Feeling good about this one. Megan Moroney is in her pink era as she recently announced her third studio record, Cloud 9, which will be everywhere on February 20, 2026. “It’s a long way down. MY NEW ALBUM CLOUD 9 IS OUT FEBRUARY 20TH!!! Pre-order + pre-save available now at meganmoroney.com.” View this post on Instagram Many fans had speculated that her record would be named Cloud 9 prior to the announcement, picking up on her heavy use of cloud emojis in posts, but the pink color was not something fans had on their radar, with many convinced that she was going to choose purple or yellow as this album’s primary color. Cloud 9 will follow the success of her sophomore album, Am I Okay?, which debuted at number 9 on the Billboard 200 and number 3 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart in 2024. Moroney says she can’t wait to start a new chapter in her music career, and adds that these songs were written by the “strongest, most confident version” of her: “I am so excited for my fans and I to dive into this new world of ‘Cloud 9’ together. Similar to the first two albums, it’s all written about honest, personal experiences, but these songs were written by the strongest, most confident version of myself I’ve ever been. My feet feel firmly planted in my artistry, and it was fun to play around sonically, while still sticking to my roots of what my fans and I love. Cloud 9 is a state of mind, and I have no doubt this will be the best chapter yet.” Megan Moroney also shared in a recent interview with People that Cloud 9 is her “favorite child” among her albums. “It’s the most excited I’ve been about an album release so far, and I think it’s because I [had] the most time to work on this one. I think I would ditch the first two for this one.” Given the strength of Lucky and Am I Okay?, this statement makes me very excited to see what’s in store for this chapter of music. Her previously released songs “6 Months Later” and “Beautiful Things” will be included on the tracklist, along with the title track. The rest of the tracklist was blurred out, so we’ll have to wait and see what the rest of the album brings in terms of song titles… There might even be a feature or two on there. It looks like there will be 15 songs in total. However, Moroney has confirmed to fans that her long-time unreleased favorite, “Wedding Dress,” will appear on the album and spoke about the song during her interview with People as well. Moroney admitted that she would not have featured the song on the record if it were not for the persistent asking about it. Although Megan feels this chapter of her music has a much happier vibe, “Wedding Dress” is a song she knows her fans will still love to “crash out to it.” While Moroney is known for being an “emo cowgirl,” she feels this new chapter of music highlights some of her best work, and if fans don’t like it, she has candidly shared that she doesn’t care because she’s the one who has to sing it on stage every night. February 20, 2026, cannot get here soon enough. Fire up “Beautiful Things” while you’re here. The post Megan Moroney Jokes That ‘Cloud 9’ Is Her Favorite Child: “I Would Ditch The First Two For This One” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

'The Road' contestant Jenny Tolman opens up about elimination, her wardrobe malfunction and what she's taking away from the experience. Continue reading…

From the bedroom straight to the stage. Isaac Gibson of 49 Winchester stopped by the Whiskey Riff Raff podcast to talk to us about why the band doesn’t do pre-show rituals, the story of how Luke Combs bought a t-shirt from their website, how many years it took for 49 Winchester to go “full time,” how their band name came to be, hunting trips that he’s gotten to go on because of his music career and much more. One thing that we were really able to dive into was the collective journey that the band went on to get to where they are today. Isaac talked a lot about how all the band members were still working full time jobs when they initially started out, and it was a matter of years before they were all able to fully embrace life as artists and musicians. Gibson was working in his family’s business, so he had some more flexibility when it came to playing shows. It also helped that his father was on board with the idea of 49 Winchester from the get-go. For 12 years, Isaac’s dad has been selling merchandise at shows (he still does to this day), and even drove the band’s van in the early days. He’s never missed a show, and Gibson says that he’s really fortunate that his parents have always been in full support of what he does: “I lucked out that I had really supportive parents. I got that gene for loving words and loving writing from my mother, who is also a great singer. Outside of that, no real musical ability or talent in the family. It was just something that I kind of happened onto, but they were super supportive of it from day one.” Considering Isaac’s mom and dad had never heard him really sing or play before 49 Winchester’s first ever show, that makes their support that much more impressive. In fact, no one had ever heard Gibson sing or play prior to the inaugural 49 Winchester concert. The band’s frontman told us that his parents may have snuck a listen here and there through the walls of the family home, but other than that, the only people who had witnessed his singing ability were a couple of his bandmates: “Most of my music and most of my first songs that I wrote were played very much in private, like in my bedroom, closed door. Upstairs, they could hear it from downstairs. It was never like, ‘Hey, let me show you this’ or anything. They were always still very supportive of it.  Actually, the first time that anybody ever heard me sing was the first 49 show. It was the first time I ever sang in front of people, besides Chase and Bus, my first bandmates.” That seems pretty wild, does it not? However, it’s just a testament to the somewhat blind support that Gibson received from his parents. From what he remembers, they just saw how much he cared about making music and writing songs and decided to get fully behind him instead of questioning him or pushing him towards the family business: “They just saw the amount of time I put in it and the amount of joy that it brought me, and I think if you are a parent, that’s really a recipe for success. If a kid is willing to pour their heart into something, and it brings them a lot of joy, that’s something that can stick and can work and really grow and blossom. So it’s cool that they saw that.” @whiskeyriff Listen to the Whiskey Riff Raff podcast. @49 Winchester #whiskeyriff #whiskeyriffraff ♬ original sound – Whiskey Riff You can hear Isaac Gibson talk more about his upbringing, and how he kept his musical abilities a secret, by downloading the podcast on Apple Podcasts by searching “Whiskey Riff Raff” or by clicking here. We’re also available on Spotify and wherever else you can listen to podcasts. Cheers, y’all. Audio Video The post 49 Winchester Frontman, Isaac Gibson, Says No One Ever Heard Him Sing Until The Band’s First Live Show first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

