Whatever you believe about what took place this week in Venezuela, for many of us, it is obvious and clear that this is about regime change and stealing another country’s resources and wealth while promising to “run the country” and to “take care of the Venezuelan people”.  Yet, there are some interesting things that should …

A certified country classic. Ernest is right about that… over on Instagram, he shared a cover of The King’s hit “The Chair,” and it’s a simple acoustic video, but that’s my favorite way to hear a country cover so I’m here for it. Of course, “The Chair” is a song written by Hank Cochran and Dean Dillon and recorded by George Strait. It was released in August of 1985 as the first single from his Something Special album. It became a quick hit, reaching #1 on the country music charts in 1985, and the famous story goes that Cochran and Dillon wrote it very fast after a long night of writing many other songs. It was the last one they penned as inspiration struck, and Dean just so happened to strum the right chord and sing that iconic first line, “Excuse me but I think you’ve got my chair,” and 20 minutes later, the song was done. Dillon has written so many George Strait songs over the years that you probably know and love, including “Unwound,” “Ocean Front Property,” “Easy Come, Easy Go,” “I’ve Come to Expect It From You,” “Here for a Good Time,” and many more, but “The Chair” is just special. In his caption with the cover of the video, Ernest called it “one of the best country songs ever,” and I have to agree: “One of the best country songs ever. Written by Dean Dillon and Hank Cochran… here’s my attempt at it.” Obviously, no one is ever going to do it like The King, but I appreciate Ernest bringing a spotlight to these kinds of songs with what he called his “attempt,” and you can see what you think for yourself here: View this post on Instagram During a recent conversation with Bobby Bones, Ernest revealed that he has already finished his next album, and it was in the final stages of being finished. He explained that he just has to shoot the cover art for the album, and fans can expect a new project “sometime like spring break,” which makes it likely that a release date will be in March or early April: “I’ve recorded and finished my next album, and I’m going to shoot the album art soon. And I’m going to put it out sometime like spring break. It’s going to be the perfect time for boat season.” As for what to expect from the album, which is still untitled, Ernest would reveal it will have some beachy/island vibes mixed with some of his patented southern flair. He described the sound as a blend of “Alabama and Jimmy Buffett,” and “There’s a little island inspiration in this next album for sure. And just like a little southern, too. It’s like Alabama and Jimmy Buffett had a baby.”  Music to my ears, truly… this one is going to be good. Ernest already has tons of tour dates on the books for his 2026 Live From The South tour, and you can see the full list of dates below. Live From The South 2026 Dates: 1/21 – Denver, Colo. – Mission Ballroom* 1/23 – Salt Lake City, Utah – The Complex* 1/24 – Reno, Nev. – Grand Sierra Resort & Casino* 1/29 – Solana Beach, Calif. – Belly Up* 1/30 – Anaheim, Calif. – House of Blues* 1/31 – Sacramento, Calif. – Ace of Spades* 2/7 – Indio, Calif. – Fantasy Springs Casino 2/19 – Athens, Ga. – Georgia Theatre > 2/26 – Jacksonville, Fla. – FIVE > 2/27 – Charleston, S.C. – Charleston Music Hall > 2/28 – Norfolk, Va. – NorVa > 3/5 – Indianapolis, Ind. – The Egyptian > 3/6 – Rosemont, Ill. – Joe’s Live > 3/7 – Columbus, Ohio – The Bluestone > 3/11 – Grand Rapids, Mich. – The Intersection # 3/13 – Detroit, Mich. – Filmore # 3/14 – McKees Rocks, Pa. – Roxian Theatre # 3/19 – Durant, Okla. – Choctaw Casino 3/26 – Boston, Mass. – House of Blues* 3/27 – New York, N.Y.– Irving Plaza* 3/28 – Bensalem, Pa. – Parx Casino* 4/2 – Houston, Texas – White Oak Music Hall* 4/3 – New Braunfels, Texas – Gruene Hall* 4/4 – Ft. Worth, Texas – Billy Bob’s* 4/16 – St. Louis, Mo. – Hawthorn # 4/18 – Minneapolis, Minn. – First Avenue # * Support By Chandler Walters > Support By Cody Lohden # Support By Rhys RutherfordThe post “One Of The Best Country Songs Ever”: Ernest Covers The Iconic George Strait Hit, “The Chair” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Touching words from Alan. Yesterday, the news broke that Jim McBride, a legendary country music songwriter and member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, had unexpectedly passed away at the age of 78 on January 6th. His death would be confirmed by both longtime friend and fellow songwriter, Jerry Salley, as well as the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, which