According to Musk, Apple and OpenAI are colluding to stifle competition from other AI companies.

Dr. Edward Simmer has become an infamous name in the Palmetto State this past year leading up to his failed Senate nomination hearing and aptly dubbed as the “Fauci of South Carolina.” While Governor McMaster has positioned Dr. Simmer to dictate the health of South Carolinians since 2021, Dr. Simmer doesn’t have the qualifications for …

Carly Pearce sits down with Bunnie Xo to discuss the various aspects of her life and career, including revisiting some painful yet public moments from her past. Carly Pearce joined The Dumb Blonde Podcast this week, sitting down on the couch to share the truth about various aspects of her life, including her past divorce from Michael Ray and a moment that brought the divorce back into the spotlight earlier this year. For those unfamiliar with Pearce’s past relationship, she went through a very public divorce from fellow country singer Michael Ray in 2020, after being married for less than a year. Her album, 29: Written in Stone, was largely about the heartbreak of that experience. Since then, they’ve both dated other people, but following their divorce, Michael started dating Tyler Tritt, the daughter of ’90s country star Travis Tritt. They’ve since broken up, and I personally don’t know much about the details of their relationship beyond knowing they used to post about each other on occasion. And I definitely don’t know anything about timelines or when they became official, but they shared pictures together within a month or two after the divorce was finalized. As a result, numerous rumors circulated that Ray was unfaithful in his relationship with Pearce. In the podcast episode, Bunnie Xo asked Pearce if there was one thing that led to their separation or multiple things. Pearce’s answer was relatively straightforward; the marriage she entered was not the marriage she deserved. “It wasn’t what I signed up for. It just wasn’t the marriage that I know I deserve. I knew that very quickly. And I think in the first, we were only married for 8 months, plenty happened to where it was very clear to me that this just wasn’t a marriage.” Pearce was then asked point-blank if any infidelity or instances made her question if Ray loved her wholly: “The album ’29’ wasn’t written out of thin air. I am in the happiest season of my life. If he ever watches this, thank you. Because you taught me more about myself, you taught me how strong I am, put me through things that have made me better now. I don’t wish him evil. I’m so glad that I’m not in that anymore. I think that I was really shown just how much I care about me, you know? I actually really have a lot of self-worth, and that showed me that. People have a lot of opinions, and that at first was so hard for me. Because I was like, ‘That’s not true, that’s not true, that’s not true. What he’s saying is not true.’ But at the end of the day, my friends who walked that with me, they know. My parent know, and God knows, and that is enough.” Bunnie Xo then brings up the moment from last year that resurfaced cheating rumors between Pearce and Ray, when Pearce looked at Travis Tritt’s daughter, who is Michael Ray’s ex-girlfriend, dead in the eyes as she sang “Jolene” during Opry 100: A Live Celebration earlier this year. Social media users were privy to the cheating speculations, noting that they would have rather seen Tyler Tritt on their screen during “Jolene” instead of when the camera actually panned to her during her father’s performance with Post Malone. Pearce boldly responded to the fan’s post, noting that she had indeed stared at Tyler Tritt during her performance. Aw don’t you worry, I looked right at her — Carly Pearce (@carlypearce) March 20, 2025 Bunnie asks if Tyler Tritt is, in fact, the “Jolene” of her former relationship. “Let’s just say I’m not a fan of her. I’m not a fan of him. I could have done so much more than I did.” Carly has never explicitly said that Ray cheated on her while they were married, and her song “What He Didn’t Do” also seems to imply that there wasn’t one specific moment (like an affair) that led to the divorce. However, her answer in this podcast teaser would lead you to believe that she’s not entirely sure what went on between Ray and Tritt, and on what timeline. Pearce takes a pause, allowing Bunnie to interject to note that she can tell that talking about the situation still gets her worked up, to which Pearce admits it does. But not out of anger, but out of the fact that she was so hurt and had to find closure on her own. “I think to your point, I shut my mouth for so long… But truthfully, I shut my mouth for so long because I felt like I had to. And I’m not here to blow anybody up, or I don’t care anymore. But yeah, I mean, when you’re faced with somebody that was a really dark season for you, also you go, ‘I don’t know if he told her we were divorced.’ I don’t know, I don’t know. That was not a fun situation for me. I think what’s harder is you want someone at the end of it to just look you in the eye and be like, ‘Yeah, I did this…’ But I never got any of that, so I had to piece together a lot of things. But they were facts.” @xomgitsbunnie My girl Carly Pearce is on the couch today & gave the most amazing & raw interview. I adore this woman! #dbpodcast #carlypearce ♬ original sound – Bunnie Xo While divorce is never something fun to go through, I have immense respect for Pearce for choosing herself and knowing that she deserves better. I can’t wait to hear the full podcast. Although Pearce has released more projects since 29: Written in Stone, some of the hurt from her past relationships still creeps into her more recent songs. Many fans have speculated that Carly’s song “Heels Over Head,” which appeared on her record Hummingbird, was written about Tyler and her relationship with Carly’s ex-husband. It’s a pretty dang savage one that finds Carly realizing that the guy she likes doesn’t want to work quite so hard for a good time, so to speak, and would rather take the “easier” option, if you’re picking up what we are putting down… She admits that she understands why he’ll never really like her, seeing as the other girl he’s been hanging out with doesn’t even “need a couple drinks to let you take her home and tangle up her sheets.” While all of this is speculation based on her thoughts on Tyler Tritt from this interview and her response to that tweet, I think it’s safe to say that it could be true. Clearly, there is no love lost, and Pearce has moved on fully, but even time does not heal all wounds. However, as Pearce said, it sounds like she’s in a very happy season of life, and even though talking about it can still bring up some unresolved feelings, it’s not a situation that occupies her thoughts. “Heels Over Head” The post “I’m Not A Fan Of Her” – Carly Pearce Addresses Staring Down Travis Tritt’s Daughter (Michael Ray’s Ex-Girlfriend) While Singing “Jolene” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Not a problem. Morgan Wallen is on a dominant run in country music right now. After securing the title of most-played artist on country radio so far this year, most-played artist on TouchTunes throughout 2025 and becoming the first artist ever to spend at least 10 weeks at #1 with three consecutive albums (I’m The Problem, One Thing At A Time, and Dangerous: The Double Album), today he became the artist who has spent the second-most weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart this century, second only to Taylor Swift. Morgan Wallen has now spent the second-most weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 this century, surpassing Adele this week (41 weeks at #1). He trails only Taylor Swift (86 weeks). pic.twitter.com/SgaxIorQ68 — Talk of the Charts (@talkofthecharts) August 24, 2025 Additionally, Wallen has now firmly planted himself eighth all-time in total weeks spent at #1 on the Billboard 200 in the chart’s history. Joining the likes of The Beatles, Garth Brooks, Michael Jackson and more, he has now passed the likes of Drake, Elton John, Eminem, Prince and The Rolling Stones for most weeks spent atop the chart. Which is why it was such a bombshell when it was revealed last week that Morgan won’t be submitting his hit album I’m The Problem for GRAMMY consideration. According to a report from Hits Daily Double: “Sources in the 615 tell us that Morgan Wallen has elected not to submit his chart-topping album ‘I’m the Problem’ (Big Loud/Mercury/Republic)—far and away the biggest release of the year—for Grammy consideration.   The Academy’s gatekeepers, you’ll recall, have never been particularly receptive to Wallen, though those who ought to know tell us there was no rancor in the decision, which they described as a measured ‘No, thank you.'” The move really isn’t all that surprising given Morgan’s history with awards shows. After being banned from all major awards shows back in 2021 in the wake of his racial slur controversy, Morgan hasn’t really showed any interest in lending his presence to the shows to boost their ratings. In fact, when he finally won Entertainer of the Year at the CMA Awards last year, Morgan wasn’t even in attendance to accept the award and hasn’t acknowledged it in the months since (other than posting a photo of the trophy on his Instagram). And as for the GRAMMY Awards…well, they’ve never really shown much interest in recognizing Wallen for his success. In 2023, Variety reported that Wallen was excluded from that year’s awards because the Academy did not align with his “hyper-commercial country” sound. While that statement was not directed directly at Wallen, it certainly felt that way when Tracy Gershon, a trustee of the Recording