,” Zach added.
Here is the video of Monday night’s episode, which was preempted in the Oklahoma City area due to storm coverage. The Swon Brothers’ segment starts at approximately 25:00:
-BAM
Thompson Square to debut new single tonight on “Tonight Show,” playing Thursday at Cain’s Ballroom with ticket sales benefiting tornado relief
Thompson Square (AP file)
Country duo Thompson Square, which consists of Miami, OK, native Keifer Thompson and his wife Shawna, will debut its new single, “Everything I Shouldn’t Be Thinking About,” tonight on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.” The show airs at 10:35 p.m. weekdays on NBC.
In addition, the reigning Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association Vocal Duo of the Year will play at 8:15 p.m. Thursday at Cain’s Ballroom, 423 N Main in Tulsa. Doors will open at 7 p.m. Charlie Worsham will open the show.
The historic venue announced via Facebook today that Cain’s Ballroom, Ticketfly and Tulsa’s Dr. James Webb will each donate $1 per ticket sold to The Salvation Army’s Oklahoma Tornado Relief Fund. For tickets and information, go to www.cainsballroom.com.
Thompson Square will perform their new uptempo and light-heartedly clever song tonight on “The Tonight Show.” The New York Times describes “Everything I Shouldn’t Be Thinking About” as a “hint of domestic naughtiness.” It was co-written by Keifer Thompson, who celebrated his 14th wedding anniversary with wife and duo partner Shawna on May 15.
Oklahoma-bred Grammy Award winner Brett James and Grammy-nominated songwriter/artist David Lee Murphy also served a co-writers on the new single.
“Everything I Shouldn’t Be Thinking About” is the second single from the duo’s highly-anticipated sophomore album, “Just Feels Good,” which earned the duo its highest first week album sales yet. The lead single from the album – the No. 1 “If I Didn’t Have You” has earned more than 600,000 in sales to-date as well as a 2013 CMT Music Award nomination for Duo Video of the Year.
“Everything I Shouldn’t Be Thinking About” officially impacts country radio on June 10 and is available at iTunes now.
The Stoney Creek Records’ chart-topping duo is no stranger to “The Tonight Show” stage. Thompson Square made its national television debut on the program in 2011, performing its No. 1 smash, “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not” which has since gone on to sell more than 2 million singles.
On June 4, Thompson Square will release its first fiction novel on Howard Books (a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.). Titled “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not,” the book was co-written alongside Travis Thrasher. It’s a dramatization inspired by Thompson Square’s chart-topping song.
On Sunday night, Thompson Square dropped by the season finale of NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice All-Stars” in support of fellow country star Trace Adkins as he competed in (and won) the series’ final task. Keifer and Shawna Thompson hand-delivered donations on behalf of themselves as well as Benny Brown and the Broken Bow Music Group, the Academy of Country Music and California Customs in order to support Adkins and his charity, the American Red Cross.
In addition, Thompson Square successfully defended its ACM Vocal Duo of the Year crown when the husband/wife team took home the award for the second consecutive year last month in Las Vegas. The duo’s second ACM win in a row cemented Thompson Square’s status as a force to be reckoned with in the Country music industry.
Country music’s biggest breakout act of the last two years, the duo pounded the pavement for 15 years in the music industry before landing a record deal with Benny Brown’s small independent label Stoney Creek Records (sister label to indie Broken Bow Records and home to Jason Aldean). Since that day, Thompson Square has earned more than 25 awards show nominations – including two Grammy as well as American Music Award and Teen Choice Award nods – and made music history when it was awarded awards from both the ACM and CMA for Vocal Duo of the Year in 2012. Thompson Square was awarded its second consecutive ACM Award for Vocal Duo of the Year in April 2013.
