ABC and affiliate partner Nexstar have suspended the show indefinitely. Continue reading…

Over the past five years, there’s simply no denying that country music has experienced the biggest boost in popularity it’s experienced in decades, arguably ever. From Morgan Wallen consistently breaking both country and all-genre records seemingly weekly to Zach Bryan leading the country-folk movement back to the mainstream to unprecedented success, there hasn’t been a shortage of storylines depicting the genre’s growth in recent years. Couple that with the fact that artists such as Luke Combs, Ella Langley, Megan Moroney, Chris Stapleton, Jelly Roll and more are not only dominating country music as of late but also crossing over into both the mainstream and other genres at large, there really hasn’t been a shortage of country music in pop culture today. Throw in the likes of prominent non-country artists like Post Malone, Beyoncé and BigXthaPlug all crossing into the genre over the past two years (to varying degrees of success/reception), and it truly seems like country music is the new “it” thing. Of course, there could be dozens upon dozens of articles dissecting why this came to be. Is it the further crossover into other genres like pop and rap spearheaded by Morgan Wallen and company? Is it the singer/songwriter movement pushed by the likes of Zach Bryan, Tyler Childers, Noah Kahan (who consistently gets grouped into the country sphere despite being firmly planted in alternative folk) and more? Does it have to do with today’s political climate? Or is it something else entirely? Though there’s no clear-cut answer to the question, plenty have weighed in over the past three or so years. And recently, it was none other than Riley Green. In an interview with Stingray Music before his performance at LASSO Montréal in Canada last month, Green was asked why he thinks country music is having such a big moment right now. A bit surprisingly, the “Worst Way” singer pointed to two things in particular: the success of Yellowstone and the rise of storytelling in songs: “Well, I think that a lot of the television has really worked lately. The ‘Yellowstones’ and that western lifestyle has gotten so popular everywhere. But also, I think that the storytelling of country music is something that people can really appreciate everywhere.” It should go without saying that Yellowstone has simply been a phenomenon. Since its debut in 2018, the show has been an absolute juggernaut in pop culture. Despite not winning big at neither the Golden Globes nor the Emmys (Kevin Costner would eventually take home Best Actor in a Television Series – Drama in 2023), the show has procured what can only be described as a feverish fanbase.  Beyond Yellowstone itself, show runner, Taylor Sheridan, has expanded the franchise out to multiple spinoff series, including 1883 and 1923, as well as the upcoming shows, The Madison and The Dutton Ranch. Simply put, the franchise has become a cultural icon over the past seven years. Outside of the obvious connections to western lifestyle and country living as a whole, Yellowstone has provided general audiences with a simply star-studded soundtrack full of the best and brightest stars in both independent and mainstream country. Artists featured throughout Yellowstone’s five seasons include but are not limited to Whiskey Myers, Turnpike Troubadours, Chris Stapleton, Zach Bryan, Lainey Wilson, Tyler Childers, Cody Jinks, Colter Wall, Blackberry Smoke, Sturgill Simpson, Ryan Bingham, Shane Smith & the Saints, Cody Johnson, Flatland Cavalry, Charles Wesley Godwin, 49 Winchester, Marcus King, Tanner Usrey, Charley Crockett, Kacey Musgraves and more. Outside of the few mainstream acts, Yellowstone‘s soundtrack, in many ways, serves as a crash course on some of the biggest names in the independent/alt. country scene. In turn, it exposed many to what many (myself included) turn to when asked why country music is at its best place in history and introduced them to a completely different world that exists outside of the Top 40 on country radio. Dubbed (by us) as the Yellowstone Effect, there is data-driven proof that some artists saw MASSIVE exposure thanks to the show, As for storytelling, that push can also be credited to all the artists mentioned who appear on the Yellowstone soundtrack gaining more popularity. It seems after years of being force-fed meaningless lyrics via pop and bro-country in the 2010s, fans finally began craving more depth to the songs they’re consuming. Of course, this massive push can be thanks in part to Zach Bryan’s meteoric rise to fame. However, you could tell that the tide was bound to crash down with the likes of Childers, Simpson and more gaining steam through storytelling long before Bryan debuted in 2019 with DeAnn. Though you’ll always have some fans who simply don’t pay attention to the content of lyrics and simply listen to the music, there’s no doubt that true country fans are always looking for