Oh, yes please. Mike Campbell, legendary guitarist and co-songwriter for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, has had his band The Dirty Knobs for over 25 years, having formed the group in 2000. They have put out four albums in that time span, most recently released one called Mission of Mercy. And it features one very talented country lady on a song called “More Than Gold,” which he sings with the one and only… Morgane Stapleton. Of course, you probably know her as Chris Stapleton’s backup singer and wife, but Morgane had a well established singer/songwriter career of her own before she married him, and as most fans know, she’s been featured on background vocals for tons of songs, written plenty of others, and nowadays, she’s featured on nearly all of Chris’ music. She was an instrumental part of Chris’ iconic 2015 Grammy-winning album Traveller that made him a household name, and top of that, she’s written for some of the biggest names in business, including Chris, Alan Jackson, Reba, and Trisha Yearwood. She was even a co-writer on Carrie Underwood’s huge 2005 single “Don’t Forget To Remember Me.” There was only one way to hear her older music, though. A small collection of songs live on through her old MySpace profile. Yeah, that’s how old they are. It’s listed under her maiden name “Morgane Hayes,” and under the tab titled “countrykickass.” Need I say more? Unfortunately, the songs don’t seem to be available publicly anymore, but we all know she can sing like nobody’s business, and I’ve always hoped she would release her own solo album, though Chris also explained in a previous interview that Morgane doesn’t necessarily love being in the spotlight… and she also has five children she’s taking care of at home, too: “Morgane doesn’t like the attention necessarily, and she does it because I do it. She likes to do it with me because I enjoy doing it. She would be very happy staying home and doing mom stuff, and she likes music and she is very passionate about music, but some of the other things that are the work of music are not her favorite, but she’s invaluable as well, and she knows that as well, and we make sure that she knows that.” But even if that never happens, we still get to hear her sing regularly with her husband, and every now and then she’ll surprise us with something like this song with Mike Campbell, which is a beautiful tune about how love and emotional connection is worth “more than gold,” as the title suggests. The production is much more folk-leaning than their usual stuff, and the more simple nature of the song made Stapleton the perfect choice because her voice is just stunning on this kind of song. It’s not a pairing I could’ve dreamed up, but they’re obviously both immensely talented and it just works so well. Do yourself a favor and check it out: “More Than Gold” The post Morgane Stapleton Joins Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs For Beautiful Song, “More Than Gold” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Tyler Childers can pull off an on-stage, mid-concert rant like no one else. The country music star recently played the Buckeye Country Superfest at Ohio Stadium, and as you might imagine, Childers’ setlist was chock-full of songs from his most recent album, Snipe Hunter. “Snipe Hunt,” “Oneida,” “Eatin’ Big Time,” and “Down Under” were all a part of the show. But the biggest Snipe Hunter performance of the night was undoubtedly the fan-favorite, incredibly viral song “Bitin’ List.” It’s been the runaway hit of the album since it was released last year, and has sparked plenty of TikTok videos and millions of streams since its release. The deranged, hate-fueled anthem has really found a home within Childers’ live shows. And as he introduced the track and explained who it’s about during his Ohio concert, it was almost like he was opening up for a therapy session: “I’m not talking about those people in your life that aggravate you. Those people that throw their bubble gum wherever they want to with no regard for the bottom of your shoe, or anyone else’s for that matter. People that don’t pick up after their dogs. What is their problem? You’ve got to do that. That’s kind of part of the thing… People that ride their bicycles on the sidewalk. People that don’t their shopping cart back to where its supposed to go. Lazy. You picked it out, you pushed it around maybe for an hour and a half. You got it all the way out to your car, and you can’t go even go the extra little bit? It’s not even extra, it’s the last part of the process. You’ve got to take it back where it does.” Love a little “Shopping Cart Theory” talk. Tyler Childers didn’t stop there. The pre-performance before the actual singing of “Bitin’ List” continued with the country music star calling out other lazy, someone-else-will-take-care-of-it minded people, and the crowd was absolutely loving the rant that ran on for quite some time. But to be clear, Tyler Childers wasn’t focusing on those type of people with “Bitin’ List.” The song is reserved for people who are somehow even more aggravating and irritating than the examples he listed. If fans at Ohio Stadium were in need of more clarification, the singer hailing from Eastern Kentucky put it like this, and then explained how he channeled all of his anger through his hobby of songwriting: “Those aren’t even the