Thompson Square’s breakthrough hit “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not” has surpassed 2 million in sales, was the No. 1 Digital Soundscan Single for five weeks straight, the No. 1 country ringtone for 12 consecutive weeks and was iTunes 2011 Country Song of the Year. Thompson Square’s whirlwind 2011-12 saw them on national tours supporting Jason Aldean and Lady Antebellum as well as gracing the stages of “The Tonight Show,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “CBS This Morning,” “Conan,” “Fox & Friends,” “FOX’s All American Concert Series,” the 45th Annual CMA Awards, CMT’s “Artists of the Year” special, NBC’s “The Better Show” special and the MTV/VH1/CMT “Best of 2012” concert celebration. Thompson Square ended 2011 as Billboard’s No. 1 New Country Artist in terms of digital sales and the No. 6 New Artist across all genres. Follow-up hits include the award winning infectious, “I Got You,” (No. 6) and the critically-lauded power ballad, “Glass” (No. 15). The duo’s latest smash, the No. 1 “If I Didn’t Have You,” marked Thompson Square’s highest first-week sales of its career and has surpassed half a million in sales.
The duo is currently touring with Luke Bryan on his “Dirt Road Diaries Tour” through October 2013. The tour will stop Sept. 14 at Tulsa’s BOK Center. For more information, go to www.bokcenter.com.
-BAM
Eskimo Joe’s hosting Wednesday night acoustic benefit for tornado relief
STILLWATER – Eskimo Joe’s regular Wednesday night acoustic music showcase will be transformed into a tornado relief show.
“We always have acoustic music on Wednesdays and it most commonly features local musicians, Oklahoma artists, and it is predominantly red dirt artists,” said Tim Holland, Eskimo Joe’s general manager.
“The people in this music scene, particularly the red dirt music scene, are just so incredibly gracious about donating their time and talent to things like this that it just made a lot of sense I think for those involved. And it makes a lot of sense for Joe’s because we just have a track record of hosting events like this and we have these relationships with these musicians.”
The free acoustic show is set for 8 p.m. Wednesday at the iconic Stillwater nightspot, 501 W Elm. The confirmed lineup includes previously scheduled performer Ryan Reid, along with the Red Dirt Rangers, Steve Rice of No Justice, Jake Moffat, Clint Osmus, Cale Lester, Jason Savory, Val Joe Gladden and Billy Berkenbile. Holland said he wouldn’t be surprised if more musicians join the lineup.
“Eskimo Joe’s is an iconic Oklahoma brand. We all live here, we volunteer here, we give back to Oklahoma and statewide causes, we operate businesses throughout our state. And we just felt compelled to try to do something,” Holland said.
He said Oklahoma Red Cross representatives will be on hand to collect monetary donations for the tornado relief efforts. Checks to the Red Cross should be earmarked to Oklahoma tornado relief.
Eskimo Joe’s and Eskimo Joe’s Clothes, along with Mexico Joe’s and Joseppi’s Italian Kitchen in Stillwater, are all accepting cash donations for the Red Cross through the end of the month. They will not accept donations of supplies or other items, he said.
Destructive tornadoes ripped through the Shawnee and Carney areas Sunday before an even more deadly and devastating twister tore through Moore Monday afternoon.
“It’s absolutely heartbreaking,” John Cooper, singer/mandolin player for the Red Dirt Rangers, said of the tornado damage.
Cooper, who also is president of the nonprofit Red Dirt Relief Fund’s board of directors, said he has heard of at least two other benefit shows that the state’s red dirt musicians are planning.
“Music is a powerful tool to unite people,” he said. “It’s good for the soul. And this is what we do as musicians. This is how we give back.”
For more information on Wednesday’s show, go to www.eskimojoes.com.
-BAM
Oklahoma City Thunder: Kevin Durant’s relief efforts
Kevin Durant on Tuesday donated $1 million to the Moore tornado relief fund. On Wednesday, Durant is taking a tour of some of the devastated areas, and I assume that means a walking tour. Durant will be out among the people.
I don’t know which is more beneficial. But both are fabulous gestures that will lift the spirits of Oklahomans. Hard to imagine anything that trumps such a relief effort when it comes to the importance of the Thunder being in OKC.