McBride was inducted into in 1995. After his death, the Alabama Music Hall of Fame shared a tribute to McBride: “Jim was a beloved Alabamian, songwriter, friend, mentor, and so much more. He is perhaps most widely recognized for his work with Alan Jackson, including co-writing the country hits “Chattahoochee” and “Chasing That Neon Rainbow.” Jim’s songs have been recorded by legends such as Johnny Cash, George Jones, Reba McEntire, Alabama, Willie Nelson, Charley Pride, Kris Kristofferson, Randy Travis, Brenda Lee, Jerry Lee Lewis, Toby Keith, Dwight Yoakam, and many more. His honors include a CMA Song of the Year Award, numerous accolades from ASCAP, BMI, NSAI, NARAS, CMA, AMA, ACM, Billboard Magazine, his induction into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, and his induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. We will greatly miss Mr. McBride—may his legacy live on forever.” View this post on Instagram McBride was a native of Huntsville, Alabama, who started writing songs as a child and began pursuing songwriting as a full-time career by the age of 18. In the 1970s, he discovered a mentor in fellow Alabama native and legendary songwriter Curly Putnam, and even had some songs featured on the classic television series Hee Haw. But he eventually grew frustrated with his lack of success and decided to give up on songwriting as a career, instead going to work for the US Postal Service. But in 1980, he got his first real break when Conway Twitty recorded “A Bridge That Just Won’t Burn,” a song penned by McBride and Roger Murrah. He had told Murrah that he would move to Nashville if somebody recorded the song, and as McBride later recalled: “Roger called me one night and said ‘I guess you need to pack your bags, we’ve got Conway’s next single.’ I quit the post office the day after Christmas.” His first #1 hit would come in 1981 with “Bet Your Heart on Me,” which was recorded by Johnny Lee, and in 1987 Waylon Jennings scored yet another #1 hit with “Rose In Paradise,” co-written by McBride and Stewart Harris. His life (and career) changed, though, when he met Alan Jackson in 1988. Jackson was a new artist in Nashville, still two years away from releasing his debut album, but the two became frequent collaborators, writing songs together like “Chasin’ That Neon Rainbow,” “Someday,” “A House With No Curtains,” “(Who Says) You Can’t Have It All,” and of course one of Jackson’s biggest hits, “Chattahoochee.” In addition to the plethora of Jackson hits, McBride also penned songs for everybody from Keith Whitley, Diamond Rio and John Anderson to Reba McEntire, Johnny Cash and Alabama. Other notable hits from the Alabama native include Aaron Tippin’s “I Was Born with a Broken Heart,” Wade Hayes’ “What I Meant to Say” and Tammy Cochran’s “Angels in Waiting.” Reflecting upon the loss of his longtime friend and collaborator, the “Summertime Blues” singer would take to his social media pages this morning to pen a touching tribute to McBride. View this post on Instagram Sharing multiple images of the two receiving awards, both for “Chattahoochee,” at the 1995 ASCAP Awards (Song of the Year) and the 1993 TNN Music City News Country Awards (Song of the Year), Jackson would call McBride a “good man and a great and genuine songwriter,” noting that he truly understood country music as a genre. He’d also ponder if his career would ever reach the heights it did without the late songwriter. “Jim was a good man and a great and genuine songwriter. He understood country music and touched many with his songs. Jim and I wrote some of my favorite songs together and I don’t know if my career would have ended up quite the same without his help, inspiration, and encouragement in my early years. Thank you Jim, rest in peace. – AJ” Thoughts and prayers go out to the entire McBride family, Jackson and all of the artists he worked with and inspired over the years. Country music lost a great one this week. Rest in peace, Jim McBride. “(Who Says) You Can’t Have It All” The post Alan Jackson Credits His Legendary Career To Late Songwriter, Jim McBride, In Touching Tribute: “My Longtime Friend” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Joshua Ray Walker is getting some love from a fellow country music artist that knows how it feels to be staring down a daunting weight loss journey. It’d be an understatement to say that the “Dumpster Diving” singer has been through a lot in the past couple of years. It was in 2023 that he shared with the world that he had colon cancer, and was undergoing chemotherapy treatment. Things were going as well as they could have been… until Walker got an update that after six months of chemo, the