people that I’m talking about. Those are aggravating people. Those are people that kind of get on your nerves. I’m talking about those people in your life that you really can’t stand… There’s a way to process that (hate) for each and every one of us. Take up a hobby. Crochet. Scrapbook. Take up riding your bicycle. I’ll tell you what I did. I write songs… and when I wrote this song about hypothetically weaponizing rabies against the people I don’t like, I felt a lot better.” @codychilds285 #tylerchilders #fyp #introbitinlist #buckeyecountrysuperfest #part1 ♬ original sound – Codychilds285 That right there is a legitimate, beautiful, five-minute-long rant from Tyler Childers. It’s honestly just as good as his actual performance of “Bitin’ List.” It was as if Tyler was laying down on a therapist’s couch, and the Ohio Stadium crowd was his counselor. Make sure you do yourself a favor and get out to see Tyler Childers soon. His concerts are worth attending solely for his “Bitin’ List” rant and performance. Oh, and you might as well fire up “Bitin’ List” while you are here, eh? “Bitin’ List” The post Tyler Childers Intros “Bitin’ List” With An Epic, 5-Minute, Therapy Session Rant at Ohio Stadium first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Back at it once again. In many ways, The Red Clay Strays and Zach Top have shared a similar trajectory over the past few years. Though the two sit on opposite sides of the genre, with the Strays bringing a wholly unique blend of country, southern rock and gospel elements from album to album and Top spearheading the rise of traditional country back to the mainstream, it hasn’t stopped the pair from garnering a lot of crossover fans and, more importantly, a whole lot of success both commercially and critically. For the Strays, they’ve been nothing short of dominant during the recent award show cycles. At the 59th annual CMA Awards last November, they’d dethrone Old Dominion as Vocal Group of the Year en route to their first-ever CMA win. They’d follow that up last week and dethrone Old Dominion once again, this time taking home their first-ever ACM Award for Group of the Year. For Top, he’s arguably been even more successful. Not only did he take home Best New Artist at the CMA Awards in November, which he accepted with a Coors Banquet in hand, but he also scored his first-career Grammy in February. In turn, Top became the first-ever winner of the brand-new Best Traditional Country Album category, winning it with his sophomore album, Ain’t In It For My Health. What makes the two so special, outside of the incredible work in the studio, is the number of times they’ve collaborated in the past year. Last April at Georgia Rodeo, the pair would surprise the crowd with a performance of Waylon Jennings’ 1990 single, “Where The Corn Don’t Grow,” which was later covered and popularized by Travis Tritt in 1996. Just two weeks ago, at Red Clay’s album release party for Grateful at the Pinnacle in Nashville, Top would make a surprise appearance and they’d play the track once again. View this post on Instagram In case you were getting tired of the two powerhouses performing “Where the Corn Don’t Grow” recently (though I’m not sure why you would), the pair reunited yet again over the weekend with a brand new cover, this time at Top’s headlining show at the Wharf Amphitheater in Orange Beach, Alabama. After Top performed past hits such as “South of Sanity,” “I Never Lie,” “Use Me” and more, the Washington native would call the Stray’s frontman, Brandon Coleman, to the stage to perform George Jones’ “Bartender’s Blues.” In case you’re not familiar with the history of the track, it was first recorded by the legendary James Taylor back in 1977. Appearing as a B-side to his JT album’s lead single, “Handy Man,” Taylor’s version of “Bartender’s Blues” didn’t receive a whole lot of love on the charts, peaking at #88. Jones, on the other hand, popularized the song. Releasing it as the lead single of his 1978 album of the same name, the “He Stopped Loving Her Today” singer would score a Top 10 hit with the track, with it peaking at #6. As for Top and Coleman’s cover, it’s about as good as you would imagine. Top has become what can only be described as a human jukebox over the years with all of his classic country covers, so it almost feels like second nature to hear him flawlessly cover a track like “Bartender’s Blues.” Coleman (and the Strays by extension), on the other hand, haven’t been as cover-heavy during their live shows recently. Given this, it truly felt special to hear his powerful vocals on a Jones song. If you’re a fan of Top and Red Clay’s recent collaboration on “Where the Corn Don’t Grow,” this is nothing short of a must-watch. I think this one might top it. Watch here:   Zach Top 2026 Tour Dates June 18—Bloomington, IL—Tailgate N’ Tallboys June 19—North Lawrence, OH—The Country Fest June 20—Columbia, MD—Merriweather Post Pavilion« June 25—South Greenfield, MO—Baker-Spain Stampede June 26—Bonner Springs, KS—Country Stampede June 27—North Platte, NE—NEBRASKAland DAYS July 9—West Valley City, UT—Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre July 10—Boise, ID—ExtraMile Arena July 11—Pendleton, OR—Pendleton Whisky Music Fest July 15—Saskatoon, SK—SaskTel Centre∆ July 16—Edmonton, AB—Rogers Place∆ July 18—Whitefish, MT—Under the Big Sky Festival