Jack White of White Stripes to produce Oklahoma rockabilly star Wanda Jackson’s new album
Wanda Jackson performs in Bricktown earlier this year. (Photo by Jim Beckel/The Oklahoman Archives)
Jack White (Associated Press photo)
Wanda Jackson, the “Queen of Rockabilly” and “First Lady of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” was en route to Nashville, Tenn., on Friday to meet in a recording studio with alternative rock star Jack White.
The Oklahoman’s Entertainment Editor Gene Triplett spoke with Jackson by phone as she was waiting for a flight connection at Denver International Airport.
Jackson is set to record a new album with White as the producer. They first will record a single for digital release before completing an album.
“One of the biggest stars on the planet I guess right now,” she said of White during her phone interview with Gene.
A singer-songwriter, pianist, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist and producer, White is one-half of the garage rock revivalist duo The White Stripes, which he founded in 1997 with then-wife Meg White. He also leads two other alternative rock bands, the Raconteurs and the Dead Weather.
White produced country legend Loretta Lynn’s critically lauded 2004 album “Van Lear Rose.”
“They had a super album, but he didn’t have her do anything different, you know,” Jackson told Gene. “She just did her little Loretta Lynn songs. But he told me he’s gonna stretch me some, so we’ll see. We’ll talk later.”
Jackson may be 72, but this isn’t her first time to work with new-generation musical talents; she has previously worked with Dave Alvin, The Cramps, Rosie Flores, Lee Rocker, the Cadillac Angels and Elvis Costello.
A Maud native and Oklahoma City resident, Jackson was inducted earlier this year into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Her next OKC show will be at 8 p.m. Nov. 21 at 66 Bowl, 6810 NW 39, at a 50th anniversary celebration for the Route 66 landmark.
Click here to read the rest of Gene’s interesting scoop.
-BAM
“Twilight: New Moon” director Chris Weitz talks the sequel’s soundtrack
Tulsa-born singer/songwriter/musician St. Vincent (AKA Annie Clark) is featured on the soundtrack for “The Twilight Saga: New Moon.”
I recently traveled to Los Angeles to attend the huge press day for hotly anticipated sequel “The Twilight Saga: New Moon.”
Among the many questions director Chris Weitz fielded about the film, one was about the soundtrack, which features several indie-rock stars and up-and-comers.
“I owe a great deal to two things. One is the success of the first film and (’Twilight’ director) Catherine Hardwicke’s version, which made for a soundtrack that was so successful that suddenly anyone was conceivably within our reach. And the other person to thank is Alexandra Patsavas, our amazing music supervisor, who knows everything that’s out there. She was able to bring me kind of a basket of music that I could choose from with her,” Weitz (pictured left) said.
The “Twilight” soundtrack, which Patsavas also compiled, included songs from Collective Soul, Paramore, Mute Math, Linkin Park, Iron & Wine and the film franchise’s heartthrob, Robert Pattinson. Also contributing was “The Twilight Saga” author Stephenie Meyer’s favorite band, Muse.
The soundtrack to the first film debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart last year.
For the sequel soundtrack, Patsavas took a more indie approach, tapping artists such as Grizzy Bear, Death Cab for Cutie, Hurricane Bells and more. Tulsa-born singer/songwriter/musician St. Vincent collaborated with indie band Bon Iver for one song, and Muse, the only band to appear on both soundtracks, offered a remix of one of its new songs.
“My musical education is formed by my daily drive listening to KCRW’s ‘Morning Becomes Eclectic,’ so I am an indie guy, if anything. Mostly, I’m a square. But suddenly there were these incredible pickings on offer: Thom Yorke, The Killers,” Weitz said.
The soundtrack was originally set for release on Tuesday, Oct. 20, but it was moved up to Friday, Oct. 16. Summit Entertainment cited “overwhelming and unprecedented demand” for the change, though combating leaks was undoubtedly a factor, too. The soundtrack debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 albums chart and climbed to the top spot a week later, after selling 153,000 copies in its first full week of release.
