J.D.'s Dirt

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

COUNTRY STARS LAND ON FORBES 2010 CELEBRITY POWER LIST. Though Oprah may lead Forbes 2010 Celebrity Power List, country’s biggest stars have managed to make their way on the chart. Taylor Swift clinches the #12 spot, while Kenny Chesney takes the #54 spot, followed by Rascal Flatts at #62. Toby Keith landed at the #67 slot, and Keith Urban placed at #76. Forbes' ranking is a measurement of entertainment-related earnings over the past 12 months, as well as exposure in print, television, radio, online, and social media. The complete list can be viewed at forbes.com.

RASCAL FLATTS DESCRIBES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GROUP MEMBERS. After spending over 10 years together as an iconic country group, Rascal Flatts have never forgotten what is important to them- their friendship. “We’ve tried our best over the years to put the other guy first and it’s not always been easy and it doesn’t always work that way because we’re human beings, but at the end of the day, we’re always able to work out our differences with love and respect for each other. And it’s been a really wonderful ride. I daresay that I couldn’t do it with two other guys, you know, because it does take a unique chemistry to exist in that kind of environment.” Rascal Flatts kicked off their Nothing Like This Tour in Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday.

NEW TWILIGHT: ECLIPSE FILM INSPIRES COLT FORD’S NEW MUSIC VIDEO. Colt Ford took CMT.com behind the scenes of his new music video for his single, “Chicken and Biscuits,” which he says is a spoof of the film, Twilight. The music video starts with a similar dialogue found in the movie, where the actress portraying Bella states, “I know what you want. You want my chicken and biscuits.” The director of the video admits he has watched Twilight over forty times in the past two weeks, while the woman in charge of wardrobe admits it’s hard to find pea coats for the video in the middle of the summer. The Twilight southern-style music video premieres today on CMT and CMT.com..

LEANN RIMES RESPONDS TO DIFFERENT NAMES FROM EDDIE’S KIDS. LeAnn Rimes boyfriend Eddie Cibrian’s kids, Mason 6, and Jake 3, tend to call her multiple names when trying to get her attention. “They know that my first name is Margaret and the oldest one—he calls me “Le-Le” or when he wants to be really funny he’s like, “Margaret” or if he wants to ask me a question he calls me “Lee,” or “LeAnn” when he wants to be really serious. So there’s a million different names from him. And the youngest one calls me “Wee-wee” because he can’t say “Lee-Lee.” So “Wee-wee.” It’s funny when you hear “WEE-WEE!” from the other room.” LeAnn is constantly tweeting about the time she spends with the kids – maybe they will give her a new idea for a Twitter name.

JAMES OTTO’S WIFE STARTING TO HAVE PREGNANCY CRAVINGS. James Otto and wife of five years Amy are expecting their first child in August, and he claims her cravings aren’t out of the ordinary.  “My wife does have cravings—just lately though, they’ve been starting. I thought that it would have happened a long time ago but it’s actually just beginning. Pretty normal stuff like ice cream. So nothing crazy like pickles and watermelon in the middle of the night. So I’m good.” James can’t wait to be a father, as he describes the process a life-changing experience.

BLAKE SHELTON’S PICK-UP LINE CONTEST. Blake Shelton’s new single, “All About Tonight” has influenced him to host a contest for the best pick-up line. Contestants can call 615-942-0746 and leave a message with their most clever line, for a chance to win a prize pack. Blake will choose the winner in August, and you can go to his official website at www.blakeshelton.com to listen to recent entries.

DOLLY PARTON PROMOTES HER 25^TH ANNIVERSARY OF DOLLYWOOD. Dolly Parton will be making multiple television appearances this week promoting her television special - Dolly Celebrates 25 Years of Dollywood. This morning, Dolly will appear on Live With Regis and Kelly on ABC at 9AM Eastern time, as well as an appearance on a segment of Bert The Conqueror which was recently taped at Dollywood. The show airs July 9^th at 10PM on the Travel Channel, followed by a taping of the Today Show on July 14^th at 7AM on NBC. Dollywood’s 25^th Anniversary special will feature Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, andKenny Rogers, which is scheduled to premiere this Saturday, July 3^rd, at 8PM on the Hallmark Channel.

LORETTA LYNN TO BE HONORED DURING THE GRAMMY SALUTE TO COUNTRY MUSIC. The Recording Academy will host the Grammy Salute To Country Music honoring Loretta Lynn Tuesday, October 12^th at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. During the tribute, Loretta will be presented with the Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as performances by some of country’s biggest stars. The CEO of The Recording Academysays, "It is only fitting that we celebrate Loretta at our Salute To Country Music event, as she has worked diligently to ensure that country music remains a vital part of our culture, and has paved the way for many of today's talented artists and likely for generations to come."

FINALY LINEUP FOR AQUAPALOOZA 2010 ANNOUNCED. The Final Lineup for AquaPalooza 2010 Signature Event, in Austin, Texas on Saturday July 10^th has been announced. Lee Brice, Jerrod Niemann, and Matt Stillwell of American Idol will join Brad Paisley for the annual concert on the water. Brad is scheduled to take the stage as the headlining act at 5PM. Brad’s current hit, “Water,” is perfect for the event since fans ticket to the concert is their boat. There will not be land access to the event. For more information or to register, visit www.aquapalooza.com.

KEITH URBAN AND NICOLE KIDMAN CELEBRATE ANNIVERSARY. Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary last week in Nashville at Flyte restaurant. According to People magazine, the two were cozy in a corner booth of the popular eatery. Nicole wore a sleeveless dress and sandals, but all observers could focus on were the two smiling and holding hands across the table. The couple will also have something else to celebrate as their daughter Sunday Rose, turns two on July 7^th.

LEANN RIMES TO PERFORM FOR MACY’S FOURTH OF JULY SPECIAL. LeAnn Rimes is scheduled to perform for the Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular in New York City. The special will air on NBC July 4^th at 8PM Central time. Nick Cannon and host of NBC’s Biggest Loser Alison Sweeney, will be on hand to introduce performers Justin Bieber and Enrique Iglesias. Cast members from the film Twilight Saga: Eclipse will also make an appearance.

KEITH URBAN REPLACES BROOKS & DUNN AT CANADIAN MUSIC FESTIVAL. Keith Urban will replace Brooks & Dunn at the Canadian country music festival, Countryfest, on Friday July 2^nd. Brooks & Dunn were forced to cancel their appearance due to Ronnie Dunn’s prescribed vocal rest. The four-day festival begins this Thursday, with a lineup which features Randy Houser, Miranda Lambert, Kellie Pickler, Blake Shelton, and many Canadian country artists.Brooks & Dunn will resume their Last Radio Tour on July 16^th in Indianapolis.

ALAN JACKSON PUTS ANOTHER HOUSE ON THE MARKET. Alan Jackson has recently listed one of his Florida properties for sale at 1.27 million dollars. The reason behind the move is due to the new dock at Alan’s house on Jupiter Island. Alan’s realtor says, “Alan bought this place because of the dock. You can dock a mega-yacht here, which is rare in a private residence. But now, Alan keeps his boats across the Intracoastal, near his new house.” Alan recently sold his Sweetbriar estate for 28 million dollars.

MARTINA MCBRIDE URGES FANS TO LIVE HEALTHY WITH CHEERIOS CONTEST. Martina McBride has partnered with Cheerios in the Do What You Love contest which encourages fans to take care of their own hearts. Contestants will write a 150 to 250 word essay describing how they take care of themselves, and the winner will receive a weekend in Nashville. The winner and a guest will spend a weekend in August taking a tour of Martina and her husband’s Blackbird Studio, listen to new music with her, as well as a private tour with Martina of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. The winner will also receive two VIP tickets to Martina’s concert.

COURTYARD HOUNDS MOTIVATED BY WORDS OF CHER. Martie Maguire of the Courtyard Hounds recalls her life-changing experience during her 40^th birthday celebration as she met her icon, Cher. At the show, Cher could tell Martie seemed down about reaching over-the-hill status. Cher took Martie in a hallway and told her, how she felt a psychic premonition that Martie was going to have the best year of her life. Cher referred to her 40^th birthday as the year she met the love of her life and made two of her favorite movies Moonstruck and Suspect. Martie credits the success of the Courtyard Hounds to Cher as the band announced their first project in the same year.

VINCE GILL & AMY GRANT ANNOUNCE 11-CITY CHRISTMAS TOUR. Vince Gill and Amy Grant will debut their 11-city Christmas With Amy & Vincetour on December 8^th at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall in Sarasota, Florida. It will conclude December 21st and 22^nd with two shows at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium. Each show will run two hours and include both Christmas standards and newer holiday songs. Other stops include King Center for the Performing Arts, Melbourne, Florida December 9^th, Fort Myers, Florida December 10^th, and Clearwater, Florida December 11^th. The tour will continue Greenville, South Carolina December 13^th, Durham, North Carolina December 14^th, Fayetteville, North Carolina December 17^th, Greensboro, North Carolina December 18^th, Concord, North Carolina December 19^th, and the Fox Theatre, Atlanta, Georgia December 20^th.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

• FORBES CELEBRITY 100 LIST! Forbes magazine has released their annual list of The Celebrity 100, which ranks stars based on their salaries and web, press and social scores. Oprah Winfrey came in at number one, with Beyonce ranked at number two as the highest musician and Sandra Bullock andJohnny Depp at numbers eight and nine, as the highest ranked actor and actress. Tiger Woods made the list at number five, and beat out all other athletes in the ranking. Head to Forbes.com for more.
• STEVE CARELL MAKES IT OFFICIAL! Steve Carell has officially announced that he’s leaving The Office after next season.  Learn more at NYDailyNews.com.
• DID MEL HIT OKSANA? TMZ found out that Mel Gibson’s now estranged baby-mama, Oksana Grigorieva, did go to a dentist to get repairs on her teeth in January, after she and Gibson split. Currently, there is no proof that Gibson caused the dental damage that needed to be repaired and the extent of Oksana’s teeth problems aren’t known.
• MEGAN FOX LIKES LINGERIE! Megan Fox is currently enjoying her honeymoon with new husband Brian Austin Green in Hawaii. And while the wedding night for any couple is a very private affair, Megan did happen to tell us that she enjoys wearing lingerie, or at least corsets. She wore a very tight corset for her role in Jonah Hex. Fans can still see Megan in Jonah Hex in theaters.
• TROUBLED COUPLE? According to the New York Daily News, there may be trouble in paradise for Liev Schreiber and Naomi Watts. Schreiber just flew to Tahiti and sources told the newspaper that one of the purposes for the trip is so Liev can reflect on his relationship with Watts. The pair has been dating for five years and has two sons together.  
• ANISTON OUTEARNS PITT! Last year, Jennifer Aniston earned seven-million dollars more than Brad Pitt. Aniston and Pitt were married from 2000 until 2005. Hit up UsMagazine.com for more.
• GET TO KNOW TWILIGHT’S ROBERT PATTINSON! By now, you should know that Robert Pattinson stars as “Edward” in the uber-popular Twilight Sagavampire movies. And while Pattinson’s every move is photographed and written about, there may be some things you still don’t know about the Twilight hunk.  The Twilight Saga: Eclipse hits theaters today!
• STRIPPER TALKS ABOUT DR. MURRAY! A stripper in California is claiming that not only did she see Dr. Conrad Murray drinking at her club the night before Michael Jackson died, but that the doctor invited her to hang out at Michael Jackson’s house that night. Learn more at TMZ.com.
• JACKSON’S VEGAS HOME VANDALIZED! According to TMZ, Michael Jackson’s Las Vegas rental home was tagged with graffiti earlier this week. According to the outlet, several walls inside the home had been painted with graffiti. No one is living in the home right now, and Jackson rented the mansion from 2007 to 2009.
• SEYFRIEND TO PLAY CINDERELLA! Perez Hilton is reporting that Amanda Seyfried (Pron: Sigh-Fred) has been cast in a new Disney movie aboutCinderella, and she will play the princess. The script is currently being written by the screenwriter who penned The Devil Wears Prada and 27 Dresses.