I walked through two damaged neighborhoods Tuesday and saw tons of people wearing Thunder T-shirts. Perhaps you’ve also seen the photo of the Durant jersey flying on a pole, next to the rubble of a destroyed house.
Fourteen years ago, when the May 3 tornadoes came through and destroyed big chunks of Bridge Creek, Moore, Del City, Mulhall and Stroud, there was no Oklahoma City Thunder. The NBA wasn’t even a gleam in our eye.
But now, the NBA is so ingrained in the community that Durant feels the call to donate major cash as well as make a humanitarian tour for the metro that cheers his basketball exploits. And that community will respond mightily to Durant. I don’t know why the spirits of a tired, depressed, beleaguered person can be lifted just by a basketball player walking past and shaking hands. But I know that it does in many instances.
The NBA has brought many benefits to Oklahoma City. Tourism. Status. A spot on the national stage. But Durant reaching out to his team’s city ranks at the top.
OKLAHOMA RESILIENCY
By Bryan Farha, Ed.D.
Licensed Professional Counselor
The crises that Oklahomans have had to endure over the past few decades are mounting—from natural disasters like tornados to terrorist attacks such as the bombing of the the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. I am certain that many from other states must wonder how we can sustain ourselves in light of such gargantuan tragedies. There seems to be something special about the way we adapt and cope with extreme obstacles. Oklahomans have developed a type of resiliency that is hard to measure—but easy to observe. When I first began witnessing how we responded to monumental challenges, I noticed there was an immediate reaction questioning how such a tragedy can happen to our community. Obviously, this response is expected, but we’ve come a long way in twenty years. Now the immediate reaction, in the face of our current tragedy of tornados, is much clearer, decisive, and measured. We get a plan of action to locate missing children and others—then we begin rebuilding. We know what we’re doing in this great state.
However, after so many crises, how can we possibly endure tragedy after tragedy? Isn’t the natural inclination to collapse emotionally and physically? To give up? First, Oklahomans have a lasting bond that is difficult to break. We’ve been overcoming for a long time and, unfortunately, we’ve been forced to excel at it. With each tragedy, the bond becomes stronger. Strangers will risk their lives for other strangers without even a fleeting hesitation. A neighbor will put their life at risk in an attempt to rescue someone else’s child. Another way we survive is by allowing our children to express emotions after a tragedy. This is essential for the well-being of young children. Some parents are tempted to simply lecture to their kids in an attempt to “explain” such crises. More often, we teach our children to freely express themselves and speak as much as they wish about the often unanswerable questions surrounding such perplexing events. This puts our children on the path to recovery—even if we have difficulty answering their questions. We are aware that the traumatic feelings will never go away, however, so we seek not to eliminate the possibility of reliving the awful feelings, but to minimize their intensity and frequency. We know that total closure is unrealistic. Next, we further anchor the connection with our existing support groups of family and friends. Oklahomans know that attempting to handle tragedy alone is not a healthy approach—so we seek our loved ones to help get us through. The more people in our support network, the better. Then we learn to say goodbye to those we have lost. Realizing that life is ultimately transitory, we do the best we can at finally letting go—as difficult as this may seem. This is the only way we can truly look to a purposeful future. Lastly, acceptance is the key to enduring. In the face of apparently meaningless events, we somehow find a way to gain meaning from tragic experiences. Oklahomans accept that we live in a vulnerable place geographically. Moreover, we know with such geography come some very hard times. The sum total of all this is resiliency.
I’ve lived in Oklahoma my entire life—and I will never move away from this great state. This is home—tragedies and all.