“I genuinely think it’s one of the best soundtrack albums that’s ever been done. The reason I will make this outrageous claim is that it’s not music that was already completed. You know, you’re always dealing with a known quantity when you’re doing needle drops. It’s kind of easy to do that. But to be able to risk asking somebody to do a track and four weeks later or so a song comes back, to have it work as many times as it did was really extraordinary. And I think that if any one of those artists had done a track for our soundtrack, I would have been really proud. But to have all of them is absolutely extraordinary,” Weitz said.
Read my review of the “New Moon” soundtrack by clicking here.
“New Moon” opens in theaters one week from today, and I’ll be bringing you numerous stories, columns and newsflashes in the coming days. Stay tuned to BAM’s Blog.
-BAM
CD review: “The Twilight Saga: New Moon Soundtrack”
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
Rock
Original soundtrack “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” (Summit Entertainment/Chop Shop/Atlantic Records)
Music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas and director Chris Weitz gather a talented stable of indie-rock stars and up-and-comers to give the sequel “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” its sonic resonance.
All the rockers involved excel at making otherworldly music, which makes them ideal for punctuating the film’s vampire-human-werewolf love triangle.
Death Cab for Cutie opens the album with the moody urgency of “Meet Me on the Equinox,” the chart-topping soundtrack’s lead single, while Band of Skulls strut in with the hip-shaking guitar rocker “Friends.” Radiohead’s Thom Yorke builds a spooky tension with the electronic buzz of “Hearing Damage.”
Much of the “New Moon” is dedicated to the despair that consumes heroine Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) after her vampire boyfriend (Robert Pattinson) leaves her. So, much of the album is dominated by eerily mournful songs like Lykke Li’s “Possibility,” Anya Marina’s “Satellite Heart” and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s “Done All Wrong.” While undoubtedly fitting, repeated listens probably aren’t advisable unless you get a kick out of depression.
Tulsa native St. Vincent partners with Bon Iver for one of these haunting tracks, “Roslyn,” which is lovely but more a showcase for Justin Vernon and band than for the Oklahoma-born talent formerly known as Annie Clark.
Fortunately, the album isn’t all gloom, with Hurricane Bells rocking the fuzzy guitars on “Monsters,” OK Go pounding and strumming through “Shooting the Moon” and Grizzly Bear sparkling through the dreamlike “Slow Life.”
— BAM
Vienna Teng talks “mixtape mentality,” performing Sunday night at Oklahoma City’s Blue Door
Vienna Teng
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
Blue Door performer offers “mixtape mentality”
Vienna Teng favors bands and artists who possess a “mixtape mentality.”
The singer/songwriter/pianist’s preference for the eclectic approach is apparent on her fourth album, “Inland Territory.” Released in April, the record’s offerings range from the Depression-era jazz flair of “In Another Life” to the dark shuffle of the immigration tale “No Gringo” to the lively back-porch stomp of “Grandmother Song.”
“I really like albums that cover a lot of ground,” Teng said in an interview from the road in Northern California. “I generally get into those records a lot more than I do an album that has a really consistent feel and mood to it from beginning to end. … I really enjoy hearing artists and bands that just have a mixtape kind of mentality with their albums, and so I guess this was our mixtape album.”
On Sunday night, Teng and friend Alex Wong, who co-produced the album with her, will bring their diverse styles to the Blue Door. Wong not only is a fellow songwriter and singer, he also plays several interesting percussion instruments along with the guitar.
“We have a lot of fun with these duo shows because obviously we worked on the album together, and so it’s fun to take these songs that we’re both pretty intimately familiar with and reforming them for live performance,” she said.
On “Inland Territory,” Teng, 31, mixed chamber pop ballads, deeply personal musical reflections and rock-flavored political anthems. The 12 songs were so divergent she and Wong initially planned to release them as a series of three EPs.
“There are some songs that were recorded in an old house and they were supposed to form one EP, and that kind of was a little more acoustic and focused more on like personal and family stuff. And then there was another group of songs that wanted to be like sort of orchestral pop songs,” she said. “And then … surprisingly for me I was writing more politically aware stuff than I had before, and all of those were taking more of a rock perspective.”
But her label, Zoe/Rounder Records, worried the three-EP idea would be too confusing for fans, so the songs were tossed together in one full-length record.