HARDY was tugging at the heartstrings of Stephen Wilson Jr. with the end-of-tour gift that he thought up. The “Father’s Son” singer is close to wrapping up his tour dates for 2025. Two of his big, almost finale shows have taken place at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. It was last night that Wilson Jr. rattled the pews of the Ryman with his raucous live show, and he’s got one more show on there tonight (November 24) in case you are in the Nashville area and want to score a last-minute ticket. Considering who you ask, Stephen Wilson Jr. might be in the midst of his official breakout. I’ve been a big fan of his ever since he dropped his EP Bon Aqua in 2023, so I saw his time in the spotlight at the 2025 CMA Awards (his acoustic performance of “Stand By Me” really turned some heads) as a long-time coming for the talented and unique artist. And Stephen Wilson Jr. continues to create memorable, lasting musical moments like that one. During his Ryman show, the 46-year-old brought out his good friend HARDY – who has helped him a lot early in Wilson Jr.’s career – to help him sing “Father’s Son.” HARDY shared a video thanking Stephen for the opportunity just a bit ago: @hardyThank you @stephen.wilson.jr for letting me come up and play Father’s Søn with you last night at the Ryman. This is a special song that I will always be honored to sing with you.♬ Father’s Søn – Acoustic – Stephen Wilson Jr. & HARDY That’s a stellar pairing right there. While HARDY was up on stage, Stephen Wilson Jr. brought up the fact that his friend had gotten him a John Mellencamp-created gift as a end of tour present. For those that don’t know, Wilson Jr. and rock-legend John Mellencamp come from the same hometown – Seymour, Indiana. The “Jack & Diane” singer has always been a huge inspiration to him, and Wilson Jr. is also a boxer, like his father before him… so having his musical hero paint a picture of Joe Louis, a boxing icon, is the ultimate one-two punch: “He gave me the coolest after-tour gift that I’ve ever seen given on planet Earth. He gave it to me while we were setting up earlier today. I’ve done everything I can not to bust out bawling. I’ve got a Chernobyl level break down waiting to happen after all this is over. This man brought a painting of Joe Louis painted by John Mellencamp. If you know me, you know what that means to me. It’ll go up as the centerpiece of my house. It’ll be what everyone sees when they walk in my house… there’s not enough gratitude for a present that good.”  What a beautiful, thoughtful gift from HARDY. Clearly those two guys mean a lot to one another, and it was cool to see them share the stage at the historic venue. Like I said earlier, Stephen Wilson Jr. has one more show at the Ryman tonight, and then has two more shows to finish out the year (December 4 at the BEYON Al Dana Amphitheatre in Zallaq, Bahrain, followed by a December 11 date in Las Vegas, Nevada at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan). If you can’t catch him at any of those shows, you are in luck… he’s got plenty of dates lined up for 2026. 2026 Tour Dates: 1/27-1/31: Key West, FL – Mile 0 Festival * 2/17: Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall 2/26: Tulsa, OK – BOK Center ^ 2/27: Fort Worth, TX – Dickies Arena ^ 2/28: Austin, TX – Moody Center ^ 3/6: Columbus, OH – KEMBA Live! # 3/7: Grand Rapids, MI – GLC Live at 20 Monroe # 3/10: Cleveland, OH – The Agora # 3/11: Detroit, MI – The Fillmore # 3/14: Toronto, ON – HISTORY # 3/18: Boston, MA – Citizens House of Blues # 3/21: Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Paramount # 3/22: Port Chester, NY – The Capitol Theatre # 3/25: Philadelphia, PA – The Fillmore # 3/28: Silver Spring, MD – The Fillmore # 4/11: Bossier City, LA – The Paradise Theater at Margaritaville Bossier City # 4/15: St. Louis, MO – The Pageant # 4/17: Kansas City, MO – The Midland Theatre # 4/18: Denver, CO – Mission Ballroom # 4/22: Omaha, NE – Steelhouse Omaha # 4/24: Madison, WI – The Sylvee # 4/25: Chicago, IL – The Salt Shed # 6/6: Lexington, KY – Railbird Music Festival * 7/18: Whitefish, MT – Under the Big Sky Festival * * – Festival # – Gary The Torch tour ^ – Supporting Eric ChurchThe post Stephen Wilson Jr. Was Nearly Brought To Tears By Hardy’s End-Of-Tour Gift: “Not Enough Gratitude For A Present That Good”  first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

The superstar has unfurled a massive lineup of dates on his 2026 With Heaven On Tour. Continue reading…