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

Jimmy Buffett & Friends Concert in Gulf Shores Rescheduled for July 11^th. The Jimmy Buffett & Friends concert scheduled for Thursday in Gulf Shores, Alabama, has been rescheduled for July 11^th because of concerns about surf conditions on the beach. According to Gulf Shores city officials, storm conditions are not expected to be a threat to the area, although increased water inundation at the beach is not conducive to keeping the large stage stable in the sand. “This is a disappointment, obviously, but Jimmy Buffett is still coming to the Gulf Coast on July 11, and tickets will be honored at that time,” said Mayor Robert Craft. Buffett said, “Nobody hates this more than I do, but I guess, as the song says, it’s hard to reason with hurricane season. For those going anyway, thank you. ... For the rest of you, we will see you July 11." A portion of the July 1^st concert was to be telecast live on CMT and CMT.com as a 90-minute special titled CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends Live From the Gulf Coast. Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown, Allen Toussaint, Sonny Landreth and Jesse Winchester were among the confirmed guests. CMT executives were working late Monday to determine production logistics for the possibility of airing the July 11^th show.

BRAD PAISLEY EARNS HIS 17^th NUMBER ONE SONG! Congratulations to Brad Paisley. His song “Water” has just hit the top of the Country Aircheck chart and becomes Brad’s 17^th number one song. It’s his 13^th consecutive number one song and his fourth number one song from his latest album American Saturday Night. “Water” is a song Brad wrote about how he spent his summers.  “I’ve spent so many days of the summer on a boat. So many days in a river—I grew up next to the ____ river—skiing that, fishing that, and swimming pools…and everything that goes with really what the song is about—which is it seems like summer revolves around bodies of water.”  It was this song, “Water” that actually inspired Brad’s current tour theme – H20. To look for his upcoming tour dates, visit CMT.com.

CARRIE UNDERWOOD PARTIES WITH GIRLFRIENDS IN VEGAS! Carrie Underwood was spotted at the Palazzo hotel and casino in Las Vegas Friday night dancing the night away with several girl friends. Many think this was Carrie’s bachelorette party considering fiancé Mike Fisher had his bachelor party in Miami last weekend. No official wedding date has been announced but Carrie says things are under control thanks to her wedding planner. “I have a really great planner. You know, both of us are very busy, and like I said there’s a lot of great things going on this summer. So it’s kind of like, getting through all that, and taking things one step at a time. Lots of phone and email conversations.” Stay tuned to CMT.com for the latest news on Carries nuptials.

MARTINA MCBRIDES SHARES MIRANDA AND BLAKE ENGAGEMENT PARTY DETAILS. On June 23^rd, Martina McBride shared a few details on her Twitter page, describing Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton’s engagement party. She tweeted, “Good Lord! This Blake and Miranda engagement party is out in the freaking boonies!” She later states the party was great and worth the trip. She even sang karaoke including “Does He Love You,” with Miranda, and “I Love Rock and Roll,” with Blake.

KELLIE PICKLER ENGAGEMENT RING DETAILS. Moments after receiving her new a round brilliant center diamond in a pave setting engagement ring, Kellie Pickler admits she almost lost it. “After I got myself together, Kyle was looking around for the ring and thought I lost it. It was in my lap but he said, ‘I thought we lost it in the sand,’” Kellie told People magazine. Kellie also said, she doesn’t care what the ring looks like - it could be from a Cracker Jack box. Kellie’s ring also resembles the same shape as Carrie Underwood’s.

TRACE ADKINS’ NEW ALBUM ARRIVES IN STORES AUGUST 17^th.  Trace Adkins' new album, Cowboy's Back in Town, will be released on August 17th, one week earlier than previously announced. It's his first album for Show Dog-Universal Music, the label headed by Toby Keith and producer Mark Wright. Trace co-wrote the title track with Jeff Bates and Kenny Beard. In addition, Kenny Beard co-produced the 11-track album with Michael Knox, best known for producing Jason Aldean. Trace’s label-mates Trailer Choir, appear on "Don't Mind if I Don't."  A deluxe package will also be available with four additional tracks, including "Hillbilly Bone," his collaboration with Blake Shelton. Trace is touring with Toby Keith through September.

SUGARLAND ANNOUNCE NEW SINGLE AND NEW ALBUM.  Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush have announced the release date of their new single, "Stuck Like Glue," as well as their fourth album, The Incredible Machine. The duo will send "Stuck Like Glue" to country radio on July 26th. Jennifer describes the single as "young, hip and, of course, sassy." She and Kristian co-wrote the track with Kevin Griffin and Shy Carter. In addition, The Incredible Machine has been scheduled for an October 19th release on Mercury Nashville. Jennifer and Kristian co-wrote the entire record and co-produced it with Byron Gallimore. Sugarland's tour schedule includes four dates this week as part of the Lilith Fair tour.

MIRANDA LAMBERT HONORED TWO OF HER FAVORITE TEACHERS.  Miranda Lambert recently honored two of her favorite Texas teachers who she feels helped her the most as a youngster, high school teachers Janice Caldwell and April Coker.  She credits the women with helping her get over stage fright as well as helping insure that she graduated.   "When you work so hard all these years and you have somebody that is so successful, but then they remember your efforts for them to help them, then it just hits you in the heart," says Ms. Coker.  The two teachers were flown to Nashville last week for a photo shoot.  Then Miranda made sure the ladies got tickets to the sold-out Nashville Rising concert and a personal invitation to her engagement party.  "I was so excited," said Mrs. Caldwell about when she found out she was being honored.  Meeting Reba McEntire was one of the highlights for Mrs. Caldwell, "When you are standing there and Reba McEntire hugs your neck, I said, 'Oh my goodness'". "But, this is the neat thing. I am putting it all on Facebook and so many of my former students said, 'Reba McEntire should have been excited to have been hugged by Mrs. Caldwell.'"  Carrie Underwood and Wynonna Judd have both taken part in the award-winning "Behind Every Famous Person is a Fabulous Teacher" campaign in the past.

CARRIE UNDERWOOD’S WEDDING AT THE RITZ CARLTON? More reports are now claiming Carrie Underwood and Mike Fisher will now tie-the-knot at the Ritz Carlton at Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Georgia – halfway between Atlanta and Augusta, on July 10^th. Sources claim she has rented out the entire hotel for friends and family. Rooms are currently unavailable at the hotel that weekend, though it may just be a coincidence.

KENNY CHESNEY’S NEW ALBUM COVER. Kenny Chesney’s new album cover for Hemingway’s Whiskey, scheduled for release September 28^th, lacks a beach or a body of water in sight. Kenny tweeted a picture of the cover, which features a black and white close-up of Kenny’s face, with his hat covering his eyes. “This next record should be something that sets the stage for the next phase of my music, the same way No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems opened up the music I've made for the past eight years," Kenny says.

KELLIE PICKLER DESCRIBES KYLE JACOBS PRE-ENGAGEMENT. Though Kellie Pickler recently became engaged, she was describing her favorite man before she was even asked the big question. People Magazine chatted with her at the CMA Music Festival in early June, and asked her to describe country music’s hottest guy. Kellie responded, “My love! But y’all don’t know him, he’s in the shadows of country music, he’s a songwriter named Kyle. He’s the hottest to me!”

JARON LOWENSTEIN CHANNELS HIS POP-ROOTS. Jaron Lowenstein from Jaron and The Long Road to Love, revealed his past pop-roots as he covered Lady Gaga’s hit song, “Just Dance” as well as Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling,” at US Magazine’s studios. Jaron’s debut album Getting Dressed In The Dark won’t feature any pop-covers, but he does promise a majority of the songs are devoted to love. “Why do I choose to write about love? Because that's where I am right now," he says. "I'm not interested in writing stories about doors, or blue skies or whatever. It's not interesting to me right now."

BRAD PAISLEY AND CARRIE UNDERWOOD FORCED TO CANCEL SHOWS. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood have been forced to cancel their shows in Billings, Montana later this year, due to severe damages from a tornado last week. The Rimrock Auto Arena, will not be repaired by the time of the scheduled tour stops, and fans will be refunded starting July 1^st. Carrie and Brad are both playing in a nearby arena in Bozeman, Montana around the same time, so those who really want to go to a show are encouraged to go there.

KENNY CHESNEY: SUMMER IN 3D TOPS DVD CHARTS. Even though Kenny Chesney’s film, Kenny Chesney: Summer in 3-D is only sold at K-Mart stores, first week sales managed to land Kenny on the top of DVD concert sales -  beating out U2’s concert DVD by almost 33%. Kenny says, “I know from what people told me during the theatrical run, people felt like we really captured the energy and the heart of our live shows, so it’s nice to know that’s something people want to take with them, too.” The DVD and Blu-Ray versions of Kenny Chesney: Summer in 3D are available exclusively at K-Mart stores and at kmart.com/kennychesney.

COUNTRY STAMPEDE MUSIC FESTIVAL GOERS SUFFER TRAGIC DEATHS. The Kansas, Country Stampede Music Festival, was dampered with three deaths –one still remaining a mystery. A 19-year old from Nebraska was pronounced dead at a local hospital shortly after the festival on Thursday, June 24^th from an unexplained internal injury. 48 hours later, another fan was transported from the festival with grave injuries, as well as a 32-year old veteran of the Kansas Wildlife Parks, who died just after 3:00AM after crashing his ATV. Saturday night’s featured performers including Montgomery Gentry, waited a few moments to take the stage so festival attendees could pay tribute with a moment of silence for the man.

GARTH BROOKS EXPRESSES HIS LOVE FOR DICK CLARK. Garth Brooks is among the many stars expressing their appreciation for the legendary Dick Clark. The music TV legend and his landmark show, American Bandstand, received a special salute at the Daytime Emmy Awards, which aired Sunday night on CBS. Garth took a moment before his show at The Encore Theater to participate in the tribute. In leading off a montage of well-wishes, the country superstar noted that Dick is one of a kind, and a TV giant.  

BRAD PAISLEY EMBRACED BY FANS OVERSEAS. Brad Paisley played two sold-out shows at London’s Shepherd Bush Empire on June 23^rd and 24^th as well as Norway’s Musikk Festival on the 25^th. Marking his first trip to the UK in over ten years, the audience at all shows were very enthusiastic as they were singing along to all his songs, and swayed in appreciation to Brad’s music.