meaning behind the songs they’re listening to. Overall, I can’t say I really disagree with Green’s assessment. Though they’re are undoubtedly a multitude of different reasons why country has exploded in popularity, both Yellowstone’s success and the popularity of storytelling in songs certainly can be accredited. Watch here: @stingray.music Check out our interview with @Riley Green from @Lasso MTL! Listen to the Lasso Channel on Stingray Music #Lasso #lassomtl #rileygreen #country ♬ original sound – Stingray Music Riley Green Tour Dates: September 18th, 2025 – Belfast, UK – Waterfront Hall / September 19th, 2025 – Dublin, Ireland – Olympia Theatre / September 26th, 2025 – Washington, DC – Washington Nationals Park October 4th, 2025 – Winnsboro, SC – Field & Stream Festival % October 10th, 2025 – North Charleston, SC – Riverfront Revival % October 23rd, 2025 – Atlanta, GA – The Eastern November 1st, 2025 – Gonzales, LA – Boots on the Bayou % November 6th, 2025 – Grand Rapids, MI – Van Andel Arena #~/ November 7th, 2025 – St Louis, MO – Chaifetz Arena #~/ November 8th, 2025 – Kansas City, MO – TMobile Center #~/ November 9th, 2025 – Phoenix, AZ – The Hondo Rodeo Fest % November 13th, 2025 – University Park, PA – Bryce Jordan Center #~/ November 14th, 2025 – Toledo, OH – The Huntington Center #~/ November 15th, 2025 – Peoria, IL – Peoria Civic Center Arena #~/ November 20th, 2025 – Lincoln, NE – Pinnacle Bank Arena ~/ November 21st, 2025 – Oklahoma City, OK – Paycom Center #~/ November 22nd, 2025 – Little Rock, AR – Simmons Bank Arena#^$ December 12th, 2025 – Las Vegas, NV – Resorts World December 13th, 2025 – Las Vegas, NV – Resorts World May 30th, 2026 – Panama City Beach, FL – Gulf Coast Jam % @Vincent Mason #Jamey Johnson ~Drake White $Lauren Watkins -Preston Cooper ?Mike Ryan Josh Ross /Hannah McFarland ^Dustin Lynch %Festival dateThe post Riley Green Credits ‘Yellowstone’ For Country Music’s Boost In Popularity: “Western Lifestyle Has Gotten So Popular Everywhere” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Sweet Magnolias fans just got one step closer to seeing Season 5 coming their way. Continue reading…

A huge milestone. 1,461 days. Four years. Jake Owen is crossing a huge feat on his sobriety journey, celebrating four years today. Many artists in the country space are living a fully sober or semi-sober lifestyle. Artists like Ashley McBryde are very vocal about their sobriety journey, sharing their story with fans and speaking very candidly about how their choice saved their lives. Then you have artists like Marcus King who have been very honest and open about their struggles with addiction, sharing that they are alcohol-free, but are not perfect people, and addressing their slip-ups. Jake Owen is another country star who is publicly sober. In 2021, Owen decided to stop drinking and shares that it has changed his life for the better. In 2023, he talked about his journey and encouraged others to put down the bottle if they are sober curious, too. Owen admitted that he was not at the point where he had a “drinking problem,” but he did not like the man he turned into when he was drinking. “I was not at a point where I had a drinking problem, I was just being an a**hole and being a person I don’t want to be. Trust me, there’s probably someone reading this that I affected in my days of being an idiot and I can never take that back. I said things I shouldn’t, as well as did things I would never do sober. I had to own up to those instances and the ONLY thing I could do was be a better person going forward. I’ve been so fortunate to have friends and family around me that support me and I’m so grateful for that. I just want to encourage any of you that might be considering quitting drinking that you should! Feel better. Be better. Shoot… I’ll be your supporter. I’ll cheer you on. While Owen shared that he would be a supporter of anyone considering sobriety, he’s never stopped being a supporter of his own journey. Today, Owen shared that he hit four years of sobriety. Jake Owen acknowledged the milestone with a poem and message to his followers, fans, and friends on social media, sharing that he’s not perfect. Still, he’s working on himself every day, and remaining sober is helping him transform into the man he wants to be. “I woke up this morning on West Coast time Compared to most of my friends and friends I’m three hours behind Until I saw a text, from a very thoughtful friend Reminded me of something and brought a real big grin 4 years ago today, I knew that it was time To be a better man, and live a sober life Be a better father, be a better friend And by the grace of God, I felt like I got to start all over again I’ve stuck to the plan, but I’m still working on me I know who I’ve been, and who I wanna be Thank y’all for the kindness, are the high fives along the way I hope I can be an inspiration for someone who wants to start today Love y’all. Here’s to 4 years of the best decision I ever made in my life. For a guy that can be pretty hard on himself, I gotta say I’m proud of me.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jake Owen (@jakeowenofficial) Congratulations, Jake. We are proud of you and are continually cheering you on throughout this journey. In his 2023 post talking about his journey, Jake Owen encouraged anyone thinking about sobriety to watch the Andrew Huberman “What Alcohol Does to Your Brain, Body and Health” podcast episode, so if you want to check that out, fire it up while you’re here. The post Jake Owen Celebrates 4 Years Of Sobriety: “I Got To Start All Over Again” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