“We ended up combining them into one album and just trusting the fact that it had been the same team of the two of us making all three of them that it would form this eclectic but coherent work,” she said.
Even amid the album’s diversity, the rollicking “Grandmother Song” grabs the attention with its personal lyrics and kitchen-utensil percussion. The first-generation Chinese-American songsmith based it on grandmother’s objections to her music career.
Teng started out as a premed student at Stanford University before deciding a career as a doctor wasn’t right for her. The California native had been playing piano and writing songs since childhood and began to consider music as a viable vocation. In the meantime, she got a computer programming degree and worked at Cisco Systems before pursuing music full time.
“It’s kind of like the friend that you date that you’re not in love with but, you know, he’s pretty cool and fun to hang out with. And you’re not going to get married to him, but for now it works. That was sort of my relationship with computer science,” she said with a laugh
Though the New Yorker embarked on her music career in 2002 and has since released four albums, performed on “The Late Show with David Letterman” and earned critical acclaim, her family still has misgivings about her calling. “Turning 30 and still trying to sing your songs/come on who do you think you are,” her elder asks in “Grandmother Song.”
“My family is remarkably reticent in general about my music,” she said. “I was pretty nervous about it (the song), but they actually have not said anything negative, which I will take as like they’ve given their blessing for it to go out in the world.”
Teng’s grandmother doesn’t speak much English, but a relative translated the song for her. Teng believes her elder stands by everything attributed to her.
“I went through this long period of rolling my eyes at the whole thing, and saying like ‘well, she doesn’t understand,’” she said. “I think it took me to get into my late 20s and early 30s and really feel secure enough in what I was doing to come around to listen to my parents and my grandparents and realize that there’s a way to honor what their priorities are without doing exactly what they want me to do,” she said.
“I have gotten a lot of great reaction from that song from audience members, actually, and it’s really fascinating to see how people respond to it when we play it live.”
In Concert
Vienna Teng and Alex Wong with Suzanna Choffel
When: 8 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Blue Door, 2805 N McKinley.
Information: 524-0738 or www.bluedoorokc.com.
-BAM
Darius Rucker follows CMA Awards win with parent-teacher conference, tonight’s Tulsa show
Darius Rucker accepts the best new artist of the year award at the 43rd Annual Country Music Awards Wednesday night in Nashville, Tenn. He will perform tonight at Tulsa’s Osage Million Dollar Elm Casino. (Associated Press photo)
Darius Rucker became the first black singer to win new artist of the year at Wednesday’s CMA Awards, joining Charley Pride as the only African-Americans to win major individual awards from the Country Music Association.
When I spoke with Rucker in a recent phone interview, he said his plans for after the CMA Awards would remain virtually the same regardless of whether he won or lost. He went into the show with two nominations; the male vocalist of the year trophy went to Brad Paisley.
“If I win, I’m gonna go out that night with my wife and some of our friends and go to a couple of parties and then I’m gonna get up and be on the 6 o’clock flight to go to my 14-year-old daughter’s school teacher’s conference she’s got. If I lose, I’m gonna go out with my wife and some friends and I’m gonna get up at 6 o’clock and go to my daughter’s teacher’s conference. Either way, I’ll be at that teacher’s conference,” he said.
The former Hootie & the Blowfish frontman told me he wasn’t sure until the nominations were announced that he could even compete in the best new artist category after his previous band’s 1990s success. And he didn’t think he would win anyway, saying he thought hot country act the Zac Brown Band had the new artist title all wrapped up.
Rucker, whose first country album, last year’s “Learn to Live,” has sold more than 1 million copies, took the CMA Awards stage Wednesday night to hearty cheers from the crowd and shouted, “What a year!”
“First of all, to the fans, thank y’all for accepting me,” he said. “And I think most importantly, to country radio, you took a chance on a pop singer from Charleston, S.C. Thank you so much for that!”
Rucker told me he is hard at work on his second country album, which he plans to release next year. He was hoping to start recording later this month or in December. When we spoke, he said he had just written a song a few days earlier with Paisley.
“We wrote a song that we’re going to do as a duet on my record that’s hilarious. That guy — hilarious. Too funny, really too funny. I mean, love hanging out with him,” Rucker said.