LITTLE BIG TOWN TO PARTICIPATE IN NASHVILLE’S RIDE FOR A CURE. Little Big Town will participate in Nashville’s Ride For A Cure event July 11^th, benefiting the T.J. Martell Foundation. This is the groups fourth year participating in the motorcycle event, where they will also perform post ride with Luke Bryan, Josh Thompson, and The Band Perry. “Every year we look forward to this day when we can get together with our fans and enjoy a beautiful ride, some great music and raise money for a cause that's so dear to our hearts,” said Kimberly Schlapman of Little Big Town.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

• DIVORCE FINAL! Sandra Bullock and Jesse James’ divorce is final. The pair signed the final documents late last week and are now officially divorced. Sandra filed for divorce on April 23^rd, after reports of James’ alleged affairs hit the media. Learn more at TMZ.com.
• GIBSON VS. OKSANA! Mel Gibson and the mother of his newest child have both filed restraining orders against each other. Oksana Grigorieva is claiming that she feels threatened by Mel and that he had hit her twice, while Gibson’s lawyers are claiming Oksana is lying, in hopes that Mel’s visitation rights will be taken away. Learn more at TMZ.com.
• SOCCER BABY?! People magazine is reporting that American World Cup soccer star Landon Donovan may have a love child. The outlet says that a British woman has come forward claiming she is pregnant with Donovan’s child. Landon is currently separated from his wife Bianca Kajlich, but the pair is not divorced. We’ll keep you updated.
• DOUGLAS FIGHTS FOR WALL STREET MONEY! Michael Douglas’ ex-wife Diandra is claiming that she’s entitled to 50 percent of the money Michael earned making Wall Street 2, the sequel to the 1987 hit movie Wall Street. Diandra and Douglas divorced in 2000 but she is claiming she deserves half the Wall Street 2 profits as it’s a sequel of a movie made while they were married. Learn more at NYPost.com.
• COLEMAN’S PRIVATES ON THE INTERNET. One of the last films Gary Coleman appeared in was the documentary Midgets vs. Mascots and during filming, he suffered a wardrobe malfunction and his penis was caught on camera. The footage didn’t get included in the movie, but has made its way online to the website Kikster.com. The Midgets vs. Mascots movie director is threatening to sue the site for posting the clip. Learn more at TMZ.com.
• GROWN-UPS HAIR MALFUNCITON! In the new comedy Grown Ups, there’s a scene where the hair piece Rob Schneider wears in the film starts flapping in the wind. Grown Ups also stars Adam Sandler, Kevin James and Chris Rock and is in theaters now.  
• LINDSAY LOHAN REALITY SHOW! Lindsay Lohan will appear in a new reality series that Dina Lohan is currently filming. The series will be based around Dina and her other daughter Ali, but Lindsay will appear in several episodes. Right now, no TV network has signed on to buy the show, but we’ll keep you updated. Head over to NYPost.com for more.
• MARRIAGE! American Beauty actress Mena Suvari got married in Italy this weekend. The actress wed concert producer Simone Sestito on Saturday in a private ceremony in Vatican City. The duo got engaged back in 2008. Hit up People.com for more.
• DIVORCE! Saved By the Bell actor Mark-Paul Gosselaar has officially filed for divorce from his wife, Lisa Ann Russell. The couple only announced their separation two weeks ago, but is now making their split official. The two married back in 1996 and have two children. Hit up People.com for more.  
• BABY NEWS! Lost in Translation director Sofia Coppola and her partner, Phoenix frontman Thomas Mars, just welcomed their second child. The couple had a baby girl in New York City, who joins her three-year-old sister, Romy. Mars and Coppola met back in December of 2005.  
• GET TO KNOW TWILIGHT’S KRISTEN STEWART! By now, you should know that Kristen Stewart stars as “Bella” in the uber-popular Twilight Saga vampire movies. And while Stewart’s every move is photographed and written about, there are no doubt some things you don’t know about the superstar, like her views on marriage, the birds and the bees and about playing “Bella.”  The Twilight Saga: Eclipse hits theaters tomorrow!
• A-ROD AND DIAZ GO PUBLIC! Cameron Diaz and Yankee player Alex Rodriguez are rumored to be dating and made no effort to squash those rumors on Friday when the pair was seen dining together in New York City. According to E! Online, the duo was acting very much like an item.
• JOLIE TALKS CHILDREN! Angelina Jolie talked about her children in the August issue of Vanity Fair. In the publication, Jolie says that her four-year-old daughter Shiloh likes to dress like a boy right now and enjoys wearing tracksuits. Pick up the new Vanity Fair on July 6^th and learn more over at USA Today.

• MARIO LOPEZ TO WED! Wedding bells are in Mario Lopez’s future. The Extra host told Us Magazine his wedding plans with pregnant girlfriend Courtney Mazza  are underway. The pair met while co-starring in the production of Chorus Line on Broadway and are expecting their first child in September.   

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

BRAD PAISLEY ISN’T FULL OF HOT AIR! Brad Paisley loves water which is why he wrote his current song called “Water,” and also named his current tour the H20 World Tour. Brad and his family have a huge farm outside of Nashville but it doesn’t have a pool. But with two young boys Brad had to find something for them to splash in this summer but he was smart not to pick one that required a lot of air! “Our pool is one of those plastic ones that doesn’t have to be blown up. We don’t have actually a full size swimming pool. We have a little plastic pool, you set it out and fill it up. I made sure I didn’t get the inflatable kind. Because I don’t want to have to do that. But yeah, blowing up the slippin’ slide…there’s areas of the slippin’ slide that are padded that you have to blow up. You know, you forgot how hard that is to do. So I cheated and took it down to the barn and used the air compressor.”

KEEPING JIMMY BUFFETT’S FREE CONCERT, FREE. The 35-thousand tickets for Jimmy Buffett’s free show on the Gulf Coast were sold out ten minutes after they were made available to the public on June 23rd. But some ticket-holders are trying to make a buck off the tickets by auctioning them off on eBay. Fans immediately started complaining on Jimmy’s Facebook page about the auctions, which resulted in eBay’s ban of further ticket auctions for the show. Alabama Governor Bob Riley is looking into exactly how tickets managed to go up on eBay so quickly after being obtained. Make sure to catch CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends Live from the Gulf Coast live at 8 PM on CMT and CMT.com.

KELLIE PICKLER IS A BIRTHDAY BABE! Newly engaged Kellie Pickler turns 24 today. June has been a big month for Kellie as her fiancé proposed June 15^th on the beach. Kellie jokes about being a fish because she enjoys being around the water which made Kyle’s proposal on the beach just perfect. “I love water. Not only do I drink a lot of it, but I love to go swimming. My favorite time of the year is summer. I love the beaches. I love hot weather. I’m not a fan of snow. Not a fan of cold weather at all. I’d much rather be on the beach, in the ocean, or in a pool than anywhere. So that would be ideal. Wouldn’t it be so cool to just live on a beach somewhere and have no care in the world—all you gotta do is tan and swim.” Kellie told CMT Radio Live’s Cody Alan last week she likes the idea of an outdoor wedding but she’d be afraid of weather ruining the big day.

Jake Owen, Josh Turner Join Oklahoma State Fair Lineup. Jake Owen and Josh Turner are among the country artists appearing at the Oklahoma State Fair in Oklahoma City in September. Jake will perform on Sept. 23, followed by Josh’s closing concert on Sept. 24. The Eli Young Band will open the music series on Sept. 16. Concerts are free with the purchase of gate admission to the fairgrounds. Additional performers include Grand Funk Railroad, MC Hammer, the Marshall Tucker Band, Matt Morris and Mitchel Musso.

MARTINA MCBRIDE MAKES DINNER A PRIORITY. Even though Martina McBride is one of country music’s most successful acts, she still makes time to eat dinner with her family four to five times a week. Martina says, “It just makes us more connected. The girls (three of them—Delaney, Emma, and Ava) know that dinner time together is a priority in our house.” Martina does most of the cooking and says her favorite meal to make is either pot roast or gumbo, even though she enjoys pretty much everything she cooks. Martina’s youngest daughter, Ava, who is only four, won’t eat her pot roast no matter how good it is though. She refuses to eat meat and Martina says “It’s like she came out being a vegetarian.”

CLAY WALKER HAS HIS SON WRAPPED AROUND HIS FINGER. Clay Walker is back on the country music scene with “She Won’t be Lonely Long,” which is number four on the Country Aircheck chart this week. In the last couple of years Clay has been focused on his kids and wife, Jessica, who he married in 2007. Clay has two children from a previous marriage and now has a six month old and 22 month old with Jessica. The 22 month old is named William Clayton and he is definitely a daddy’s boy. William even said so himself!   “My wife, she was putting him down or something—and she goes ‘That’s mama’s boy,’ and he looked at her and goes ‘I daddy’s boy.’ That’s pretty good but that he’s got my back even when I’m gone! (laughs)” Clay’s latest album has the same name as his hit song, She Won’t Be Lonely Long. It was released earlier this month and is his ninth studio album.

JEWEL AND TY MURRAY WILL HOST JOHN WAYNE WEEKEND ON AMC. Jewel and her husband, Ty Murray, are hosting the John Wayne All-American Weekend on the American Movies Classic channel beginning Friday, July 2, and continuing through Sunday, July 4. The couple will talk about everything from what it means to be an American to what they feel John Wayne stands for. You can find out more about the John Wayne All-American Weekend by visiting the AMC website.

CRAIG MORGAN SENDS REGRETS TO CARRIE UNDERWOOD. Craig Morgan says that while he is among the guests who were invited to attend Carrie Underwood’s upcoming wedding, he will not be able to attend. “I did get an invitation, but I’m working, so I don’t get to go," Craig tells Country Weekly. "[Carrie's fiance] Mike [Fisher] and I really hit it off. We share a lot of common interests. I think they are going to have a great marriage. He’s a great man and she’s a good lady, and a sweet girl.”

Craig predicts at least one thing may change for Carrie after she gets a wedding ring on her finger. “She doesn’t write [songs] on the road. I think that will change for her when she gets married. I told her that when I’m home I try to spend as much time with my family and my kids as I can, so I do a lot of writing on the road.” Craig says that he and Carrie have talked about writing songs together later in the year between tour dates.

COUNTRY STARS MOST LIKELY TO…While on the red carpet at the CMT Music Awards, several artists got to reveal their senior superlatives from high school.

Laura Bell Bundy

Best dancer

Most likely to have their own fan club

Chuck Wicks

Class flirt

Best dressed

Most athletic

Colt ford

Biggest flirt

Jaron Lowenstein (Jaron & The Long Road To Love)

Most likely to get thrown out of anything he gets invited to

Chris Young

Most talented

Jake Owen

Most likely to do something stupid

Blake Shelton

Class clown

COUNTRY SINGERS RAISE AWARENESS FOR THE GULF OIL SPILL. Kellie Picker, the Zac Brown Band, Colt Ford and Sammy Kershaw have taken part in the new “Spoiled” photo campaign. This campaign photographs people with oil on their hands to help raise money and awareness for the Gulf Oil Spill. The New Orleans photographer is auctioning off these photos for the money to go to help those in need in Louisiana. You can donate money through the projects website and check out some of the photos.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

• BACHELOR REUNION GOES BAD! Bachelor Jake Pavelka and the winner of his season of the show, Vienna Girardi, have broken up, and the two recently sat down with host Chris Harrison to discuss the end of their relationship, but things didn’t go so well.  According to TMZ, the interview ended abruptly after Jake exploded with anger.  Vienna’s friend told the site that Jake “has a really bad hidden temper.”  Insiders revealed the two had to be separated and there’s no word if more of the interview will be filmed.  Other production sources said Vienna kept interrupting Jake and “was in such a rage, if there was anyone to fear it was her.”  See it all when the Jake and Vienna reunion show airs on ABC on July 5^th. 
• MEL GIBSON FILES RESTRAINING ORDER! Mel Gibson has even more drama in his life. According to PerezHilton.com, the actor has filed a temporary restraining order against his daughter Lucia’s mother, Oksana Grigorieva. No word as to why Gibson felt the need to get the restraining order, but Oksana recently said she’d soon be revealing details of their “sudden” break-up.
• CHRIS ROCK TALKS OIL SPILL! Chris Rock stars in the new comedy Grown Ups and most of the film takes place in or around water. . Grown Ups also stars Adam Sandler and David Spade and is in theaters now.
• LINDSAY LOHAN MUST TALK! A judge has ruled that Lindsay Lohan must reveal more about what went on back in 2007 when she was involved in a car chase that led to her arrest. An L-A judge wants LiLo to answer more about any drug use that went on that night and to go into more detail about the events. Learn more at News.Yahoo.com.
• JACKSON’S DOC CAN PRACTICE IN VEGAS! Michael Jackson’s physician, Doctor Conrad Murray, is allowed to practice medicine in Las Vegas. According to the Associated Press, a Nevada court has reached a settlement with the doctor, who owes back child support payments in the state, and the deal allows Murray to continuing practicing medicine there.
• MJ’S KIDS RELAX AT THE BEACH! Friday marked a year since the death of Michael Jackson. On the eve of the anniversary, his kids, Prince, Paris and Blanket, were photographed on a beach in Miami taking it easy.
• TOY STORY 3! Joan Cusask voices “Jessie” in the animated smash hit Toy Story 3.  Toy Story 3 also features Tim Allen, Tom Hanks and Don Rickles. See it in theatres today.
• WESLEY SNIPES TAX TROUBLE!  Actor Wesley Snipes’ former financial advisor, Ken Starr, was arrested and charged with fraud earlier this month and Snipes is hoping that Starr’s arrest will keep him out of jail. Wesley was sentenced to three years in jail in 2008 for tax evasion. Snipes and his lawyers are now filing an appeal to try and get his sentence reduced. Learn more at News.Yahoo.com.
• THE BACHELORETTE! There are seven contestants left on this season of The Bachelorette and while Ali and her suitors are currently touring around the world, she told us that she won’t be distracted by the things around her when making her choice for the best mate. Tune in to ABC tonight at 8 PM Eastern to catch Ali and the men in Istanbul.
• LITTLE FOCKERS TRAILER! The trailer for Little Fockers, the third movie in the Meet the Parents franchise, has hit the Internet. The flick stars Ben Stiller, Robert DeNiro and Jessica Alba and is scheduled to be released around Christmastime. Check out the new trailer over at PopWatch.EW.com.
• HAMILTON GETS A REALITY SHOW!  George Hamilton is the latest celebrity developing a reality show. The tanned actor is creating what The Hollywood Reporter calls a “docusoap.”  The series, which is described as a real-life Two and a Half Men, would chronicle Hamilton’s life with his older son Ashley and his younger son George.  It’ll air on TV Land but no word yet on when the show will premiere. 