No AI here… what a breathe of fresh air. Earlier this year, Shooter Jennings announced that he had discovered a treasure trove of unreleased Waylon Jennings music, which he managed to turn into three separate albums that are slated for release in October. The first one, Songbird, will be out on October 3rd, and features songs he recorded decades ago, during the height of his career, but for whatever reason never made it to an album or got completely finished. Shooter, who produced the project, said they didn’t need too much work, but he did add some background vocals and other instrumentation just to polish it up and make it ready to be put on a professional album in the modern world of 2025. But of course, because these tapes are so old and AI has already been used in the country industry, probably on many songs we don’t even know about in terms of both the writing and production, and legends like Randy Travis have openly used it to create entirely new music where he obviously didn’t sing a note in real life. People have speculated that other archival projects, like the Johnny Cash one that was released last year, Songwriter, used AI in some way, and it’s a fair question considering the nature of this project in a technology-driven world. During a podcast appearance on The Drifting Cowboy podcast this week, Shooter put those rumors to bed, saying he actually went out of his way to do it all as old school as possible and did not use AI for any aspect of the project, including marketing or artwork, and he went out of his way to do it that way: “Oh, the AI thing? It’s so amazing that like like right when AI happens, we get a new Waylon record. I mean, I would probably be the guy saying that, you know, cause I’m cynical… that’s why we took so many painstaking steps to ensure that… of course, it’s not AI. Like, I don’t even know how to use AI to make music right, and I’d rather think it would be able to do that. But also just as far as everything involved with it, like making sure there’s nothing AI related, or there’s no steps even in the art or in anything. Because I can’t pollute the material. Because the Waylon thing, man, what’s so cool about it is like, if we mixed it, I mixed it on a 1976 custom API in the Sunset Sound using only outboard gear. We didn’t use any kind of digital processing.” He explained how much he went through to ensure the state of the tapes stayed at the highest level of integrity: “I used ProTools to prepare the tracks in the sense where, when they were open, they were exactly as they were put. They were digitized, but they were exactly as they were on those those tapes. So they were like 24 track sessions, the older stuff were 16 track, but most it was all 24 track. What I didn’t wanna do is do anything that would degrade that, the state of it. So what I did, some of them had like five vocal takes or six vocal takes, so I used ProTools to comp the way I would comp Charley’s records or Turnpikes. In the sense that out of those five vocals, I’ll go through and make a vocal track of the best vocal, which was really cool to do on my Dad, right? Just to hear all the different takes and go through it.” Shooter also explained how the whole process worked with mixing the previous vocals and instruments, which each individually had multiple takes per song, and there were over 100 songs. Shooter has done it all so tastefully, and it makes me respect him even more knowing he went out of his way to do it the hard way, with integrity, to entire the music was done right, just as his father would have done it. That type of character is hard to find, especially in the music industry, and I’m sure his dad would be proud and obviously Waylon fans like me can’t wait to hear it because of how well it’s been done. There’s a reason Shooter’s probably the most highly sought-after producer in country right now, and this is a perfect example of why. The full podcast is available below. So far, they’ve released two songs, including the title track and “The Cowboy (Small Town Texas),” and the full album will be released on October 3rd. “The Cowboy (Small Town Texas)” “Songbird” The post Shooter Jennings Says He Used Absolutely ZERO AI On Forthcoming Waylon Jennings Album ‘Songbird’: “Many Painstaking Steps To Ensure That” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.