Rascal Flatts closes 2009 tour, sells 550,000 tickets
Rascal Flatts (Associated Press photo)
Top-selling country band Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, wrapped the first leg of the “Rascal Flatts American Living Unstoppable Tour” last weekend. The tour sold 550,000 tickets in 39 shows since it began in June, according to a news release.
This total includes the two sold-out stadium concerts at Chicago’s Wrigley Field and Columbus, Ohio’s Crew Stadium. From January of this year, the band has sold more than a million concert tickets, bringing the trio’s four-year total to more than 4 million tickets sold.
Critics claimed their live shows were a huge success. The Minneapolis Pioneer Press said, “the biggest band in country employed showers of sparks, a well-lit runway that ran the length of the arena’s main floor, and big screens bedecked with images of misty moors and words like “passion,” “faith” and “courage.” And it all fit well with their songs, which assign weighty import to the events of everyday life through carpe diem lyrics, every chorus screamed out with vein-popping urgency.” “Rascal Flatts is a dominant country band for a reason. The songs are catchy and the musicianship is some of the best in ANY genre,” claimed the Cleveland Plain Dealer and The Dallas Morning News said, “The show is high-energy, flat-out from the get-go.”
Next up for Rascal Flatts are nominations for Group of the Year at next Wednesday’s CMA Awards (watch the Country Music Association’s awards show on ABC and follow the live-blog here) and Country Group of the Year and Country Album of the Year at the American Music Awards (Nov. 22 on ABC).
Rascal Flatts newest CD, “Unstoppable,” has been certified platinum for sales in excess of 1 million. The CD launched as the group’s fourth consecutive studio album to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart, more than any other country artist in the history of Soundscan. This brings the band’s career album sales to a staggering 20 million units in just this decade, and the group has amassed 22.5 million digital downloads.
Rascal Flatts is the biggest-selling and grossing group in country music history and has been named a Billboard Top Ten Touring Act in all genres with more venue attendance records than any other country act.
-BAM
Vince Gill, Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts to be profiled in CMA TV special
Vince Gill (Photo by Chris Landsberger/The Oklahoman Archives)
Carrie Underwood (Associated Press photo)
Rascal Flatts (AP photo)
Oklahoma country music stars Carrie Underwood, Vince Gill and Rascal Flatts (which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher) will be featured on the television special “In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts: Bright Light. Big Stars. All Access Nashville.”
The special will air on ABC (KOCO-5 in Oklahoma City) on Nov. 10, the day before the 43rd Annual Country Music Association Awards air live on the network. It will be hosted by “Good Morning America” co-anchor Robin Roberts.
Tim McGraw and Martina McBride also will be profiled on the one-hour special, according to CMT.com. The show will include interviews with Gill, Rosanne Cash and Loretta Lynn about their musical families.
Also, President Barack Obama, Taylor Swift and Rascal Flatts will take part in a segment about their favorite country songs. Viewers can go to www.abcnews.com to cast their votes for their favorite country track. The winning song will be revealed the following morning, the day of the big awards show, on “Good Morning America.”
ABC has started posting online a few snippets of Roberts’ interviews with the stars. Video clips up now include Underwood talking about the record deal she didn’t land when she 15 and the ways she copes with life as a celebrity. Also, bits featuring Underwood with her mom Carole and Gill with his daughter Jenny are available for viewing.
To see the clips and learn more about the special, go to http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/InTheSpotlight.
-BAM
Rascal Flatts’ “Unstoppable” goes platinum
According to Nielsen Soundscan, Rascal Flatts’ latest CD, “Unstoppable,” is one of only three country albums that have scanned platinum in 2009.
Taylor Swift’s “Fearless” and the “Hannah Montana: The Movie” soundtrack, with year-to-date sales of more than 1 million albums sold on each title, according to a news release. Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, also contributed one song, “God Bless the Broken Road,” to the “Hannah Montana: The Movie” album.
Of all country titles released this year, Rascal Flatts’s “Unstoppable” holds the record for the biggest first-week sales with 351,000 units sold, according to the release. “Unstoppable” also has the fifth-highest debut sales numbers across all genres for all new CD releases this year. Included in the first-week numbers are more than 58,000 digital albums, giving Rascal Flatts the biggest first week digital album sales for any country title released this year.
With 126,000 tracks sold the first week of release, the album’s lead No. 1 single “Here Comes Goodbye” also holds the record for the biggest first-week sales for any country digital single in the history of Nielsen Soundscan.