• Jake will be part of the new show Bachelor Pad, a competition series in which former Bachelor contestants vie for a cash prize and a second shot at love. 

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

RASCAL FLATTS TAKE FANS ON A RIDE! Rascal Flatts kicked off their Nothing Like This tour last night in Raleigh, North Carolina and head to Charlotte, North Carolina tomorrow night. The trio has been touring for ten years and plan to take fans down memory lane as they play as many songs from the past decade as they can during the show. Jay DeMarcus jokes it could take them a while to get through all their songs. “It’s gonna be four hours and forty minutes probably and Gary’s not going to be able to breathe by the time we get to the last song. But we’re really looking forward to it because it’s going to be a lot of music and very little talking. We’re going to try to get to as many of their favorites as we possibly can.” Kellie Pickler and Chris Young are opening for Rascal Flatts during the tour. For a list of tour dates and locations, log on to CMT.com.

LADY ANTEBELLUM DOMINATES FIRST HALF OF YEAR. With half of 2010 under our belts, it’s Lady Antebellum who have spent the most weeks at the top of the Billboard Country Albums chart. Need You Now spent time at the top of the Billboard 200 chart as well and the group thanks their fans for both of those accomplishments.  “We owe them an arm and a leg. I think 2010 so far has just been the most amazing year of our lives. With the album coming out in January and then the Grammys, you know its just—we have been floating on a cloud. It’s been a really, really fun year.” Zac Brown Band’s The Foundation comes in as the second most popular album so far this year followed by Taylor Swift’s Fearless. Carrie Underwood’s Play On was the fourth most popular album followed by Lady Antebellum’s debut album. And Miranda Lambert’s Revolution rounds out the top five most popular albums so far in 2010.

CARRIE UNDERWOOD SAYS NO MOVIE ROLLS THIS SUMMER. Carrie Underwood wrapped up the first leg of her Play On tour last weekend. She has a few fairs and festivals to play in July and August and it’s rumored she’ll marry sometime between those dates. But with quite a few days off before her fall tour kicks off, people are wondering if she’s going to film another movie role. But Carrie says not to get your hopes up. “I think this year, as far as film, there’s a lot of really great projects that are in the works for the summer—musically and otherwise—but as far as me on film, no.” The second leg of Carrie’s Play On tour kicks off September 25^th in Portland, Oregon. The tour will wrap up in Calgary, Alberta Canada December 19^th.

ONE WATER-LOGGED BRAD PAISLEY TICKET FOR SALE. One bidder is going to get an authentic water-logged ticket to Brad Paisley’s H20 tour on September 26^th. A resident of Billings, Montana has decided to clean up the aftermath of a tornado that occurred there on Sunday in a non-traditional way: by auctioning off his tornado debris on eBay. One of the items is that slightly rain-and-hail damaged Brad Paisley ticket. The auction price stands at 65 cents.  

BRAD PAISLEY IN THE UK. Brad Paisley made a few stops at some media outlets while performing in London. On Tuesday he was a special guest on BBC Breakfast on BBC One TV, the UK’s highest rated morning show.  He and the hosts chatted about why he wears a hat, how he met his wife and why he loves country music.

WOULD YOU NAME YOUR PET AFTER A TRACE ADKINS SONG? A recent poll was done of the nation’s most unusual cat and dog names. once a huge list was compiled, a vote was taken to narrow down to the top 50 and one of country’s funniest vocabulary words has made the list. Can you guess what it is? The #3 craziest dog name is “Badonkadonk.” Coming in first is “pickle von corndog,” followed by “lord chubby pruneface.” As for the cats, the top 3 are “purr diem,” “bing clawsby” and “cleocatra.”

JUSTIN MOORE TAKES HIS FAMILY ON TOUR. Justin Moore is one proud father when it comes to his daughter Ella Kole who was born back in February. Justin admits that he changes diapers, unlike some of his other father friends. As for hitting the road with his family, Ella Kole and his wife rode on the bus for a recent show to Baton Rouge and he said she slept the entire time. This summer, Justin hopes Kate and Ella will get on the bus a few more times, including on the trip to Canada. They have gotten Ella’s first passport ready in case they go.

Miranda Lambert Releasing "Only Prettier" as Next Single, Video. Miranda Lambert has released "Only Prettier" as the next single from her album, Revolution. The single was sent to country radio on Monday (June 21). She recently filmed the video in Joelton, Tenn., with guests Kellie Pickler, Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum and Laura Bell Bundy. The video features the artists dressed up as rival "socials" and "greasers" at a high school sock hop. "To me, 'Only Prettier' is an anthem," Lambert said. "It's my own anthem, and I want girls to have their fists in the air singing 'Only Prettier.' It's antagonistic, in a fun way, and I loved the attitude behind it. It kind of fools you, because it's got this really country, laid-back intro, but then it's balls to the wall the rest of the way."

WEEKEND Tour tracker

Miranda Lambert

Tonight – Manhattan, KS (Country Stampede)

Saturday Night – Grand Junction, CO

Sugarland

Sunday Night – Calgary, AB

Monday Night – Edmonton, AB

Rascal Flatts

Friday Night – Raleigh, NC

Saturday Night – Charlotte, NC

Sunday Night – Atlanta, GA

Keith Urban

Friday Night – Manhattan, KS (Country Stampede)

Saturday Night – Greeley, CO

Sunday Night – Grand Junction, CO

Brad Paisley

Tonight – London, United Kingdom

Friday Night – Nottoden, Norway

Luke Bryan

Tonight – Manhattan, KS (Country Stampede)

Friday Night – Oshkosh, WI

Saturday Night – Milbank, SD

OZZY IS A JOHNNY CASH FAN. US Magazine did a "25 things you don't know about me" interview in which Ozzy Osbourne he admitted something very surprising.  The #6 thing on the list that we didn't know about this star was his love of the music of Johnny Cash.

Loretta Lynn's Memoir, Coal Miner's Daughter, Will Be Reissued. Loretta Lynn's memoir, Loretta Lynn: Coal Miner's Daughter, will be reissued in trade paperback on Sept. 21 by Vintage Books. The publication coincides with the 50th anniversary of Lynn's first single, "I'm a Honky Tonk Girl," and the 30th anniversary of the Academy Award-winning film, Coal Miner's Daughter. Lynn will contribute a new foreword to the book, which has been out of print for nearly a decade. The memoir will be released simultaneously as an e-book and as an audio book narrated by Sissy Spacek, the actress who won an Oscar for portraying Lynn in the 1980 film. Lynn co-wrote the memoir with author George Vecsey. The Country Music Hall of Fame member will perform Saturday (June 26) at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

 A YEAR LATER: MICHAEL JACKSON NEWS

Today is the one year anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death. 

• JACKSON ESTATE ON LOCKDOWN! The Jackson compound where Katherine Jackson, Michael’s children and other Jackson family members reside is on lockdown today for the anniversary of Michael’s death. According to TMZ, some 30 to 40 police officers are patrolling the grounds and the surrounding areas, on guard for rabid Jackson fans trying to trespass on the grounds. They’ve also banned people from selling merchandise near the house.

MICHAEL JACKSON’S LAST HOURS

• Around 7 PM on Wednesday June 24^th, 2009, Michael Jackson left his mansion and headed toward the Staples Center, where he rehearsed for his This Is It tour.
• He returned home sometime after midnight on Thursday, June 25^th intent on getting sleep.
• At 1:30 AM, Dr. Conrad Murray gave the fatigued MJ a 10-milligram Valium tablet, which had no effect on the singer.
• At about 2 AM, Dr. Conrad Murray gave Jackson two-milligrams of Lorazepam through a saline drip. Still, MJ was unable to sleep.
• At 3 AM, Dr. Conrad Murray gave the King of Pop a two-milligram dose of Midazolam, yet another sedative, but that was also ineffective in helping the star sleep.
• At 5 AM, Jackson was given another two-milligrams of Lorazepam by Murray.
• By 7:30 AM, Jackson was still awake so Dr. Conrad Murray administered two more milligrams of Midazolam.
• Around 10:40 AM, MJ demanded a drug called Propofol and Dr. Murray obliged, giving Michael 25 milligrams of the drug that ended up killing him.
• At about 10:52 AM, Dr. Murray returned from the restroom to find that Michael Jackson was not breathing.
• Between 11:18 and 11:15 AM, phone logs show that the doctor made three phone calls. One to his Las Vegas clinic, one to a patient and one to a friend.
• At 12:13 PM, Murray called Jackson’s personal assistant and left a message asking the assistant to call him as soon as possible. Sometime later, the paramedics were called.
• It was at 12:27 PM on Thursday when the paramedics arrived at the scene.
• At 12:29 PM, the paramedics stated that Michael Jackson was not breathing and had no pulse.
• Michael Jackson was pronounced dead on Thursday, June 25^th, 2009 at 2:26 p.m.

Facts about Michael Jackson compiled from a story by the Associated Press

FACTS ABOUT ARTIST’S WANTING TO WORK WITH MICHAEL JACKSON

• On Larry King Live, Lady Gaga revealed that she was asked to open for Michael Jackson on his This Is It tour and that if the gigs had happened, they may have even done a duet on stage together.

• Slash revealed that he wanted Jackson to lend his voice to his upcoming solo album.

• Leona Lewis tweeted after watching This Is It on DVD that she was “so inspired” and that it got her “geared up” for her own tour.