Preliminary EF5, damage survey, for May 20, 2013 Newcastle/Moore tornado, National Weather Service, Norman
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
250 PM CDT TUE MAY 21 2013
…NWS DAMAGE SURVEY FOR 5/20/2013 NEWCASTLE/MOORE TORNADO EVENT -
UPDATE 3…
…NWS DAMAGE SURVEY HAS NOW RATED THE NEWCASTLE/MOORE TORNADO AS EF5…
.OVERVIEW…
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DISPATCHED FOUR DAMAGE SURVEY TEAMS TO
THE PATH OF THE NEWCASTLE/MOORE OK TORNADO. NEW STATEMENTS WILL BE
ISSUED THROUGHOUT THE DAY AS THESE TEAMS REPORT FINDINGS. THIS
INFORMATION REMAINS PRELIMINARY AND THE INFORMATION HERE COULD
CHANGE.
.NEWCASTLE/MOORE TORNADO
RATING: EF5
ESTIMATED PEAK WIND: 200-210 MPH
PATH LENGTH /STATUTE/: 17 MILES
PATH WIDTH /MAXIMUM/: 1.3 MILES
FATALITIES: N/A
INJURIES: N/A
START DATE: MAY 20 2013
START TIME: 2:45 PM CDT
START LOCATION: 4.4 W NEWCASTLE /GRADY COUNTY /OK
START LAT/LON: 35.2580 / -97.6775
END DATE: MAY 20 2013
END TIME: 3:35 PM CDT
END LOCATION: 4.8 E OF MOORE OK /CLEVELAND COUNTY /OK
END LAT/LON: 35.3409 / -97.4007
SURVEY SUMMARY: EXPERTS SURVEYING IN MOORE HAVE DETERMINED DAMAGE IS
EF5 WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OVER 200 MPH. FOUR SURVEY TEAMS CONTINUE TO
INSPECT DAMAGE FROM THIS LONG TRACK TORNADO. INITIAL DAMAGE WAS
FOUND AROUND 4.4 MILES WEST OF NEWCASTLE…SOUTH OF TECUMSEH ROAD
ALSO KNOWN AS NW 16TH STREET AND EAST LAKE ROAD. THE TORNADO TRACKED
NE TO THE INTERSTATE 44 BRIDGE OVER THE CANADIAN RIVER AND THEN TOOK
A MORE EASTWARD TRACK THROUGH MOORE. TORNADO DAMAGE ABRUPTLY ENDS
0.3 MILES EAST OF AIR DEPOT ROAD AND N OF SE 134TH ST.
INITIALLY PRODUCING EF0 AND EF1 DAMAGE THE STORM INTENSIFIED VERY
RAPIDLY IN 4 MILES OR AROUND 10 MINUTES PRODUCING EF4 DAMAGE BEFORE
REACHING INTERSTATE 44. NUMEROUS INDICATIONS OF EF4 DAMAGE WITH SOME
AREAS NOW DETERMINED AT EF5 DAMAGE…THE HIGHEST CATEGORY ON THE EF
SCALE…WITH OVER 200 MPH WINDS.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION SUCH AS MAXIMUM PATH WIDTH WILL BE UPDATED
AS THE TEAMS COMPLETE THEIR SURVEYS.
Significant weather advisory, National Weather Service, Norman
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
250 PM CDT TUE MAY 21 2013
OKLAHOMA OK-LINCOLN OK-MCCLAIN OK-CLEVELAND OK-POTTAWATOMIE OK-
250 PM CDT TUE MAY 21 2013
…SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SOUTHERN OKLAHOMA…SOUTHWESTERN
LINCOLN…NORTHWEST CENTRAL MCCLAIN…NORTHERN CLEVELAND AND NORTHERN
POTTAWATOMIE COUNTIES UNTIL 315 PM CDT…
AT 242 PM CDT…RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE CONFINED TO FAR SOUTHEAST
OKLAHOMA. WINDS IN CENTRAL OKLAHOMA WERE FROM THE NORTHWEST AROUND
10 TO 15 MPH AND THESE WINDS SHOULD CONTINUE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON.
OVERCAST SKIES SHOULD GIVE WAY TO MORE SUNSHINE BY 4 OR 5 PM. RAIN
CHANCES WILL REMAIN VERY LOW THROUGH THE LATE AFTERNOON.