Rucker will perform at 7 tonight Osage Million Dollar Elm Casino in Tulsa. For more information, call (918) 699-7667 or go to www.milliondollarelm.com/event-center.
-BAM
Darius Rucker performing tonight in Tulsa, fresh off CMA Awards win
Country singer Darius Rucker poses for pictures in the press room after winning the best new award at Wednesdayt night’s 43rd Annual CMA Awards in Nashville, Tenn. Rucker will perform in concert tonight at Osage Million Dollar Elm Casino in Tulsa. (Associated Press photo)
A version of this story appears in Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
Country give warm welcome to musician at CMA Awards
Darius Rucker to perform tonight in Tulsa
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Darius Rucker still may be best known as the front man of 1990s pop sensations Hootie & the Blowfish.
But as one of his new hits goes, “It Won’t Be Like This for Long,” if his country career keeps booming.
After all, Rucker’s first country record, 2008’s “Learn to Live,” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Albums chart and has already sold more than 1 million copies. And the album’s first three singles — the passionate ode to lost love “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It,” the slice-of-life ballad “It Won’t Be Like This for Long” and the breezy toe-tapper “Alright” — topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs list.
“I’ve talked about this record for years, probably since ‘86,” Rucker said in a phone interview from Tacoma, Wash. “There were just certain things I wanted to do, certain records I wanted to make. I was making my rock ‘n’ roll records, I wanted to make an R&B record, and I wanted to make country records. I wanted to be Radney Foster, Al Green and Michael Stipe.”
The Charleston, S.C., native will play a solo show at 7 tonight at Tulsa’s Osage Million Dollar Elm Casino. The concert comes just two days after he won new artist of the year at the 43rd Annual CMA Awards in Nashville, Tenn., where he also was nominated for male vocalist of the year.
“I didn’t know I could be nominated for new artist so I was really surprised,” said Rucker, who won a 1996 Grammy for best new artist as part of Hootie & the Blowfish.
Even before he won the award, Rucker was grateful at the warm welcome he has received from the country community. During the show, he thanked country fans and radio stations who “took a chance on a pop singer from Charleston, S.C. God bless y’all for that.”
And he won’t soon forget the shock when Lee Ann Womack listed him along with Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Brad Paisley and Keith Urban as a male vocalist nominee.
“I’m standing up there and she says my name and the ‘Sesame Street’ song — ‘One of these things is not like the other’ — that comes into my head,” he said with a laugh.
“And the African-American thing had nothing to do with it. It was these are four superstars in country music. Superstars. … There’s no one in music bigger than George Strait. No one. And there’s nobody selling out more places than Kenny Chesney and Brad Paisley. And they’re gonna throw me in there.”
While Rucker is experiencing more country music success than any other black singer since Charley Pride, it isn’t the first time he has changed the face of a genre. And the honey-voiced baritone has sold out his share of arenas.
He and three friends — all white — started Hootie & the Blowfish in 1986 at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. The band’s 1994 major-label debut “Cracked Rear View” spun off three smash hits in “Hold My Hand,” “Only Wanna Be With You” and “Let Her Cry” and sold more than 16 million copies. The pop-rock quartet released four more albums, though none were able to tap the white-hot success of their debut. When the band decided a few years ago to take a break, Rucker set out to make his long-awaited country album.
“Country music and bluegrass was such a huge part of us as a band, from New Grass Revival and Lyle Lovett and Radney and Nanci Griffith. You know, these were people that we listened to every day. I mean, when we sat down to play, we played bluegrass or country,” he said.
“The last two or three Hootie records, in the meetings to start the records, I’d say, ‘Hey, let’s do the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band thing and just do country records.’ And you know, they didn’t want to do it, and I was cool with that. But they knew as soon as the first chance I got, I was gonna do it.”
When Capitol Nashville offered him a record deal, he made “Learn to Live” on a modest budget and drove to radio stations around the nation to promote it. He knew his Hootie history might prove a liability with pop artists such as Jessica Simpson, Jewel and Bon Jovi also crossing over to the country side.