Facts about Michael Jackson compiled with the help of AceShowBiz.com

• JESSE JAMES AND SANDRA BULLOCK ARE SPEAKING! According to an Us Weekly source, Jesse James and Sandra Bullock are on speaking terms again and Jesse asked Sandra if it was okay that he and his family relocate to Austin, Texas. This is the first positive news about the pair since news broke in March that James had alleged cheated on Bullock while she was filming a movie. 
• BACHELOR JAKE EXPLAINS VIENNA BREAK UP! Bachelor Jake Pavelka decided to end his engagement to Vienna Girardi over the phone after being hired to play a role in the hit television show, Drop Dead Diva. Jake told People magazine that the breakup was fueled by arguments the couple had while he was preparing for his television role and because the pair already had some trust issues. 
• KRISTEN STEWART TALKS ECLIPSE! Kristen Stewart is so hot right now, with the latest Twilight film Eclipse hitting theatres this coming Wednesday.  Check out Kristen as “Bella” in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse when it hits theaters June 30^th.
• PATTINSON RELATED TO DRACULA! Twilight star Robert Pattinson may be related to the 15^th century Transylvania leader Vlad Dracula who inspired the fictional character “Dracula” in Bram Stoker’s book. According to E! Online, a genealogist has traced Pattinson’s heritage and the British actor has ties to Dracula.
• VICE PRESIDENT’S ARMY WIFE! Vice President Joe Biden’s wife is going to be a guest star on the Lifetime series Army Wives. According to the Associated Press, Jill Biden will be on an episode of the show to highlight the things men and women in the military do for our country.
• LOHAN’S ASSISTANT TO TALK? Lindsay Lohan’s former assistant is being offered big bucks to talk about her former employer. According to the New York Post, the former assistant has so far turned down all the offers she’s been getting, even though some of them are in the five figure range.
• JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK! We caught up with legendary comedian Joan Rivers this week to talk about the documentary Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work, which, surprise, surprise, is all about her. Head over to MovieFone.com to get locations and show times for Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work.
• KIM KARDASHIAN’S NEW MAN! Kim Kardashian has moved from one football star to another. According to People, the reality star is totally over Reggie Bush and has moved on to Dallas Cowboys wide received Miles Austin.  The pair met in L-A a few months ago and are now dating.
• BRAIN SURGERY! Olympic skater Scott Hamilton underwent brain surgery this past week to remove a benign tumor that has been growing since 2004. Hamilton is currently recovering from the removal process. Check out People.com for more.
• LONGEST TENNIS MATCH IN HISTORY! American tennis player John Isner beat out Frenchman Nicolas Mahut to win the longest-ever recorded tennis match. The pair slugged it out for an 11-plus hour match at Wimbledon, which was separated out into three days. Check out People.com for more.
• FANS CAN CAST THEIR VOTES FOR THE ESPYS! Fans can now vote for their favorite athletes to be honored at the 2010 ESPY Awards. Voting is now in session for the sports men and women you think should get nods at this year’s award show. Tune in to ESPN tonight to see the half-hour nomination special on at 8 PM Eastern. Make sure to get your opinions in by July 10^th at 11:59 PM and catch the 2010 ESPYs live on ESPN on July 14^th at 9 PM Eastern.

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

KELLIE PICKLER IS ENGAGED! Kellie Pickler is now engaged to songwriter Kyle Jacobs. According to People magazine, Kyle popped the question June 15^th which has long been a “sad and hard” day for Kellie considering that’s the day her grandmother Faye Pickler passed away.  Having the proposal on that landmark day made Kellie and Kyle both feel like they had her grandmother’s blessing. Kyle had a blanket with champagne and candles waiting on the beach where the couple was taking a stroll. “Afterward, we just held each other and had the most beautiful prayer," Kyle says. "We had a little champagne and talked and laughed and cried." The two met two-and-a-half years ago and Kellie attributes Kyle for taking away all of her fears about marriage. Kellie says she’s the happiest she’s ever been and plans to have her father, who has been sober for a year, walk her down the aisle. Kellie is the latest of three young female country artists to get engaged. First it was Carrie Underwood, then Miranda Lambert and now Kellie. She says the three are happy for one another and she knows there will be lots of girl talk and sharing of ideas in the months to come. “We just keep joking about how there must be something in the water," says Kellie.

Fans Grab Free Tickets for Jimmy Buffett & Friends Concert. All the free tickets made available Wednesday morning for the CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends Live From the Gulf Coast concert were claimed in less than ten minutes. The ticket distribution on Ticketmaster's website began at 10 a.m. Jimmy Buffet and his Coral Reefer Band will host the July 1^st show featuring Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown, Allen Toussaint, Sonny Landreth, Jesse Winchester and additional guests. The event, to be staged on the beach in Gulf Shores, Alabama, is being organized to demonstrate support for and solidarity with residents, businesses and the culture of the Gulf Coast. A portion of the show will air live on CMT from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. ET/PT. Performances will be simulcast live on Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio and streamed live on CMT.com. For information on how to help the Gulf Coast, visit cmtonecountry.com.

BRAD PAISLEY ENCOURAGES THE BRITISH TO GET SOME MUD ON THEIR TIRES. Brad Paisley played his first show in London last night and will play there again tonight before heading to Norway on tomorrow. Brad had to change up his set list once he heard that going mudding isn’t something people do in London. You have to pay more to drive a four-wheel drive vehicle so a lot of people don’t own them. But Brad thinks they should reconsider. “But you know, it rains so much—you’re missing out. You got a really good chance at mud in your country.” After his show in Norway, Brad is taking a little bit of time off before taking his H20 World Tour back on the road July 10^th in Austin, Texas.

NO LITTLE BLAKE SHELTON’S ANY TIME SOON. Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert are just getting their wedding plans underway, so the thought of children is barely even a conversation they’ve had.  “You know, we say things every now and then about kids or what we would name a kid one day or something like that. But we’ve never really had a serious conversation about having kids—we’ve had serious conversations about not having kids. And so it’d be awhile before we would try something like that.” Blake goes on to say he and Miranda are at a great place in their careers right now and don’t want to slow down at the moment. “My gosh, Miranda’s career is just exploding. Its awesome. I’m finally getting to that place that I’ve always wanted to do—it would be a tough time to just stop that train once you get it going. Knowing her, she would want to stop everything to do that right.” With all of the pets Miranda and Blake have between them, they have plenty of “children” to take care of right now. Here’s a recap of their livestock.

Dogs:

Steve, Cher, Delilah, Delta, Waylon, Jessie

Big horses:

Lucky Star, Miss Emily, Sunny Gem, Zeus

Mini horses:

Sugar Pie, Honey Bun, Annie, Adrianna

Potty belly pigs:

Gideon, Amos

Cats:

Maxine, Suzie Q, Shelly

Chickens:

No names! (Miranda doesn’t name them because they come and go)

JULIANNE HOUGH AND RYAN SEACREST KEEP GETTING COZY. A source tells PEOPLE magazine that Julianne Hough and Ryan Seacrest have “gotten more serious over the last month,” adding that the couple is “perfect for each other.” The two originally tried to keep their relationship hush-hush, but have recently been spotted all over Los Angeles together. First, photos showed Julianne and Ryan strolling down a Malibu beach with their arms around each other, three days later they were spotted at Red O restaurant in Los Angeles, and then the two were seen shopping at Alice + Olivia in Malibu. Julianne, who split from country star Chuck Wicks last year, was also linked with comedian Dane Cook in March.

A SURPRISE HONEYMOON FOR CARRIE UNDERWOOD? Carrie Underwood has said her fiancé Mike Fisher is in charge of planning their honeymoon so she has no idea where they’ll be going. Several sources are reporting that the couple will head to Tahiti and Bora Bora for eleven days and the latest rumor is the couple will wed in less than 3 weeks.

TAYLOR SWIFT IS COUNTRY MUSIC’S MOST POPULAR SOCIAL NETWORKER. A recent survey was taken of the world’s biggest music stars based on their social networking (twitter, MySpace, etc.) popularity. The top ten were ranked and Taylor Swift is the only country artist on the list at number three. The rest of the list is as follows:

1. Lady Gaga
2. Britney Spears
3. Taylor Swift
4. Michael Jackson
5. Justin Bieber
6. Ashley Tisdale
7. Coldplay
8. Katy Perry
9. John Mayer
10. Jonas Brothers

MIRANDA LAMBERT RECRUITS FELLOW COUNTRY-SWEETHEARTS FOR HER NEW VIDEO. Miranda Lambert shot the video for her new single, “Only Prettier,” this week and brought along a few friends to help out. Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott, Laura Bell Bundy and Kellie Pickler were all on hand to dress up in 50’s prom-wear and pretend to have a little bit of a scuff between the “greasers” and the “socials.”

RASCAL FLATTS BECOME CELEBRITY SPOKESMEN. Rascal Flatts have been named Ambassadors, or celebrity spokesmen, for The Jason Foundation,  a project that helps educate youth and students on how to recognize when a friend might be struggling with thoughts of suicide or life in general and how to help. The guys will show their public service announcement during their “Nothing Like This” tour when it launches this weekend in Raleigh, North Carolina.

ANOTHER AMERICAN IDOL GOES COUNTRY. Former American Idol contestant Aaron Kelly has announced he is searching for a place in country music. Idol-watchers probably remember Aaron’s performances of several Rascal Flatts songs on the show last season. In a recent interview Aaron said he’s been doing some songwriting in Nashville and pitching songs to different artists.

CARRIE UNDERWOOD’S FIANCE CELEBRATES HIS LAST DAYS AS A BACHELOR. Carrie Underwood and Mike Fisher’s upcoming nuptials must be right around the corner, as Mike Fisher just celebrated his bachelor party this weekend in Miami. About 20 guys were in attendance to celebrate Mike’s final weeks of singledom at a Mansion in Miami. Sources say that ‘Lil John was the DJ at the party, and Mike appeared to be very relaxed while he enjoyed a few drinks with his friends.

Julianne Hough Keeps Role in Footloose Remake, Due in April 2011. Julianne Hough has kept her role as Ariel in the remake of the 1984 film, Footloose. The new version is expected to be released on April of 2011, by Paramount. Kenny Wormald, a newcomer who has danced on Justin Timberlake's tour and appeared in MTV's Danceline, has been cast as “Ren,” the lead character originally played by Kevin Bacon. Dennis Quaid will portray Reverend Moore, and Miles Teller has been cast as “Willard.” The remake will be written and directed by Craig Brewer, following the departure of director Kenny Ortega. Chace Crawford and Zac Efron had each been previously cast as “Ren.” Julianne is a two-time winner on Dancing With the Stars and plans to release a new country album in November.

Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson Recognized by Library of Congress. Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miner's Daughter" and Willie Nelson's ‘Red Headed Stranger” were among the 25 recordings named to the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress on Wednesday. The recordings were recognized for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Loretta's signature song was released in 1970. Willie's album was issued in 1975. All recordings must be at least 10 years old to be inducted. Recordings by Tupac Shakur, R.E.M., Patti Smith and The Band were also named to the registry, which now includes 300 titles spanning the years 1913 to 1995. Nominations were gathered from online public submissions and the Library of Congress' National Recording Preservation Board, comprised of leaders in the fields of music, recorded sound and preservation.

THIS AND THAT

• Ninety percent of the people responding to the "Would you watch a Reba-Beyoncé CMT Crossroads?" poll on People.com said "yes."
• Nashville newspaper The Tennessean reports the cost to repair flood damage at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville has risen to an estimated 42- million dollars. 