Gary LeVox, Jay DeMarcus and Joe Don will wrap the current leg of their headlining “Rascal Flatts American Living Unstoppable Tour” at the end of this month. Next up for Rascal Flatts are nominations for Group of the Year at the CMA Awards (Nov. 11 on ABC) and Country Group of the Year and Country Album of the Year at the American Music Awards (Nov. 22 on ABC).
“Unstoppable” launched as the group’s fourth consecutive studio album opening at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart, more than any other country artist in the history on Soundscan. This brings the band’s career album sales to a staggering 20 million units in just this decade, and the band has also amassed 22.5 million digital downloads. Rascal Flatts are the biggest-selling and grossing group in country music history and were named a Billboard Top 10 Touring Act in all genres with more venue attendance records than any other country act. The band has sold 4 million concert tickets in four years.
-BAM
Kings of Leon, Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts and Reba McEntire nominated for AMAs
Kings of Leon
The American Music Awards nominations were announced today, and country-pop star Taylor Swift gained a leading six nominations.
The late Michael Jackson earned five nominations, while rapper Eminem is nominated for five AMAs.
Swift, Jackson, Eminem, Lady Gaga and Kings of Leon are competing for the top award, artist of the year.
Kings of Leon, who have Oklahoma ties, earned two other nominations, for favorite pop/rock band, duo or group and favorite alternative rock artist.
Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, is nominated for two AMAs, for favorite country band, duo or group and favorite country album for ”Unstoppable.”
Oklahoma natives Reba McEntire and Carrie Underwood will compete with Swift for the favorite female country artist title.
The AMAs will air Nov. 22 on ABC. For more information, go to www.ABC.com.
See the full list of nominees after the break.
Rascal Flatts to play on “Tonight Show” Wednesday
Rascal Flatts, from left, Joe Don Rooney, Gary LeVox and Jay DeMarcus (Associated Press photo)
Country band Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, will perform Wednesday on “The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien,” where they will make the TV debut of their new single “Why.” The show starts at 10:35 p.m. on NBC (KFOR-4 in Oklahoma City).
Written by Allen Shamblin and Rob Mathes, the brokenhearted ballad features Gary LeVox singing about a loved one who has committed suicide against a weeping piano and wailing electric guitar.
While on the West Coast, the trio will perform four concerts on its successful “Rascal Flatts American Living Unstoppable Tour,” which continues through October with Darius Rucker as opening act.
Rascal Flatts’ newest CD, “Unstoppable,” has been certified platinum for sales in excess of 1 million. The CD launched as the group’s fourth consecutive studio album opening at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 chart, more than any other country artist in the history on Soundscan. This brings the band’s career album sales to a staggering 20 million units in just this decade, and the group has also amassed 22.5 million digital downloads.
Rascal Flatts is the biggest-selling and grossing group in country music history and has been named a Billboard Top 10 Touring Act in all genres with more venue attendance records than any other country act. The band has sold 4 million concert tickets in four years, including two sold-out stadium shows in Chicago and Columbus, Ohio, and a hometown show for Rooney in Miami, OK, over the summer.
“Unstoppable” tour dates:
10-15 Fresno, CA Save Mart Center at Fresno State
10-16 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion
Oct 17 & 18 Kelseyville, CA Konocti Field Amphitheater
10-23 Vancouver, BC General Motors Place
10-25 Edmonton, ALB Rexall Place
10-26 Calgary, ALB Penngrowth Saddledome
10-29 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome
10-30 Portland, OR Rose Garden
-BAM
Brad Paisley, Oklahoma stars featured on People Country, Country Weekly covers
Brad Paisley (Associated Press photo)
Brad Paisley is being pictured on two magazine covers in two weeks.
The country star is featured in the “Country Stars & Their Families” issue of People Country, on newsstands today through Nov. 9. The feature is titled “What My Father Taught Me” and lists several things that Brad has learned from his father, Doug: Be dedicated, drive them anywhere (and don’t charge for gas!), do your best … and then do better, be of service and it comes back to family.
Along with five pages of text and exclusive photos of Brad, Doug and Huck, Brad’s 2-year-old son, the issue of People Country also will feature Oklahoma stars such as Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert and Rascal Flatts’ Joe Don Rooney.
The next issue of Country Weekly, on stands Monday, focuses on country artists “Getting Through Tough Times.” In it, Paisley remembers how he handled the death of his Aunt Rita in 2004 and how he came to record “When I Get Where I’m Going” from that experience.