“I think it was a benefit because it got me into a lot of program directors’ offices that might’ve not seen me otherwise. I mean, it was a detriment from the fact that just the whole pop invasion was going on at that time. I had to come out with something that was really gonna hit, or I was gonna be thrown by the wayside,” he said.
He already is working the follow-up to “Learn to Live” and plans to make country music for the foreseeable future. But fans can expect to hear him play not just his new hits but also a few songs from his Hootie days tonight.
“I want people leaving our show going, ‘Man, I want to see that again,’” he said.
In concert
Darius Rucker
When: 7 tonight.
Where: Osage Million Dollar Elm Casino’s Osage Event Center, 951 W 36 St. N, Tulsa.
Information: (918) 699-7667 or www.milliondollarelm.com/event-center.
-BAM
Shawna Russell starts a “Rumor,” offering free download
Oklahoma country artist Shawna Russell is offering a free download of her powerful new song, “Rumor,” during the month of November at her Web site www.shawnarussell.com/home.htm. The talented Okemah singer is in great voice on this new track, which is definitely a great free gift.
Fans who download the song will also have the opportunity to purchase a limited-edition series signed copy of Russell’s unreleased “Goddess Multimedia Edition” CD/DVD combo at a special price of $14.99.
“Rumor” has spread across radio waves and the Internet since its release three weeks ago on AirPlayDirect.com, the global digital-to-radio delivery service, according to a news release.
“Rumor” has dominated the service’s Global Radio Download Charts, reaching the No. 1 position on no less than five of their charts, including Top 50 Tracks This Month, where “Rumor” and four other Russell compositions held five out of seven of the top positions – ahead of new releases by Roseanne Cash featuring Bruce Springsteen and Patty Loveless.
“This song really has taken on a life of its own,” Russell said in the release. “It was not intended to be a traditional single release to radio, but after Robert Weingartz, the CEO of AirPlay Direct, heard the song – he insisted that we make it available to his radio members – and the response from programmers around the world has been amazing.”
The reaction to the song was so strong that AirPlay Direct rushed a songwriter profile about Russell and “Rumor” into the November issue of their new digital/interactive publication the Direct Buzz (www.thedirectbuzz.com).
“Time will tell if ‘Rumor’ will become an official radio single for me,” Russell added in the release. “For now, I am excited that people are reacting so positively to it.”
Written by Shawna Russell, her father Keith and her uncle Tim, “Rumor” explores the darker side of Russell’s passion in a powerful song that marries voice, lyric, music – and the magic that happens when there are no rules to follow – or genre categories to fence in creativity.
“Rumor” was produced in Nashville by Tim Russell and Clif Doyal and reunites key players from Russell’s debut CD, including Emmy and Grammy-winning mix master Nathaniel Kunkel (Maroon 5/Sting) and guitarist extraordinaire Jon Conley (LeAnn Rimes/Wynonna). The production also features a stellar group of all-star musicians, including keyboardist Charles Judge (Bon Jovi/Rascal Flatts), drummer Billy Thomas (Vince Gill), and bassist Mike Brignardello (Lynyrd Skynyrd/Sugarland).
Along with the free download of “Rumor” at her Web site, Russell’s fans will also have the opportunity to purchase her not-yet-released “Goddess Multimedia Edition.” The deluxe CD/DVD combo includes all 13 tracks from her critically-acclaimed debut CD, “Goddess,” and an original booklet with song lyrics and photos.
The DVD features Russell’s video biography, music video for her No. 1 YallWire and CMT.com favorite, “Should’ve Been Born With Wheels.” It also includes exclusive, never-before-seen content including the unreleased video, “Wheels – The Director’s Cut,” plus alternate and unreleased versions of her singles “Goddess” and “Should’ve Been Born With Wheels” and a live recording of Russell singing onstage at the Oklahoma Opry at age 9. The DVD also includes several photo galleries from her career, plus downloadable artist bio, videos, fact sheet, song lyrics, CD reviews and more.