cancer had spread to his lungs. The country singer was told at the time that his cancer had advanced to Stage 4. Fortunately, after undergoing a biopsy, the doctors informed Walker that his diagnosis was incorrect, and that the cancer hadn’t spread. In fact, the doctors concluded that he was cancer-free, as there were no signs of cancer in his body. He’s still done tests and scans since then to stay on top of things, and Walker hopes that one day he’ll be in remission. And now that his fight against cancer is in a manageable state, the singer-songwriter is deciding to embark on another health journey: losing 200 pounds. It was at the beginning of 2026 that Walker started up a new social media account with the name “400 days to 400 pounds.” He says he’s currently over 600 pounds, and wants to get down to 400 pounds in a little over a year: “I’m giving myself 400 days to get down to 400 pounds. So if you want to watch an extremely fat man become a slightly less fat man, follow along now.” View this post on Instagram Walker’s plan is to eat less and exercise a whole lot more. He’s used the social media account to keep himself accountable, and hopefully inspire others who have considered going on their own weight loss journey. Many of the videos just show the country singer out on morning and evening walks, with some commentary and a “countdown from 400 days” included. So far, he’s been overwhelmed by the support. Just one day into his “400 days to 400 pounds” initiative, he had gained over 5,000 followers. Though that number has since climbed to 324,000, Walker logged on and thanked the 5,000 that had already signed up to follow along with his weight loss: View this post on Instagram And in the comments section of that post, a fellow country artist by the name of Jelly Roll decided to voice his support for Joshua Ray Walker: “You can do it brother. I believe in you. Let’s go! Hit me if you need anything.” That means a lot coming from the “Need A Favor” singer, considering he’s been on his own health journey in the past couple of years. In just the past two years, Jelly Roll has dropped 275 pounds. At his highest weight, the artist whose real name is Jason Bradley DeFord was around 550 pounds. When he recently graced the cover of Men’s Health magazine, he weighed in at 265 pounds. So yeah… Jelly Roll knows a thing or two about effectively losing weight. It’ll be cool to see if Walker takes up Jelly Roll on his offer. I’m sure fans would love to see the “400 Days to 400 Pounds” account feature a cameo from Jelly Roll, whether they be working out together or the “Save Me” singer giving Walker one of his patented, life-changing pep-talks. But even if that doesn’t happen, it’s nice to see fellow country music stars rooting for the success of one another. Keep inspiring people with your weight loss journey Joshua Ray Walker!The post “Hit Me If You Need Anything”: Jelly Roll Pledges Support For Joshua Ray Walker In 400-Day Weight Loss Challenge first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

The state investigators in Minnesota are now claiming that they’re not being allowed access to the evidence in the case of the fatal shooting by an ICE agent yesterday in Minneapolis. Here’s . . .

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is holding a press briefing today with Vice President JD Vance, and it begins at 1PM. Normally these things begin a little late, but not always. . . .

Five Republicans, most of them predictable, joined Democrats in the US Senate to pass a bill that would halt President Trump’s use of military force in Venezuela. As you can imagine, Rand . . .

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President Donald Trump said Wednesday he will seek a $1.5 trillion defense budget for 2027, a roughly $500 billion increase over current Pentagon funding, signaling a desire to aggressively expand U.S. military spending. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the request would fund his “Dream Military,” though he offered few specifics. The proposed increase could help pay for costly initiatives such as the “Golden Dome” missile defense system and a new battleship design, programs that cannot be fully supported under existing budgets. Trump suggested tariff revenues would offset the cost, although the current revenue from tariffs would still be hundreds of billions of dollars short of meeting the increase. The defense budget only recently reached $1 trillion in 2025, boosted by $150 billion added through reconciliation. Some Republican hawks have long pushed to raise defense spending to about 5 percent of GDP. The post Trump Calls For Vast Military Budget Expansion appeared first on The American Conservative.