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

• COLEMAN HAD RESTRAINING ORDER! According to People magazine, Gary Coleman tried to get a restraining order against his ex-wife, Shannon Price, just three months before he died. According to the papers, Coleman accused Price of trespassing on his property while he was in the hospital recovering from heart surgery. Just three months later, Price was the person who made the decision to take Coleman off life support.
• RYAN SEACREAST’S NEW GIRL? According to People magazine, American Idol host Ryan Seacrest and Dancing With the Stars pro Julianne Hough (Pron: Huff) are in a relationship. A source told the outlet that the pair is perfect for each other and have been spending a lot of time together but for the moment, the duo is trying to keep their relationship quiet.
• THE SITUATION CLOTHING! Jersey Shore cast member The Situation is working on his own clothing line. According to the New York Post, the new line will be a “couture line of high-quality wearable art” and boy are we excited to see the threads. The new season of Jersey Shore premieres on MTV July 29^th. For now, head to Zazzle.com to buy Jersey Shore merchandise.
• NICOLE RICHIE PROBATION! It’s no surprise if you forgot Nicole Richie was on probation for a 2006 DUI charge, because she herself seems to have forgotten it as well. The mother of two’s probation has been extended a year, since she’s been so focused on raising her kids, she’s forgotten to attend the number of alcohol education courses she was supposed to. Hit up TMZ for more.
• CELEB STALKER! A man has been charged with stalking Law & Order: Criminal Intent actress Kathryn Erbe. According to the Associated Press, a Philadelphia man is facing federal charges for allegedly stalking the actress who plays “Detective Alexandra Eames” on the show. Tune in to Oxygen at 8 PM tonight to see a classic episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent.
• HUDSON GOES PUBLIC WITH NEW GUY! Kate Hudson has gone public with the new guy in her life, Muse rocker Matt Bellamy. According to the New York Post, the actress and the musician were making out in a New York City restaurant and were holding hands. Hudson last dated New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez.
• BABY CHRISTENING! Supermodel Gisele Bundchen and quarterback Tom Brady christened their six-month-old son Benjamin in California earlier this week. Brady is Catholic, and now his son Benjamin is as well. Bundchen and Tom married last year in a small ceremony and Brady has another son, three-year-old John, with actress Bridget Moynahan. Head to UsMagazine.com for more.
• NEWCOMER FOR FOOTLOOSE! A newcomer to Hollywood is getting his big break in the remake of Footloose. Unknown actor Kenny Wormald has beat out everyone else to take on Kevin Bacon’s role in the remake. Zac Efron, Chace Crawford and other well-known actors were previously tied to the role. Hit up News.Yahoo.com for more.
• BABY NEWS! Save the Last Dance and The District actor Sean Patrick Thomas and his wife have just had their second child. The couple had a baby boy they named Luc Laurent Thomas and the seven-pound, eight-ounce child joins his baby sister, Lola Jolie, who is two years old. Learn more at People.com.

Kellie Pickler and songwriter Kyle Jacobs are engaged!  He proposed on the beach in Florida.  Here is a pic of the happy couple!

Read the whole story here:  http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/celebrity.news.gossip/06/23/kellie.pickler.engaged.ppl/index.html?section=cnn_latest

Too much to include on the blog, so read all about them here:

http://www.cracked.com/article_18589_7-classic-disney-movies-based-r-rated-stories.html

Did they miss any?

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

NASHVILLE RISES AND ROCKS – SANDRA BULLOCK MAKES SURPRISE APPEARANCE! Tim McGraw and Faith Hill held their Nashville Rising benefit concert last night to help victims of the recent flooding and Sandra Bullock was the big surprise guest of the night! Sandra introduced Faith before she sang and tried to play a few chords on a guitar before letting the professionals take over. The final amount of money raised from the event isn’t known yet but is projected to be two to three million dollars. All of the money will go to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee and Tim homes people walked away from the concert with a little less stress on their shoulders.  “I think more than anything, when people walk away, just that they had a good time—that they forgot about troubles for awhile. I don’t want them to really go away thinking about the disaster as much as thinking about that it was fun.” Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, Montgomery Gentry, Amy Grant, Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Martina McBride, LeAnn Rimes, Julie Roberts, Blake Shelton, Michael W. Smith, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and ZZ Top all performed during the nearly four-and-a-half hour long concert. Several check presentations were made during the night which LeAnn Rimes hopes gave victims of the flood a sense of optimism. “Hopefully we can just kind of—this’ll be the beginning to giving these people hope. And hopefully just lending a hand.”

RECAP OF PERFORMERS AND VIDEO MESSAGES

Carrie Underwood – “Undo It,” “Jesus Take The Wheel”

Blake Shelton – “Some Beach,” “Hillbilly Bone,” featuring Trace Adkins

Lynyrd Skynyrd – “What’s Your Name,” “Sweet Home Alabama”

Video Message – Reese Witherspoon from the set of Water For Elephants

Michael W. Smith – “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Place in This World”

Amy Grant – “Better Than A Hallelujah,” and “Helping Hand”

Montgomery Gentry – “Something To Be Proud Of,” “My Town”

Video Message – Dolly Parton and Matthew McConaughey (he was holding a bongo drum)

Taylor Swift – “Love Story,” “You Belong”

Luke Bryan – “Country Man,” “Do I”

LeAnn Rimes – “Swingin’,” “What I Cannot Change”

Martina McBride – “Anyway,” “Love’s The Only House/ Blessed”

Nancy O’Dell – Introduced the head of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee

ZZ Top – “Sharp Dressed Man,” “Le Grange/Tush”

Julie Robert – “Somebody Change”

Miranda Lambert – “House That Built Me,” “White Liar”

Jason Aldean – “Big Green Tractor,” “She’s Country”

Billy Ray Cyrus – “Could’ve Been Me”

Miley Cyrus – “The Climb”

Toby Keith – “I Love This Bar,” “As Good As I Once Was”

Faith Hill – “Stronger,” “Piece of My Heart”

Tim McGraw – “Southern Voice,” “Live Like You Were Dying”

Kenny Chesney Schedules New Album for SeptEMBER 28^th. Kenny Chesney has scheduled a new album, Hemingway's Whiskey, for a September 28^th release. It's his first album of new material since Lucky Old Sun in October 2008. "I knew I wanted the record to be something more, something that took what I do in my special projects and weaved it into what I do for the mainstream," Kenny says. "It takes a lot of energy and mental space to be on the road … and I kind of felt like -- especially coming off of this second Greatest Hits-- this next record should be something that set the stage for the next phase of my music.”  Kenny released Greatest Hits II in 2009, then re-released it earlier this year with two bonus tracks.

Brooks & Dunn Reschedule Numerous Tour Dates Due to Vocal Rest. Brooks & Dunn have canceled and rescheduled several dates on their Last Rodeo tour due to Ronnie Dunn’s prescribed three-week vocal rest. The duo’s next tour date will take place on July 16^th in Indianapolis, and the tour will now conclude on September 2^nd in Nashville. Their appearances at Summerfest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the Country Concert event in Fort Loramie, Ohio, will not be rescheduled. An updated tour schedule has been posted on the duo’s website.

Brooks & Dunn Make VIP Tickets Available for Last Rodeo Tour Finale. Brooks & Dunn have partnered with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum to make VIP tickets available to their sold-out concert in Nashville on August 10^th. The show will be the final stop of their Last Rodeo tour. The Hillbilly Deluxe package is 750-dollars and includes a dinner at the museum's Hall of Fame Rotunda on August 9^th (not attended by the duo), a floor concert seat, a meet-and-greet opportunity with the duo, a parking spot for the dinner and the concert, a merchandise package and an autographed item. The Play Something Country package is 300 dollars and includes a floor concert seat, a merchandise package and an autographed item. In addition, those who become a "Friend of the Museum" at the 250-dollar level will be rewarded with a ticket to the concert in addition to the other benefits of membership to the museum. Joining at the 500-dollar level will include two tickets. The VIP packages are available on the museum's website and are available for a limited time while supplies last.

DIERKS BENTLY TAPES IN THE DARK. Dierks Bentley was scheduled to appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live Monday night, but things went wrong. About an hour before the taping, the power went out closing down the control room, broadcast transmission center and tape operations. The guests and audience had to sit around waiting while the power problem was worked on. During this wait time, Kimmel grabbed his laptop and recorded the entire show with his computer’s webcam. Dierks soon tweeted some hints about the show: “Who knew you could shoot a late night show with a mac?” Look for Dierks tonight on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC.

MARTINA MCBRIDE LETS FANS BEHIND THE MIC! For Martina McBride’s fan club party, she invited fans to see where all of her music is made – her husband’s Blackbird Studios. Fans were able to pick from a list of Martina’s hits and record them in the studio. Afterwards Martina held a party on the lawn which she organized herself. She says if she wasn’t an artist she probably would have ended up a caterer or party planner. She often throws parties at her home and enjoys themes. “I did a Mexican-themed party, just a dinner party for some friends and we had a Mariachi band, and margaritas and I cooked all the food and that’s a fun theme because it’s very colorful.”

CARRIE UNDERWOOD WEDDING RUMORS CONTINUE TO CIRCLE. Rumors are going around of a possible date and location change for Carrie Underwood and Mike Fisher’s wedding. According to several “reports”, the wedding will take place on July 10^th in Augusta, Georgia. Carrie played in Augusta last month so maybe she did some location searching during her tour and found the golf course to be the most beautiful and neutral place for the couple. Other rumors say that the wedding will take place on a farm in Franklin, Tennessee.

Farm Aid Photo Exhibit Opens Friday at Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. A photo exhibit commemorating the 25th anniversary of Farm Aid will open at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville on Friday. The exhibit will be on display in the museum's West Gallery through the end of 2010. Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young organized the first Farm Aid concert to raise awareness about the loss of family farms and to help keep farm families on their land. The first show took place Sept. 22, 1985, in Champaign, Ill. The exhibit features photos of numerous country artists, including Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Merle Haggard, Emmylou Harris, Alan Jackson, Jamey Johnson, Kris Kristofferson, Martina McBride and Keith Urban.

THIS AND THAT

• After Brad Paisley's show in Darien Lake, New York on Friday night, the local police made 46 arrests. Two guys for fighting with security, one guy for third-degree assault, one for trespassing (he went back into the venue after being kicked out) and then a whole bunch for disorderly conduct.
• Lady Antebellum tickets for their first headlining tour have been selling out like crazy. Their November stop in Augusta, Georgia sold out in seven minutes.
• Laura Bell Bundy has announced she’s working on a project that will bring country music to Broadway. She says more details will be available soon.
• According to a Sugarland tweet, The Lilith Fair concert in Nashville August 7^th has been cancelled.
• Trace Adkins, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill were among the celebrities who appeared on the Disaster In The GULF: How You Can Help telethon on CNN’s “LARRY KING Live” Monday night. The two-hour event raised more than $1.81 million for disaster relief on the gulf coast as the oil spill continues.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

A YEAR LATER: MICHAEL JACKSON NEWS

• FANS RESTRICTED WHEN HONORING MICHAEL! Fans of Michael Jackson who plan on honoring the King of Pop on Friday at the Forest Lawn Cemetery where he was buried will be limited in how they can mourn. According to TMZ, fans wanting to be there on the first anniversary of Jackson’s death will be allowed into the cemetery, but will not be allowed into the mausoleum where Jackson is buried and will not be allowed to release doves or balloons, or sing and dance to Michael Jackson’s songs.
• JACKSON MUSICAL TRIBUTE! This Friday, CBS News’ The Early Show will honor Michael Jackson with performances from Christina Aguilera, Marc Anthony, LL Cool J, Smokey Robinson and British singer James Morrison. Tune in to CBS at 8 AM Friday morning to catch the hour long special, The King of Pop: One Year Later, which commemorates the one year anniversary of Michael’s death. Learn more at USMagazine.com.
• JACKSON KIDS ARE NORMAL! We recently reported that Michael Jackson’s mother Katherine is worried about Michael’s three children, saying they are very lonely and distraught. But, according to a lawyer for the family, Jackson’s children are very much normal kids who are “full of fun and pranks” and are devoted to each other and to their grandmother. Learn more at News.Yahoo.com.
• MICHAEL JACKSON MEMORIAL! Poet and author Maya Angelou is taking part in a pointillism portrait of the late Michael Jackson. As part of a tribute to the late singer, Angelou, who read a poem at Jackson’s funeral, is taking part in the portrait, which will be made-up of little dots with each dot representing a fan. To contribute your dot to the free portrait and to learn more, head over to MichaelJacksonTributePortrait.com now.
• MICHAEL JACKSON AUCTION! Tomorrow and Friday, the Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas will be holding an auction where fans can bid to own some of Michael Jackson’s things. The auction, which coincides with Friday’s one year anniversary of Jackson’s death, will feature items once owned by private collectors like Corey Feldman. Learn more at EOnline.com.
• MTV SPOTLIGHTS THE KING OF POP! The legendary Michael Jackson will be featured on MTV from June 25^th through June 27^th. Fans can tune in this weekend to see how MJ influenced other artists, as well as an entire two hour block of non-stop hit videos from the late great King of Pop. Also, be sure to tune in as the network recaps the day that the King Of Pop died. Visit the Michael Jackson artist page at MTV.com to learn more.