The Okemah singer-songwriter was introduced onto the national music scene with the release of her debut CD, “Goddess,” in early 2008. Her music has received rave reviews from yours truley, CMA Close Up, Country Weekly and esteemed Music Row critic Robert K. Oermann, among others. With the release of three well-received radio singles, “Goddess,” “Should’ve Been Born With Wheels” and “Fire In The Desert,” Russell has established herself as a strong contender on the country and Texas music scenes. She has also earned international acclaim from Europe’s top music publications, including Maverick Magazine in the UK and DreamWest Magazine in France.
For more information, go to: www.ShawnaRussell.com and www.MySpace.com/shawnarussell878.
-BAM
Taylor Swift receives CMA International Artist Achievement Award
Taylor Swift (Associated Press photo)
Country music star Taylor Swift was surprised backstage during the dress rehearsals for the 43rd Annual CMA Awards when Kix Brooks and former Tulsan Ronnie Dunn presented her with the 2009 CMA International Artist Achievement Award.
Brooks & Dunn, along with Dierks Bentley, were last year’s recipients of the award, which recognizes outstanding achievement by a U.S.-based artist who contributes to the awareness and development of country music outside the United States.
“This is beautiful!” said Swift, according to a news release. ”Thank you so much! This is an awesome way to start the day!”
“What Taylor has done for country music inside the United States is amazing in itself, but what she has done for the format internationally is outstanding,” said Tammy Genovese, CMA Chief Executive Officer, in the release. “She recognizes the importance of taking her music around the globe, and in doing so, has become a phenomenal ambassador for country music. She is very deserving of this award.”
Swift’s second album, “Fearless,” has made a huge international impact, achieving gold and platinum certifications in 14 countries that span five continents. In addition to her native United States, those countries include Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, The Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.
“Fearless” has also reached the Top 10 on album charts in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, The Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and more.
Her hit song “Love Story” raced up airplay charts around the globe, reaching No. 1 in Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom; top five in the Czech Republic, Ireland, and Norway; top 10 in Denmark and Finland; and top 20 in Greece, Holland, Hungary, Spain, Sweden, South Africa, and on the European Chart.
Airplay resulted in strong sales, causing “Love Story” to rise on many international single sales charts including No. 1 in Australia; No. 2 in the United Kingdom; No. 3 in Ireland and New Zealand; the top 10 in Norway, Sweden, and on the European Chart; and top 20 in Denmark, Finland, and Holland.
Swift performed promotional and concert tours in Australia, Canada, Europe, and the United Kingdom in both 2008 and 2009. Among her sold-out shows and appearances was the high profile V Festival series in the United Kingdom.
Past winners of the CMA International Artist Achievement Award:
(originally known as the CMA International Touring Artist Award)
1996 BR5 49
1997 The Mavericks
1998 Owasso resident Trisha Yearwood
1999 Shania Twain
2000 Oklahoma native Reba McEntire
2001 Lonestar
2002 Bellamy Brothers
2003 Dixie Chicks
2004 Dolly Parton
2005 Keith Urban
2006 Dixie Chicks
2007 Dwight Yoakam
2008 Dierks Bentley, Brooks & Dunn
2009 Taylor Swift
-BAM
Carrie Underwood takes “Play On” to No. 1, appears on Biography tonight
Oklahoma superstar Carrie Underwood sees her third album, “Play On,” debut amid a flurry of No. 1s, with first-week sales hitting a whopping 317,695 units to displace Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” as the No. 1 album in the nation.
The release earns the highest first-week sales of the year for any solo country artist and the best release-week tally for a female artist in any genre in 2009, according to a news release.
In addition to holding the No. 1 spot on both the country and pop album sales charts, “Play On” is also tops in digital sales, with 62,848 copies sold, making “Play On” country’s best-selling digital album debut of 2009.
It claims the No. 1 berth on Nielsen SoundScan’s digital country and overall digital album charts this week, as well as earning the No. 1 slot as iTunes’ top-selling album in all genres throughout release week.
The big first-week success of “Play On” makes the Checotah native the only country act in Nielsen SoundScan history to achieve first-week sales of more than 300,000 units on each of his or her first three albums.
The feat also extends to “American Idol,” where the Season Four winner is the first contestant to launch three albums in a row above the 300K threshold. Here 2005 debut, “Some Hearts,” has gone seven-times platinum, and 2007’s “Carnival Ride” is currently triple-platinum.