July 23—Minot, ND—North Dakota State Fair July 25—Cheyenne, WY—Cheyenne Frontier Days 2026 August 6—Toronto, ON—Rogers Stadium~ August 7—Ottawa, ON—Canadian Tire Centre« August 8—Canandaigua, NY—CMAC« August 13—Wantagh, NY—Northwell at Jones Beach Theater≈ August 14—Boston, MA—Fenway Park~ August 15—Boston, MA—Fenway Park~ August 20—Pittsburgh, PA—PPG Paints Arena∞ August 21—Allentown, PA—PPL Center August 22—Bangor, ME—Maine Savings Amphitheater∞ August 27—Dieppe, New Brunswick—YQM Countryfest 2026 August 28—Gilford, NH—BankNH Pavilion∞ September 1—Toronto, ON—Rogers Stadium~ September 11—Lake Tahoe, NV—Lake Tahoe Amphitheatre at Caesars Republic« September 17—San Diego, CA—Pechanga Arena« September 18—Anaheim, CA—Honda Center September 19—Fresno, CA—Boots In The Park September 25—Corpus Christi, TX—Hillard Center Arena« September 26—San Antonio, TX—Frost Bank Center« October 2—Jacksonville, FL—VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena October 3—West Palm Beach, FL—iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre October 8—Des Moines, IA—Casey’s Center≈ October 9—Rosemont, IL—Allstate Arena≈ October 10—St. Paul, MN—Grand Casino Arena≈ October 15—Sioux Falls, SD—Denny Sanford PREMIER Center≈ October 16—Milwaukee, WI—Fiserv Forum≈ October 17—Grand Rapids, MI—Van Andel Arena≈ October 23—Lafayette, LA—CAJUNDOME∆ October 29—Duluth, GA—Gas South Arena∆ October 30—Nashville, TN—Bridgestone Arena∆ ≠with special guest Cole Goodwin «with special guest Wyatt McCubbin ∆with special guest Lukas Nelson ~with Chris Stapleton ≈with special guest Marty Stuart And His Fabulous Superlatives ∞with special guest Marcus King BandThe post The Red Clay Strays’ Brandon Coleman Joins Zach Top For Killer Cover Of George Jones’ “Bartender’s Blues” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

It’s the split that no one saw coming… but maybe we all should have with some of the hints that Bunnie XO has dropped over the past couple of weeks? As first reported by TMZ, and confirmed by court records in Williamson County, Tennessee, Jelly Roll has filed for divorce from his wife Bunnie Xo after a decade of marriage. The petition for divorce was filed by Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason DeFord, against his wife, whose real name is Alisa DeFord, back on May 18. Williamson County Courts TMZ later added that Jelly Roll cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the split. The couple were married back in 2016 before renewing their vows in 2023, and have been incredibly transparent about their relationship, including their struggles along the way. As Bunnie has discussed in the past, the two separated not long after getting married when she discovered that Jelly Roll was having an affair with an ex of his: “We got married in 2016. The affair was started with an ex in 2017, and then I think I found out about it early on in 2018.” Both Jelly Roll and Bunnie XO’s stories are ones of redemption. If you didn’t know, the host of the Dumb Blonde Podcast started out as a high-end escort in Las Vegas. That’s actually how her and Jelly Roll first met. The couple has also been very open with their struggles trying to conceive and their IVF journey, and how they’ve been hoping to have twins through a surrogate. We’re not sure where all of that stands after this shocking news. Neither Jelly Roll nor Bunnie have commented on the divorce filing, so we don’t know what happened to lead to the separation. Considering how open both of them are, there’s a good chance they’ll tell their own respective stories in due time. Jelly Roll is currently on the road with Post Malone for his Big Ass Stadium Tour while also headlining his own Little Ass Shed Tour, so his focus his likely on that for the time being. As for Bunnie XO, now that we are armed with hindsight, she’s actually been posting some very interesting videos and pictures online. Back on June 6, the podcast host shared footage of her riding horseback with this cryptic message: “Wild hearts can’t be broken.” @xomgitsbunnie #bunniexo ♬ original sound – Nicotine Dolls Obviously, no one knew exactly what that meant at the time… but now it’s clear that she was referencing her and Jelly Roll’s split, which happened in early May. And just yesterday, Bunnie XO shared a scantily clad photo on her Instagram story with this caption: “She’s getting her sparkle back.” There’s no doubt that it’s a reference to the divorce and perhaps even a dig at Jelly Roll. It also seem to clearly indicate that Bunnie XO is single once more. All in all, it’s a bummer for fans of both the country singer and the podcast host to hear this news. The couple had already been through so much together, and they seemed to really be building a life and an intertwined career together. In the past year especially, they’ve both become pretty positive examples of how no matter where you’ve been in life, you can turn it all around. Hopefully Jelly Roll and Bunnie XO can find happiness following this split that certainly caught the world off guard.The post “She’s Getting Her Sparkle Back”: Bunnie XO Posts Steamy Lingerie Photo Amid Jelly Roll Divorce News first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Should we have known this breakup was going? Who gets custody of the farm animals? And what about the couple's IVF and surrogacy journey? Continue reading…