Also featured on the cover, and presumably in the cover story, are Oklahoma stars Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton and Toby Keith.
-BAM
Taylor Swift extending “Fearless” tour, coming to Oklahoma City
Taylor Swift (Associated Press photo)
Teen star Taylor Swift is extending her “Fearless” tour into 2010 – and bringing it to Oklahoma City.
The country singer-songwriter released a new list of concert dates today on her Web site, TaylorSwift.com. The list includes a March 31 show in Oklahoma City.
No venue is listed for any of the 2010 shows. But I’m guessing her Oklahoma City outing will take place at the Ford Center. The first leg of her tour went through Tulsa and sold out the BOK Center.
The second leg of her headlining tour will kick off in February in Australia. After playing five shows Down Under, Swift will return to North America, where she will play nearly 30 cities in the United States and Canada.
Swift’s pal and fellow singer Kellie Pickler and emerging country band Gloriana will return as opening acts on the second leg of the tour, according to the Associated Press.
All the shows on this year’s “Fearless” outing sold out in a matter of minutes. Swift, 19, told the AP her fans make her feel like she’s “won the lottery of dreams coming true.”
“I always expected to have to do a lot of stressing out about selling tickets. And then I went on my first headlining tour, and everything just sold out,” she said. “I’ve never expected that kind of success. I’ve never just felt entitled to my shows selling out or things like this happening to me, but the fact that they’ve happened to me has been wonderful.”
My niece and I saw Swift at the BOK Center last year when she opened for Rascal Flatts, and she puts on a dynamic show.
Check back here for more information on the Oklahoma City show as it becomes available.
-BAM
New releases for Oct. 6, 2009
Toby Keith
Oklahoma country music star Toby Keith releases his latest album, “American Ride,” today.
The title track and lead-off single currently is sitting at No. 1 on both the Billboard and Country Aircheck/Mediabase top country songs lists. Climbing into the top 10 in just eight weeks, “American Ride” is Keith’s fastest-moving single since his 2001 smash ”Courtesy of the Red, White And Blue (The Angry American).”
Rascal Flatts (Associated Press photo)
In addition, country band Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, is offering today new bonus content on a limited edition re-release of its “Greatest Hits Vol. 1.”
“Imagine That,” Eddie Murphy’s underrated family-friendly comedy (that’s a phrase I haven’t needed to use very often), gets its DVD debut today. Also, Disney has a Diamond Edition DVD-Blu-Ray combo pack of the classic “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” in stores today; I love this Disney DVD-Blu-Ray combo pack concept.
In books, “The Twilight Saga: New Moon – The Official Illustrated Movie Companion” will help tide over Stephenie Meyer fans who are eagerly awaiting next month’s release of the movie.
And Christopher Robin reunites with Winnie-the-Pooh in “Return to the Hundred Acre Wood,” a sequel to the beloved children’s classic by David Benedictus and authorized by the late A.A. Milne’s estate. The book includes a new character, Lottie the Otter.
Here is a list of new CDs, DVDs and books for the week, from Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com:
CDs
Toby Keith, “American Ride.”
Rascal Flatts, “Greatest Hits: Vol. 1 Limited Edition.”
Backstreet Boys, “This Is Us.”
Tokio Hotel, “Humanoid.”
Rosanne Cash, “The List.”
Joe Perry, “Have Guitar, Will Travel.”
Lita Ford, “Wicked Wonderland.”
Brandi Carlile, “Give Up the Ghost.”
Luke Bryan, “Doin’ My Thing.”
DVDs
“Year One”
“My Life in Ruins”
“Imagine That”
“Ally McBeal: The Complete Series”
“The Hills: Season Five, Part One”
“Bones: The Complete Fourth Season”
“The Mary Tyler Moore Show – The Complete Fifth Season”
“Trick ‘r Treat”
“Werewolf: The Complete Series”
“Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Diamond Edition” (DVD-Blu-Ray combo pack)
Books
“The Twilight Saga: New Moon – The Official Illustrated Movie Companion” by Mark Cotta Vaz.
“The Red Book” by C.J. Jung, edited and translated by Sonu Shamdasani.
“Christmas List: A Novel” by Richard Paul Evans.
“The Professional (Spenser Series No. 38)” by Robert B. Parker.
“Evidence: An Alex Delaware Novel” by Jonathan Kellerman.