Academy’s Nashville chapter, cautioned artists never to assume that commercial success guarantees a nomination. “I would say, unlike other awards, the Grammy voters don’t necessarily vote on commercial popularity. In fact, they tend to vote on artistic merit.” Basically, they say they don’t like his music, although if I had to guess I would say that they’re also not a big fan of Morgan as a person either and that doesn’t help when it comes to voting. Either way, not submitting your music for consideration is a pretty big deal. It’s a blow to the credibility of the awards when you don’t even have the most popular album of the year in the running, and it’s a message to the industry that one of the biggest artists in the world doesn’t view the top awards ceremony as important. And it’s not just Morgan who won’t be up for awards: Neither will anyone else who was involved in making the album. The GRAMMY Awards, like other ceremonies, recognize not just the artist but others depending on the category. Record of the Year, for example, is presented to an album’s performer and producers. Album of the Year goes to the performer, songwriters and production team. Song of the Year would go to the songwriters. But since the album isn’t being submitted, none of those people would be up for awards. And according to at least one songwriter on the album, he’s fine with that. Ashley Gorley is undeniably one of the top songwriters in Nashville, having written many of the hits you hear on country radio for artists like Thomas Rhett, HARDY, Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt, Jason Aldean, and of course, Morgan Wallen. Gorley is listed as a songwriter for four songs on Morgan’s latest album, including fan favorites like “TN” and “Kiss Her In Front Of You” along with #1 hit “Love Somebody” and album cut “Don’t We.” And because the album won’t be submitted for GRAMMY consideration, that means none of those songs will be up for awards either – something that doesn’t seem to bother Gorley too much: “I mean, that’s fine with me. We’re in the Never Won a Grammy Club, you know, together. I was at his show on Saturday night, and that’s what matters most to us, the fans, the reactions, the way those songs are coming off. So amazing. What a great set. I took the family up to Cleveland to see that show. So, yeah, that’s kind of what we’re thinking about. We’re not thinking about Grammys. We’re writing the song. So, I mean, all good. I’ll take one if someone wants to give me one, but at the same time, we’re all good with that. We’re all kind of writing from a different place and really doing – he’s saying what he wants to say at this point, as he should. You know, he’s had an amazing career, crushing it, and so totally respect his opinion on that for sure.” @billboard Songwriter Ashley Gorley shares his thoughts on Morgan Wallen not submitting his album for Grammy consideration with Billboard at the ACMHonors. #morganwallen #country #grammys ♬ original sound – billboard Realistically, pretty much everybody knows that Morgan wasn’t going to be winning any GRAMMY awards anyway. The people who vote on those awards clearly don’t like Morgan, and while they may claim it’s because of his music I would guess that it’s more because of who he is than the music he’s putting out. Why crash a party you’re not wanted at anyway?The post Hit Songwriter For Morgan Wallen Speaks Out On ‘I’m The Problem’ Not Being Submitted For GRAMMY Consideration first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

In the midst of a growing feud with Gavin Adcock, which stemmed from an Instagram post criticizing the current state of country music, defending Beyoncé and more, Charley Crockett has been on a tear lately. In case you missed it, Crockett penned this biting caption on an Instagram post last Tuesday: “Hey country folks. Beyoncé ain’t the source of your discontent. It was 25 years of bro country. The number one country artist on Earth listens to nothing but rap. Openly says he doesn’t really know any country music. Gotta respect his honesty. The machine points to a black woman who’s making a statement about marginalized people being removed from the conversation altogether, and somehow we all act like the entire pop industry didn’t just ambush roots music. These ‘country boys’ been singing over trap beats for years. So what’s different now? Authenticity. Many of those business folks called me early on. They had whole albums pre-written and recorded ready to just plug me in. I have receipts. It’s harder than ever to keep the public’s attention. They said and I quote, ‘We wanna get into country music where you have audience loyalty.’ Hot today, forgot tomorrow. I don’t need to put down a black woman to advance my music. That’s just embarrassing to the idea of America and I got no respect for it.” This, of course, led Adcock to lash out, sending a flurry of different insults his way. Not only did the “Need To” singer call Crockett a “cowplay cowboy” on X, he’d also call him “dipsh*t of the week” on his Instagram story. Adcock would also attempt to “expose” the “Jamestown Ferry” singer by sharing a video of Crockett busking on New York subways, something he has touched on multiple times before, notably on The Joe Rogan Experience. Somebody needs to tell the “act” that has let out (the cover) of James town ferry 6 times he should just work on letting out quality original music I got more cowshit under my pinky then you have seen your whole fuckin life. Hank sr called and asked about the cosplay cowboy — Gavin Adcock Music (@GavinAdcock) August 20, 2025 Through all of this, Crockett has taken the high road for the most part, even going as far as to send Adcock 60 roses and a copy of his new record, Dollar A Day, something that Adcock described as a “$3 vinyl.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Gavin Adcock (@gavinadcockmusic) Throughout all of this, Crockett has still been rolling through a plethora of cities. Most notably, he performed in Minneapolis over the weekend on Saturday, August 23rd, to a sold-out crowd at Surly Brewing Festival Field. During the 28-song set, the Texas native delivered a plethora of different hits, including the likes of “Welcome to Hard Times,” “$10 Cowboy” and  “Jamestown Ferry”, as well as new releases such as “Crucified Son,” “Woman In A Bar” and “Lone Star.” The most interesting part of the show, however, was undoubtedly when he began to play his 2022 hit, “The Man from Waco.” Midway through the set, Crockett began playing the track before forgetting the words early in the first verse. Instead of restarting the song, he’d instead skip over it entirely before telling the crowd the song wasn’t working for him. “Oh sh*t, man. I can’t remember this one right now, boys. I gotta do something up tempo. This one ain’t gonna work for me. I gotta get this sh*t poppin’.” He’d then reference the fact that he’s put out over 250 songs (along with 15 albums) over the past decade, while also taking a subtle jab at Adcock and the rest of the people who have been criticizing him over the past week: “250 songs. Y’all know I put out 250 songs? I probably got 150 I ain’t put out yet. But it don’t matter to me. Not everybody’s gotta like my music, but mother****ers standing around acting like I just got here. Nah, mother****er, you just got here.” Crockett and the band would then instantly transition into a cover of James Hand’s “Don’t Tell Me That,” much more upbeat as promised, before closing out the show with the likes of the aforementioned “$10 Cowboy” and “Jamestown Ferry” as well as recent tracks such as “Lonesome Drifter.” Though it seems like he’s been taking the high road and handling this admittedly senseless “beef” with class over the past week, it looks like Crockett couldn’t help but throw a little shade here. And can you really blame him? Despite making a one-off comment on the current state of country music (not even naming Adcock, mind you), he’s now been dragged into a plethora of different stories and headlines due to Adcock’s incessant need to put himself at the forefront of any drama in the genre. I don’t know about you, but I can’t really blame Charley here. Watch here: @notyourbbgirl1996 seriously such an amazing concert at Surly Brewing in Minneapolis #charleycrockett #surlybrewing #minneapolis #countrymusic #livemusic @Charley Crockett ♬ original sound – notyourbbgirl1996 Charley Crockett Tour Dates: August 25 – Grand Rapids, MI – Frederik Meijer Gardens Amphitheater August 26 – Milwaukee, WI – BMO Pavilion August 27 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheater at Freedom Hill August 28 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage August 30 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Broadview Stage as SPAC August 31 – Portland, ME – Thompson’s Point September 4 – Forest Hills, NY – Forest Hills Stadium September 5 – Philadelphia, PA – The Mann Center September 6 – Richmond, VA – Allianz Amphitheater at RiverfrontThe post Charley Crockett Forgets Words To “The Man From Waco,” Quickly Reminds Fans How Much Music He’s Released – “Nah MF’er, You Just Got Here” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