• BACHELOR BREAK-UP! The Bachelor’s Jake Pavelka and the woman he chose on the show, Vienna Girardi, have called off their engagement. The media friendly couple’s rep issued a statement asking for privacy at this time. According to E! Online, this brings the total of failed Bachelor pairings up to 13. 
• CELEBS HELP THE GULF COAST! On Monday night, celebrities like Cameron Diaz, Justin Bieber, Robert Redford, Ryan Seacrest and others were at CNN to help raise money for the Gulf Coast. The stars held a two hour telethon hosted by Larry King called Disaster in the Gulf: How You Can Help, where they asked for America’s support to raise money for the Gulf Coast. Check out EOnline.com for more.  
  • HOW YOU CAN HELP:
    • Go to CNN.com/Impact
      Text "COAST" to 50555 to donate $10
      Follow #CNNHelpGulf on Twitter
      Go to Facebook.com/LarryKingLive

• TRUE BLOOD WILL BE BACK! The hit HBO series True Blood will be back for another season. The channel has renewed their vampire series for a 12-episode fourth season. According to a press release, production on the new season will begin early next year with fans getting to see the new season next summer. Tune in to HBO this Sunday to see a new episode of True Blood at 9 PM.
• KHLOE GIVES LAMAR A CAR! In celebration of her husband’s win over the Boston Celtics in the NBA finals, Khloe Kardashian has purchased a brand new Rolls Royce for her spouse, L-A Laker Lamar Odom. The pair will probably be enjoying the vehicle together as Khloe told us, they are very much still in their newlywed phase. Tune in to E! at 10 PM Eastern to catch a new episode of Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami this Sunday.  

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

CMT to Air Jimmy Buffett's Free Concert With Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown JuLY FIRST. To demonstrate support for the people, businesses and culture of the Gulf Coast, CMT will telecast a free musical celebration live from the beach at Gulf Shores, Alabama. CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends Live from the Gulf Coast will air on CMT on Thursday, July 1^st, from 8-9:30 p.m. ET/PT. Jimmy and his Coral Reefer Band will be joined in the concert by his friends Zac Brown, Kenny Chesney and Sonny Landreth. Other performers will be announced as additional plans develop. Stay linked to CMT.com for further details and for ticketing information. For information on how to help the Gulf Coast, visit cmtonecountry.com or margaritaville.com.

TIM MCGRAW AND FAITH HILL GET READY FOR NASHVILLE RISING CONCERT. Tim McGraw and Faith Hill will hold their Nashville Rising benefit concert tonight in Nashville. Tim, Faith, Toby Keith, Taylor Swift, Julie Roberts, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton, ZZ Top, Carrie Underwood, Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, Amy Grant, and LeAnn Rimes will all perform during the event. Tim’s band – The Dance Hall Doctors – are serving as the house band for the night which has kept them quite busy.  “My band’s working their butts off. But they look at it as this is their contribution to it. They’re having fun—they get to work with artists—I mean, they’re tired of me. They get to work with somebody else for a change.” Although the flooding in Nashville happened almost two months again, Tim and Faith say they started planning this event right away. “(Faith) You called the day of the flood…” (Tim)”Right at the day of the flood, we started working on what to do. And we knew there were other things going on, and we didn’t want to get in anybody’s way, of course, because it’s better to spread it all out to everybody can raise the most money.” Proceeds from the concert will benefit flood relief efforts of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. People aren’t able to attend the concert can still contribute to the cause by contacting the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.

MIRANDA LAMBERT HOLDS ON TO TOP SPOT. Miranda Lambert has the number one song with “The House That Built Me” for the fourth week in a row on the Country Aircheck chart. Unlike some people who move far away from their childhood home, Miranda just has to go down the road.  “I still actually can go to the house that built me anytime because a friend lives there—so it’s really awesome that I have that privilege but I realize a lot of people don’t—they just have to drive by and be the weirdo that has to knock on the door, which I’ve been before.”

BLAKE SHELTON JOKES THAT MIRANDA LAMBERT HAS STOPPED BEATING HIM SINCE BEING ENGAGED. Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton tell people magazine they are enjoying their engagement and not trying to stress about any wedding plans. Blake jokes he’s enjoyed the engagement because, "The beatings from her are less severe and less frequent now that I've stepped up, so that's been a good thing. I feel like I can relax. Every time she has an idea for the wedding that she tells me about, I tell her it's the same thing I was thinking. It's all good." As for their actual wedding plans, the two are too busy to take care of the task themselves and have hired people to help. They are planning the nuptials for next spring.

JAKE OWEN TELLS PEOPLE WHAT HE LIKES IN A WOMAN. Jake Owen is gracing the pages of the new issue of PEOPLE Country as one of the hottest guys in country music, alongside Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley and cover boy, Tim McGraw. Jake told the magazine that he likes women to have confidence and a sense of humor. And the female country artists he thinks are hot certainly have those qualities in abundance. "Personally, I think Sara Evans is HOT! I'm not going to lie. Sara Evans is hot," Jake says. "She's very womanly. She's a beautiful woman. And you know who else I think is a beautiful woman is Lee Ann Womack. I don't know what it is about her, but [sigh], I like Lee Ann." Fans can pick up their copy of PEOPLE now to read more about country’s hot guys.

FAITH HILL HAND-PICKS HER OPENING ACT. Teen TV star and Nashville newcomer Jennette McCurdy has been hand-picked by Faith Hill as her opening act at a couple of California concert dates in July. Jennette, one of the stars of the Nickelodeon hit, 'iCarly,' will open for Faith on July 23^rd at the Ironstone Amphitheatre in Murphys, California and July 24^th at the OC Fair and Event Centre in Costa Mesa, California. Jennette scored her first acting job by way of Faith, when she was in Faith's music video for 'The Way You Love Me.' Jennette’s debut album, 'The Story of My Life' is due at the end of June.

BRAD PAISLEY ASKS FANS TO PRAY FOR SCOTT HAMILTON. Brad Paisley has become good friends with Olympic ice skater Scott Hamilton through the years since Hamilton lives in Nashville. Brad posted a message on his website yesterday that read, “This week Scott has to have an operation to remove a benign growth on his pituitary gland. While this operation is not completely uncommon, anytime a person has brain surgery it's good to keep them in your thoughts and prayers. So If you have a second in the next few days, say a prayer that the operation is successful and routine. And that he is back to normal, back on the ice, and back home quickly with his wife and sons. I know no finer human being.”

WANNA SPEND THE NIGHT WITH DOLLY PARTON? Dolly Parton is getting ready to auction off a night's stay at her Tennessee mansion complete with a party in the evening and a Dolly-cooked breakfast the next morning, all to raise money for the Dr. Robert F. Thomas Foundation, which supports health care in Sevier County, the county of Dolly's birth. Last year, Dolly’s sleep over went for 75-thousand dollars. The winning bidder can also bring along up to 10 additional guests. This year's Evening of Elegance fundraiser will take place August 14th at 6 p.m. at the Mills Auditorium in Gatlinburg. Tickets are 200-dollars per person and may be purchased by contacting Amy Kingery at (865) 446-9628.

THIS AND THAT

• During Keith Urban’s Saturday night show in Chicago, he captured the crowd singing Happy Birthday to Nicole Kidman whose birthday was Sunday. He joked this wasn’t the only gift he would be giving her because he’s “not that cheap.”
• One way Laura Bell Bundy stays in shape is with a simple rule when it comes to eating. “You shouldn’t eat four hours before you go to bed because it won’t digest properly, and when it doesn’t digest properly, it gets stored as fat,” she says.
• According to Us Weekly, LeAnn Rimes and Dean Sheremet’s divorce was finalized on Saturday.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

• JACKSON KIDS ISOLATED? In her first interview since her son’s death, Katherine Jackson talked with the Daily Mirror in the U-K and told the outlet that Jackson’s children miss him “desperately” and are isolated and lonely. Katherine goes on to say Jackson’s three kids, Paris, Prince and Blanket, listen to Jackson’s music often and that Prince and Blanket talk about wanting to make their dad proud of them. Read more at TMZ.com. 
• MICHAEL JACKSON TRIBUTE! A theater in London’s West End has announced they’ll be paying tribute to the late King of Pop on Thursday. A plaque honoring Jackson will be unveiled and the cast of the Michael Jackson’s inspired production Thriller Live! will sing a song called “Speechless,” which was recorded by Jackson shortly before he died. June 25^th will be the first anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death. Learn more at ContactMusic.com. 
• KATHERINE RELEASES BOOK! Katherine Jackson has released a book called Never Can Say Goodbye: The Katherine Jackson Archives, in memory of her son, Michael Jackson. The picture book’s release this week coincides with Friday’s one year anniversary of Michael’s death. Check out ShowBiz411.com for more. 
• CHRIS KLEIN IN REHAB! American Pie actor Chris Klein, who was arrested for his second DUI last week, has checked himself into rehab. According to People, Klein will complete at least 30 days of rehabilitation at Utah’s Cirque Lodge as part of his treatment. 
• AMERICAN IDOL AUDITIONS ANNOUNCED! Auditions for Season 10 of American Idol have been announced and this time around, producers of the show have lowered the age limit by a year to 15. Starting July 17^th in Nashville, Tennessee, people from ages 15 to 28 can audition for the life-changing show. When we chatted with Season Nine winner Lee DeWyze, he told us about competing on the show . Visit AmericanIdol.com for more. 
• BLOOM AND KERR ENGAGED! Orlando Bloom and supermodel Miranda Kerr are engaged. The couple, who’ve dated for almost three years, confirmed to People that they are indeed planning to wed. We’ll keep you updated on their wedding plans. 
• SAINT ANGELINA JOLIE! Angelina Jolie spent Father’s Day in Haiti where she met with United Nations ambassadors and discussed the Haitian children who were left homeless and orphaned after the January 12^th earthquake. Learn more about her goodwill visit at UsMagazine.com.
• McCONAUGHEY MISTRIAL! A judge has declared a second mistrial in the misdemeanor battery case involving actor Matthew McConaughey. In the suit, two surfers are charged with attacking paparazzi who tried to take pictures on the actor in Malibu. Check out News.Yahoo.com for more. 
• LONDON KIDNAPPING UPDATE! As we previously reported, 37-year-old Party of Five actor Jeremy London was apparently kidnapped last week and forced to do drugs by his captors. Only thing is, London’s family is now claiming the story might be a little different and they believe the seven-month sober Jeremy relapsed into doing drugs and built his story around that. Learn more at USAToday.com. 
• MORE LONDON NEWS! Jeremy London’s lawyers have now issued a cease and desist letters to the members of his family who are talking to the press about the incident. London’s wife Melissa told TMZ that they’re worried the family’s comments to the media will somehow hinder the kidnapping investigation. We think Melissa and Jeremy might also be pissed that the family is telling the media they don’t believe London’s story.
• MONTAG HIRES DIVORCE ATTORNEY! Apparently, Heidi Montag is more serious about divorcing Spencer Pratt than people first thought. That or she is taking the separation charade up another notch, because she’s just hired a divorce lawyer to begin mediating her split from Spencer. According to TMZ, Pratt and Montag will start hashing out the details of their divorce within two weeks. 
• ENTOURAGE WEDDING! Entourage actress Constance Zimmer is getting married. Zimmer, who you’d know as “Dana Gordon” on the hit HBO show, is marrying her longtime director-boyfriend in the fall. The couple already has a two-year-old daughter together named Colette Zoe. Check out People.com for more. 
• “CAPTAIN JACK SPARROW” IS BACK AND IN 3D! Production has begun on Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, the fourth film in the Pirates franchise. Fans can expect Johnny Depp to reprise his role as “Captain Jack” and will get to see the flick in 3D. Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane and others have all signed on to be in the fourth installment. It’s set to hit theaters May 20^th, 2011. 
• DJ QUALLS TALKS MEMPHIS BEAT!  DJ Qualls, best known for his role as “Kyle” in the 2000 hit Road Trip, stars in the new TNT cop show Memphis Beat.  He plays a young know-it-all cop who goes under the wing of an experienced officer played by Jason Lee.  Memphis Beat also stars Alfre Woodard and premieres tonight at 10 PM Eastern on TNT.