“A Touch of Dead: The Complete Stories (Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Series)” by Charlaine Harris.
“Finding It: And Satisfying My Hunger for Life without Opening the Fridge” by Valerie Bertinelli.
“Julie Andrews’ Collection of Poems, Songs, and Lullabies” by Julie Andrews.
“Half-Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel” by Jeannette Walls.
“American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood” by Marc Eliot.
“How to Raise the Perfect Dog” by Cesar Millan.
“Manhood for Amateurs: The Pleasures and Regrets of a Husband, Father, and Son” by Michael Chabon.
“Return to the Hundred Acre Wood” by David Benedictus.
-BAM
BAM Column: Miranda Lambert, Flaming Lips, Carrie Underwood, Toby Keith releasing fall CDs
Miranda Lambert
From Tuesday’s Life section of The Oklahoman.
Fall offers must-have new music
For Oklahoma music fans, fall holds the promise of fantastic new offerings.
The year has already seen the release of big-time albums from Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Stardeath and White Dwarfs, Samantha Crain, Rodney Carrington and St. Vincent, all artists with state ties. Even the late Woody Guthrie had a four-disc box set, “My Dusty Road,” released last month.
But even more major records from Okies are still to come this autumn, starting today.
If the title is any indication, firebrand Miranda Lambert will keep on rebelling against the country music establishment with her third album, “Revolution,” which drops today. The Tishomingo singer-songwriter already has notched one stunning brokenhearted ballad, “Dead Flowers,” from the new record.
Toby Keith
Norman star Toby Keith has raised eyebrows and raced up the charts with “American Ride,” the title track of his new album, due out Oct. 6. Last week, the single reached No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Country Songs chart. Riding the momentum of the politically charged video, the song has become his most buzz-worthy track since the 2001 hit “Courtesy of the Red, White And Blue.”
Also on Oct. 6, country band Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher, will offer new bonus content on a limited edition re-release of its “Greatest Hits Vol. 1.”
Flaming Lips
Oklahoma City-based psychedelic rockers The Flaming Lips will deliver something new on Oct. 13: their first-ever double-album, “Embryonic.” The Lips performed “Convinced of the Hex” recently on “The Colbert Report” and debuted last week the video for “I Can Be a Frog.” If these tracks are any indication, we can expect many surreal delights from the Lips’ latest project.
Carrie Underwood
And recent Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame inductee Carrie Underwood is sure to delight her legion fans with the Nov. 3 release of her hotly anticipated third album “Play On.” The Checotah native put out the first single, “Cowboy Casanova,” as a digital track last week, and it took only 24 hours for the sassy cautionary tale to crack iTunes’ top five list.
The fall is still young, so we may see more Oklahoma artists adding to the list of autumn’s must-have albums. Hopefully, state music lovers have been saving their pennies.
-BAM
DVD review: “Hannah Montana The Movie”
A version of this review appears in Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
“Hannah Montana The Movie Deluxe Edition Combo Pack”
The pop-star double-life of Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus) gets complicated and countrified in “Hannah Montana The Movie,” the big-screen adaptation of the hit Disney Channel series.
Disney has released the movie in a three-disc deluxe edition/combo pack that includes the standard DVD, Blu-Ray version and digital copy of the film.
The runaway popularity of Miley’s super-starlet alter-ego Hannah Montana has begun to take over her life and go to her head. When Hannah gets into a much-publicized catfight with Tyra Banks, Miley’s dad, Robby Ray (Cyrus’ real-life dad Billy Ray Cyrus), cancels the rest of her busy schedule and carts his daughter to her hometown hamlet of Crowley Corners, Tenn.
He hopes a visit to the rural town and her no-nonsense Grandma Ruby (Margo Martindale) will help Miley regain a sense of perspective. The widower also finds a potential relationship with Ruby’s ranch foreman Lorelai (Melora Hardin), even as Miley strikes up a budding romance with hottie hired hand Travis (Lucas Till).
But the complexities of the family’s two-sided life follows them to Tennessee when Travis suggests that Miley contact her “personal friend” Hannah Montana to play a benefit concert for the community.
The movie should have strong appeal to girls who love the show. It includes all the requisite romantic montages, slapstick moments and musical interludes by both Cyruses, plus tuneful cameos from country stars Taylor Swift and Rascal Flatts (which includes guitarist Joe Don Rooney of Picher).
Bonus features: Director commentary, deleted scenes, bloopers, music videos and more.
— BAM