It’s been a week of No. 1s for Underwood, since “Cowboy Casanova,” the first smash single from “Play On,” hit the top at country radio, becoming her 11th single to top a key sales or airplay chart.
In addition, “Cowboy Casanova” also ranks as this week’s top-selling digital country single. Meanwhile, the music video for “Cowboy Casanova” continues its No. 1 roll on CMT’s Top 20 Countdown for the fifth consecutive week and for a third week atop GAC’s fan-voted video countdown.
A four-time Grammy winner, Academy of Country Music entertainer of the year, and three-time Country Music Association female vocalist winner and three-time reigning ACM female vocalist winner with total album sales now in excess of 11 million, Underwood first charmed the nation on “American Idol,” becoming an immediate fan-favorite.
Tonight, fans can tune-in for a look at Underwood’s life and career as the Biography Channel premieres “Biography – Carrie Underwood” at 9 p.m.
For more TV news, check out Penny Soldan’s always informative TV blog at http://blog.newsok.com/television.
-BAM
Taylor Swift dominates CMA Awards, Oklahoma stars winless
Taylor Swift
Teen sensation Taylor Swift dominated Wednesday night’s CMA Awards, even as Oklahoma’s usually bright contingent of stars went home winless.
“I’ll never forget this moment because in this moment, everything I ever wanted has just happened to me,” a tearful Swift said as she accepted the top prize, entertainer of the year.
The country-pop singer-songwriter performed the show’s opening number, and she spent much of the night onstage, as the Country Music Association presented her with four trophies, for entertainer, female vocalist, album for “Fearless” and music video for “Love Story.” At 19, she is the youngest person ever to win the entertainer title and the first solo woman since Shania Twain in 1999 to take home the award.
Swift’s fellow country stars showed their support of the starlet by taking several good-natured jabs at rapper Kanye West, who now-infamously interrupted her acceptance speech at September’s MTV Video Music Awards.
Checotah native Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley co-hosted the CMA Awards for the second straight year. Paisley earned the male vocalist award and musical event of the year for “Start a Band,” his duet with Keith Urban. But Underwood experienced a rare shutout, with Swift stopping her streak of female vocalist wins at three and Paisley taking the musical event title.
Oklahomans Miranda Lambert and Reba McEntire also were nominated for female vocalist, while McEntire and Brooks & Dunn competed unsuccessfully for musical event.
Brooks & Dunn, which includes former Tulsan Ronnie Dunn, made their last CMA Awards appearance as a duo; the pair announced earlier this year their intention to split after their 2010 tour. Dunn and Kix Brooks were nominated for vocal duo, a category they have won a record 14 times, but lost to the reigning titleholder, Sugarland.
We don’t usually expect this, but we especially didn’t this year,” Sugarland’s Jennifer Nettles said, offering Brooks & Dunn a chance to speak, which they refused. “Thank you for what you’ve done for us and thank you for what you’ve done for country music.”
Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, failed to claim the vocal group of the year award after winning it the previous six years. Contemporary country trio Lady Antebellum scored the group award along with single of the year for “I Run to You.”
Former Hootie & the Blowfish frontman Darius Rucker, who will play Friday at Tulsa’s Osage Million Dollar Elm Casino, was named the top new artist, while venerable songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Mac McAnally won musician of the year. Song of the year honors went to Jamey Johnson, Lee Thomas Miller and James Otto for “In Color.”
2009 CMA Awards winners
Single (to artist and producer): “I Run To You,” Lady Antebellum, produced by Victoria Shaw and Paul Worley
Song (to songwriters): “In Color,” Jamey Johnson, Lee Thomas Miller and James Otto.
Vocal group: Lady Antebellum.
New artist: Darius Rucker.
Album: “Fearless,” Taylor Swift, produced by Nathan Chapman and Taylor Swift.
Musician: Mac McAnally, guitar.
Vocal duo: Sugarland.
Music video: “Love Story,” Taylor Swift, directed by Trey Fanjoy
Musical event: “Start a Band,” Brad Paisley duet with Keith Urban.
Male vocalist: Brad Paisley.
Female vocalist: Taylor Swift.
Entertainer: Taylor Swift.
-BAM