• HERE ARE THE FULL AUDITION DATES: Nashville, Tennessee on July 17^th, Milwaukee, Wisconsin on July 21^st, New Orleans, Louisiana on July 26^th, East Rutherford, New Jersey on August 3^rd, Austin, Texas on Wednesday, August 11^th and San Francisco, California on August 19^th.

My friend Jordan had front row seats for one of Carrie's shows in Canada this week, and I mean, front row........

COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

TRACE ADKINS TALKS OIL SPILL AND GRADUATION ADVICE. Trace Adkins has been doing lots of talking lately whether it be about the B.P. oil spill or being the guest speaker at a high school graduation. He appeared on Anderson Cooper 360 Thursday to discuss the oil spill in the gulf and tells CMT Radio Live’s Cody Alan he feels for the head of B.P. right now. “That poor guy, he’s ugh, boy I wouldn’t want to be in his shoes.” Trace once worked on an oil rig and is staying optimistic when it comes the situation coming to an end. “Well it will stop. Oil wells do deplete. If they didn’t we wouldn’t have to drill anymore. I don’t know how long that is going to take. It’s not going to go forever. It will stop.” Trace was also optimistic when he gave the graduation class of Piedmont High School in North Carolina a commencement speech after two students sent him a letter asking him to be their guest speaker.“I really just stressed that passion tempered by integrity will lead you to success. That was the main thing that I wanted them to remember if they remembered anything I said.”  And in true Trace fashion, he was also blunt with the students. “And I also told them, much to the dismay of their parents, that they should stay with their parents as long as they possibly can. (laughs) Just stay there until they kick you out.”

CMT TO STREAM MILEY CYRUS ALBUM RELEASE CONCERT. An exclusive free, live video stream of Miley Cyrus' album release concert will be available Monday at CMT.com, MTV.com, VH1.com and Logotv.com. The concert, which will feature music from her new album, Can't Be Tamed, will also be streamed on more than 30 international sites in Europe, Canada, Latin America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. The concert from the House of Blues on Hollywood's Sunset Strip will begin at approximately at 10:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. PT. On Tuesday, Miley makes her Rock Band debut with a five-pack of songs in the Rock Band Music Store of downloadable content for Xbox 360, PlayStation3 and Wii.

KENNY CHESENY WRAPS UP FOOTBALL DOCUMENTARY. Kenny Chesney has wrapped up his latest project – a football documentary called The Boys of Fall. Kenny has been working for a year to create this piece and says, ““Anyone who knows me knows how much I look to football, the lessons learned, the experiences, the feelings as a map for living life, having a music career, being the kind of man I want to be.” Kenny used his celebrity status and existing relationships with football icons to create the documentary. “I have the ability to have some pretty amazing conversations with some pretty big coaches… some pretty amazing players… I knew Peyton Manning when he was a UT Vol… I've watched him apply a lot of the same philosophies to his life… and when you realize how universal what you live is and how much it means no matter who you are or where you live, you start looking a little deeper.” Some of the other football legends featured in the documentary include Superbowl coach Sean Payton, John Madden, Brett Favre, Troy Aikman the former University of Tennessee's Phil Fulmer and University of Alabama’s Nick Saban and Bobby Bowden - as well as high school coaches from Illinois, Texas and Tennessee. Kenny is shopping the documentary around now so no word yet on when and where you’ll be able to watch it.

TOBY KEITH GOES INCOGNITO FOR SPECIAL CONCERTS. Toby Keith appeared as part of the Incognito Bandito Thursday night at the Irving Plaza  in New York City. Ticket holders weren’t aware of who the band was and were only told it would be a surprise performance they wouldn’t want to miss. Toby and his band jammed on stage singing their favorite covers from multiple genres. CMT was there and a full coverage story is now on CMT.com. More appearances from Incognito Bandito are expected this summer but will not be made public far in advance.

LADY ANTEBELLUM LOOKING TO HEADLINE OVERSEAS. Lady Antebellum has a full year packed when it comes to touring, but they are looking forward to 2011 and would love to take their music oversees. Right now they are focusing on opening for Tim McGraw and headlining their first tour in the fall. But Hillary Scott says heading across the pond is high on their lists of things to do.“That is right underneath it. We can’t wait to go and meet the fans that we’ve already made and hope to continue to make all over the world. [Dave Haywood] And Hillary wants to go to Australia really bad. [Hillary] I do! I want to go to a lot of places. [Charles Kelley] She loves the accents.” For a list of Lady A tour dates, visit CMT.com.

TAYLOR SWIFT WINS ANOTHER SONGWRITING AWARD. Taylor Swift was given the Hal David Starlight Award, which pays tribute to young songwriters with promise, at the Songwriters Hall of Fame in New York City last week. The Associated Press reports John Mayer presented her with the award and told the audience, "She's no accident." "You could put her in a time machine in any era and she would have a hit record," he said, adding this about her success: "Don't confuse everybody loving one thing as hype. Sometimes that's everyone agreeing that it's fabulous."

BLAKE SHELTON KEEPS MOTHER-IN-LAW TO BE HAPPY WITH CANDY! Blake Shelton sat down with CMT Radio Live’s Cody Alan last week and says he keeps on good terms with his future mother-in-law by giving her banana Laffy Taffy. Miranda Lambert then confirmed the claim with Cody and says it works like a charm. “That’s absolutely true. We went to a candy story in Dallas not long ago and he bought like Laffy Taffy’s in bulk! (laughs) Like two-hundred of them because he just gives them to her as he does something she doesn’t like. It’s actually a really good trick. She’s a sucker for it.”

THE OPRY GETS A SPECIALLY ORDERED BIRTHDAY CAKE. Chef Duff Goldman and Sous Chef Geof Manthorne of the Food Network’s Ace of Cakes traveled to the Grand Ole Opry from Maryland to deliver a cake to celebrate the Opry’s 50^th birthday. The two traveled by RV as part of a road trip for an episode of the show that will air in the fall. The cake was a four foot model of the Opry mic stand and placed on a replica of the iconic circle of wood taken from the stage of the Ryman Auditorium. After the presentation was made, Charlie Pride asked Goldman and Manthorne, who are both musicians in their spare time, to play along during a performance of “Kaw-liga.”

KEITH URBAN GIVES UP FATHER’s DAY FOR WIFE. Keith Urban didn’t celebrate Father’s Day with his family yesterday. Instead, they celebrated his wife’s birthday which happened to fall on the same day. Keith tells People magazine rather than trying to share the day they compromised and celebrated Nicole Kidman’s birthday yesterday and will celebrate Australia’s Father’s Day which is the first Sunday in September.

BROOKS & DUNN CANCEL WEEKEND SHOWS DUE TO ILLNESS. Brooks & Dunn was forced to cancel shows over the weekend in Virginia Beach and Washington, D.C. due to illness. The Virginia Beach show has been postponed for July 11^th and the D.C. concert has been moved to August 1^st.

ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

• LOHAN DIDN’T DRINK! On June 6^th, the night of the MTV Movie Awards, Lindsay Lohan’s alcohol monitoring bracelet went off, leading authorities to believe she had consumed alcohol. Well, Lohan’s urine test from that night has come back and it was clean for drugs and alcohol. So apparently, like she claimed all along, her bracelet malfunctioned and she hadn’t had anything to drink. Head to TMZ for more.
• HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME! Oprah Winfrey, Penelope Cruz and The Muppets are just some of the celebrities being giving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame next year. According to the Associated Press, music artists Rascal Flatts, Melissa Etheridge and will.i.am will be honored with a star in 2011 as well.
• THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE! Listen up Twi-hards! The Twilight Saga: Eclipse film comes out next week! . Pre-order your tickets now to see The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, in theaters June 30^th.
• GOSSELIN ON DATING SHOW? Mother of eight Kate Gosselin may be doing a dating show. According to USA Today, the Kate Plus 8 and Twist of Kate reality star could be heading to ABC after wrapping those two series to star in her own dating show. However, TLC has said those rumors are false.
• CELEB COUPLE NEWS! The OC actress Rachel Bilson and Star Wars alum Hayden Christensen are taking a break. The pair got engaged back in February 2009, but this past week, Bilson was seen rocking a ring-less finger at an L-A red carpet and Us Magazine is reporting the duo are taking a month break. We’ll keep you updated.
• SOPRANOS STAR DUI! According to TMZ, Joseph Gannascoli, who played “Vito Spatafore” on The Sporanos, was arrested late last week and charged on suspicion of driving under the influence. Joe was pulled over in Tampa, Florida after cops noticed he was driving erratically.  He posted bond and was released the same day.
• THE GOOD GUYS! Another episode of The Good Guys, starring Colin Hanks and Bradley Whitford, airs on FOX tonight at 9 PM. When we talked to the two actors, they revealed they have Chuck Norris to thank for why the stunts and explosions on their show come off without a hitch.Tune in to FOX at 9 PM to see another episode of The Good Guys.
• ANNIVERSARY OF JACKSON’S DEATH. This Friday will be the one year anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death. 
• NEW MOVIE! It’s just been announced that Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams are set to begin filming a new drama in August called The Vow. The pair will play newlyweds in the flick. Check out People.com for more.
• LITTLE B***H ON THE PRAIRIE! The actress who starred as “Nellie” on Little House on the Prairie has written a new memoir and in it, she reveals that she was sexually abused by one of her family members. Alison Arngrim’s new book is called Confessions of a Prairie B***h: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated and you can buy the tome now. Learn more at NYDailyNews.com.

From TheHollywoodGossip.com...

"The Bachelor Pad"!

Memorable faces rejected by Jake Pavelka, Jillian Harris and Ali Fedotowsky just this year will be leading the way, with a handful of peeps from past years too.

Wes, Crazy Dave, Crazy Michelle, Jesse Sulidis (who apparently plays a role this season, according to The Bachelorette spoilers) and sweet Tenley are back.

So many others, too. Remember Kiptyn and Jesse from Jillian's season? They seemed like such good guys. Apparently Reid was not available to join in?

Heating up the house one more time will be ...

• Ashley Elmore, The Bachelor, Season 14 (Jake)
• Craig McKinnon, The Bachelorette, Season 6 (Ali)
• David Good, The Bachelorette, Season 5 (Jillian)
• Elizabeth Kitt, The Bachelor, Season 14 (Jake)
• Gia Allemand, The Bachelor, Season 14 (Jake)
• Gwen Gioia, The Bachelor, Season 2 (Aaron)
• Jesse Beck, The Bachelorette, Season 6 (Ali)
• Jesse Kovacs, The Bachelorette, Season 5 (Jillian)
• Jessie Sulidis, The Bachelor, Season 14 (Jake)
• Jonathan Novack, The Bachelorette, Season 6 (Ali)
• Juan Barbieri, The Bachelorette, Season 5 (Jillian)
• Kiptyn Locke, The Bachelorette, Season 5 (Jillian)
• Krisily Kennedy, The Bachelor, Season 7 (Charlie)
• Michelle Kujawa, The Bachelor, Season 14 (Jake)
• Natalie Getz, The Bachelor, Season 13 (Jason)
• Nikki Kaapke, The Bachelor, Season 13 (Jason)
• Peyton Wright, The Bachelor, Season 10 (Andy)
• Tenley Molzahn, The Bachelor, Season 14 (Jake)
• Wes Hayden, The Bachelorette, Season 5 (Jillian)

Hosting will be legendary host-pimp Chris Harrison and lovely former Bachelor ladyMelissa Rycroft. What do you think? Will you watch this insanity?