They’re back. Today, ABC announced that last year’s judges Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood have all signed new deals and will return to American Idol for its ninth season on the network (and 24th overall) this year. No word yet on if longtime host Ryan Seacrest will return, but it’s likely that he will also resign his contract for the show. Both Luke and Lionel have been judges since Idol started on ABC, but Carrie joined last season and has provided an interesting perspective considering she has become one of the biggest stars the show has ever produced after winning it all back in 2005. She replaced Katy Perry as a judge in 2024, and from what I saw last year during the airing of the show, most fans were excited to have her back in this type of capacity, and it certainly made for a full-circle moment. Carrie was just 22 years old when she won Idol, and while I wondered how it would work for them having two country artists as judges at the same time, a first for the show, they all seem to have a great dynamic and there were several viral moments last year. They shared the announcement on Instagram earlier, featuring videos from all three judges telling fans that class was “back in session”: View this post on Instagram A post shared by American Idol (@americanidol) The show will start airing in 2026, but producers’ auditions will begin on August 26th and will take place with a live virtual nationwide search across all 50 states if you’re looking to audition for this upcoming season. I’ll be honest, I haven’t been interested in a singing competition show like this since I watched the original American Idol years ago, but it’s cool that there’s so much country representation with the judges, and l still sometimes enjoy watching the auditions because you just never know who is going to walk through the doors and either embarrass themselves or blow everyone away. Idol Across America audition dates: “First 900” VIP Event (Aug. 26) Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi (Aug. 27) Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas (Aug. 28) Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina (Sept. 2) Nationwide open call (Sept. 3) Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania (Sept. 4) Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, New Hampshire, Tennessee (Sept. 8) Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Washington (Sept. 9) Florida, Michigan, Virginia, West Virginia (Sept. 11) East Coast open call (Sept. 12) The South open call (Sept. 15) Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin (Sept. 16) West and Midwest open call (Sept. 18) Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, D.C. (Sept. 19) Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Wyoming (Sept. 22) Nationwide open call (Sept. 24) Carrie’s Journey From American Idol To Country Superstardom Since 2005, Carrie has become a country superstar, selling over 85 million records worldwide, scored 28 #1 singles, won eight Grammy’s and seven CMA Awards. She’s become easily one of the most successful artists to come from the competition show, and her insane vocal range and beautiful voice are second to none. For me, she’s easily in the conversation for the best vocalist in mainstream country music over the last 20 years. She shared a nostalgic video package sharing the news, recalling how she ended up auditioning in the first place and how much she has accomplished in almost 20 years: “I remember being at home, in our little house in Checotah, and seeing on TV that there were auditions in St. Louis. My mom said, ‘If you wanna go, I’ll drive you.’ I went from nobody knowing my name, to tens of millions of people watching the show. I’m proud of everything I was able to accomplish on the show, and I’m so proud of everything  I’ve accomplished since.” CARRIE From Idol hopeful, to global icon…to IDOL judge! Home-grown superstar @carrieunderwood will join @AmericanIdol for Season 8! #CUonIdol pic.twitter.com/ewTK7oBKrc — Carrie Underwood (@carrieunderwood) August 1, 2024 The small town girl from Oklahoma has obviously became a megastar even beyond country music, and she’s gone on to have plenty of #1 singles on the radio, won just about every award there is, from Grammy’s, to ACM’s, CMA Awards, her Reflection residency in Las Vegas, in addition to owning her own clothing line and being a mom to two little boys. American Idol has yet to announce an official date, which was renewed by ABC earlier this spring, but it should be airing sometime early next year. While you’re here, check out her audition video from almost 20 years ago when a baby-faced Carrie Underwood impressed judges with a beautiful rendition of the Bonnie Raitt classic “I Can’t Make You Love Me”: The post Carrie Underwood & Luke Bryan Set To Return To ‘American Idol’ For 2026 Season first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Adam Schiff insists Bolton raid was 'retribution' for Trump criticismFollow NewsClips channel at Brighteon.com for more updatesSubscribe to Brighteon newsletter to get the latest news and more featured videos:https://support.brighteon.com/Subscribe.html

Senate Dems TORCHED for blocking Trump nominees: 'SILLY SEASON'Follow NewsClips channel at Brighteon.com for more updatesSubscribe to Brighteon newsletter to get the latest news and more featured videos:https://support.brighteon.com/Subscribe.html